Psalms 145:6 Commentary: Proclaiming God's Awesome Might and Greatness

Psalm 145 is the only psalm titled tehillah (‘praise’) in the superscript, and it forms an alphabetic acrostic, each verse beginning with a successive Hebrew letter (the nun verse is missing in the Masoretic Text). Jewish tradition prized it so highly that reciting it three times daily was said to secure the blessings of the world to come. The psalmist, traditionally David, addresses God as ‘my God the King’, a startlingly direct claim that Yahweh rules absolutely, even over a king who sits on an earthly throne.

The phrase ‘terrible acts’ (Hebrew norot, from yare ‘to fear’) echoes Deuteronomy 10:17, where God is ‘the great, the mighty, and the terrible God.’ In the surrounding verses, the psalmist describes generation-to-generation testimony (v.4), meditation on glorious majesty (v.5), and the outpouring of God’s goodness and righteousness (vv.7-9). The ‘might’ (e.zuz, H5807) is not mere brute force but the fierce strength of a warrior-king who acts in history. Cross-references like Joshua 2:9-11 and Ezra 1:2 show that even Israel’s enemies and foreign rulers spoke of Yahweh’s fearsome deeds. This verse sits in a tradition where recounting God’s acts, both deliverance and judgment, is a natural, necessary response to who He is.

The consulted sources note one significant textual variant in this passage. The Cambridge Bible observes that the Masoretic K'thibh (written text) reads ‘great deeds,’ while the Q'rē (reading tradition) has ‘your greatness.’ The K'thibh suits the parallelism of the verse better, as it echoes the plural ‘awesome acts’ in the first line. No other variants are discussed in the supplied materials.

Psalm 145 has been cherished across Jewish and Christian traditions. The Talmud records that reciting this psalm three times daily is a path to blessing in the world to come, a practice that continues in Jewish liturgy. In the church, the psalm has been sung in hymns and used as a pattern for praise, emphasizing God’s kingdom and compassion as much as His power. Early Christian readers, like the fathers of the desert, saw the ‘terrible acts’ as God’s judgments that purify the soul, while later reformers such as Calvin focused on the psalm’s celebration of providence. The verse’s pairing of awe with personal testimony remains a foundation for worship that is both reverent and intimate.

Three-point outline

1. The content of our witness: God’s awesome acts, the deeds that make us catch our breath, whether in rescue or in judgment.
2. The commitment of our witness: ‘I will declare’, a personal, resolute decision that shapes the whole life.
3. The cumulative effect: One generation speaks to another (v.4), building a chain of testimony that spans centuries.

Five-point outline

1. God reveals Himself in deeds that inspire terror and wonder.
2. Those deeds demand a human response: speech, not silence.
3. The community testifies together (‘men will speak’), and the individual leads by example (‘I will declare’).
4. Greatness is not a second theme but the single reality behind every fearful act.
5. This witness continues from generation to generation, building faith.

Illustration hooks

• A news report of a natural disaster, the raw power that both terrifies and humbles. Survivors often describe feeling small yet strangely held.
• A courtroom, where a witness recounts a crime not to glorify violence but to establish justice. The telling is solemn, weighty, and necessary.
• A parent helping a child through a scary storm, speaking calmly about the thunder’s strength and the safety of home.

Questions your congregation is asking

• If God does terrible things, how can I praise Him for them?
• I don’t feel awe when I read the Old Testament judgments, what am I missing?
• How do I talk about God’s power in a way that draws people, not frightens them away?

This verse invites us to think about how we speak of God’s power, especially the parts that make us uncomfortable. God’s ‘awesome acts’ include events that shake the world and expose human frailty. Yet the psalmist treats them as grounds for declaration, not silence. As you discuss, consider how fear and praise can live in the same breath.

Discussion questions

1. Read Psalm 145:4-7. What kinds of acts does the psalmist say we should talk about?
2. The Hebrew word for ‘awesome’ (norot) shares a root with ‘fear.’ Why do you think the Bible uses the same word for being scared and for being awestruck?
3. In verse 6, ‘men’ (or ‘they’) speak about God’s power, but the psalmist says ‘I will declare.’ What is the difference between these two kinds of speech?
4. When you think of God’s ‘terrible acts’, events like the flood, the plagues, or the cross, what feelings come up first? How does that shape your praise?
5. How can a community of faith speak honestly about judgment without sounding harsh or self-righteous?
6. What would it look like for you personally to ‘declare God’s greatness’ this week, not just in church but in everyday conversation?
7. The next verse (v.7) moves from awesome acts to ‘great goodness.’ Why do you think the two are placed side by side?