Psalm 139:15
New International Version
My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.

New Living Translation
You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.

English Standard Version
My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth.

Berean Standard Bible
My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in secret, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.

King James Bible
My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

New King James Version
My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

New American Standard Bible
My frame was not hidden from You When I was made in secret, And skillfully formed in the depths of the earth;

NASB 1995
My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth;

NASB 1977
My frame was not hidden from Thee, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth.

Legacy Standard Bible
My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And intricately woven in the depths of the earth;

Amplified Bible
My frame was not hidden from You, When I was being formed in secret, And intricately and skillfully formed [as if embroidered with many colors] in the depths of the earth.

Christian Standard Bible
My bones were not hidden from you when I was made in secret, when I was formed in the depths of the earth.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
My bones were not hidden from You when I was made in secret, when I was formed in the depths of the earth.

American Standard Version
My frame was not hidden from thee, When I was made in secret, And curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

Contemporary English Version
Nothing about me is hidden from you! I was secretly woven together out of human sight,

English Revised Version
My frame was not hidden from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
My bones were not hidden from you when I was being made in secret, when I was being skillfully woven in an underground workshop.

Good News Translation
When my bones were being formed, carefully put together in my mother's womb, when I was growing there in secret, you knew that I was there--

International Standard Version
My frame was not hidden from you while I was being crafted in a hidden place, knit together in the depths of the earth.

Majority Standard Bible
My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in secret, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.

NET Bible
my bones were not hidden from you, when I was made in secret and sewed together in the depths of the earth.

New Heart English Bible
My frame wasn't hidden from you, when I was made in secret, woven together in the depths of the earth.

Webster's Bible Translation
My substance was not hid from thee when I was made in secret, and curiously formed in the lowest parts of the earth.

World English Bible
My frame wasn’t hidden from you, when I was made in secret, woven together in the depths of the earth.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
My substance was not hid from You, "" When I was made in secret, "" Curiously worked in the lower part of earth.

Young's Literal Translation
My substance was not hid from Thee, When I was made in secret, Curiously wrought in the lower part of earth.

Smith's Literal Translation
My bones were not hid from thee, when I was made in secret. I was variegated in the lower parts of the earth.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
My bone is not hidden from thee, which thou hast made in secret: and my substance in the lower parts of the earth.

Catholic Public Domain Version
My bone, which you have made in secret, has not been hidden from you, and my substance is in accord with the lower parts of the earth.

New American Bible
My bones are not hidden from you, When I was being made in secret, fashioned in the depths of the earth.

New Revised Standard Version
My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and marvellously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And my bones were not hidden from you; when I was made in secret, I went down to the lower parts of the earth.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
My frame was not hidden from Thee, When I was made in secret, And curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
My bones, which thou madest in secret were not hidden from thee, nor my substance, in the lowest parts of the earth.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
You Have Searched Me and Known Me
14I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Marvelous are Your works, and I know this very well. 15My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in secret, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. 16Your eyes saw my unformed body; all my days were written in Your book and ordained for me before one of them came to be.…

Cross References
Job 10:8-12
Your hands shaped me and altogether formed me. Would You now turn and destroy me? / Please remember that You molded me like clay. Would You now return me to dust? / Did You not pour me out like milk, and curdle me like cheese? ...

Jeremiah 1:5
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”

Isaiah 44:24
Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer who formed you from the womb: “I am the LORD, who has made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who by Myself spread out the earth,

Job 31:15
Did not He who made me in the womb also make them? Did not the same One form us in the womb?

Ecclesiastes 11:5
As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the bones are formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things.

Genesis 2:7
Then the LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed the breath of life into his nostrils, and the man became a living being.

Isaiah 49:1
Listen to Me, O islands; pay attention, O distant peoples: The LORD called Me from the womb; from the body of My mother He named Me.

Isaiah 64:8
But now, O LORD, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You are the potter; we are all the work of Your hand.

Job 33:4
The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.

Genesis 1:26-27
Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness, to rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, and over all the earth itself and every creature that crawls upon it.” / So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

Ephesians 2:10
For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life.

Colossians 1:16
For in Him all things were created, things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities. All things were created through Him and for Him.

Hebrews 4:13
Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight; everything is uncovered and exposed before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.

Acts 17:28
‘For in Him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are His offspring.’

Romans 8:29
For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers.


Treasury of Scripture

My substance was not hid from you, when I was made in secret, and curiously worked in the lowest parts of the earth.

substance.

Psalm 139:13
For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb.

Job 10:9-11
Remember, I beseech thee, that thou hast made me as the clay; and wilt thou bring me into dust again? …

Exodus 11:5
And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sitteth upon his throne, even unto the firstborn of the maidservant that is behind the mill; and all the firstborn of beasts.

in the lowest

Psalm 63:9
But those that seek my soul, to destroy it, shall go into the lower parts of the earth.

Ephesians 4:9
(Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?

