John Gill Commentary Psalms 139

O Lord, you have searched me, and known [me] .
] The omniscience of God reaches to all persons and things; but the psalmist only takes notice of it as respecting himself. God knows all men in general, and whatever belongs to them; he knows his own people in a special manner; and he knows their particular persons, as David and others.

And this knowledge of God is considered after the manner of men, as if it was the fruit of search, to denote the exquisiteness of it; as a judge searches out a cause, a physician the nature of a disease, a philosopher the reason of things; who many times, after all their inquiries, fail in their knowledge; but the Lord never does. His elect lie in the ruins of the fall, and among the men of the world; he searches them out and finds them; for he knows where they are, and the time of finding them, and can distinguish them in a crowd of men from others, and notwithstanding the sad case they are in, and separates them from them.

And he searches into them, into their most inward part, and knows them infinitely better than their nearest relations, friends and acquaintance do; he knows that of them and in them, which none but they themselves know; their thoughts, and the sin that dwells in them: yea, he knows more of them and in them than they themselves, (Jeremiah 17:9Jeremiah 17:10) .

And he knows them after another manner than he does other men: there are some whom in a sense he knows not; but these he knows, as he did David, so as to approve of, love and delight in, (Matthew 7:23) (2 Timothy 2:19) .

You know my downsitting and mine uprising
Here the psalmist proceeds to observe the particular circumstances and actions of his life, which were known to God; as his "downsitting", either to take rest, as weary persons do. Schultens ^F1 explains it of the quiet rest in sleep; this the Lord knew when he betook himself to it, and to whose care he committed himself and family; under whose protection he laid himself down, and on whom he depended for safety, (Psalms 4:8) . Or, since lying down to sleep is afterwards mentioned, this may respect sitting down at table to eat and drink; when the Lord knows whether men use the creatures aright, or abuse them; whether they receive their food with thankfulness, and eat and drink to the glory of God: or else this downsitting was to read the word of God, and meditate upon it; so the Targum paraphrases it, ``my sitting down to study the law.'' When men do this, the Lord knows whether in reading they understand what they read, or read attentively and with affection; whether it is to their comfort and edification, and for doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness; whether their meditation on it is sweet, and is attended with profit and pleasure.

"Uprising" may respect either rising from bed, when the Lord knows whether the heart is still with him, (Psalms 139:18) ; what sense is had of the divine protection and sustentation, and what thankfulness there is for the mercies of the night past; and whether the voice of prayer and praise is directed to him in the morning, as it should be, (Psalms 3:5) (5:3) ; or else rising from the table, when the Lord knows whether a man's table has been his snare, and with what thankfulness he rises from it for the favours he has received. The Targum interprets this of rising up to go to war; which David did, in the name and strength, and by the direction, of the Lord;

you understand my thought afar off ;
God knows not only his own thoughts, but the thoughts of men, which none but themselves know; by this Christ appears to be truly God, the omniscient God, being a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart, (Matthew 9:3Matthew 9:4) (Hebrews 4:12) . God knows what thoughts his people have of him, and of his lovingkindness in Christ; what thoughts they have of Christ himself, his person, offices, and grace; what thoughts they have of themselves, their state, and condition: he knows all their vain thoughts, and complains of them, and which also they hate; and all their good thoughts, for they come from him. And he knows them "afar off", or "of old" ^F2 , even before they are; so Aben Ezra interprets it, a long time past, and compares it with (Jeremiah 31:3) ; where the same word is rendered "of old": God knows the thoughts of his people, as well as his own, from all eternity; see (Isaiah 25:1) ; as he knew what they would say and do, so what they would think; he knows thoughts that are past long ago, and forgotten by men, or were unobserved when thought; how else should he bring them into judgment? or though he is afar off in the highest heavens, yet he sees into the hearts of men, and is privy to all their thoughts.

FOOTNOTES:

• F1: Animadv. Philol. p. 181.
• F2: (qwxrm) "q. d. dum illa longe abest", Piscator; "longe ante quam incidat in animum meum", Gejerus, & Campensis in Ibid.

You compass my path and my lying down
The Targum adds, ``to study in the law.'' His walk in the daytime, and every step he took, and his lying down at night. It denotes his perfect knowledge of all his actions, day and night; he surrounds every path of man, that they cannot escape his knowledge. Or, "you winnow", as some render the word ^F3 ; he distinguishes actions; he discerns and separates the good from the bad, or the goodness of an action from the evil and imperfection of it, as in winnowing the wheat is separated from the chaff. Or, "you measure my squaring" ^F4 ; all his dimensions, his length and breadth, as he lay down in his bed;

and are acquainted [with] all my ways ;
the whole of his life and conversation, all his works and doings: God knows all the evil ways and works of his people; he takes notice of them, and chastises for them; and all their good works, and approves and accepts of them; he knows from what principles of faith and love they spring, in what manner they are performed, and with what views, aims, and ends; see (Revelation 2:2Revelation 2:19) (Psalms 1:6) .

FOOTNOTES:

• F3: (tyrz) "ventilasti", Pagninus, Montanus; so Tigurine version and Ainsworth.
• F4: (yebr) "quadraturam meam spithama mensurasti", Gussetius, p. 775. "spithama metiris", Cocceius.

For [there is] not a word in my tongue
Expressed by it or upon it, just ready to be spoken; or, as the Targum, ``when there is no word in my tongue:'' so Aben Ezra, ``before it was perfect in my tongue:'' before it is formed there; while it is in the mind, and not expressed, and even before that;

[but], lo, O Lord, you know it altogether ;
the whole of it, from which it springs; the reason of it, what is designed, or the ends to be answered by it. The Lord knows the good words of his people, which they speak to him in prayer, even before and while they are speaking them; and what they say to one another in private conversation, (Isaiah 65:24) (Malachi 3:16) . See an instance of words known by Christ before spoken, in (Luke 19:31Luke 19:33) .

You have beset me behind and before
Are on every side of me, all around me, like one besieged in a strait place; so that there is nothing I can think, say, or do, but what is known to you. The two Kimchis, father and son, render the word, "you have formed me": and interpret it of the formation of his body, of which, in (Psalms 139:14–16) ; see (Job 10:8Job 10:10Job 10:11) but it denotes how God compasses men with his presence and providence, so that nothing escapes his knowledge;

and laid your hand upon me ;
not his afflicting hand, which sometimes presses hard; though the Targum thus paraphrases it,