Psalm 139:1 (To the choir-master. Of David. A psalm.)
Lord, I lie open to thy scrutiny; thou knowest me,
2 knowest when I sit down and when I rise up again, canst read my thoughts from far away.
3 Walk I or sleep I, thou canst tell; no movement of mine but thou art watching it.
4 Before ever the words are framed on my lips, all my thought is known to thee;
5 rearguard and vanguard, thou dost compass me about, thy hand still laid upon me.
6 Such wisdom as thine is far beyond my reach, no thought of mine can attain it.
7 Where can I go, then, to take refuge from thy spirit, to hide from thy view?
8 If I should climb up to heaven, thou art there; if I sink down to the world beneath, thou art present still.
9 If I could wing my way eastwards, or find a dwelling beyond the western sea,
10 still would I find thee beckoning to me, thy right hand upholding me.
11 Or perhaps I would think to bury myself in darkness; night should surround me, friendlier than day;
12 but no, darkness is no hiding-place from thee, with thee the night shines clear as day itself; light and dark are one.
Those words comfort the faithful but they may be a terror to those who are faithless.
