Psalm 49

¹A Maskil of Asaph. Give ear, O my people, to my instruction; listen to the words of my mouth.

¹⁵He who has ears, let him hear.

⁸Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the people of the world revere Him.

²⁹Is God the God of Jews only? Is He not the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too,

⁷He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who overcomes, I will grant the right to eat from the tree of life in the Paradise of God.

¹⁸But I ask, did they not hear? Indeed they did: “Their voice has gone out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.”

⁹Lowborn men are but a vapor; the exalted are but a lie. Weighed on the scale, they go up; together they are but a vapor.

¹My brothers, as you hold out your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, do not show favoritism.

²Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in shabby clothes also comes in.

⁷The Lord sends poverty and wealth; He humbles and He exalts.

⁸He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap. He seats them among princes and bestows on them a throne of honor. For the foundations of the earth are the Lord’s, and upon them He has set the world.

¹⁹who is not partial to princes and does not favor rich over poor? For they are all the work of His hands.

⁴Then I said, “They are only the poor; they have played the fool, for they do not know the way of the Lord, the justice of their God.

⁵I will go to the powerful and speak to them. Surely they know the way of the Lord, the justice of their God.” But they too, with one accord, had broken the yoke and torn off the chains.

²The rich and the poor have this in common: The Lord is Maker of them all.

¹⁴May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.

³⁵The good man brings good things out of his good store of treasure, and the evil man brings evil things out of his evil store of treasure.

²⁰Have I not written for you thirty sayings about counsel and knowledge,

²¹to show you true and reliable words, that you may soundly answer those who sent you?

¹⁷Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise—apply your mind to my knowledge—

³³But if not, then listen to me; be quiet, and I will teach you wisdom.”

¹⁵From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

¹⁶All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness,

²I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things hidden from the beginning,

³⁵So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet: “I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things hidden since the foundation of the world.”

⁸I speak with him face to face, clearly and not in riddles; he sees the form of the Lord. Why then were you unafraid to speak against My servant Moses?”

⁷And Balaam lifted up an oracle, saying: “Balak brought me from Aram, the king of Moab from the mountains of the east. ‘Come,’ he said, ‘put a curse on Jacob for me; come and denounce Israel!’

¹²Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold.

¹¹He replied, “The knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them.

¹²Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.

²⁸without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a clear sign of their destruction but of your salvation, and it is from God.

²⁴and said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before Caesar. And look, God has granted you the lives of all who sail with you.’

³³Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.

³⁴Who is there to condemn us? For Christ Jesus, who died, and more than that was raised to life, is at the right hand of God—and He is interceding for us.

¹⁰If you faint in the day of distress, how small is your strength!

¹For the choirmaster. Of the sons of Korah. According to Alamoth. A song. God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in times of trouble.

²Therefore we will not fear, though the earth is transformed and the mountains are toppled into the depths of the seas,

⁴For my iniquities have overwhelmed me; they are a burden too heavy to bear.

¹⁷Instruct those who are rich in the present age not to be conceited and not to put their hope in the uncertainty of wealth, but in God, who richly provides all things for us to enjoy.

⁴By your wisdom and understanding you have gained your wealth and amassed gold and silver for your treasuries.

⁵By your great skill in trading you have increased your wealth, but your heart has grown proud because of it.

²³This is what the Lord says: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, nor the strong man in his strength, nor the wealthy man in his riches.

²⁸He who trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will thrive like foliage.

⁷“Look at the man who did not make God his refuge, but trusted in the abundance of his wealth and strengthened himself by destruction.”

²⁴And the disciples were amazed at His words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God!

²⁶What will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?

²⁸just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”

⁶who gave Himself as a ransom for all—the testimony that was given at just the right time.

¹⁸For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life you inherited from your forefathers,

⁹‘No,’ said the wise ones, ‘or there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’

²⁶What will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?

¹⁸Be careful that no one lures you with riches; do not let a large bribe lead you astray.

¹⁹Can your wealth or all your mighty effort keep you from distress?

