Psalm 139:1 kjv
O lord, thou hast searched me, and known me.
Psalm 139:1 nkjv
For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. O LORD, You have searched me and known me.
Psalm 139:1 niv
For the director of music. Of David. A psalm. You have searched me, LORD, and you know me.
Psalm 139:1 esv
O LORD, you have searched me and known me!
Psalm 139:1 nlt
O LORD, you have examined my heart
and know everything about me.
Psalm 139 1 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Prov 15:3 | The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch... | God's omniscience and pervasive presence |
| Heb 4:13 | And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed... | Nothing hidden from God's full gaze |
| 1 Chr 28:9 | ...the Lord searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought. | God's knowledge extends to deepest thoughts and intentions |
| Jer 17:10 | I the Lord search the heart and test the mind, to give every man... | God as the ultimate discerner of inner being |
| Job 28:24 | For he looks to the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heavens. | God's all-encompassing sight across creation |
| Matt 10:29-30 | Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall...even the hairs of your head are all numbered. | God's meticulous, minute knowledge of creation and individuals |
| Luke 12:7 | Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid... | Emphasizes God's detailed care and knowledge for His people |
| 1 Jn 3:20 | For whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything. | God's ultimate knowledge surpassing self-condemnation |
| Rom 8:27 | And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit... | God's searching knowledge linked to His understanding of the Spirit's prayers |
| Acts 15:8 | And God, who knows the heart, bore witness to them... | God's knowledge of hearts informing His decisions |
| Jer 1:5 | Before I formed you in the womb I knew you... | God's pre-creational knowledge of individuals |
| Gal 1:15 | But when he who had set me apart before I was born and called me... | God's purpose for individuals established before birth |
| Ps 139:13-16 | For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb... | Elaboration within the psalm of God's intimate formation and knowledge |
| Isa 44:2 | Thus says the Lord who made you and formed you from the womb... | God as the Creator and sustainer of individual life |
| Jn 10:14 | I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me... | Jesus' intimate, knowing relationship with His followers |
| 1 Cor 8:3 | But if anyone loves God, he is known by God. | Reciprocal knowledge: being known by God is a sign of relationship |
| Gal 4:9 | ...but now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God... | Being known by God is prior and more significant than human knowing |
| Nah 1:7 | The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; he knows those who take refuge in him. | God's protective knowledge of His trusting ones |
| Jn 21:17 | ...Peter answered, "Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you." | Peter's confession of Christ's perfect, exhaustive knowledge |
| Ps 90:8 | You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence. | God's complete awareness of sin, even hidden ones |
| Rev 2:23 | ...and all the churches will know that I am he who searches mind and heart... | Christ's authority to judge based on His comprehensive knowledge of internals |
| Lk 1:76 | And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord... | God's sovereign knowledge of an individual's divine purpose (John the Baptist) |
| 1 Kgs 8:39 | ...for you, only you, know the hearts of all the children of mankind... | Solomon's prayer acknowledges God's exclusive heart-knowledge |
Psalm 139 verses
Psalm 139 1 Meaning
Psalm 139:1 begins a profound meditation on the awesome attributes of God, establishing His omnipresent, omniscient, and all-encompassing knowledge of humanity. It declares that the Lord has intimately examined and thoroughly comprehended the psalmist's entire being. The verse speaks of an active, penetrating investigation by God into every aspect of an individual's life, resulting in a perfect, complete, and experiential understanding, not merely intellectual awareness. This deep knowledge implies both a divine search and a subsequent, ongoing intimacy.
Psalm 139 1 Context
Psalm 139 is a personal lament and wisdom psalm, traditionally attributed to King David. It is a profound meditation on the unsearchable greatness of God, specifically His omnipresence, omniscience, and omnipotence, as they relate to the psalmist's own life. Verse 1 sets the theme by immediately confronting the staggering reality of God's perfect knowledge. The following verses (2-6) elaborate on the extent of this knowledge, detailing how God discerns every thought, action, and word before it is spoken. The psalm then transitions to God's omnipresence (7-12) and His active role in the psalmist's creation (13-16), concluding with a prayer for God to continue searching and leading him (17-24). The historical and cultural context highlights Israel's unique understanding of their God, YHWH, in contrast to the limited, specialized, or ignorant deities of surrounding pagan nations. Unlike idols with eyes that do not see and ears that do not hear, the God of Israel is portrayed as an all-seeing, all-knowing, and intimately involved sovereign.
