Psalm 139:8 Study Bible: If I ascend up into heaven, you are there. If I make my bed in Sheol, look, you are there.

◄ Psalm 139:8 ►

If I ascend to the heavens, You are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, You are there.

If I ascend to the heavens
The phrase "ascend to the heavens" speaks to the omnipresence of God, a central theme in this psalm. The Hebrew word for "heavens" is "shamayim," which often refers to the sky or the abode of God. In ancient Near Eastern cosmology, the heavens were seen as the highest realm, a place of divine presence and authority. The psalmist acknowledges that even in the highest, most exalted places, God's presence is assured. This reflects the belief that God is not confined to earthly limitations but reigns supreme over all creation.

You are there
This simple yet profound declaration emphasizes God's omnipresence. The Hebrew word "sham" means "there," indicating a specific presence. The psalmist is comforted by the assurance that God's presence is not just a theological concept but a personal reality. This is a reminder that no matter where we find ourselves, God is intimately involved in our lives, offering guidance, comfort, and support.

if I make my bed in Sheol
"Sheol" in Hebrew refers to the realm of the dead, a shadowy place where the departed spirits reside. In the ancient world, Sheol was often perceived as a place of separation from the living and, by extension, from God. However, the psalmist challenges this notion by asserting that even in Sheol, God's presence is inescapable. This reflects a radical understanding of God's reach, suggesting that there is no place, not even death, where God cannot be found.

You are there
Reiterating the phrase underscores the unchanging nature of God's presence. The repetition serves to emphasize that God's presence is not conditional or limited by circumstances. Whether in the heights of heaven or the depths of Sheol, God's presence is constant and unwavering. This offers profound comfort and assurance to believers, affirming that God's love and presence transcend all boundaries and conditions.

Persons / Places / Events

1. David
The author of Psalm 139, traditionally believed to be King David, who is expressing his understanding of God's omnipresence and omniscience.

2. Heavens
Refers to the highest places, often seen as the dwelling place of God, symbolizing the utmost heights of existence.

3. Sheol
In Hebrew thought, Sheol is the realm of the dead, a place of darkness and separation from the living, representing the lowest depths.

4. God
The central figure in this verse, whose presence is affirmed in both the highest and lowest places.

5. Omnipresence
The theological concept that God is present everywhere at all times, which is a key theme in this verse.

Teaching Points

God's Omnipresence
God's presence is not limited by physical locations. Whether in the heights of heaven or the depths of Sheol, God is there. This assures us that no matter where we are, God is with us.

Comfort in God's Presence
Understanding that God is always present can bring comfort in times of loneliness or despair. We are never truly alone.

Accountability to God
God's omnipresence also means we are always in His sight, which should encourage us to live righteously and be mindful of our actions.

God's Sovereignty
Recognizing God's presence in all places underscores His sovereignty over all creation, reminding us to trust in His control over our lives.

Hope in God's Presence
Even in the darkest places or situations, God's presence offers hope and the possibility of redemption and transformation.

Bible Study Questions

1. How does the understanding of God's omnipresence in Psalm 139:8 affect your daily life and decisions?

2. In what ways can the assurance of God's presence in both "heavens" and "Sheol" provide comfort during difficult times?

3. How does the concept of God's omnipresence challenge you to live a life that is pleasing to Him?

4. Can you think of a time when you felt God's presence in an unexpected place or situation? How did that experience impact your faith?

5. How do other scriptures, such as Romans 8:38-39, reinforce the message of God's inseparable presence found in Psalm 139:8?

Connections to Other Scriptures

Genesis 28:12-16
Jacob's dream of the ladder reaching to heaven, where he realizes God's presence even in a remote place.

Romans 8:38-39
Paul's assurance that nothing can separate us from the love of God, echoing the theme of God's omnipresence.

Amos 9:2-3
The prophet Amos speaks of God's inescapable presence, similar to the themes in Psalm 139:8.

Sermons

God's Omnipresence		Psalm 139:8
God's Presence in the Under-World	G. Matheson, D. D.	Psalm 139:8
God All-Seeing		Psalm 139:1-24
God and Ourselves	W. Hoyt, D. D.	Psalm 139:1-24
God Omniscient	Weekly Pulpit	Psalm 139:1-24
God's Exhaustive Knowledge of Man	T. W. Chambers, D. D.	Psalm 139:1-24
God's Knowledge of Man	W. G. T. Shedd, D. D.	Psalm 139:1-24
God's Omniscience and Omnipresence	H. Woodcock.	Psalm 139:1-24
God's Presence	Archbishop Temple.	Psalm 139:1-24
Lord, Thou Knowest Altogether	S. Conway	Psalm 139:1-24
The All-Seeing and All-Present One	Homilist	Psalm 139:1-24
The All-Seeing God	Monday Club Sermons	Psalm 139:1-24
God Everywhere	C. Short	Psalm 139:7-10
Omnipresence a Fear and a Satisfaction	R. Tuck	Psalm 139:7-10
Omnipresence of God	Expository Outlines	Psalm 139:7-10
The Cry of the Sage, the Sinner, and the Saint	Homilist	Psalm 139:7-10
The Encompassing, All-Pervading God	J. O. Greenhough, M. A.	Psalm 139:7-10
The Omnipresence of God	Bishop Hopkins.	Psalm 139:7-10
The Omnipresent God	A. Mackennal, D. D.	Psalm 139:7-10
The Present God	A. P. Peabody, D. D.	Psalm 139:7-10
Universal Presence of God	R. Venting.	Psalm 139:7-10

