Psalm 36:6 kjv
Thy righteousness is like the great mountains; thy judgments are a great deep: O LORD, thou preservest man and beast.
Psalm 36:6 nkjv
Your righteousness is like the great mountains; Your judgments are a great deep; O LORD, You preserve man and beast.
Psalm 36:6 niv
Your righteousness is like the highest mountains, your justice like the great deep. You, LORD, preserve both people and animals.
Psalm 36:6 esv
Your righteousness is like the mountains of God; your judgments are like the great deep; man and beast you save, O LORD.
Psalm 36:6 nlt
Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains,
your justice like the ocean depths.
You care for people and animals alike, O LORD.
Psalm 36 6 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ps 7:9 | ...you who test the hearts and minds... God is a righteous judge. | God's righteousness as a judge. |
| Ps 9:8 | He will judge the world in righteousness; he will govern the peoples with equity. | God's righteous judgment on a global scale. |
| Ps 90:2 | Before the mountains were born... from everlasting to everlasting you are God. | God's eternality transcends mountains. |
| Ps 92:5 | How great are your works, O Lord! Your thoughts are very deep! | God's thoughts/judgments are deep. |
| Ps 119:75 | I know, O Lord, that your judgments are right, and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me. | Affirmation of God's just judgments. |
| Ps 145:17 | The Lord is righteous in all his ways and kind in all his works. | Praise for God's pervasive righteousness. |
| Deut 32:4 | The Rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are justice. A God of faithfulness... just and upright. | God's perfect justice and uprightness. |
| Job 11:7-9 | "Can you find out the deep things of God? Can you find out the limit of the Almighty? It is higher than heaven... deeper than Sheol." | God's incomprehensible depth and height. |
| Isa 40:12 | Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand and marked off the heavens...? | God's control over vastness (waters) and creation. |
| Isa 45:21 | ...a righteous God and a Savior; there is none besides me. | God as exclusively righteous and saving. |
| Isa 55:8-9 | "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the Lord. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." | God's wisdom and ways are beyond human comprehension. |
| Nah 1:3 | The Lord is slow to anger and great in power, and the Lord will by no means clear the guilty. His way is in whirlwind and storm... | God's power in judgment and his unsearchable ways. |
| Rom 3:25-26 | ...to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins... He did this to demonstrate his righteousness... that he might be just and the justifier... | God's righteousness manifested in Christ's atonement. |
| Rom 11:33 | Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! | Echoes Ps 36:6 directly: God's judgments are unsearchable. |
| 1 Cor 2:10-11 | ...for the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God... No one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. | Confirms the depths of God's thoughts are known only to His Spirit. |
| Rev 15:3 | "Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations!" | Worship recognizing God's just ways and deeds. |
| Heb 12:26-27 | ...Now he has promised, "Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heaven." This indicates the removal of things that are shaken... in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. | Contrast between mutable creation and immutable divine attributes. |
| Jude 1:24 | Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy... | God's power to maintain righteousness in His people. |
| Gen 1:2 | The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. | Introduction of "the deep" as primeval, God's mastery over it. |
| Ps 77:19 | Your way was through the sea, your path through the great waters; yet your footprints were unseen. | God's hidden ways in mighty acts, controlling vast waters. |
| Ps 104:6 | You covered it with the deep as with a garment; the waters stood above the mountains. | Further biblical imagery of "the deep" and mountains under God's control. |
Psalm 36 verses
Psalm 36 6 Meaning
Psalm 36:6 proclaims the boundless and profound nature of God's character attributes: His righteousness and His judgments. God's righteousness is likened to immense and immovable mountains, signifying its unchanging, lofty, and stable nature, far beyond human corruption or limitation. His judgments are depicted as a vast and unfathomable deep, conveying their intricate, comprehensive, and mysterious wisdom, too profound for human minds to fully grasp, yet always perfectly just and in control. The verse emphasizes God's transcendence, reliability, and majestic wisdom in His dealings with creation.
Psalm 36 6 Context
Psalm 36 presents a profound contrast between the innate depravity of the wicked (vv. 1-4) and the glorious, boundless character of God (vv. 5-9). The first section describes a person devoid of the fear of God, whose sin deceives him, and whose words are wicked and deceitful. Verse 6 marks a pivot point, shifting from the limited and fallen nature of humanity to the infinite and transcendent nature of God. This verse, therefore, serves as a bridge, preparing the way for the psalmist's prayer for divine favor and protection in the closing verses (vv. 10-12), recognizing that God's steadfast character is the only secure foundation amidst human wickedness. Historically, such psalms served to reassure believers of Yahweh's distinct supremacy over the capricious or limited deities of surrounding cultures, whose attributes were often constrained by human failings or physical boundaries.
