Psalms 49:6–14

The call goes out to everyone living in this passing, fleeting world, whatever their social position, rich or poor. They are to hear the wisdom of one who speaks with understanding, or 'discernment.' The psalmist speaks as a man who has listened to the voice of God. So he can explain the riddle of life with all the certainty of inspiration.

A believer may well ask, "Why should I fear in times of trouble?"... He does not trust in himself, but in the living God. Those who are rich and have plenty of goods may seem secure, but the child of God is far more secure than they are. They may boast in the abundance of their riches, but what sort of riches are they? All the wealth they have is useless for redeeming one precious soul.

The love of money will turn men into boasters. We read in Scripture of those who "trust in their wealth and boast of the abundance of their riches" (Psalm 49:6)... Men do not only boast in their skill at getting wealth. Once they have piled up riches, they often make a display of their acts of charity as well. This is the opposite of the lowly grace of Christianity, which teaches us to give in such a way that the left hand does not know what the right hand is doing.

Suppose all the wealth had been collected together — the gems, the costly stones, all the diamonds of Africa and Brazil. All these riches would have been as dust before God... God alone could provide the ransom. He gave it in the gift of His Son, and the ransom was paid by the blood shed on the Cross.

No one can avoid seeing that one thing is common to all — the wise, the foolish and the brutish alike. All die, and when they die they leave their wealth to others. They may try to provide for their family line, to keep up their houses, and to keep their name alive. Yet though a man may rise to honour in this life, he does not last. Death spoils the plans of man, and proves that his ways were folly.

Wealth tends to make a man proud. It turns the owner from trusting God to trusting his money. The worldly rich man thinks a great deal of himself and feels safe from the ordinary troubles and struggles that other people face. The wealthy Christian must not imagine that his money entitles him to dominate the church of God and lord it over his fellow believers.

The psalmist opens his warning with a word of encouragement for the godly man who lives in an evil day, surrounded by people who try to trip him up. Why should such a man fear? What follows answers that question: it exposes how empty the lives of those who trust in their riches really are. For the one who trusts in God there is no fear.

In the Old Testament, except in Exodus 21:30, the word is kopher. It literally means "a covering," and it is related to kaphar, often translated "atonement." "Truly no man can ransom another, or give to God the price of his life" (Psalm 49:7). But God could say, "Deliver him from going down to the pit: I have found a ransom" (Job 33:24). In the New Testament the word is lutron, or antilutron, from "to loose, set free." Christ gave Himself, His life, a ransom for many. His precious blood witnesses that every claim of God against the believer has been answered (Matthew 20:28; Mark 10:45; 1 Timothy 2:6).

Gather all the wealth, the gems and costly stones, all the diamonds of Africa and Brazil — all these riches would be as dust before God… Only God could provide the ransom.

He did not mean that none of them would redeem his brother if they were able to. He meant that the task was impossible. Many of us, like Naomi's nearer relative, would gladly redeem our own family if we could. But like him, we have to admit, "I cannot."

Moses did propose to settle the matter. He told Israel they had sinned a great sin, and said he would go up to the Lord — perhaps he could make atonement for their sin. But no effort by a creature was any use. "Truly no man can ransom another, or give to God the price of his life" (Psalm 49:7). The Lord Jesus did not go up to God until He had come down and given His life a ransom for many. So He could go up with no "perhaps" on His lips. He went in the full awareness of the undeniable claim He had established by His finished work.

Each must have it for himself. No man can believe, or get life for another. Each must have to do with God for himself. The link which connects the soul with Christ is intensely individual. There is no such thing as secondhand faith. A man may teach us religion, or theology, or the bare text of Scripture. But he cannot give us oil. He cannot give us faith. He cannot give us life. "It is the gift of God."

From there the subject rises to the redemption of the soul or life, forfeited because of sin. Man cannot give God a ransom for his brother. The redemption of the soul is precious, or costly. And redemption itself ceases, or must be given up, for ever. That is, every thought of trying to give a ransom must be dropped. It costs too much.

Only the great sacrifice of the Lord Jesus could accomplish such a redemption — a cost far beyond what anyone else could pay. The right translation of the last phrase is not "it shall cease forever," but "it must be let alone forever." Such a redemption must be left forever in its own dignity — standing alone as the only means of redemption.

