| New King James Version | NET Bible |
| 1To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. Hear this, all peoples; Give ear, all inhabitants of the world, | 1For the music director, a psalm by the Korahites. Listen to this, all you nations! Pay attention, all you inhabitants of the world! |
| 2Both low and high, Rich and poor together. | 2Pay attention, all you people, both rich and poor! |
| 3My mouth shall speak wisdom, And the meditation of my heart shall give understanding. | 3I will declare a wise saying; I will share my profound thoughts. |
| 4I will incline my ear to a proverb; I will disclose my dark saying on the harp. | 4I will learn a song that imparts wisdom; I will then sing my insightful song to the accompaniment of a harp. |
| 5Why should I fear in the days of evil, When the iniquity at my heels surrounds me? | 5Why should I be afraid in times of trouble, when the sinful deeds of deceptive men threaten to overwhelm me? |
| 6Those who trust in their wealth And boast in the multitude of their riches, | 6They trust in their wealth and boast in their great riches. |
| 7None of them can by any means redeem his brother, Nor give to God a ransom for him— | 7Certainly a man cannot rescue his brother; he cannot pay God an adequate ransom price |
| 8For the redemption of their souls is costly, And it shall cease forever— | 8(the ransom price for a human life is too high, and people go to their final destiny), |
| 9That he should continue to live eternally, And not see the Pit. | 9so that he might continue to live forever and not experience death. |
| 10For he sees wise men die; Likewise the fool and the senseless person perish, And leave their wealth to others. | 10Surely one sees that even wise people die; fools and spiritually insensitive people all pass away and leave their wealth to others. |
| 11Their inner thought is that their houses will last forever, Their dwelling places to all generations; They call their lands after their own names. | 11Their grave becomes their permanent residence, their eternal dwelling place. They name their lands after themselves, |
| 12Nevertheless man, though in honor, does not remain; He is like the beasts that perish. | 12but, despite their wealth, people do not last, they are like animals that perish. |
| 13This is the way of those who are foolish, And of their posterity who approve their sayings. Selah | 13This is the destiny of fools, and of those who approve of their philosophy. (Selah) |
| 14Like sheep they are laid in the grave; Death shall feed on them; The upright shall have dominion over them in the morning; And their beauty shall be consumed in the grave, far from their dwelling. | 14They will travel to Sheol like sheep, with death as their shepherd. The godly will rule over them when the day of vindication dawns; Sheol will consume their bodies and they will no longer live in impressive houses. |
| 15But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave, For He shall receive me. Selah | 15But God will rescue my life from the power of Sheol; certainly he will pull me to safety. (Selah) |
| 16Do not be afraid when one becomes rich, When the glory of his house is increased; | 16Do not be afraid when a man becomes rich and his wealth multiplies! |
| 17For when he dies he shall carry nothing away; His glory shall not descend after him. | 17For he will take nothing with him when he dies; his wealth will not follow him down into the grave. |
| 18Though while he lives he blesses himself (For men will praise you when you do well for yourself), | 18He pronounces this blessing on himself while he is alive: "May men praise you, for you have done well!" |
| 19He shall go to the generation of his fathers; They shall never see light. | 19But he will join his ancestors; they will never again see the light of day. |
| 20A man who is in honor, yet does not understand, Is like the beasts that perish. | 20Wealthy people do not understand; they are like animals that perish. |
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