Psalm 49

Psalm 49

For the choir director; a psalm by Korah’s descendants. 

¹Listen to this, all you people. 

Open your ears, all who live in the world— 

²common people and important ones, 

rich people and poor ones. 

³My mouth will speak wise sayings, 

the insights I have carefully considered. 

⁴I will turn my attention to a proverb. 

I will explain my riddle with the ⸤music of⸥ a lyre. 

⁵Why should I be afraid in times of trouble, 

when slanderers surround me with evil? 

⁶They trust their riches 

and brag about their abundant wealth. 

⁷No one can ever buy back another person 

or pay God a ransom for his life. 

⁸The price to be paid for his soul is too costly. 

He must always give up 

⁹in order to live forever and never see the pit. 

¹⁰Indeed, one can see that wise people die, 

that foolish and stupid people meet the same end. 

They leave their riches to others. 

¹¹Although they named their lands after themselves, 

their graves^ahave become their homes for ages to come, 

their dwelling places throughout every generation. 

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

They are like animals that die. 

¹³This is the final outcome for fools and their followers 

who are delighted by what they say: 

Selah 

¹⁴Like 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. 

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

because he will take me. 

Selah 

¹⁶Do not be afraid when someone becomes rich, 

when the greatness of his house increases. 

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

His greatness cannot follow him. 

¹⁸Even though he blesses himself while he is alive 

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

¹⁹he must join the generation of his ancestors, 

who will never see light ⸤again⸥. 

²⁰Mortals, with what they treasure, still don’t have understanding. 

They are like animals that die.