What does Psalm 139:3 mean?
God knows our ways, our condition, and our conduct. The Hebrew verb zarah, translated as "search out," or "scrutinize," is used of a farmer winnowing his crops to separate the wheat from the chaff. In other words, God examines our ways so thoroughly that he doesn't miss a thing. Every tiny speck and detail is known, sorted, and separated.When we suffer, we are tempted to think God is unaware of what we are going through. However, as the psalmist David points out in this verse, he is "acquainted with all [our] ways." Job experienced numerous hard trials, but he understood that God was aware of what was happening to him. He testified, "He knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold" (Job 23:10). We can take comfort in the fact that our heavenly Father knows perfectly where we go, what we do, and what we are experiencing. He will not allow us to be tempted or tried beyond our ability, "but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape" that we "may be able to endure it" (1 Corinthians 10:13).
Psalm 139:1–6 extols God's infinite knowledge. David views God as knowing all about him: when he sits down and gets up, his thoughts and conduct, and even the words that are in his mind before he expresses them. He states that God's knowledge is far beyond his comprehension. This section of the psalm precedes the section that focuses on God's omnipresence—his presence everywhere.
In this psalm David marvels at God's amazing characteristics. God knows everything about him: where he goes, all David's thoughts and everything about his conduct. The Lord knows what David will say even before David says it. There is no place David can go that God isn't already present. David marvels at God's creative work in the womb. He is thankful for God's innumerable thoughts for him and for God's presence day and night. Finally, David's thoughts turn to the wicked. He considers them God's enemies and his, and longs for God to slay them. David is disgusted by evil people because they rail against God and take His name in vain. He asks God to search his heart to see if any sin is there, and he asks God to lead him in the way everlasting.
