Scripture
1O Lord, you have examined my heart
and know everything about me.
2You know when I sit down or stand up.
You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.
3You see me when I travel
and when I rest at home.
You know everything I do.
4You know what I am going to say
even before I say it, Lord.
5You go before me and follow me.
You place your hand of blessing on my head.
6Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too great for me to understand!
7I can never escape from your Spirit!
I can never get away from your presence!
8If I go up to heaven, you are there;
if I go down to the grave,[1] you are there.
9If I ride the wings of the morning,
if I dwell by the farthest oceans,
10even there your hand will guide me,
and your strength will support me.
11I could ask the darkness to hide me
and the light around me to become night—
12but even in darkness I cannot hide from you.
To you the night shines as bright as day.
Darkness and light are the same to you.
13You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body
and knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.
15You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion,
as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.
16You saw me before I was born.
Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid out
before a single day had passed.
17How precious are your thoughts about me,[2] O God.
They cannot be numbered!
18I can’t even count them;
they outnumber the grains of sand!
And when I wake up,
you are still with me!
19O God, if only you would destroy the wicked!
Get out of my life, you murderers!
20They blaspheme you;
your enemies misuse your name.
21O Lord, shouldn’t I hate those who hate you?
Shouldn’t I despise those who oppose you?
22Yes, I hate them with total hatred,
for your enemies are my enemies.
23Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24Point out anything in me that offends you,
and lead me along the path of everlasting life.
Translation notes (2)
- 139:8 Hebrew to Sheol.
- 139:17 Or How precious to me are your thoughts.
Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous-how well I know it. Psalm 139:14
Imagine you spend months working on a stunning painting. You have thoughtfully and laboriously painted each stroke until you finally completed your work of art. Then you bring a close friend to see your work of art. You are so excited to show that friend your masterpiece to which you have dedicated months of your life. Your friend surprises you with a lackluster response to your artwork and tells you that they would have used different colors and that they prefer other pieces of artwork better. You would be rightfully upset and heartbroken, wouldn't you? The fact that anyone would speak negatively about something you created and put hard work into would hurt. We put a lot of care and thought into the things we create. On a much grander scale, God puts care into His creation as well. The pinnacle of His creation was human beings. Every person is God’s masterpiece, perfectly and intricately created, and should be treated as so.
David, the writer of many Psalms, knew that God values human beings as His prized, beloved creation. He wrote about the way God thought about Him in Psalm 139. He wrote, “You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother's womb" (verse 13). Notice the care and detail described in how God created him. Knitting is a slow, deliberate, careful process. He continued, "Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it” (verse 14). Because of the detail and care that went into David’s creation, he wrote, “How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered!” (verse 17). David understood how much God loved him and viewed him as his prized creation. Knowing this must have certainly impacted how he thought about himself and how he treated others.
This understanding in Psalm 139 was not just true about David. It is true about all people. God created each one of us carefully and intricately. Each one of us is "wonderfully complex." God's thoughts about every person on the planet are precious and "cannot be numbered." When we know and understand this truth, we see people differently. We see everyone we come in contact with as God's beloved and prized creations, and we treat them as such. We can show everyone just how special and valuable they are. Let's show everyone around us God's love today.
Moving toward action
As you go throughout your day today, remember that each person you encounter is loved by God and matters greatly to Him. Treat them as God's beloved works of art. Ask God to help you as you seek to do this and give you the same love He has for them.
Going Deeper
Psalm 139:1-24
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