Your steadfast love, O LORD, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds. Your righteousness is like the mountains of God; your judgments are like the great deep; man and beast you save, O LORD. Psalm 36:5,6 (ESV)

Your steadfast love, O LORD, extends to the heavens,

God surrounds us with His steadfast love just as the heavens envelop our planet. At any moment, on any day, we can look up and see Him blessing and sustaining us by the word of His power (Heb 1:3). As we look up, we also recognise that the vast, unfathomable expanse is like His love for us – too much for us to ever fully appreciate. And just as the heavens are inseparable from the earth (Psa 19:1), so are we from His mighty love (Rom 8:37-39).

your faithfulness to the clouds.

God’s faithfulness extending to the clouds points us to the divine relief He graciously and mercifully showers upon us in times of distress.  Whether it be a shield from the burning heat of the sun or raining refreshment on dry ground, He revitalises us as only He can.  Whilst clouds are usually far above us, they can also descend, encompassing us, and therefore reminding us that He is a ‘friend that sticks closer to a brother’ Prov 18:24.

your righteousness is like the mountains of God 

These verses also tell us that God’s righteousness is like the mountains. Mountains do not move or fade; they stand firm, enduring the most inhospitable weather and the darkness of nights, providing shelter and sustenance to valleys below. So, it is with God’s righteousness; it is not affected by anything. He is the one true God (Mal 3:6), and we can be assured that our Lord is the same yesterday, today and forever (Heb 13:8) – the true “Rock of Ages” (Isa 26:4).

your judgments are like the great deep

God’s judgments being like the great deep, paint a picture of beauty, danger and wonder. His justice is more beautiful than the coral of the most flourishing tropical reef and the life forms that inhabit them.  The danger reminds us that our Great God is also the supreme judge to whom we are all accountable (Psa 58:11). The wonder of the deep humbles us, reminding us that mysteries exist that are beyond our knowledge and comprehension known only to God, thus illustrating that His judgements are unsearchable and his ways inscrutable” (Rom 11:33).

How good is the God that we adore!