Track 5 · Holy Trance Vol. 1: Cathedral of Light
Wings of the Dawn
Inspired by Psalm 139:9-10 · ISRC QTA872672148
Scripture, lyrics and meaning
Scripture
Psalm 139:1-12, World English Bible, British Edition (public domain)Credited on the release as Psalm 139:9-10.Widened from the credited 139:9-10 to 139:1-12 because the lyrics also draw on v. 4 ("before a word is on my tongue") and vv. 11-12 (darkness is not dark to God).Psalm 139:1-12
1 LORD, you have searched me, and you know me. 2 You know my sitting down and my rising up. You perceive my thoughts from afar. 3 You search out my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways. 4 For there is not a word on my tongue, but behold, LORD, you know it altogether. 5 You hem me in behind and before. You laid your hand on me. 6 This knowledge is beyond me. It’s lofty. I can’t attain it. 7 Where could I go from your Spirit? Or where could I flee from your presence? 8 If I ascend up into heaven, you are there. If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, you are there! 9 If I take the wings of the dawn, and settle in the uttermost parts of the sea, 10 even there your hand will lead me, and your right hand will hold me. 11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will overwhelm me. The light around me will be night,” 12 even the darkness doesn’t hide from you, but the night shines as the day. The darkness is like light to you.
Lyrics
Intro
If I take the wings of morning light
Fly beyond the borders of the night
Verse 1
Across the deepest ocean far and wide
Even there Your faithful hand will guide
Before a single word was on my tongue
You knew the melody my heart had sung
Breakdown
No darkness hides me from Your loving eyes
Your mercy meets me where the horizon lies
Take me higher than the morning star
You are where the brightest heavens are
Chorus
On the wings of dawn I fly to You
Every ancient promise burning true
Through the clouds of gold we ascend on high
Written in the brilliance of the sky
Outro
On the wings of dawn we rise
Your hand will guide me home
What the passage means
Psalm 139 reflects on how completely God knows a person, down to every word before it is spoken. It goes on to say that there is nowhere, not even "the wings of the dawn", the far side of the sea or the dark, where God's presence and guiding hand are absent. It is usually read as a comfort, a reassurance that no one is ever beyond God's knowledge and care.