You Hem Me In. (139)

vs 3: "You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways."

 It's interesting because the word search can also mean "scrutinize." He investigates, scatters, disperses, etc.  He is completely in control of our paths. He will lead us, but He also gives us the freewill to decide whether or not we will follow Him. He also knows when we withdraw from company and ponder on the things in our day. He knows every thought, action, and desire that we have. He knows what we will do before, during, and after we have done it...even when we forget.

vs 4: "Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether."

He knows every single thing that comes out of our mouths-- good and bad-- and He knows the motives behind them. Specifically, we we have to make a decision, He knows exactly what we are to speak. Even before it precedes out of our mouths, He knows our thoughts (vs 2.)

vs 5: "You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me."

Hem = enclose: meaning, He secures, binds, shuts up. (1) He binds us to Himself, and He gives us brothers and sisters in Christ that He also binds us to. (2) When there are broken places in us, He will come and heal those places. He will make us whole and secure once again. (3) It also brings assurance that He is our maker. He has sewn us together piece-by-piece. We are His handiwork.

He closes us in from behind--signifying the fact that He has protected us from the back. We are unable to see when we are being attacked from behind, but He does not make us vulnerable to the enemy who attacks. He also closes us in before-- He secures the path before us. He does not make it a crazy game, but gives us security and steadiness.

He lays His hand on us-- Commentator, Matthew Henry, suggests that this could indicate the work of a physician, who checks our vital signs. He knows us and knows where we are spiritually. He cares about where we are. The laying on of hands in Scripture often precedes and anointing, commissioning, or healing.

vs 6: "Such knowledge is to wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain it."

All of this goes beyond our understanding. He is so great and so merciful to us that our minds cannot fully comprehend it. We are unable to fully understand all that God does.