Psalm 49:12–18

12 People, despite their wealth, do not endure;

they are like the beasts that perish.

13 This is the fate of those who trust in themselves,

and of their followers, who approve their sayings.

14 They are like sheep and are destined to die;

death will be their shepherd

(but the upright will prevail over them in the morning).

Their forms will decay in the grave,

far from their princely mansions.

15 But God will redeem me from the realm of the dead;

he will surely take me to himself.

16 Do not be overawed when others grow rich,

when the splendor of their houses increases;

17 for they will take nothing with them when they die,

their splendor will not descend with them.

18 Though while they live they count themselves blessed—

and people praise you when you prosper—

12 Nevertheless man being in honour abideth not:

He is like the beasts that perish.

13 This their way is their folly:

Yet their posterity approve their sayings. Selah.

14 Like sheep they are laid in the grave;

Death shall feed on them;

And the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning;

And their beauty shall consume in the grave from their dwelling.

15 But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave:

For he shall receive me. Selah.

16 Be not thou afraid when one is made rich,

When the glory of his house is increased;

17 For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away:

His glory shall not descend after him.

18 Though while he lived he blessed his soul:

And men will praise thee, when thou doest well to thyself.

12 but their fame will not last.

They will die, just like animals.

13 This is the fate of fools,

though they are remembered as being wise.

Interlude

14 Like sheep, they are led to the grave,

where death will be their shepherd.

In the morning the godly will rule over them.

Their bodies will rot in the grave,

far from their grand estates.

15 But as for me, God will redeem my life.

He will snatch me from the power of the grave.

Interlude

16 So don’t be dismayed when the wicked grow rich

and their homes become ever more splendid.

17 For when they die, they take nothing with them.

Their wealth will not follow them into the grave.

18 In this life they consider themselves fortunate

and are applauded for their success.

12 Nevertheless man, though in honor, does not remain;

He is like the beasts that perish.

13 This is the way of those who are foolish,

And of their posterity who approve their sayings.

Selah

14 Like sheep they are laid in the grave;

Death shall feed on them;

The upright shall have dominion over them in the morning;

And their beauty shall be consumed in the grave, far from their dwelling.

15 But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave,

For He shall receive me.

Selah

16 Do not be afraid when one becomes rich,

When the glory of his house is increased;

17 For when he dies he shall carry nothing away;

His glory shall not descend after him.

18 Though while he lives he blesses himself

(For men will praise you when you do well for yourself),

12 Even rich people do not live forever;

like the animals, people die.

13 This is what will happen to those who trust in themselves

and to their followers who believe them.

Selah

14 Like sheep, they must die,

and death will be their shepherd.

Honest people will rule over them in the morning,

and their bodies will rot in a grave far from home.

15 But God will save my life

and will take me from the grave.

Selah

16 Don’t be afraid of rich people

because their houses are more beautiful.

17 They don’t take anything to the grave;

their wealth won’t go down with them.

18 Even though they were praised when they were alive—

and people may praise you when you succeed—

12 But man being in honor abideth not:

He is like the beasts that perish.

13 This their way is their folly:

Yet after them men approve their sayings. Selah

14 They are appointed as a flock for Sheol;

Death shall be their shepherd;

And the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning;

And their beauty shall be for Sheol to consume,

That there be no habitation for it.

15 But God will redeem my soul from the power of Sheol;

For he will receive me. Selah

16 Be not thou afraid when one is made rich,

When the glory of his house is increased:

17 For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away;

His glory shall not descend after him.

18 Though while he lived he blessed his soul

(And men praise thee, when thou doest well to thyself),

12 Nevertheless, man being in honour abideth not: he is like the beasts that perish. 13 This their way is their folly, yet they that come after them delight in their sayings. Selah. 14 Like sheep are they laid in Sheol: Death feedeth on them; and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning; and their comeliness shall be for Sheol to consume, that there be no habitation for them.