Gather up all the wealth, the gems, and the costly stones, all the diamonds of Africa and Brazil — and all these riches would be as dust before God. For "those who trust in their wealth and boast of the abundance of their riches — none of them can in any way redeem his brother, or give God a ransom for him. For the redemption of their soul is costly, and it ceases for ever."

Each must have it for himself. No man can believe, or get life for another. Each must have to do with God for himself. The link which connects the soul with Christ is intensely individual. There is no such thing as secondhand faith. A man may teach us religion, theology, or the letter of Scripture. But he cannot give us oil. He cannot give us faith. He cannot give us life.

Moses did propose to make such a settlement: "You have sinned a great sin. And now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin." But no creature effort was of any use. "None can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him." The Lord Jesus did not go up to God until He had come down and given His life as a ransom for many. So He could go up with no "perhaps" on His lips. He went in the full awareness of the undeniable claim He had established by His finished work.

In the Old Testament the word for ransom is kopher, meaning "a covering." It is a related word to kaphar, often translated "atonement." None "can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him." Ps. 49:7. But God could say, "Deliver him from going down to the pit: I have found a ransom." Job 33:24. … Christ gave Himself, His life, as a ransom for many. His precious blood is the witness: it has answered every claim of God against the believer.

The psalm shows the vanity of riches, and the end of those who boast in their wealth. It encourages the godly in an evil day to trust in God. He not only redeems from death; afterwards He receives the soul.

The psalmist goes on to show the folly of trusting in wealth and boasting in riches. With all his wealth, a man cannot redeem his brother from death or secure blessing from God. The redemption of the soul is costly, beyond the wealth of the world; God alone can redeem from death.

This term means "being set free, brought back."… From there the subject rises to the redemption of the soul or life, forfeited because of sin. Man cannot give God a ransom for his brother. The redemption of the soul is precious, or costly. And it — that is, redemption — ceases, or must be given up, forever. Man must drop every thought of trying to give a ransom. It is too costly.

God in His holy government has ordained this for one reason only — sin. Let any one of these throw his shield around his brother. Let him give God a ransom for him, so that he may keep that precious life going. Plainly he cannot; it is too costly: he must let that alone forever. He sees and knows for himself — everyone does. When it comes to wise men and fools alike, death knows no difference and makes no exception.

Silver was used as a picture of the price of redemption in days of old (Ex. 30:11-16), and on one occasion gold was given in the place of silver (Num. 31:48-54). These were the two most precious metals. They therefore stood for this: the redemption of the soul is precious — that is, beyond price… For this reason Peter contrasts the picture of redemption by silver and gold with the precious blood of Christ. How precious that blood must be! It secured redemption for all believers, and its worth goes past every limited estimate. God only could provide such a ransom, for He only knew what was needed to deliver His people.

But notice, it is an individual thing. Each must have it for himself. No man can believe, or get life, for another. Each must have to do with God for himself. The link that connects the soul with Christ is intensely individual. There is no such thing as second-hand faith. A man may teach us religion, or theology, or the letter of Scripture; but he cannot give us faith; he cannot give us life. "It is the gift of God."

This refers to believers in Israel who will share in the earthly blessing of the nation in the millennium. They will not die at all. Redemption for believers today does not guarantee that they will not die. But it does guarantee that they will live eternally. They may die, but God will raise them again to live forever.

Man establishes his family and keeps his name going, but he is gone: nothing stops the hand of death. Ransom from that is out of man's power… But the power of God, in whom the righteous trust, is above the power of death. He saves the remnant from death. So those who are alive when Christ comes for the church will not die at all; those who are dead will be raised. Such is the confidence of the believer. Death does not alarm him. He trusts in One who is above death, who redeems and frees from its power altogether, or raises the dead.

He sees and knows it himself — everyone does — that death treats the wise and the foolish alike. It makes no difference between them and no exception for anyone. This is the point of Ecclesiastes, which develops it at length. It is a simple, obvious fact. But that only makes the deliberate blindness more astonishing — the blindness that lets people settle down in comfort among possessions they hold on such terms.

Man cannot, with all his wealth, redeem his brother from death or secure blessing from God. The redemption of the soul is costly, beyond the wealth of the world; God alone can redeem from death. Man cannot but see one thing is common to all, whether wise, or foolish, or brutish — all die, and dying will leave their wealth to others.