⁴⁸What man can live and never see death? Can he deliver his soul from the power of Sheol? Selah

¹⁰For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol, nor will You let Your Holy One see decay.

⁸As no man has power over the wind to contain it, so no one has authority over his day of death. As no one can be discharged in wartime, so wickedness will not release those who practice it.

²Ill-gotten treasures profit nothing, but righteousness brings deliverance from death.

⁵¹Truly, truly, I tell you, if anyone keeps My word, he will never see death.”

⁵²“Now we know that You have a demon!” declared the Jews. “Abraham died, and so did the prophets, yet You say that anyone who keeps Your word will never taste death.

⁴Riches are worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness brings deliverance from death.

⁶Surely every man goes about like a phantom; surely he bustles in vain; he heaps up riches not knowing who will haul them away.

²⁰But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be required of you. Then who will own what you have accumulated?’

¹³There is a grievous evil I have seen under the sun: wealth hoarded to the harm of its owner,

¹⁴or wealth lost in a failed venture, so when that man has a son there is nothing to pass on.

²⁷Just as man is appointed to die once, and after that to face judgment,

⁶Of course, godliness with contentment is great gain.

⁷For we brought nothing into the world, so we cannot carry anything out of it.

²Surely I am the most ignorant of men, and I lack the understanding of a man.

¹⁷And Cain had relations with his wife, and she conceived and gave birth to Enoch. Then Cain built a city and named it after his son Enoch.

⁹For not a word they speak can be trusted; destruction lies within them. Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.

⁶They devise injustice and say, “We have perfected a secret plan.” For the inner man and the heart are mysterious.

¹⁸During his lifetime, Absalom had set up for himself a pillar in the King’s Valley, for he had said, “I have no son to preserve the memory of my name.” So he gave the pillar his name, and to this day it is called Absalom’s Monument.

¹⁰This is what the Lord God says: On that day, thoughts will arise in your mind, and you will devise an evil plan.

⁶He says to himself, “I will not be moved; from age to age I am free of distress.”

¹⁸I said to myself, “As for the sons of men, God tests them so that they may see for themselves that they are but beasts.”

¹⁹For the fates of both men and beasts are the same: As one dies, so dies the other—they all have the same breath. Man has no advantage over the animals, since everything is futile.

⁷But like mortals you will die, and like rulers you will fall.”

⁵You, indeed, have made my days as handbreadths, and my lifetime as nothing before You. Truly each man at his best exists as but a breath. Selah

²⁰A man who has riches without understanding is like the beasts that perish.

¹²For surely no man knows his time: Like fish caught in a cruel net or birds trapped in a snare, so men are ensnared in an evil time that suddenly falls upon them.

¹⁰But the one who is rich should exult in his low position, because he will pass away like a flower of the field.

¹¹For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant; its flower falls and its beauty is lost. So too, the rich man will fade away in the midst of his pursuits.

²⁰But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be required of you. Then who will own what you have accumulated?’

¹⁹For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness.”

²⁷‘Then I beg you, father,’ he said, ‘send Lazarus to my father’s house,

²⁸for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also end up in this place of torment.’

¹⁷Instead, we will do everything we vowed to do: We will burn incense to the Queen of Heaven and offer drink offerings to her, just as we, our fathers, our kings, and our officials did in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. At that time we had plenty of food and good things, and we saw no disaster.

⁴⁷Woe to you! For you build tombs for the prophets, but it was your fathers who killed them.

⁴⁸So you are witnesses consenting to the deeds of your fathers: They killed the prophets, and you build their tombs.

³Then you will trample the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day I am preparing,” says the Lord of Hosts.

²Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases?

²³Yes, I know that You will bring me down to death, to the place appointed for all the living.

¹⁹As drought and heat consume the melting snow, so Sheol steals those who have sinned.

²⁰The womb forgets them; the worm feeds on them; they are remembered no more. So injustice is broken like a tree.

²²until the Ancient of Days arrived and pronounced judgment in favor of the saints of the Most High, and the time came for them to possess the kingdom.

