Psalms 49
Open in the reader1Unto the End. Of the Sons of Shaven. A Psalm.
2Hear this, all you peoples; listen, all inhabitants of the world,
3both low and high, rich and poor alike.
4My mouth will impart wisdom, and the meditation of my heart will bring understanding.
5I will incline my ear to a proverb; I will express my riddle with the harp:
6Why should I fear in times of trouble, when wicked usurpers surround me?
7They trust in their wealth and boast in their great riches.
8No man can possibly redeem his brother or pay his ransom to God.
9For the redemption of his soul is costly, and never can payment suffice,
10that he should live on forever and not see decay.
11For it is clear that wise men die, and the foolish and the senseless both perish and leave their wealth to others.
12Their graves are their eternal homes— their dwellings for endless generations— even though their lands were their namesakes.
13But a man, despite his wealth, cannot endure; he is like the beasts that perish.
14This is the fate of the foolish and their followers who endorse their sayings. Selah
15Like sheep they are destined for Place-of-the-Dead. Death will be their shepherd. The upright will rule them in the morning, and their form will decay in Place-of-the-Dead, far from their lofty abode.
16But God will redeem my life from Place-of-the-Dead, for He will surely take me to Himself. Selah
17Do not be afraid when a man grows rich, when the splendor of his house increases.
18For when he dies, he will carry nothing away; his abundance will not follow him down.
19Though in his lifetime he blesses his soul— and men praise you when you prosper—
20he will join the generation of his fathers, who will never see the light of day.
21A man who has riches without understanding is like the beasts that perish.