Psalms 139:23-24
Search me, God, and know my heart. Try me, and know my thoughts. See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way.
Interpretation
Wisdom shapes a search me that is worked out in family life in Psalms 139:23-24—look for "know" and "way". Give search me in conversations that test patience—steady the will with prayer.
Context
The setting is Psalms—poetry/wisdom, developing search me. Read in Psalms 139, its force becomes clearer. It also intersects wisdom & worship. Listen for “know” alongside “way”.
Manuscripts & Textual Witnesses
The Hebrew text is preserved in the Masoretic tradition, stabilized between the 6th-10th centuries CE. The the Dead Sea Scrolls (found 1947-1956) provide manuscripts 1000+ years older than medieval texts, generally confirming the Masoretic Text's reliability with only minor variations. The Septuagint (Greek translation, 3rd-2nd century BCE) offers an independent textual witness. Variations between manuscripts are typically minor: spelling differences, word order, or clarifications that do not alter the main meaning. Modern translations compare all available manuscripts to reconstruct the most probable original wording text.
Sources & witness notes
MT