An Open Book

You know everything I’m going to say before I start the first sentence.

Psalm 139:4 MSG

Often times whilst we know what we want to say, we don't know exactly how we're going to say it.

If we're speaking to someone about an issue which is sensitive, we will likely try to be mindful of the words we are going to use in order to best phrase our communication.

In everyday conversation where communication flows, we don't have time to think before we answer the question as the process is instantaneous. For example, if someone were to ask you how your day went, we'd know how to answer them but we wouldn't know what specific words we would be using to verbalise our experience. We'd simply explain what had happened.

The process of communication starts in the brain which in turn has to process the thought and translate it into specific words which are ordered in a way which can be understood. This process is instantaneous. It is known as the Speed of Transmission.

Each individual has their own personal, internal and subjective dictionary from which they select specific words to convey the message they are sending. This is based on personality, background, experiences and education among other factors. It is thought that the average person has a personal, internal, subjective dictionary containing 25,000 unique words from which the person will draw from.

When discussing something which is sensitive, we will often find a person 'self edits' what they are saying. This means they will start by saying something before pausing mid sentence and veering off at a tangent. This is noticeable. It could be as mentioned earlier, we are being mindful and considerate of the person we are talking too. It could also be because we do not want to reveal sensitive information which could potentially be incriminating or cause us harm due to embarrassment, shame, deception or for a variety of reasons.

When conversation is relaxed and enjoyed, it flows and can be understood.

Returning to the verse, it makes sense that God knows everything we're going to say before we start the first sentence. Due to the Speed of Transmission, we don't know ourselves. God can know our thoughts. We however, might know how we'd like to answer a question but unlike God, don't know what words we're going to use.

David (the author of the verse) struggled to understand the enormity of content. In the greater context of the chapter, it seeks to trust God.