Psalms 139:9

9 If I take the wings of the morning and settle at the farthest limits of the sea,

Psalms 139:9 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 139:9

[If] I take the wings of the morning
And fly as swift as the morning light to the east, to the extremity of it, as Ben Melech; as far as he could go that way, as swiftly as the wings of the morning could carry him thither; so the morning is represented by the Heathens as having wings F6; or as the rays of the rising sun, called wings for the swiftness of them, ( Malachi 4:2 ) ;

[and] dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;
in the most distant isles of it, in the farthest parts of the world, the sea being supposed the boundary of it: or "in the uttermost parts of the west" F7, as opposed to the morning light and rising sun, which appear in the east; and the sea is often in Scripture put for the west, the Mediterranean sea being to the west of the land of Palestine; and could he go from east to west in a moment, as the above writer observes, there would God be. The Heathens represent Jupiter, their supreme god, as having three eyes, because he reigns in heaven, and in earth, and under the earth F8.


FOOTNOTES:

F6 Vid. Cuperi Apotheos. Homeri, p. 177.
F7 (My tyrxab) "in novissimo occidentis", Pagninus.
F8 Pausan. Corinthiaca, sive l. 2. p. 129.

Psalms 139:9 In-Context

7 Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I ascend to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.
9 If I take the wings of the morning and settle at the farthest limits of the sea,
10 even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me fast.
11 If I say, "Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light around me become night,"
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.