People

David, Psalmist

Places

Jerusalem

Topics

Ascend, Bed, Behold, Couch, Depths, Heaven, Heavens, Hell, Nether-world, Sheol, Spread, Underworld

Dictionary of Bible Themes

Psalm 139:8

     5143   climbing
     5229   bed
     5288   dead, the

Psalm 139:1-15

5941 secrecy

Psalm 139:1-16

5027 knowledge, God's of humanity

Psalm 139:7-8

3015 Holy Spirit, divinity
3266 Holy Spirit, in creation

Psalm 139:7-10

3263 Holy Spirit, guidance

Psalm 139:7-12

1110 God, present everywhere
5490 refuge

Library

August 31. "Lead Me in the Way Everlasting" (Ps. cxxxix. 24).
"Lead me in the way everlasting" (Ps. cxxxix. 24). There is often apparently but little difference in two distinct lives between constant victory and frequent victory. But that one little difference constitutes a world of success or failure. The one is the Divine, the other is the human; the one is the everlasting way, the other the transient and the imperfect. God wants to lead us to the way everlasting, and to establish us and make us immovable as He. We little know the seriousness of the slightest …
Rev. A. B. Simpson—Days of Heaven Upon Earth

God's Scrutiny Longed For
'Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my thoughts; 24. And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.'--PSALM cxxxix. 23, 24. This psalm begins with perhaps the grandest contemplation of the divine Omniscience that was ever put into words. It is easy to pour out platitudes upon such a subject, but the Psalmist does not content himself with generalities. He gathers all the rays, as it were, into one burning point, and focusses them upon himself: 'Oh, …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

September the Eighteenth the All-Round Defence
"Thou hast beset me behind." --PSALM cxxxix. 1-12. And that is a defence against the enemies which would attack me in the rear. There is yesterday's sin, and the guilt which is the companion of yesterday's sin. They pursue my soul like fierce hounds, but my gracious Lord will come between my pursuers and me. His mighty grace intervenes, and my security is complete. "Thou hast beset me ... before." And that is a defence against the enemies which would impede my advance and frighten me out of …
John Henry Jowett—My Daily Meditation for the Circling Year

The Kingdom Divided
THE PROPHETICAL BOOKS: Jonah Page Amos Page Isaiah Page OUTLINE FOR STUDY OF PROPHETICAL BOOKS 1. Class. 2. Commission of Prophet. 3. Biographical Description of Prophet. 4. Title of Prophet. 5. Historical Place. (a) Name of Kingdom. (b) Names of Kings. 6. Outline of Contents. 7. Prophecies of Earthly Kings or Kingdoms. 8. Prophecies of Christ. 9. Prophecies of Christ's Kingdom. 10. Leading Phrases. 11. Leading Chapters. 12. Leading Teachings. 13. Questions. 14. Items of Special Interest. …
Frank Nelson Palmer—A Bird's-Eye View of the Bible

The Tests of Love to God
LET us test ourselves impartially whether we are in the number of those that love God. For the deciding of this, as our love will be best seen by the fruits of it, I shall lay down fourteen signs, or fruits, of love to God, and it concerns us to search carefully whether any of these fruits grow in our garden. 1. The first fruit of love is the musing of the mind upon God. He who is in love, his thoughts are ever upon the object. He who loves God is ravished and transported with the contemplation of …
Thomas Watson—A Divine Cordial

God Omnipresent and Omniscient --Ps. cxxxix.
God Omnipresent and Omniscient--Ps. cxxxix. Searcher of hearts! to Thee are known The inmost secrets of my breast At home, abroad, in crowds, alone, Thou mark'st my rising and my rest, My thoughts far off, through every maze, Source, stream, and issue,--all my ways. How from Thy presence should I go, Or whither from Thy Spirit flee, Since all above, around, below, Exist in Thine immensity? If up to heaven I take my way, I meet Thee in eternal day. If in the grave I make my bed With worms and dust, …
James Montgomery—Sacred Poems and Hymns