15 But God will redeem my soul from the power of Sheol: for he will receive me. Selah. 16 Be not afraid when a man becometh rich, when the glory of his house is increased: 17 For when he dieth, he shall carry nothing away; his glory shall not descend after him. 18 Though he blessed his soul in his lifetime, —and men will praise thee when thou doest well to thyself, —

12 But mortals will not continue here with what they treasure. 

They are like animals that die. 

13 This is the final outcome for fools and their followers 

who are delighted by what they say: 

Selah 

14 Like sheep, they are driven to hell 

with death as their shepherd. 

(Decent people will rule them in the morning.) 

Their forms will decay in the grave, 

far away from their comfortable homes. 

15 But God will buy me back from the power of hell 

because he will take me. 

Selah 

16 Do not be afraid when someone becomes rich, 

when the greatness of his house increases. 

17 He will not take anything with him when he dies. 

His greatness cannot follow him. 

18 Even though he blesses himself while he is alive 

(and they praise you when you do well for yourself), 

12 But despite his assets, man will not last;

he is like the animals that perish.

13 This is the way of those who are arrogant,

and of their followers,

who approve of their words. Selah

14 Like sheep they are headed for Sheol;

Death will shepherd them.

The upright will rule over them in the morning,

and their form will waste away in Sheol,

far from their lofty abode.

15 But God will redeem my life

from the power of Sheol,

for He will take me. Selah

16 Do not be afraid when a man gets rich,

when the wealth of his house increases.

17 For when he dies, he will take nothing at all;

his wealth will not follow him down.

18 Though he praises himself during his lifetime—

and people praise you when you do well for yourself —

12 Mortals cannot abide in their pomp;

they are like the animals that perish.

13 Such is the fate of the foolhardy,

the end of those who are pleased with their lot.   Selah

14 Like sheep they are appointed for Sheol;

Death shall be their shepherd;

straight to the grave they descend,

and their form shall waste away;

Sheol shall be their home.

15 But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol,

for he will receive me.   Selah

16 Do not be afraid when some become rich,

when the wealth of their houses increases.

17 For when they die they will carry nothing away;

their wealth will not go down after them.

18 Though in their lifetime they count themselves happy

—for you are praised when you do well for yourself—

12 But man cannot continue in his pomp.

He is like the beasts that perish.

13 This is the journey of those who have foolish confidence,

and those after them who accept their sayings. Selah

14 Like sheep they are destined to Sheol;

death will shepherd them.

But the upright will rule over them in the morning,

and their forms will be for Sheol to consume,

far from his lofty abode.

15 Surely God will ransom my life

from the power of Sheol,

because he will receive me. Selah

16 Do not fear when a man becomes rich,

when the wealth of his house increases,

17 because when he dies he will not take away any of it.

His wealth will not follow down after him.

18 Though he congratulated his soul while he was living

—and people will praise you when you do well for yourself—

12 Even though people may be very rich, they don’t live on and on.

They are like the animals. They die.

13 That’s what happens to those who trust in themselves.

It also happens to their followers, who agree with what they say. Selah

14 Like sheep they will end up in the grave.

Death will swallow them up.

When honest people come to power, a new day will dawn.

The bodies of sinners will waste away in the grave.

They will end up far away from their princely houses.

15 But God will save me from the grave.

He will certainly take me to himself. Selah

16 Don’t be upset when someone becomes rich.

Don’t be troubled when he becomes more and more wealthy.

17 He won’t take anything with him when he dies.

His riches won’t go down to the grave with him.

18 While he lived, he believed he was blessed.

People praised him when things were going well for him.

12 But man in his pomp will not endure;

He is like the beasts that perish.

13 This is the way of those who are foolish,

And of those after them who approve their words.

Selah.

14 As sheep they are appointed for Sheol;

Death shall be their shepherd;

And the upright shall rule over them in the morning,

And their form shall be for Sheol to consume

So that they have no habitation.

15 But God will redeem my soul from the power of Sheol,

For He will receive me.

Selah.

16 Do not be afraid when a man becomes rich,

When the glory of his house is increased;

17 For when he dies he will carry nothing away;

His glory will not descend after him.

18 Though while he lives he congratulates himself—

And though men praise you when you do well for yourself—