49

Hear this, all you peoples
Listen, all who live in this world
Rich and poor alike
Both low and high, tall and small:

My mouth will speak words of wisdom
The meditation of my heart will give you understanding
I will turn my ear to a proverb
With the harp I will expound my riddle outstanding:

Why should I fear when evil days come
When wicked deceivers surround me—
Those who trust in their wealth
And boast of their great riches I’ve never seen?

No one can redeem the life of another
Or give to God a ransom for that stuff—
The ransom for a life is costly
No payment is ever enough—

The ransom that they should live on forever and not see decay
For all can see that the wise die
That the foolish and the senseless also perish
Leaving their wealth to others not knowing why

Their tombs will remain their houses forever
Their dwellings for endless generations
Though they had named lands after themselves
Persuading in that the whole nations

People, despite their wealth, do not endure
They are like the beasts that perish
This is the fate of those who trust in themselves
And of their followers, who approve their sayings

They are like sheep and are destined to die
Death will be their shepherd
(But the upright will prevail over them in the morning
And then will die never)

Their forms will decay in the grave
Far from their princely mansions
But God will redeem me from the realm of the dead
He will surely take me to Himself once

Do not be overawed when others grow rich
When the splendor of their houses increases
For they will take nothing with them when they die
Their splendor will not descend with them as their prize

Though while they live they count themselves blessed—
And people praise you when you prosper—
They will join those who have gone before them
Who will never again see the light of life, gone in despair

People who have wealth but lack understanding
Are like the beasts that perish
The understanding is the key for eternal life
The eternal life which all people cherish