Which other scriptures emphasize the temporary nature of human life like Psalm 103:15?

◄ What scriptures stress life's brevity? ►

“As for man, his days are like grass—he flourishes like a flower of the field; when the wind has passed over, it vanishes, and its place remembers it no more.”

The Same Picture in Other Passages

• Isaiah 40:6–8 — “All flesh is grass, and all its glory is like the flowers of the field. The grass withers and the flowers fall when the breath of the LORD blows on them; indeed, the people are grass. The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever.”

• Job 14:1–2 — “Man, born of woman, is short of days and full of trouble. Like a flower he comes forth, then withers away; like a fleeting shadow, he does not endure.”

• Psalm 90:5–6 — “You whisk them away in their sleep; they are like the new grass of the morning— in the morning it springs up new, but by evening it fades and withers.”

• Psalm 90:10 — “The length of our days is seventy years— or eighty if we are strong— yet at best they are toil and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away.”

• Psalm 144:3–4 — “O LORD, what is man, that You care for him, the son of man that You think of him? Man is like a breath; his days are like a passing shadow.”

• Psalm 39:4–6 — “Show me, O LORD, my end and the measure of my days. Let me know how fleeting my life is. You, indeed, have made my days as handbreadths, and my lifetime is as nothing before You. Truly each man at his best exists as but a breath. Selah.”

• Ecclesiastes 1:4 — “Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever.”

• Ecclesiastes 12:1–7 — remembers youth before “the dust returns to the ground as it was.”

• James 1:10–11 — “The rich man will fade away in the midst of his pursuits. For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant; its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed.”

• 1 Peter 1:24 — “All flesh is like grass, and all its glory like the flower of the field; the grass withers and the flower falls.” (quoting Isaiah 40)

• 2 Corinthians 4:16–18 — “Though our outer self is wasting away, yet our inner self is being renewed day by day… what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

• 1 John 2:17 — “The world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God remains forever.”

Shared Images and Phrases

• Grass that withers

• Flowers that fall

• Breath, vapor, shadow, handbreadth

• Days “flying away” or “passing” quickly

Why Scripture Repeats the Theme

• To keep earthly pursuits in perspective (Psalm 39:6; James 1:11)

• To highlight God’s unchanging word and character (Isaiah 40:8)

• To stir wisdom and teach us to number our days (Psalm 90:12)

• To point hearts toward what is eternal and secure (2 Corinthians 4:18; 1 John 2:17)

Living in Light of Life’s Brevity