Psalm 139 1 Word analysis
O Lord: The Hebrew term here is "יְהוָה" (YHWH), the divine personal name of God, often rendered "the Lord" in English translations, indicating God's eternal and covenant-keeping nature. Addressing God directly by His personal name emphasizes the intimate relationship the psalmist has with Him, making the declaration of God's perfect knowledge a deeply personal confession rather than a detached theological statement.
You have searched me: The Hebrew word is "חָקַרְתַּנִי" (chaqartaní), derived from the root chaqar (חָקַר). This verb denotes an active, thorough, deep searching, probing, examining, and exploring. It implies an investigation that is so complete that no detail is overlooked, no depth unexplored. It’s not that God needs to search to discover something unknown to Him, but the term conveys the profound intensity and comprehensiveness of His knowing. It's akin to mining deeply for ore or scrutinizing every facet of a subject.
and: The Hebrew conjunction "וְ" (ve) acts as a simple connector, linking the two verbs "searched" and "known." This conjunction highlights the integral relationship between the searching process (or God's capacity for it) and the resulting perfect knowledge.
known me: The Hebrew verb is "וַתֵּדָע" (vatteda), from the root yada (יָדַע). This is not merely intellectual acquaintance (e.g., knowing a fact), but a profound, intimate, and experiential knowledge. In biblical terms, "to know" often implies a deep relationship and understanding, as seen in Adam "knowing" Eve (Gen 4:1). When applied to God, it means His complete, comprehensive, and perfect comprehension of one's inner being, character, motives, and future. It signifies full discernment and absolute awareness.
You have searched me and known me: This phrase combines two powerful verbs to create a powerful synonymous parallelism. "Searched me" emphasizes the active, thorough, penetrating examination God conducts, leaving nothing undiscovered. "Known me" denotes the result and depth of that examination – a perfect, complete, intimate understanding of every part of the psalmist. Together, they stress the totality and infallibility of God's omniscience. God’s knowledge is not abstract; it’s personal and applied. This active knowing distinguishes the living God from lifeless idols; He fully engages with and comprehends His creation.
Psalm 139 1 Bonus section
This opening verse of Psalm 139 confronts the common human illusion of self-concealment or privacy from the Divine. It stands as a theological anchor against any limited or impersonal view of God, presenting Him not as a distant observer, but as intimately engaged with and exhaustively knowledgeable about every human being. The active nature of "searched" followed by "known" highlights that God’s knowing is not a passive data-gathering, but an inherent, penetrating quality of His divine nature. This truth offers an invitation to live authentically before God, recognizing that pretense is futile and complete openness leads to the deepest relationship. The thoroughness of God's knowledge as presented here serves as a potent reminder for self-examination, knowing that all our ways are already known to Him, leading either to humble repentance or joyful worship for His unwavering comprehension.
Psalm 139 1 Commentary
Psalm 139:1 acts as the foundational declaration of God's absolute omniscience and omnipresence, setting the tone for the entire psalm. It begins with the psalmist's personal declaration of God's profound intimacy: "O Lord, You have searched me and known me." The address to YHWH emphasizes the personal and covenantal relationship between the Creator and His creation. The terms "searched" (chaqar) and "known" (yada) convey an active, comprehensive, and exhaustive understanding of the individual. "Searched" suggests a meticulous probing into every hidden corner of one's being – thoughts, intentions, motives, past, and future – indicating that no secret, no inclination, no part of life is concealed from God. "Known" speaks to the outcome of this divine inspection, a full, intimate, and perfect comprehension. God does not gain new knowledge; His "searching" reflects the complete and active penetration of His all-encompassing awareness into every aspect of existence. This truth can evoke both profound comfort for those who trust Him (as He truly knows and cares) and deep conviction for those whose hearts hold sin (as nothing is hidden from Him). It establishes God as the ultimate discerner of human hearts, demonstrating His sovereignty over all life.