Read
Psalm 96:5
For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the LORD made the heavens.
3Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples.
4For the LORD is great, and greatly to be praised! He is to be feared above all gods.
5For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the LORD made the heavens.
6Honor and majesty are before him. Strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.
7Ascribe to the LORD, you families of nations, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.
Notice
The heavens make the contrast concrete: YHWH made what stretches overhead, while the gods honored by the peoples are idols.
Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.
How does looking at the heavens shape your understanding of YHWH’s claim on your worship?
Write on thisWhat difference does this verse draw between a god people honor and YHWH who creates?
Write on thisConnect
Where else Scripture says this
11 passages readers most often link with this verse, and the thread each one shares with it.
This verse's connections, by chapterThe Bible's strongest chapter linksHover or tap a book to trace it
Genesis 1:1In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.Both passages name God as the maker of the heavens; Genesis also names the earth as his creation.
Psalm 115:15Blessed are you by the LORD, who made heaven and earth.Both psalms identify the LORD as the maker of the heavens, with Psalm 115 naming him as the source of blessing.
Jeremiah 10:11“You shall say this to them: ‘The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth will perish from the earth, and from under the heavens.’”Both passages distinguish the LORD from other gods through creation: he made the heavens, and those gods did not.
Isaiah 42:5God the LORD, he who created the heavens and stretched them out, he who spread out the earth and that which comes out of it, he who gives breath to its people …Both passages declare that the LORD created the heavens; Isaiah extends that account to the earth and the breath of its people.
Leviticus 19:4“‘Don’t turn to idols, nor make molten gods for yourselves. I am the LORD your God.Both passages distinguish the LORD from idols; Leviticus makes the response explicit by forbidding turning to them or making molten gods.
2 Chronicles 25:15Therefore the LORD’s anger burned against Amaziah, and he sent to him a prophet who said to him, “Why have you sought after the gods of the people, which have …Both passages challenge the standing of the peoples’ gods: idols in the psalm, failed deliverers in Amaziah’s story.
1 Corinthians 8:4Therefore concerning the eating of things sacrificed to idols, we know that no idol is anything in the world, and that there is no other God but one.Both passages deny idols the status of God: the psalm names the LORD as Creator, and Paul affirms that God is one.
Psalm 102:25Of old, you laid the foundation of the earth. The heavens are the work of your hands.Both psalms describe the heavens as God’s work, with Psalm 102 also naming the foundation of the earth.
Jeremiah 10:3–5For the customs of the peoples are vanity; for one cuts a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman with the ax.Both passages challenge the peoples’ worship: the psalm names their gods as idols, while Jeremiah describes a craftsman cutting wood.
Jeremiah 10:14–15Every man has become brutish and without knowledge. Every goldsmith is disappointed by his engraved image; for his molten image is falsehood, and there is no …Both passages reject idols’ claims to divinity; Jeremiah describes the molten image as falsehood, without breath.
Psalm 135:18Those who make them will be like them, yes, everyone who trusts in them.Both passages concern idols; Psalm 96 contrasts them with the Creator, while Psalm 135 warns about trusting in them.
Where this verse fits
Praise and worship. sermon or Bible study notes.
One step
Something small to carry out of this verse
Encouragement
The worth of YHWH does not depend on how many people honor him. The heavens are his work; the peoples’ gods are idols.
Now put it in your words.
Start an entry on Psalm 96:5. Write what it stirs. Psalmlog sets your words beside Scripture and gives you one next step. Your first entry is free, no account needed.
Keep goingPsalm 96 · the whole chapter with its connection mapPsalms · every chapterBuild a reading plan through Psalms
Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).