Ps. cxxxix. 23, 24
Ps. cxxxix. 23, 24. All hearts to Thee are open here; All our desires are known; And we are that which we appear To Thee, good Lord, alone. No eye of man can penetrate, Another's secret mind, Nor well discern his own estate, Naked, and poor, and blind. The entrance of Thy word gives light: Let it so shine within, That each may tremble at the sight Of his unbosom'd sin. With godly sorrow make him grieve, Till hope spring out of grief, And,cry with tears, "Lord, I believe, Help Thou mine unbelief." …
James Montgomery—Sacred Poems and Hymns

Excursus on the Present Teaching of the Latin and Greek Churches on the Subject.
To set forth the present teaching of the Latin Church upon the subject of images and the cultus which is due them, I cite the decree of the Council of Trent and a passage from the Catechism set forth by the authority of the same synod. (Conc. Trid., Sess. xxv. December 3d and 4th, 1563. [Buckley's Trans.]) The holy synod enjoins on all bishops, and others sustaining the office and charge of teaching that, according to the usage of the Catholic and Apostolic Church received from the primitive times …
Philip Schaff—The Seven Ecumenical Councils

An Unanswered Question
'What was it that ye disputed among yourselves by the way?'--Mark ix. 33. Was it not a strange time to squabble when they had just been told of His death? Note-- I. The variations of feeling common to the disciples and to us all: one moment 'exceeding sorrowful,' the next fighting for precedence. II. Christ's divine insight into His servants' faults. This question was put because He knew what the wrangle had been about. The disputants did not answer, but He knew without an answer, as His immediately …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Out of the Deep of Doubt, Darkness, and Hell.
O Lord God of my salvation, I have cried day and night unto Thee. Oh! let my prayer enter into Thy presence. For my soul is full of trouble and my life draweth nigh unto Hell. Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in a place of darkness, and in the deep.--Ps. lxxxviii. 1, 2. If I go down to Hell, Thou art there also. Yea, the darkness is no darkness with Thee; but the night is as clear as the day.--Ps. cxxxix. 7, 11. I waited patiently for the Lord; and He inclined unto me, and heard my calling. …
Charles Kingsley—Out of the Deep

The Deity of the Holy Spirit.
In the preceding chapter we have seen clearly that the Holy Spirit is a Person. But what sort of a Person is He? Is He a finite person or an infinite person? Is He God? This question also is plainly answered in the Bible. There are in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments five distinct and decisive lines of proof of the Deity of the Holy Spirit. I. Each of the four distinctively Divine attributes is ascribed to the Holy Spirit. What are the distinctively Divine attributes? Eternity, omnipresence, …
R. A. Torrey—The Person and Work of The Holy Spirit

The Suffering of Love.
"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friend."--John xv. 13. Love suffers because the spirit of the world antagonizes the Spirit of God. The former is unholy, the Latter is holy, not in the sense of mere opposition to the world's spirit, but because He is the absolute Author of all holiness, being God Himself. Hence the conflict. There is no point along the whole line of the world's life which does not antagonize the Holy Spirit whenever He touches it. Whenever …
Abraham Kuyper—The Work of the Holy Spirit

The Hardening Operation of Love.
"Being grieved for the hardness of their heart."--Mark iii. 5. Love may also be reversed. Failing to cherish, to uplift, and to enrich, it consumes and destroys. This is a mystery which man can not fathom. It belongs to the unsearchable depths of the divine Being, of which we do not wish to know more than has been revealed. But this does not alter the fact. No creature can exclude itself from the divine control. No man can say that he has nothing to do with God; that he or any other creature exists …
Abraham Kuyper—The Work of the Holy Spirit

Inconsideration Deplored. Rev. Joshua Priestley.
"And they consider not in their hearts that I remember all their wickedness."--HOSEA vii. 2. Is it possible for any man to conceive of truths more fitted to arrest the attention and impress the heart than are those contained in this volume? It has been said that if a blank book had been put into our hands, and every one of us had been asked to put into it the promises we should like to find there, we could not have employed language so explicit, so expressive, and so suited to all our varied wants, …
Knowles King—The Wesleyan Methodist Pulpit in Malvern

Annunciation to Joseph of the Birth of Jesus.
(at Nazareth, b.c. 5.) ^A Matt. I. 18-25. ^a 18 Now the birth [The birth of Jesus is to handled with reverential awe. We are not to probe into its mysteries with presumptuous curiosity. The birth of common persons is mysterious enough (Eccl. ix. 5; Ps. cxxxix. 13-16), and we do not well, therefore, if we seek to be wise above what is written as to the birth of the Son of God] of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When his mother Mary had been betrothed [The Jews were usually betrothed ten or twelve months …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Love of Christ.
THE Patience of Christ was recently the object of our meditation in these pages. Blessed and inexhaustible it is. And now a still greater theme is before our hearts. The Love of Christ. The heart almost shrinks from attempting to write on the matchless, unfathomable love of our blessed and adorable Lord. All the Saints of God who have spoken and written on the Love of Christ have never told out its fulness and vastness, its heights and its depths. "The Love of Christ which passeth knowledge" (Ephesians …
Arno Gaebelein—The Lord of Glory

