Psalms 49 NASB

1. Hear this, all peoples; 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 express my riddle on the harp.

5. Why should I fear in days of adversity, 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 his soul is priceless, And he should cease imagining forever—

9. That he might live on eternally, That he might not undergo decay.

10. For he sees that even wise people die; The foolish and the stupid alike perish And leave their wealth to others.

11. Their 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 perish.

13. This is the way of those who are foolish, And of those after them who approve their words. Selah

14. Like sheep they sink down to Sheol; Death will be their shepherd; And the upright will rule over them in the morning, And their form shall be for Sheol to consume So that they have no lofty home.

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 person becomes rich, When the splendor of his house is increased;

17. For when he dies, he will take nothing with him; His wealth will not descend after him.

18. Though while he lives he congratulates himself— And though people praise you when you do well for yourself—

19. 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 perish.