Psalm 135:6

Psalm 135:6, in plain English

Whatever pleases God, He accomplishes—in the heavens above, on the earth, in the seas, and in depths you can't even reach. Nothing resists His will or limits His power.

Why it's here

The psalmist is painting a picture of complete, unquestioned sovereignty. In a world where people often felt at the mercy of natural forces, disease, and warfare, this was profound comfort. It meant someone was in control and it was the God you served.

Who's speaking

The psalmist, declaring God's absolute authority

Where it sits in the story

This theme runs throughout Scripture—from the creation account where God speaks things into existence, through the prophets who announce that God's purposes cannot be thwarted, to Revelation's vision of God's complete reign at history's end.

The scholarly reading

God's sovereignty is declared in terms of absolute power and will: whatever pleases Him, He accomplishes throughout the entire cosmos—celestial, terrestrial, and aquatic realms. This captures the radical monotheistic claim that nothing falls outside His dominion or resists His purposes.

Language and setting

The tripartite cosmic division—'heavens and on the earth, in the seas and in all their depths' (בַשָּׁמַיִם וּבָאָרֶץ בַיַּמִּים וְכׇל־תְּהוֹמוֹת)—echoes the creation account (Gen. 1:1), suggesting that God's present sovereignty extends over the entire creation He brought into being. The phrase 'does all that pleases Him' (כֹּל אֲשֶׁר חָפֵץ עָשָׂה) reflects both divine freedom and teleological purpose—God's will is not arbitrary but oriented toward His good purposes.

Voice

The individual worshipper, now expanding the scope of declaration to encompass cosmic dimensions.

Significance

This cosmic affirmation of God's sovereignty becomes increasingly important in Jewish theology under foreign domination. When earthly political power seemed to rest with Babylon, Persia, or Hellenistic rulers, faith in God's cosmic dominion provided resilience. The principle appears throughout the Psalter (cf. Ps. 29, 93) and finds full expression in the New Testament (1 Cor. 15:27, Phil. 2:9-11).

4For the LORD has chosen Jacob as His own, Israel as His treasured possession.

5For I know that the LORD is great; our Lord is above all gods.

6The LORD does all that pleases Him in the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and in all their depths.

7He causes the clouds to rise from the ends of the earth. He generates the lightning with the rain and brings forth the wind from His storehouses.

8He struck down the firstborn of Egypt, of both man and beast.

Read all of Psalm 135 — The Lord chose Israel as His treasured possession. A hymn that celebrates divine choice and power with borrowed phrases from across the Psalter.