Psalms 146:4

4 When their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing.

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Psalms 146:4 in Other Translations

KJV

4 His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish.

ESV

4 When his breath departs, he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans perish.

NLT

4 When they breathe their last, they return to the earth, and all their plans die with them.

MSG

4 Mere humans don't have what it takes; when they die, their projects die with them.

CSB

4 When his breath leaves him, he returns to the ground; on that day his plans die.

Psalms 146:4 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 146:4

His breath goeth forth
That is, the breath of a son of man, of any and everyone of the princes; it goes forth continually, and is drawn in again as long as a man lives; but at death it goes forth, and returns no more till the resurrection: the breath which the Lord breathed into man, and which is in his nostrils while he lives, and is very precarious. And when it is taken away, he dies, and he returneth to his earth;
from whence he was taken, and of which he was made; upon which he lived, where he dwelt, and in which he took delight and pleasure, minding earth and earthly things, and which is now all he has; who, though he may have had many large estates and possessions, nay, have ruled over many kingdoms and countries, yet his property of earth is now no more than the length and breadth of a grave; he returns to earth as soon as he dies, becoming a lump of clay; and particularly when he is interred in it, and when by corruption and worms he is turned into it; in that very day his thoughts perish;
in the day, hour, and moment he dies: not that the soul ceases, or ceases to think at death; it is immortal, and dies not; and, as it exists in a separate state after death, it retains all its powers and faculties, and, among the rest, its power of thinking; which it is capable of exercising, and does, as appears from the case of the souls under the altar, ( Revelation 6:9 ) . But the meaning is, that at death all the purposes and designs of men are at an end; all their projects and schemes, which they had formed, and were pursuing, now come to nothing; whether to do good to others, or to aggrandize themselves and families; and therefore such mortal creatures are not to be depended upon, since all their promises may fail; nay, even their good designs may be frustrated; see ( Job 17:12 ) .