³But You know me, O Lord; You see me and test my heart toward You. Drag away the wicked like sheep to the slaughter and set them apart for the day of carnage.

²⁴You guide me with Your counsel, and later receive me in glory.

¹³For You have delivered my soul from death, and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.

¹³For great is Your loving devotion to me; You have delivered me from the depths of Sheol.

⁴⁸What man can live and never see death? Can he deliver his soul from the power of Sheol? Selah

¹⁴I will ransom them from the power of Sheol; I will redeem them from Death. Where, O Death, are your plagues? Where, O Sheol, is your sting? Compassion is hidden from My eyes.

⁹And they sang a new song: “Worthy are You to take the scroll and open its seals, because You were slain, and by Your blood You purchased for God those from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.

⁷Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him; do not fret when men prosper in their ways, when they carry out wicked schemes.

¹Of David. Do not fret over those who do evil; do not envy those who do wrong.

²⁴By its light the nations will walk, and into it the kings of the earth will bring their glory.

²⁶And into the city will be brought the glory and honor of the nations.

¹After these events, King Xerxes honored Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, elevating him to a position above all the princes who were with him.

²All the royal servants at the king’s gate bowed down and paid homage to Haman, because the king had commanded that this be done for him. But Mordecai would not bow down or pay homage.

¹Now Jacob heard that Laban’s sons were saying, “Jacob has taken away all that belonged to our father and built all this wealth at our father’s expense.”

⁷For we brought nothing into the world, so we cannot carry anything out of it.

¹⁹He lies down wealthy, but will do so no more; when he opens his eyes, all is gone.

¹⁵As a man came from his mother’s womb, so he will depart again, naked as he arrived. He takes nothing for his labor to carry in his hands.

⁴³It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power.

²⁴So he cried out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue. For I am in agony in this fire.’

²¹saying: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.”

¹⁹Then I will say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take it easy. Eat, drink, and be merry!”’

¹⁹because when such a person hears the words of this oath, he invokes a blessing on himself, saying, ‘I will have peace, even though I walk in the stubbornness of my own heart.’ This will bring disaster on the watered land as well as the dry.

³For the wicked man boasts in the cravings of his heart; he blesses the greedy and reviles the Lord.

⁸And Ephraim boasts: “How rich I have become! I have found wealth for myself. In all my labors, they can find in me no iniquity that is sinful.”

²⁰Now Herod was in a furious dispute with the people of Tyre and Sidon, and they convened before him. Having secured the support of Blastus, the king’s chamberlain, they asked for peace, because their region depended on the king’s country for food.

²¹On the appointed day, Herod donned his royal robes, sat on his throne, and addressed the people.

²All the royal servants at the king’s gate bowed down and paid homage to Haman, because the king had commanded that this be done for him. But Mordecai would not bow down or pay homage.

³⁰to bring back his soul from the Pit, that he may be enlightened with the light of life.

¹³For You have delivered my soul from death, and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.

¹⁵You, however, will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a ripe old age.

²⁰But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be required of you. Then who will own what you have accumulated?’

¹²But the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

⁷before the dust returns to the ground from which it came and the spirit returns to God who gave it.

¹⁸I said to myself, “As for the sons of men, God tests them so that they may see for themselves that they are but beasts.”

¹⁹For the fates of both men and beasts are the same: As one dies, so dies the other—they all have the same breath. Man has no advantage over the animals, since everything is futile.

¹²But a man, despite his wealth, cannot endure; he is like the beasts that perish.

²¹Are not their tent cords pulled up, so that they die without wisdom?’

¹⁰So they hanged Haman on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the fury of the king subsided.

¹¹Haman recounted to them his glorious wealth, his many sons, and all the ways the king had honored and promoted him over the other officials and servants.

¹²“What is more,” Haman added, “Queen Esther invited no one but me to join the king at the banquet she prepared, and I am invited back tomorrow along with the king.

¹⁸Surely You set them on slick ground; You cast them down into ruin.

¹⁹How suddenly they are laid waste, completely swept away by terrors!