1 - For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. Hear this, all ye peoples; Give ear, all ye inhabitants of the world,
2 - Both low and high, Rich and poor together.
3 - My mouth shall speak wisdom; And the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding.
4 - I will incline mine ear to a parable: I will open my dark saying upon the harp.
5 - Wherefore should I fear in the days of evil, When iniquity at my heels compasseth me about?
6 - They that trust in their wealth, And boast themselves in the multitude of their riches;
7 - None [of them] can by any means redeem his brother, Nor give to God a ransom for him;
8 - (For the redemption of their life is costly, And it faileth for ever;)
9 - That he should still live alway, That he should not see corruption.
10 - For he shall see it. Wise men die; The fool and the brutish alike perish, And leave their wealth to others.
11 - 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.
12 - But man [being] in honor abideth not: He is like the beasts that perish.
13 - This their way is their folly: Yet after them men approve their sayings. Selah
14 - They are appointed as a flock for Sheol; Death shall be their shepherd; And the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning; And their beauty shall be for Sheol to consume, That there be no habitation for it.
15 - But God will redeem my soul from the power of Sheol; For he will receive me. Selah
16 - Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, When the glory of his house is increased.
17 - For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away; His glory shall not descend after him.
18 - Though while he lived he blessed his soul (And men praise thee, when thou doest well to thyself,)
19 - He shall go to the generation of his fathers; They shall never see the light.
20 - Man that is in honor, and understandeth not, Is like the beasts that perish.