More of Psalm 139

The next part of Psalm 139 is

4 Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O LORD. 5 You hem me in—behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me. 6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.

"Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely..." He knows exactly what we're going to say before we do! Very few of us really measure our words and "think before we talk"...in fact they are almost simultaneous events. I've heard many people talk as though they are thinking out loud. Sometimes it's helpful and other times, it's not.


Think about it, if God knows completely the words that we are going speak, then He knows the impact those words will have on those who hear them. He knows all of our words, whether they are blessings or cursings, encouraging or discouraging.


The Psalm continues with an interesting word picture: "You hem me in--behind and before." The New Living Translation says it this way: "5 You go before me and follow me." Think about that. God, in his infinite wisdom and awesome power, will be somewhere before we get there AND he will follow us at the same time.


When I was about 4 years old, my Mom and I were heading out somewhere on a day when there was ice and snow on the porch. She said to me, "Stay here. Let me go first. I will come back and get you." She walked down the steps to the car. I guess I've always been an "I can do it myself" kind of girl...so I took the first step and did not listen to her words.


I slipped. I fell. I cracked my head open. I needed stitches. It probably wasn't seconds before my Mother was there behind me scooping me up and taking me to get my wound stitched up.


This is the picture I get when I think about God, our heavenly parent, going before us AND following us at the same time. He goes before and guides us "in the paths of righteousness". BUT when we get the "I can do it myself" or "I don't need God" attitude, he's there too...following us. And whether he's before us or following us, the Psalmist reminds that his "hand is upon us". I love that!


The next verse sums up the magnitude of these realities of God: "6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to understand!" To that, I say a resounding AMEN!


Are you getting the picture?


Here's SUSAN'S version of these first six verses: "He has investigated your heart and soul as well as mine (v. 1). He KNOWS you and me quite intimately--the good, the bad, and the ugly. He knows us when we are working or resting. He knows our every thought. He knows which thoughts will make their way across our lips. He walks with us WHEREVER we go...whether it's on the path of obedience or it's completely astray. There's no where on this earth that we could be where God is not. No nook. No cranny. No fortress. No where.

Isn't that AMAZING? It's almost too much to comprehend!"