Psalm 115:6 is a description of idols: they have ears and noses, yet they cannot hear or smell. The verse makes a point about the difference between lifeless objects and the living God, who hears and answers his people. It was written by an unnamed psalmist, traditionally associated with Israel’s worship, and addressed to the community of God’s people as a reminder of who is worthy of their trust.
They have ears, but they don’t hear. They have noses, but they don’t smell.
Psalm 115:6 (WEB)
What Psalm 115:6 Means
The verse begins with the word “they,” which points to the idols described in the verses just before it, made of silver and gold by human hands. The psalmist then lists the parts of the body a person would expect such an object to have: ears for hearing, nostrils for smelling. The contrast is the heart of the point. The idol has the shape of a sensing creature without any of the actual capacity to sense.
What the verse does not do is offer a lesson about the physical anatomy of idols or spell out a detailed theology of the senses. It is a poem, and its force comes from its vivid, slightly mocking picture. It promises nothing about how God hears or smells, but it does set up the next line of the psalm, which calls Israel to trust the LORD, the one who truly acts and helps.
The Context of Psalm 115:6
Psalm 115 belongs to the collection of songs known as the Psalms, and it is generally read as a communal hymn of trust in God, sung by a worshiping congregation. Its authorship is not stated in the text. The psalm was likely used in worship and in moments when Israel faced pressure from surrounding nations whose gods were carved and cast images.
Just before verse 6, the psalmist affirms that “our God is in the heavens” and “does whatever he pleases” (verse 3), then turns to the idols of the nations. Just after, the mockery gives way to a call: “Israel, trust in the LORD! He is their help and their shield” (verse 9). Read in that sequence, verse 6 is not a mere insult. It is a step in a argument that moves from the greatness of God to the emptiness of the alternatives and finally to a command to rely on him.
Key Phrases in Psalm 115:6
Psalm 46:10
“Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted in the earth.”
(WEB)
This verse calls the reader to stillness and to knowing that God is exalted over the nations. Like Psalm 115, it turns attention from human noise and striving toward the one true God, whose sovereignty stands above every rival.
Isaiah 44:9
Everyone who makes a carved image is vain. The things that they delight in will not profit. Their own witnesses don’t see, nor know, that they may be disappointed.
(WEB)
Isaiah mocks the making of idols in similar terms, describing the craftsmen who shape images that cannot profit them. Reading it alongside Psalm 115:6 shows how the Old Testament consistently exposes idols as empty and unable to save.
A Short Prayer From Psalm 115:6
Lord, you are the God who hears and sees, and you are not like the lifeless things people have made to stand in your place. Forgive me for the times I have leaned on what cannot listen or answer. Open my ears to your voice and my heart to your nearness. Help me to trust you as my help and my shield, today and every day. Amen.
