The Foolishness of Trusting in Riches.
For the music director. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.
Listen, all inhabitants of the world,
2 Both low and high,
Rich and poor together.
3 My mouth will speak wisdom,
And the meditation of my heart will be understanding.
4 I will incline my ear to a proverb;
I will [a]express my riddle on the harp.
When the injustice of those who betray me surrounds me,
6 Those who trust in their wealth
And boast in the abundance of their riches?
7 No one can by any means redeem another
Or give God a ransom for him—
8 For the redemption of [b]his soul is priceless,
And he should cease imagining forever—
9 That he might live on eternally,
That he might not [c]undergo decay.
The foolish and the stupid alike perish
And leave their wealth to others.
11 Their [d]inner thought is that their houses are forever
And their dwelling places to all generations;
They have named their lands after their own names.
12 But man in his splendor will not endure;
He is like the animals that [e]perish.
And of those after them who approve their words. Selah
14 Like sheep they sink down to [f]Sheol;
Death will be their shepherd;
And the upright will rule over them in the morning,
And their form shall be for [g]Sheol to consume
[h]So that they have no lofty home.
15 But God will redeem my soul from the [i]power of [j]Sheol,
For He will receive me. Selah
When the splendor of his house is increased;
17 For when he dies, he will take nothing with him;
His [k]wealth will not descend after him.
18 Though while he lives he congratulates [l]himself—
And though people praise you when you do well for yourself—
19 [m]He will go to the generation of his fathers;
They will never see the light.
20 Mankind in its splendor, yet without understanding,
Is like the animals that [n]perish.
Footnotes
- Psalm 49:4 Lit open up
- Psalm 49:8 Lit their
- Psalm 49:9 Or see corruption; lit see the pit
- Psalm 49:11 Some ancient versions graves are their houses
- Psalm 49:12 Lit are destroyed
- Psalm 49:14 I.e., the netherworld
- Psalm 49:14 I.e., the netherworld
- Psalm 49:14 Lit Away from his habitation
- Psalm 49:15 Lit hand
- Psalm 49:15 I.e., the netherworld
- Psalm 49:17 Lit glory
- Psalm 49:18 Lit his soul
- Psalm 49:19 Lit You; or It
- Psalm 49:20 Lit are destroyed