Psalms 49
1 For the chief musician. A psalm of the sons of Korah. Hear this, all you peoples; give ear, all you inhabitants of the world,
To the Chief Musician. For the Sons of Korah. A Melody. Hear ye, this all ye peoples, Give ear, all ye inhabitants of this passing world;
2 both low and high, rich and poor together.
Both sons of the low, And sons of the high, —Together both rich and needy: —
3 My mouth will speak wisdom and the meditation of my heart will be of understanding.
My mouth, shall speak forth Wisdom, And the soft utterance of my heart be Understanding:
4 I will incline my ear to a parable; I will begin my parable with the harp.
I will bend, to a by-word, mine ear, I will open, on the lyre, mine enigma.
5 Why should I fear the days of evil, when iniquity surrounds me at my heels?
Wherefore should I fear in the days of calamity, Though the iniquity of them who lie in wait for me should enclose me?
6 Why should I fear those who trust in their wealth and boast about the amount of their riches?
As for them who are trusting in their wealth, —And, in the abundance of their riches, do boast themselves,
7 It is certain that no one can redeem his brother or give God a ransom for him,
A brother, can none of them, redeem, he cannot give unto God a ransom for himself:
8 For the redemption of one's life is costly, and no one can pay what we owe.
So costly, is the redemption of their soul, That it faileth unto times age-abiding;
9 No one can live forever so that his body should not decay.
That he should, yet, live on, continually, Should not see corruption.
10 For he will see decay. Wise men die; the fool and the brute alike perish and leave their wealth to others.
For it is seen that, the wise, die, Together with the dullard, and the brutish, do they perish, And leave, to others, their wealth:
11 Their inner thought is that their families will continue forever, and the places where they live, to all generations; they call their lands after their own names.
Their, inward thought, is that their houses are for times age-abiding, Their habitations, for generation after generation, —They give their own names unto lands!
12 But man, having wealth, does not remain alive; he is like the beasts that perish.
But, a son of earth, though wealthy, cannot tarry, He hath made himself a by-word—Beasts, they resemble:
13 This, their way, is their folly; yet after them, men approve of their sayings. (Selah)
This, their way, is a folly to them, And yet, their followers, with their mouth, approve. (Selah)
14 Like sheep they are appointed for Sheol, and death will be their shepherd. The upright will rule over them in the morning, and their bodies will be consumed in Sheol, with no place for them to live. (Sheol h7585)
Like sheep—into hades, are they driven, Death shall shepherd them, —And the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning, Even their form, is to decay, Hades, is all that remaineth of a habitation for him. (Sheol h7585)
But, God, will redeem my soul, out of the hand of hades, For he will take me. (Selah) (Sheol h7585)
16 Do not be afraid when one becomes rich, and the glory of his house increases.
Do not fear, When a man becometh rich, When the glory of his house increaseth;
17 For when he dies he will take nothing away; his glory will not go down after him.
For, when he dieth, he shall take, nothing, his glory shall not descend after him;
18 He blessed his soul while he lived— and men praise you when you live for yourself—
For, though, his own self—while he lived, he used to bless, And they will praise thee, when thou doest well to thyself,
19 he will go to the generation of his fathers and they will never see the light again.
He shall enter as far as the circle of his fathers, Nevermore, shall they see the light.
20 One who has wealth but no understanding is like the beasts, which perish.
A son of earth though wealthy, who discerneth not, Hath made himself a by-word, Beasts, they resemble.
