O Lord, you have searched me and
You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from afar.
You search out my path and my lying down
and are acquainted with all my ways.
Even before a word is on my tongue,
behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.
You hem me in, behind and before,
and lay your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is high; I cannot attain it.
Where shall I go from your Spirit?
Or where shall I flee from your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
If I take the wings of the morning
and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me.
If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,
and the light about me be night,”
even the darkness is not dark to you;
the night is bright as the day,
for darkness is as light with you.
For you formed my inward parts;
you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.
How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
If I would count them, they are more than the sand.
I awake, and I am still with you.
Oh that you would slay the wicked, O God!
O men of blood, depart from me!
They speak against you with malicious intent;
your enemies take your name in vain.
Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against you?
I hate them with complete hatred;
I count them my enemies.
Search me, O God, and know my heart!
Try me and know my thoughts!
And see if there be any grievous way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting!
Here is a Psalm for the modern world filled with chaos and strife. The message is God is watching us. Many these days do not know this or at best, ignore it so that many think they do whatever they please with impunity. But Almighty God knows all that we do. He will hold all people accountable for their sins. Yet that was not the original intent of the Psalmist, King David. He composed this psalm as a prayer in which he asked the Lord to examine him and reveal to him any sinfulness. In the process he exalted the infinite attributes of the Lord, specifically His omniscience, omnipresence, and omnipotence. David was aware that the Lord knew everything about him including the innermost thoughts and intentions of his heart. He knew he could not fool God or hide anything from Him.
Neither can we. We can hide things from other men and many try to but in these days of smart phones and instant media this is difficult to do. The evil men and women do will surface. We may even try to hide things from ourselves, pretend they are not true or don’t exist. But no one can hide anything from God. And so if we want to walk in obedience to the Lord God, when we have been accused by others or by Satan, we must always ask the Lord to examine our hearts and reveal to us what is there that it may be brought to light and confessed. Sincere confession and repentance will lighten our loads because the Lord promises to forgive those who have faith in Jesus.
This Psalm also tells us that God’s awareness of us exists from the beginning, even from the moment of our creation. The Lord knit us together from the moment of conception. We were in God’s heart and mind from the first linking of cells. What we are was already in His heart and mind as He shaped us into the form that suited His will. Those who deliberately set out to terminate this prenatal life by abortion for any reason are rebelling against the Lord as are those who seek to deny and change the gender they were born with. All these are attempting to disrupt and circumvent God’s will and purpose. They will not succeed nor will they find peace or happiness now or after death, for they will suffer the wrath of God. That is so sad for God has already poured out His wrath for all sin on Jesus on the cross. Only those who, by faith, accept Him as their offering benefit from His sacrifice.