Good News Translation GNT
World English Bible WEB
1 Hear this, everyone! Listen, all people everywhere,
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<<For the Chief Musician. A Psalm by the sons of Korah.>> Hear this, all you peoples. Listen, all you inhabitants of the world,
2 great and small alike, rich and poor together.
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Both low and high, Rich and poor together.
3 My thoughts will be clear; I will speak words of wisdom.
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My mouth will speak words of wisdom. My heart shall utter understanding.
4 I will turn my attention to proverbs and explain their meaning as I play the harp.
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I will incline my ear to a proverb. I will open my riddle on the harp.
5 I am not afraid in times of danger when I am surrounded by enemies,
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Why should I fear in the days of evil, When iniquity at my heels surrounds me?
6 by evil people who trust in their riches and boast of their great wealth.
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Those who trust in their wealth, And boast in the multitude of their riches --
7 We can never redeem ourselves; we cannot pay God the price for our lives,
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None of them can by any means redeem his brother, Nor give God a ransom for him.
8 because the payment for a human life is too great. What we could pay would never be enough
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For the redemption of their life is costly, No payment is ever enough,
9 to keep us from the grave, to let us live forever.
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That he should live on forever, That he should not see corruption.
10 Anyone can see that even the wise die, as well as the foolish and stupid. They all leave their riches to their descendants.
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For he sees that wise men die; Likewise the fool and the senseless perish, And leave their wealth to others.
11 Their graves are their homes forever; there they stay for all time, though they once had lands of their own.
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Their inward thought is, that their houses will endure forever, And their dwelling places to all generations. They name their lands after themselves.
12 Our greatness cannot keep us from death; we will still die like the animals.
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But man, despite his riches, doesn't endure. He is like the animals that perish.
13 See what happens to those who trust in themselves, the fate of those who are satisfied with their wealth -
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This is the destiny of those who are foolish, And of those who approve their sayings. Selah.
14 they are doomed to die like sheep, and Death will be their shepherd. The righteous will triumph over them, as their bodies quickly decay in the world of the dead far from their homes.
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They are appointed as a flock for Sheol. Death shall be their shepherd. The upright shall have dominion over them in the morning. Their beauty shall decay in Sheol, Far from their mansion.
15 But God will rescue me; he will save me from the power of death.
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But God will redeem my soul from the power of Sheol, For he will receive me. Selah.
16 Don't be upset when someone becomes rich, when his wealth grows even greater;
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Don't be afraid when a man is made rich, When the glory of his house is increased.
17 he cannot take it with him when he dies; his wealth will not go with him to the grave.
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For when he dies he shall carry nothing away. His glory shall not descend after him.
18 Even if someone is satisfied with this life and is praised because he is successful,
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Though while he lived he blessed his soul -- And men praise you when you do well for yourself --
19 he will join all his ancestors in death, where the darkness lasts forever.
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He shall go to the generation of his fathers. They shall never see the light.
20 Our greatness cannot keep us from death; we will still die like the animals.
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A man who has riches without understanding, Is like the animals that perish.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.
The World English Bible is in the public domain.