The Kingdom Undivided
THE POETICAL BOOKS: Psalms Page Song of Solomon Page Proverbs Page THE PSALMS I. The Collection and Divisions: In all probability the book of one hundred and fifty psalms, as it now stands, was compiled by Ezra about 450 B.C. They are divided into five books, each closing with a benediction, evidently added to mark the end of the book. Note the number of psalms in Books 1 and 2. II. The Purposes: 1. They were originally used as songs in the Jewish Temple Worship. …
Frank Nelson Palmer—A Bird's-Eye View of the Bible

The Knowledge of God
'The Lord is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.' I Sam 2:2. Glorious things are spoken of God; he transcends our thoughts, and the praises of angels. God's glory lies chiefly in his attributes, which are the several beams by which the divine nature shines forth. Among other of his orient excellencies, this is not the least, The Lord is a God of knowledge; or as the Hebrew word is, A God of knowledges.' Through the bright mirror of his own essence, he has a full idea and cognisance …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

How the Simple and the Crafty are to be Admonished.
(Admonition 12.) Differently to be admonished are the simple and the insincere. The simple are to be praised for studying never to say what is false, but to be admonished to know how sometimes to be silent about what is true. For, as falsehood has always harmed him that speaks it, so sometimes the hearing of truth has done harm to some. Wherefore the Lord before His disciples, tempering His speech with silence, says, I have many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now (Joh. xvi. 12). …
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great

Christ Teaching by Miracles
We have seen how many valuable lessons our Saviour taught while on earth by the parables which he used. But we teach by our lives, as well as by our lips. It has passed into a proverb, and we all admit the truth of it, that "Actions speak louder than words." If our words and our actions contradict each other, people will believe our actions sooner than our words. But when both agree together, then the effect is very great. This was true with our blessed Lord. There was an entire agreement between …
Richard Newton—The Life of Jesus Christ for the Young

The Disciple, -- Master, it is Clear to Almost Everyone that to Disobey God And...
The Disciple,--Master, it is clear to almost everyone that to disobey God and to cease to worship Him is sin, and the deadly result is seen in the present state of the world. But what sin really is is not absolutely clear. In the very presence of Almighty God, and in opposition to His will, and in His own world, how did sin come to be? The Master,--1. Sin is to cast aside the will of God and to live according to one's own will, deserting that which is true and lawful in order to satisfy one's own …
Sadhu Sundar Singh—At The Master's Feet

Appendix xvii. The Ordinances and Law of the Sabbath as Laid Down in the Mishnah and the Jerusalem Talmud.
The terribly exaggerated views of the Rabbis, and their endless, burdensome rules about the Sabbath may best be learned from a brief analysis of the Mishnah, as further explained and enlarged in the Jerusalem Talmud. [6476] For this purpose a brief analysis of what is, confessedly, one of the most difficult tractates may here be given. The Mishnic tractate Sabbath stands at the head of twelve tractates which together from the second of the six sections into which the Mishnah is divided, and which …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

The Being of God
Q-III: WHAT DO THE SCRIPTURES PRINCIPALLY TEACH? A: The Scriptures principally teach what man is to believe concerning God, and what duty God requires of man. Q-IV: WHAT IS GOD? A: God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth. Here is, 1: Something implied. That there is a God. 2: Expressed. That he is a Spirit. 3: What kind of Spirit? I. Implied. That there is a God. The question, What is God? takes for granted that there …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

Out of the Deep of Suffering and Sorrow.
Save me, O God, for the waters are come in even unto my soul: I am come into deep waters; so that the floods run over me.--Ps. lxix. 1, 2. I am brought into so great trouble and misery: that I go mourning all the day long.--Ps. xxxviii. 6. The sorrows of my heart are enlarged: Oh! bring Thou me out of my distress.--Ps. xxv. 17. The Lord hath heard the voice of my weeping: the Lord will receive my prayer.--Ps. vi. 8. In the multitude of the sorrows which I had in my heart, Thy comforts have refreshed …
Charles Kingsley—Out of the Deep

Links

Psalm 139:8 NIV
Psalm 139:8 NLT
Psalm 139:8 ESV
Psalm 139:8 NASB
Psalm 139:8 KJV

Psalm 139:8 Commentaries

Bible Hub