The subject rises to the redemption of the soul, or life, which is forfeited because of sin. Man cannot give God a ransom for his brother. The redemption of a soul is precious, or costly, and redemption ceases — every thought of trying to give a ransom must be dropped for ever. It is too costly.

The fact is so plain that you would think no one needed reminding of it, even for a moment... So man takes possession of what he cannot keep. In his heart he is a settled resident, when even his own eyes and senses tell him he is only passing through. God has come in with the offer of eternal life, and has opened heaven to the outcasts of earth. Sadly, most people find little attraction in it.

Read the Psalm and you will see at once that it applies to glory in this world... Is it not clear that what is taught here is that death destroys all the earthly glory of man?

Death proves the folly of all human wisdom and planning, and of all human greatness — something everyone notices, few act on, but always true... Man builds his family and keeps his name alive, but he himself is gone: nothing stops the hand of death. Ransom from death is beyond man's power. ... But the power of God, in whom the righteous trust, is above the power of death.

Here is the answer to the question asked by the poor man who trusts in God: "Why should I fear in the days of evil?" Unlike those who trust in riches, the one who trusts in God can say, "God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave: for He shall receive me." God receives the soul He redeems, after death has closed this present life.

Unbelievers usually suffer from the disease of thinking inwardly that their houses will last forever. That is, they give no thought to how serious death is, or to what comes after (v. 11). They attach their names to their lands, as though they were going to own their lands forever. But the honour given a man during his life is like a flower that blooms, then withers (v. 12).

Do men not know that they must die? Yet isn't it the business of most people to ignore it, forget it, make the truth untrue? And so Psalm 49 speaks: "Their inward thought is that their houses shall continue forever… This their way is their folly; yet their posterity" — or "the men that come after them" — "approve their sayings."

So man takes possession of what he cannot keep. In his heart he is a "dweller," when even to his own eyes and senses he is only passing through. God has come in with the offer of eternal life and opened heaven to the outcasts of earth; yet sadly this holds little attraction for people in general.

The world he cannot keep. He may build a city for himself, as Cain did, and call it after his own name. (Cain called his city after the name of his son.) But it will be with him as David says: "Their inward thought is that their houses shall continue for ever… they call their lands after their own names."

To get a name has been the great effort of man, even though the devil gives it. But Jesus will receive a name from God.

Death proves the folly of all human wisdom and planning, and of all human greatness. Everyone observes this, few act on it, yet it is always true… A man builds up his family and keeps his name alive, but then he is gone. Nothing holds back the hand of death. Paying a ransom from it is beyond man's power.

Yet they had thought their dwelling places would last forever — while they themselves would soon need none!

It encourages the godly in an evil day to trust in God, who not only redeems from death, but afterwards receives the soul.

Read the Psalm and you will see at once that it applies to glory in this world... It would be hard to say what "man being in honour" has to do with his being in hell. "Like sheep they are laid in the grave; death shall feed on them." Isn't it clear that the teaching here is that death destroys all the earthly glory of man? "His glory shall not descend after him." But even here, though views of what lay beyond death were dark, there is no sign of any final destruction or of any final recovery.

Man cannot, with all his wealth, redeem his brother from death or secure blessing from God. The redemption of the soul is costly, beyond the wealth of the world; God alone can redeem from death... They may try to make provision for their family line to continue, their homes to be kept up, and their name to live on. Still, though a man may rise to honour in this life, he cannot abide. Death spoils man's plans and shows how foolish his ways were, even though the living applaud what he says.

The seriousness of death lies in this: it removes man, as one who has failed, out of the scene of his failure. It is the solemn sentence on him, as unfit for the place he was created for. The lower creatures have never sinned — they cannot sin — yet they die. So men argue that death is natural. But they cannot convince themselves, for their whole nature cries out against it. Scripture's account is, "The wages of sin is death," and so, "man, being in honour, abides not; he is like the beasts that perish."

Man has a hereafter, either of bliss or woe. He does not and cannot perish as the beasts do, though he may sink morally until he is like the beasts that perish (Ps. 49:12, 20). Man has a life that never ends. He received it when God breathed directly into him. The beasts do not have this.

Failure is inherent in man. In innocence, under law, or under grace — whatever the position or the privilege — he has never stayed in it. Failure may begin in secret, in the heart. Sometimes the act is hidden. But if he does not judge it, it is sure to show in its consequences. You would expect that the greater the honour, the greater the care to keep it. As a rule that is true of worldly honours. Sadly, in the things of God we see the opposite again and again.

