Psalm 49

Psalm 49 belongs to Book Two of the Psalter (Psalms 42–72). It is the last in the group of psalms whose superscriptions name "the sons of Korah" (Psalms 42, 44–49). The preceding Psalm 48 celebrates the security of Zion. Psalm 49 follows as a wisdom psalm that instructs all the people of the world about wealth and death.

Structure

• Verses 1–4 The psalmist calls on all the inhabitants of the world, low and high, rich and poor alike, to hear. He announces that he will speak of wisdom and understanding, incline his ear to a parable, and open his dark saying upon the harp.
• Verses 5–9 He explains why he need not fear in the days of evil: even those who trust in their wealth cannot redeem a brother's life or give to God a ransom for him.
• Verses 10–12 The wise and the foolish alike die, and their wealth passes to others. They call their lands after their own names, yet man does not abide; he is like the beasts that perish.
• Verses 13–15 The foolish go down to the grave like sheep, and death becomes their shepherd. But God redeems the psalmist's soul from the power of the grave. Verses 13 and 15 both end with "Selah."
• Verses 16–20 The psalmist urges the reader not to be afraid when another grows rich, for the rich man carries nothing away when he dies. The psalm closes with the refrain that a man who does not understand is like the beasts that perish.

Key Verses

• Psalm 49:7 "None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him": the central claim of the psalm, that life cannot be bought with wealth.
• Psalm 49:15 "But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave: for he shall receive me": the turning point of the psalm, declaring that God accomplishes the redemption no human being can.
• Psalm 49:20 "Man that is in honour, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish": the refrain that pairs with verse 12.

People and Places

• The sons of Korah: named in the superscription; known as a Levitical family responsible for praise in the temple.
• Sheol: the place to which the dead were thought to descend; rendered "the grave" in many English versions.

Points for Reflection

• The Korean Revised Version renders the refrains in verses 12 and 20 differently, as "abideth not" and "understandeth not." In the Hebrew text, too, the verbs in the two verses differ by a single letter.
• The Hebrew text of verse 14 is difficult, and translations vary considerably in their wording.
• The verb "receive" (or "take") in verse 15 is said to be the same verb used in the accounts of Enoch and Elijah being "taken" by God. For this reason many interpreters read the verse as a hint of hope beyond death, that is, of faith in the resurrection. Other interpreters understand it as deliverance from untimely death or from distress.
• The psalm connects with several New Testament passages and themes: the Parable of the Rich Fool (Luke 12:16–21); "Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Mark 8:37); and 1 Timothy 6:7, which states that we brought nothing into this world. The language of redemption and ransom in verses 7–8 is also sometimes read alongside Jesus' saying that he came to give his life "a ransom for many" (Mark 10:45).
• The theme of the righteous person troubled by the prosperity of the rich resembles that of Psalm 73.