Psalm 49

Hear this, all you peoples,
give heed, all who dwell in the world,
men both high and low,
rich and poor alike!

My lips will speak words of wisdom.
My heart is full of insight.
I will turn my mind to a parable,
with the harp I will solve my problem.

Why should I fear in evil days
the malice of the foes who surround me,
men who trust in their wealth,
and boast of the vastness of their riches?

For no man can buy his own ransom,
or pay a price to God for his life.
The ransom of his soul is beyond him.
He cannot buy life without end,
nor avoid coming to the grave.

He knows that wise men and fools must both perish
and must leave their wealth to others.
Their graves are their homes for ever,
their dwelling place from age to age,
though their names spread wide through the land.

In his riches, man lacks wisdom;
he is like the beasts that are destroyed.

This is the lot of those who trust in themselves,
who have others at their beck and call.
Like sheep they are driven to the grave,
where death shall be their shepherd
and the just shall become their rulers.

With the morning their outward show vanishes
and the grave becomes their home.
But God will ransom me from death
and take my soul to himself.

Then do not fear when a man grows rich,
when the glory of his house increases.
He takes nothing with him when he dies,
his glory does not follow him below.

Though he flattered himself while he lived:
“Men will praise me for all my success,”
yet he will go to join his fathers,
and will never see the light any more.

In his riches, man lacks wisdom;
he is like the beasts that are destroyed.

“You cannot serve both God and mammon.” (Matthew 6:24)

“Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven,” says the Lord. (Matthew 6:20)