The one who can stay is the one who recognises the hand that raised him and submits to it. How clearly the glorious place God has given us shows that such exaltation comes from His grace alone!

The hope of the man of the world does not last. He leaves the world he was great in. His reputation lives on, but it is nothing to him and a deception to others. Satan's power is for this life; there is no deceiving after it. Man in honour without understanding is like the beasts that perish. But the righteous remnant trusts in God, and God redeems his soul from the power of the grave. God will accept him.

The word means "confidence" as well as folly — the folly of a false confidence.

Death proves the folly of all human wisdom and foresight, of all human grandeur — a common observation, little acted on, but always true... Man establishes his family, perpetuates his name, but he is gone: nothing stays the hand of death. Ransom from that is out of man's power.

Do you not know that you must die? Yet is it not the business of most people to ignore it, forget it, make the truth untrue? And so the forty-ninth psalm speaks... "This their way is their folly; yet their posterity" — or "the men that come after them" — "approve their sayings."

The world recklessly accepts its own emptiness, and in its pride it ignores sin, the only cause of that emptiness. This is human folly at its fullest and most astonishing. One generation follows another along the worn tracks of hopeless labour. They hurry to the grave they all share, grabbing in vain at the perishable things within reach — as if owning a great deal of this world's goods could reverse or block the destiny God has appointed for man.

Scripture makes the folly of the ungodly way plain, but only the wise see it and take to heart the lessons scripture states so clearly. Despite the foolishness of the way of unbelievers, their descendants will remember and approve their sayings. What value is it to accept the opinions of one who ends in the fires of hell?

Their posterity may well "approve their sayings." Still, the "way" of the men of this world is "folly," however wise they may be in their generation. No one but the person who has Christ really has "wisdom." If you do not think so yet, take a few more steps along the road you are taking, and you will be convinced. The opened eye of faith alone sees things as they are. God's estimate of the world will stand.

Like sheep, meekly submitting, they are all made to lie down in Sheol. Death is the shepherd who tends them there. In the morning — after the night of death — there is no rescue for them: it is the day when the upright rule. Their very form wastes away under the power of Sheol, so that it finds no home.

"Like sheep (as though they had no spirit) they are laid in the grave" (v. 14). Instead of their feeding on Christ, the living bread, death feeds on them. What an ominous expression!… So the upright should never envy the ungodly for prospering now. What looked like beauty on earth is completely consumed in the grave, far from their favoured earthly home.

The term sheol really includes the grave, as well as the region where spirits, stripped of their bodies, wait for their resurrection… Sheol meant what we might call the whole underworld. Both body and soul are pictured as entering it… So graves can be described as being in sheol, because the whole person, body and spirit, was thought of as entering it.

Again I say, read the Psalm, and you will see at once that it applies to glory in this world… "Still, man being in honour does not remain: he is like the beasts that perish." It would be hard to say what "man being in honour" has to do with his being in hell. "Like sheep they are laid in the grave; death shall feed on them." Isn't it clear that the teaching here is that death destroys all the earthly glory of man?

The righteous have a different portion and prospect. For them, blessing under Messiah's rule is the near and sure hope. God will redeem them from the power of the grave. Death, which feeds on the ungodly, will never touch them… And the upright, who have felt the ungodly pressing them down, will rule over their persecutors in the morning (verse 14) — that morning without clouds, with no night to follow for them.

But the verse speaks instead of the rescued people, represented by the psalmist himself. Their enemies are destroyed, the "morning" of the millennial day comes in as the "Sun of righteousness" rises (Malachi 4), and dominion is given to the "upright"… In neither case do we have resurrection.

Everything shows that what is done "under the sun" is empty, and that resurrection — with what leads to it in grace and what follows it in glory — is the only reality… All beauty, except what the God of resurrection gives, will be consumed in the grave. But there is a morning to rise for the joy and glory of all who are His (verses 14, 15).

Instead of the fear of death, judgment, and wrath, the Christian has before him the bright hope of seeing the Lord and being with Him for ever. We are looking for it "in the morning," as Psalm 49 says… Cheer up, my dear friends. Let your hearts be joyful and your souls be encouraged. The night is nearly over. Your Lord is coming.