The LORD does all that pleases Him in the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and in all their depths.
Parallel translations
- WEB Whatever Yahweh pleased, that he has done, in heaven and in earth, in the seas and in all deeps;
- KJV Whatsoever the LORD pleased, that did he in heaven, and in earth, in the seas, and all deep places.
- NKJV Whatever the Lord pleases He does, In heaven and in earth, In the seas and in all deep places.
- NASB Whatever the Lord pleases, He does, In heaven and on earth, in the seas and in all the ocean depths.
- NLT The Lord does whatever pleases him throughout all heaven and earth, and on the seas and in their depths.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Yahweh does whatever He pleases throughout all creation, showing His sovereign rule over every realm.
Overview
This verse grounds Israel's praise in God's absolute sovereignty: He acts freely in the heavens, the earth, the seas, and the depths, with nothing outside His authority. Unlike the powerless idols described later in the psalm, the living God accomplishes all His good pleasure. His unrestricted will is a comfort to His people, for the One who rules all things rules for their good in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Ps 115:3Our God is in heaven; He does as He pleases.
- Dan 4:35All the peoples of the earth are counted as nothing, and He does as He pleases with the army of heaven and the peoples of the earth. There is no one who can restrain His hand or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’”
- Matt 28:18Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.
- Isa 46:10I declare the end from the beginning, and ancient times from what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and all My good pleasure I will accomplish.’
- Ps 33:9For He spoke, and it came to be; He commanded, and it stood firm.
- Matt 8:26–27“You of little faith,” Jesus replied, “why are you so afraid?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and it was perfectly calm.
- Ps 33:11The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the purposes of His heart to all generations.
- Amos 4:13For behold, He who forms the mountains, who creates the wind and reveals His thoughts to man, who turns the dawn to darkness and strides on the heights of the earth—the LORD, the God of Hosts, is His name.”
- Amos 9:6He builds His upper rooms in the heavens and founds His vault upon the earth. He summons the waters of the sea and pours them over the face of the earth. The LORD is His name.
- Ps 136:13–15He divided the Red Sea in two His loving devotion endures forever.
- Matt 14:25During the fourth watch of the night, Jesus went out to them, walking on the sea.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
The Psalms are Christ's own prayer book and a gallery of his portraits — the suffering one of Psalm 22, the risen Lord of Psalm 16, the priest-king of Psalm 110, the Son to whom the nations are given.
How Psalms 135:6 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.