Bible Strands
Psalms 139:1
For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. O LORD, You have searched me and known me.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — David addresses Yahweh directly, opening a psalm assigned to the choirmaster. The moment is one of acknowledgment: he states as fact what God has already done to him.
The words — חֲקַרְתָּנִי (chaqarta ni) uses the root חקר, which means to search, probe, or investigate thoroughly — not a passing glance but a deliberate examination. It is paired with תֵּדַע (teda'), "you have known," from ידע, so the verse moves from active searching to settled knowledge.
The thread — Jeremiah 12:3 repeats the formula "You know me" in a context of testing, and Jeremiah 17:9 immediately follows with the claim that the heart is beyond human comprehension. Hebrews 4:13 universalizes the scope: nothing is hidden from God's sight.
Why it lands — The verse removes the assumption that the inner life is private. It asks the reader to stand before a God who has already examined the parts they conceal even from themselves.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. O Lord, thou hast searched me, and known me.
Cross-references
- Hebrews 4:13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight; everything is uncovered and exposed before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.
- Jeremiah 12:3 But You know me, O LORD; You see me and test my heart toward You. Drag away the wicked like sheep to the slaughter and set them apart for the day of carnage.
- Jeremiah 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?
- Psalms 44:21 would not God have discovered, since He knows the secrets of the heart?
- Psalms 17:3 You have tried my heart; You have visited me in the night. You have tested me and found no evil; I have resolved not to sin with my mouth.
- Psalms 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my concerns.
- 1 Chronicles 28:9 As for you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father and serve Him wholeheartedly and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands the intent of every thought. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will reject you forever.
- 1 Kings 8:39 be heard by You from heaven, Your dwelling place. And may You forgive and act, and repay each man according to all his ways, since You know his heart—for You alone know the hearts of all men—
- Psalms 11:4 The LORD is in His holy temple; the LORD is on His heavenly throne. His eyes are watching closely; they examine the sons of men.
- Revelation 2:23 Then I will strike her children dead, and all the churches will know that I am the One who searches minds and hearts, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds.