— Psalm 139 (Vulgate / Hebrew)
Domine, probasti me
By GRAHAM JOHN
A psalm of radical self-knowledge, exploring divine awareness, human interiority, and the impossibility of concealment — both consoling and unsettling.
24 verses total
Verses 1–18 reproduced below (see note at end)
VERSUS 1–18 (LATIN + LITERAL ENGLISH + WORD NOTES)
1
Domine, probasti me, et cognovisti me.
O Lord, you have tested me and known me.
Word Notes
- probō, probāre, probāvī, probātum — to test, examine
- cognōscō, cognōscere, cognōvī, cognitum — to know
2
Tu cognovisti sessionem meam, et resurrectionem meam.
You know my sitting down and my rising up.
Word Notes
- sessio, sessionis (f.) — sitting
- resurrectio, resurrectionis (f.) — rising up
3
Intellexisti cogitationes meas de longe.
You understand my thoughts from afar.
Word Notes
- intelligō, intelligere, intellēxī, intellectum — to understand
- cogitātiō, cogitātiōnis (f.) — thought
4
Semitam meam et funiculum meum investigasti.
You have searched out my path and my resting place.
Word Notes
- semita, semitae (f.) — path
- funiculus, funiculī (m.) — line, measure, resting-place (Vulgate nuance)
- investigō, investigāre, investigāvī, investigātum — to trace, search out
5
Et omnes vias meas prævidisti.
And you have foreseen all my ways.
Word Notes
- prævideō, prævidēre, prævīdī, prævīsum — to foresee
6
Quia non est sermo in lingua mea, ecce, Domine, tu cognovisti omnia novissima et antiqua.
For there is no word on my tongue — behold, O Lord, you know all things, last and first.
Word Notes
- sermo, sermonis (m.) — word, speech
- lingua, linguae (f.) — tongue
- novissimus — last
- antiquus — ancient, first
7
Tu formasti me, et posuisti super me manum tuam.
You have formed me and laid your hand upon me.
Word Notes
- fōrmō, fōrmāre, fōrmāvī, fōrmātum — to form
- pōnō, pōnere, posuī, positum — to place
8
Mirabilis facta est scientia tua ex me: confortata est, et non potero ad eam.
Your knowledge has become wonderful to me; it is strong, and I cannot attain it.
Word Notes
- mīrābilis — wonderful
- scientia, scientiae (f.) — knowledge
- confortō, confortāre, confortāvī — to strengthen
9
Quo ibo a spiritu tuo? et quo a facie tua fugiam?
Where shall I go from your spirit? or where shall I flee from your presence?
Word Notes
- spīritus, spīritūs (m.) — spirit
- fugiō, fugere, fūgī, fugitum — to flee
10
Si ascendero in cælum, tu illic es: si descendero in infernum, ades.
If I ascend into heaven, you are there; if I descend into the depths, you are present.
Word Notes
- ascendō, ascendere, ascendī — to ascend
- descendō, descendere, descendī — to descend
- infernus — depths, underworld
11
Si sumpsero pennas meas diluculo, et habitavero in extremis maris.
If I take my wings at dawn, and dwell at the far ends of the sea…
Word Notes
- sūmō, sūmere, sūmpsī, sūmptum — to take
- pinna, pinnae (f.) — wing
- dīlūculum, dīlūculī (n.) — dawn
12
Etenim illuc manus tua deducet me: et tenebit me dextera tua.
Even there your hand will lead me, and your right hand will hold me.
Word Notes
- dēdūcō, dēdūcere, dēdūxī, dēductum — to lead
- teneō, tenēre, tenuī, tentum — to hold
13
Et dixi: Forsitan tenebræ conculcabunt me: et nox illuminatio mea in deliciis meis.
And I said: perhaps darkness will cover me — and night will be my light in my delight.
Word Notes
- tenebrae, tenebrārum (f. pl.) — darkness
- conculcō, conculcāre, conculcāvī — to trample, overwhelm
- illūminātiō, illūminātiōnis (f.) — illumination
14
Quia tenebræ non obscurabuntur a te, et nox sicut dies illuminabitur.
For darkness is not dark to you, and night will be bright as day.
Word Notes
- obscūrō, obscūrāre — to darken
15
Sicut tenebræ ejus, ita et lumen ejus.
As is its darkness, so also is its light.
16
Quia tu possedisti renes meos: suscepisti me de ventre matris meæ.
For you possessed my inmost parts; you received me from my mother’s womb.
Word Notes
- possideō, possidēre, possēdī — to possess
- rēnēs, rēnum (m. pl.) — kidneys, inner being
- suscipiō, suscipere, suscēpī, susceptum — to receive
17
Confitebor tibi quia terribiliter magnificatus es: mirabilia opera tua.
I will give thanks to you, for you are fearfully exalted; wonderful are your works.
Word Notes
- terribiliter — fearfully, awe-inspiringly
- magnificō, magnificāre, magnificāvī — to exalt
18
Mirabilis facta est anima mea: et cognoscit nimis.
My soul has been made wonderful, and it knows it deeply.
Word Notes
- nimis — exceedingly, deeply
NOTE ON REMAINING VERSES (19–24)
Verses 19–24 shift abruptly in tone. They introduce:
- repudiation of the wicked (vv. 19–22)
- moral separation and indignation
- a final return to self-examination:
“Proba me, Deus, et scito cor meum…” — Test me, O God, and know my heart.
These verses re-anchor mystical awareness in ethical accountability.
They are not omitted from the psalm, only from reproduction here, in accordance with project limits.
SUMMARY (≈120 words)
Psalm 139 is one of the most psychologically penetrating texts in Scripture. It dissolves the boundary between inner and outer life: thought, movement, darkness, and origin are all transparent before divine awareness. This knowledge is both consoling and unnerving — intimacy without privacy. Yet the psalm is not about surveillance, but formation. God’s knowing precedes judgment; existence itself is already held. Even the womb is a site of relation. The later ethical turn reminds us that awareness demands response: to be known is also to be accountable. Faith here is not belief in propositions, but consent to being seen without evasion.
REFLECTION QUESTION
What would it mean to live without inner concealment — neither performing for approval nor hiding from truth?