Jump to Previous
Bones Depths Earth Formed Frame Hid Hidden Lowest Part Parts Secret Secretly Skillfully Strangely Substance Together Unseen Wasn't Woven Wrought
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Bones Depths Earth Formed Frame Hid Hidden Lowest Part Parts Secret Secretly Skillfully Strangely Substance Together Unseen Wasn't Woven Wrought
Psalm 139
1. David praises God for his all-seeing providence
17. And for this infinite mercies
19. He defies the wicked
23. He prays for sincerity














My frame
The Hebrew word for "frame" here is "otsem," which can refer to bones or physical structure. This word emphasizes the intricate design and strength of the human body, crafted by God Himself. In a conservative Christian perspective, this highlights the belief in God's intentional creation of each individual, underscoring the sanctity and value of human life from conception.

was not hidden from You
The phrase underscores God's omniscience and omnipresence. The Hebrew root "satar" means to hide or conceal. This suggests that nothing about our being is concealed from God, affirming His intimate knowledge and involvement in our creation. It reassures believers of God's constant awareness and care, even in the most private aspects of our existence.

when I was made in secret
The term "secret" comes from the Hebrew "sathar," indicating a hidden or concealed place. This phrase reflects the mysterious and sacred process of human formation, often interpreted as the womb. It speaks to the divine mystery of life, crafted away from human eyes, yet fully known to God. This aligns with the belief in God's sovereign hand in the creation of life, emphasizing His role as the ultimate Creator.

when I was woven together
The Hebrew word "raqam" is used here, which means to embroider or weave. This imagery of weaving suggests a careful, artistic process, highlighting the complexity and beauty of human life. It reflects the belief that God intricately designs each person with purpose and care, much like a master weaver crafting a tapestry.

in the depths of the earth
This phrase can be understood metaphorically, as the "depths of the earth" often symbolize the hidden, foundational aspects of creation. In ancient Near Eastern thought, the earth's depths were seen as mysterious and inaccessible, much like the womb. This imagery reinforces the idea of God's creative work being both profound and beyond human comprehension, yet fully within His control and knowledge.

(15) Substance.--Aquila "bones," LXX. and Vulg. "bone," Symmachus "strength." Perhaps, generally, body. But the common Hebrew word for bone differs only in the pointing.

In secret.--Comp. 'sch. Eum. 665.

Curiously wrought.--From the use of the verb in Exodus 26:36; Exodus 27:16, it plainly refers to some kind of tapestry work, but whether of the nature of weaving or embroidery is matter of controversy. The English sufficiently suggests the figure.

In the lowest parts of the earth.--This figurative allusion to the womb is intended no doubt to heighten the feeling of mystery attaching to birth. There may also be a covert allusion to the creation from dust as Ecclesiasticus 40:1, "From the day that they go out of their mother's womb, till the day that they return to the mother of all things." This allusion falls in with the view which meets us in other parts of the Old Testament, that the creation of Adam is repeated at every birth (Job 33:6, and see above, Psalm 139:13). . . .

Verse 15. - My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret. The formation of the embryo in the womb seems to be intended. This remains as much a mystery as ever, notwithstanding all the pryings of modern science. And curiously wrought; literally, and embroidered, or woven with threads of divers colors (comp. ver. 13b; and note that modern science speaks of the various "tissues" of the human frame, and calls a portion of medical knowledge "histology"). In the lowest parts of the earth. This is scarcely to be taken literally. It is perhaps only a variant for the "secretly" of the preceding clause.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
My frame
עָצְמִ֗י (‘ā·ṣə·mî)
Noun - masculine singular construct | first person common singular
Strong's 6108: Might, bones

was not
לֹא־ (lō-)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

hidden
נִכְחַ֥ד (niḵ·ḥaḏ)
Verb - Nifal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 3582: To secrete, by act, word, to destroy

from You
מִ֫מֶּ֥ךָּ (mim·me·kā)
Preposition | second person masculine singular
Strong's 4480: A part of, from, out of

when
אֲשֶׁר־ (’ă·šer-)
Pronoun - relative
Strong's 834: Who, which, what, that, when, where, how, because, in order that

I was made
עֻשֵּׂ֥יתִי (‘uś·śê·ṯî)
Verb - Pual - Perfect - first person common singular
Strong's 6213: To do, make

in secret,
בַסֵּ֑תֶר (ḇas·sê·ṯer)
Preposition-b, Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 5643: A covering, hiding place, secrecy

when I was woven together
רֻ֝קַּ֗מְתִּי (ruq·qam·tî)
Verb - Pual - Perfect - first person common singular
Strong's 7551: To variegate color, embroider, to fabricate

in the depths
בְּֽתַחְתִּיּ֥וֹת (bə·ṯaḥ·tî·yō·wṯ)
Preposition-b | Noun - feminine plural construct
Strong's 8482: Lowermost, the depths

of the earth.
אָֽרֶץ׃ (’ā·reṣ)
Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 776: Earth, land


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OT Poetry: Psalm 139:15 My frame wasn't hidden from you when (Psalm Ps Psa.)
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