Is there biblical evidence that God knows my unspoken thoughts?

Question

I am trying to understand the broader rules for my own existence. I know I exist and think. If I want to convey thoughts to another person or living being I have words. Many times words are poor tools for adequately communicating thoughts. How much easier would it be to have someone you trust just mind meld with you for a minute to understand what you are trying to express?

With that said, I would like to think that my thoughts are sovereign. That I have a safe place closed off to work out ideas that are not fully formed. A place where I can reason out ideas free of judgement. Then when I am ready to commune or pray to God, that I can do so reasonably, respectfully, to not grieve his spirit. To not act (speak) to God until I have a legitimate thought that is worth speaking about. Not unlike forming a legitimate question at this web site.

So, is there precedence in the Bible that tells me that I my as well give that idea of a free independent sovereign mind free from God or anyone for that matter, where there a space in the universe, a place in the universe, that is not to be intruded upon by any spirit but my own so that I can exercise my own freedom of will of choice and thought?

Answer 1

Is there biblical evidence that God knows my unspoken thoughts?

Yes, indeed there is:

12 For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account. - Hebrews 4:12-13 NIV

2 Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. 3 I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. 4 My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. 5 Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart. At that time each will receive their praise from God. - 1 Corinthians 4:2-5 NIV

3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures. - James 4:3 NIV¹

1 You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. 2 You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. - Psalm 139:1-2 NIV

6 When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed stands here before the Lord.” 7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” - 1 Samuel 16:6-7 NIV

As far as I am aware, the Bible does not offer any encouragement towards the idea that we can hide any of our thoughts from God. The only concept that comes close to my knowledge is God's promise that when we confess and repent of our sins, that He will no longer 'remember' them (cf. Isaiah 43:25), but I believe this is used idiomatically to mean He will no longer account them rather than a literal forgetting and in any event is on a substantially different track than what you are looking for.

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_{1. The implication is that God knows our (hidden - perhaps even from us) motives when we pray.}