Johnny Cash recorded a version of "God's Gonna Cut You Down" before his death in 2003. The song as it appears on American V: A Hundred Highways features an arrangement quite different from most known gospel versions of the song. The song is presented with a rhythmic stomp-clap downbeat, and, as opposed to most others, is grim and pessimistic in its portrayal of a vengeful and uncompromising God, serving as a warning to sinners.