Christianity

Psalms 49Wealth Cannot Ransom a Soul

Summary

Psalm 49 is a wisdom poem addressed to all people, rich and poor alike. The speaker asks why he should fear when surrounded by the wicked who trust in wealth, since no one can pay God a ransom for another's life. The wise and the foolish both die and leave their wealth to others, and the rich are like beasts that perish. Yet the psalmist trusts that God will redeem his soul from Sheol. It belongs to the sons of Korah.

Key verse

“None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him:”

Psalms 49:7

Themes

Limits of Wealth
Mortality
Redemption
Wisdom

Hear this, all ye people; give ear, all ye inhabitants of the world:

Both low and high, rich and poor, together.

My mouth shall speak of wisdom; and the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding.

I will incline mine ear to a parable: I will open my dark saying upon the harp.

Wherefore should I fear in the days of evil, when the iniquity of my heels shall compass me about?

They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches;

None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him:

(For the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever:)

That he should still live for ever, and not see corruption.

For he seeth that wise men die, likewise the fool and the brutish person perish, and leave their wealth to others.

Their inward thought is, that their houses shall continue for ever, and their dwelling places to all generations; they call their lands after their own names.

Nevertheless man being in honour abideth not: he is like the beasts that perish.

This their way is their folly: yet their posterity approve their sayings. Selah.

Like sheep they are laid in the grave; death shall feed on them; and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning; and their beauty shall consume in the grave from their dwelling.

But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave: for he shall receive me. Selah.

Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, when the glory of his house is increased;

For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away: his glory shall not descend after him.

Though while he lived he blessed his soul: and men will praise thee, when thou doest well to thyself.

He shall go to the generation of his fathers; they shall never see light.

Man that is in honour, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish.

Text: King James Version (1611/1769), public domain.

Across traditions

Islam
Surah At-Takaathur (102): Rivalry in Worldly Increase
Quran 102:1 to 2 warns that rivalry in worldly gain distracts people until they reach their graves. Like Psalm 49, it sets the pursuit of wealth against the certainty of death.
Judaism
Tehillim 49 in the JPS 1917 Tanakh
Jews traditionally recite this psalm in a house of mourning during the week of shiva, because it speaks of death and the limits of wealth.
Christianity
Luke 12: The Rich Fool
Jesus' parable of the rich man who builds bigger barns, only to die that night (Luke 12:16 to 21), illustrates the same lesson as Psalm 49.

Questions about Psalms 49

Why is Psalm 49 read in a house of mourning?

It reflects on the death that comes to rich and poor alike and on God redeeming the soul from the grave, so some Jewish communities recite it in the house of mourning.

Does Psalm 49 teach life after death?

Verse 15 says God will redeem the psalmist's soul from the power of the grave. Some read this as hope beyond death, others as rescue from an early death.