Psalm 139:13-16

The ESV Study Bible Chapter 139

139:13–16 You Even Saw and Loved Me before I Was Born. These verses illustrate the point of vv. 11–12 (the section begins with for, showing the connection to the previous) by describing a particular “dark place” where the Lord saw and cared for the singer, namely, his mother’s womb. God was active as the unformed substance (embryo) grew and developed; indeed he is the one who formed my inward parts and knitted me together. God saw him, and even had written in his book, every one of … the days that were formed for me. The worshiper realizes that, even before his mother knew she was pregnant, the Lord was already showing his care for him. His personal life began in the womb (see note on 51:5), and God had already laid out its course.

Psalm 139:13–16 (ESV)

Psalm 139:13. For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.

139:13 my inward parts The Hebrew word used here, kilyah, can refer to organs like kidneys in sacrificial animals. It is also used metaphorically for one’s inner self and is often used parallel to the heart (see Jer 11:20)

Psalms, Volume 2 God’s Presence from the Beginning of Life (139:13–18)

Both Psalms 22 and 139 confess God’s presence with the psalmist from the very beginning of existence.

Psalm 139:14. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.

The ESV Study Bible (Chapter 139)

139:14 I am fearfully and wonderfully made. If the ESV text is followed, the statement helps the worshiper to marvel over the mysterious process of a developing baby. The word translated “wonderfully made” (Hb. nipleti) has a slightly unusual spelling (the expected spelling is niple’ti), which favors the ESV footnote: “I am fearfully set apart.” This takes the word to be the term for God setting his people apart (Ex. 8:22; Ps. 4:3) or making a distinction between them and those who are not his people (Ex. 9:4; 11:7; 33:16). The faithful person singing this, who in the OT would be the child of faithful parents, can affirm that God set his special love upon him from the earliest stages of his personal life (cf. Ps. 22:9–10; 71:5–6).

Psalms, Volume 2 God’s Presence from the Beginning of Life (139:13–18)

The Hebrew simply reads, “for I am fearfully wonderful.” The emphasis in Psalm 139 is not simply on the quality of the workmanship (“fearfully and wonderfully made”), but instead on the mystery of human creation itself. The psalmist acknowledges that human creation, from its beginning, is a mystery and a wonder known only to God.

Psalms, Volume 2 God’s Presence from the Beginning of Life (139:13–18)

I am fearfully and wonderfully made. In Psalm 139:14 the psalmist describes his own creation using two words frequently employed in reference to God’s great acts in Israel’s history. In other psalms these terms appear in parallel when discussing events associated with God’s deliverance of Israel (cf. Pss 45:5; 65:6; 106:22). Thus, the birth of a human is described in terms reminiscent of the birth of the nation, with both being awe inspiring.

Psalm 139:15. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth.

139:15 My frame People in the ancient Near East considered bones to be particularly indicative of a person’s nature because they were the deepest and longest-lasting part of a person.

The ESV Study Bible (Chapter 139)

139:15 in the depths of the earth. As a parallel to in secret, this would be a poetic expression for the darkness and secrecy of the womb.

Psalms, Volume 2 (God’s Presence from the Beginning of Life (139:13–18))

The psalmist confesses that although Yahweh is the God of the heavens, the one who “perceive[s] my thoughts from afar” (v. 2b), God is also the one who was fully present in the psalmist’s formation. In verse 16a the poet indicates that Yahweh looked on his “unformed body” (golem). The Hebrew word golem, a hapax legomenon, appears only here in the Old Testament. In Babylonian Aramaic, the term refers to a formless mass or an incomplete vessel. The word’s later use in the Talmud suggests the term could be construed as meaning “embryo” or something that was formless or shapeless. In this context golem is better understood as parallel to “my frame” (‘otsem) in verse 15a, with both terms referring to a human in its embryonic state. In both instances the psalmist affirms God’s watchful presence over his life.

Psalms, Volume 2 (God’s Presence from the Beginning of Life (139:13–18))

I was woven together in the depths of the earth. In verse 15b the psalmist employs more traditional creation language in declaring that he was “made” (‘asah). In the parallel line (v. 15c), however, the psalmist returns to the language of needlecraft (cf. v. 13b). The verb “woven together” (radam) appears elsewhere in Scripture in reference to the embroidery work carried out for the tabernacle. Threads of blue, purple, and scarlet were intertwined in the making of the curtain (Exod 26:36; 27:16; 28:39; 35:35; 36:37; 38:18–23). The intricate work of embroidery, the weaving of varied strands, is meant to parallel the intricate work of human creation as each person is woven into a tapestry.

Psalm 139:16. 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.

Faithlife Study Bible Psalm 139

139:16 my embryo The Hebrew word used here, golem, refers to a formless mass or incomplete vessel and is sometimes thought to indicate an embryo or fetus.

Psalms, Volume 2 (Contemporary Significance)

Rarely do hymns remind us of the kind of pervasive presence of God in our lives that might prompt a sense of holy fear. We are content with having God near us, but preferably not too near. As one writer explained, “We are reluctant to be known so well. There are things in our lives we keep hidden from others, even God. But if God is really the one we believe God to be then it follows that we are never out of the presence of God nor [are we] unknown to God.”

Psalms, Volume 2 Contemporary Significance

Because God has known us, fully known us, we can trust in him when the world goes awry and seems to be in open rebellion against his ways (vv. 19–22). And because God has known us, fully known us, we should be compelled to ask God to search us to see whether there is any offensive way in us (vv. 23–24). By living in the tension between comfort and fear, we acknowledge anew the presence of God; we acknowledge anew our desire to walk in “the way everlasting.”