Psalm 139
"Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts.
See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting."
See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting."
(Psalm 139:23-24)
In the first third of Psalm 139, the writer seems frustrated at his inability to avoid God. "You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;it is so high that I cannot attain it. Where can I go from your spirit?" Perhaps his words do not necessarily depict an attitude of avoidance, but rather that awkward uneasiness when one is confronted with his or her unworthiness in the presence of greatness.
We witness the desire of the Creator to be at work in the lives of human creation throughout the stories of the Old Testament. From walking in the Garden in the cool of the day with Adam and Eve, to the establishment of the covenant with Abraham which would find its ultimate fulfillment in Bethlehem, God continually positioned God's self in the presence of human experience, pursuing within the human heart that great work of redemption that was uniquely divine. The Psalmist's progression in this text marks his understanding that the presence of God which at times seems overwhelming, is truly what leads him toward righteousness. Having previously sought to distance himself from God, he now invites the Almighty to search him, his heart and his thoughts, and lead him in right paths.
His struggle is our human struggle of self-sufficiency. His deliverance is the eternal hope he finds in the presence of Almighty God...You search out my path and my lying down,
and are acquainted with all my ways.
and are acquainted with all my ways.
Prayer: Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts. See if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Amen.
Jim Abernathy
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