Psalm 36 6 Word analysis
- Your righteousness (צִדְקָתְךָ - tzedqatekha): "Righteousness" (צְדָקָה - tzedaqah) refers to God's inherent nature of being absolutely just, right, and holy. It encompasses His moral perfection, fidelity to His covenant, and His unwavering adherence to His own divine standards. It is not merely an attribute but the very essence of His character. This contrasts sharply with the "wickedness" (pesha’) mentioned in verse 1.
- is like the mountains of God (כְּהַרְרֵי אֵל - keharerei El): This simile depicts God's righteousness as immeasurable, unshakable, permanent, and exalted. "Mountains of God" (harerei El) uses the construct state "mountains of" followed by "God" (El), often functioning as a superlative in Hebrew, indicating the grandest, strongest, or most magnificent kind of mountains (e.g., "cedars of God"). This signifies mountains of divine origin, of supreme majesty, and unyielding stability, far surpassing any earthly peak. God's righteousness is beyond human reach and manipulation, eternally solid.
- Your judgments (מִשְׁפָּטֶיךָ - mishpateykha): "Judgments" (מִשְׁפָּטִים - mishpatim) refers to God's acts of justice, His decrees, His rulings, and the way He governs the universe. These are not merely arbitrary decisions but expressions of His inherent righteousness. They represent His providential wisdom in ordering creation and dealing with humanity.
- are a great deep (תְּהוֹם רַבָּה - tehom rabbah): This metaphor likens God's judgments to "a great deep" (tehom rabbah). The Hebrew word tehom (deep, abyss) is notably used in Genesis 1:2 for the primeval, vast, and often chaotic waters. Here, it conveys unfathomable depth, complexity, and mystery, implying that God's ways are beyond human full comprehension, though always perfectly just. Despite the primordial chaos associated with tehom, its being under God's control underscores His absolute sovereignty, wisdom, and the comprehensive scope of His rule over all things.
- Words-group analysis: The pairing of "righteousness" with "mountains of God" and "judgments" with "great deep" creates a symmetrical structure that amplifies God's attributes. The "mountains" speak to the transcendence, immutability, and manifest grandeur of God's character (righteousness). The "deep" speaks to the immanence (though hidden), mystery, and pervasive control of His will (judgments). Together, they convey that God's moral perfection and His active rule are both loftily inaccessible and profoundly pervasive, yet utterly secure and dependable, contrasting the superficial and corrupt nature of human sin previously described.
Commentary
Psalm 36:6 offers a breathtaking double metaphor revealing the infinite nature of God's character. His righteousness, His perfect rightness in all He is and does, is like the highest, most solid, and enduring mountains—symbolizing its unchangeable majesty and utterly reliable foundation. It is lofty, majestic, and a source of security. Complementing this, His judgments—His wise and just acts and decrees in governing the world—are like the "great deep," a profound abyss. This imagery speaks to their incomprehensible depth, wisdom, and vastness. Unlike the surface-level schemes of humanity, God's judgments penetrate to the core of all matters, beyond human perception. They are comprehensive, powerful, and mysterious in their execution, yet are rooted in His unchanging righteousness. The verse calls believers to rest in the unwavering standard of His righteousness and to trust in the profound wisdom of His actions, even when they cannot be fully grasped. This brings both comfort and awe: comfort in God's perfect justice, and awe before His limitless wisdom. Example 1: When life seems unfair, remember God's righteousness is like "mountains of God"—unmoving, always just. Example 2: When divine decisions seem unclear, recall "Your judgments are a great deep"—there's profound wisdom beyond our sight.Bonus section
The anthropomorphic language ("Your righteousness," "Your judgments") allows for human comprehension of divine attributes, even though the ensuing similes/metaphors quickly push these concepts beyond mere human scales. The choice of "mountains" and "deep" as natural phenomena reinforces God's sovereignty over creation itself; He is not just a moral authority but the master of the universe. This also serves as an implicit polemic against ancient Near Eastern deities who were often depicted as battling against or subject to cosmic forces like primordial waters or having limited domains. Yahweh's righteousness and judgments perfectly control and encompass what is most vast and profound in creation, revealing His absolute power and supreme intelligence.