2Children of earth and sons of men, rich and poor together.

3My mouth shall speak of wisdom; and the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding.

4I will incline my ear to parables; I will chant my proverbs upon the harp.

5I will fear not in days of evil, when the iniquity of my enemies shall surround me,

6They who trust in their own strength and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches.

7A brother cannot save a brother, nor can a man give to God a ransom for himself;

8For the redemption of their souls is precious:

9Do good for ever and you shall live for ever, and not see corruption.

10But you will see wise men die; likewise the fool and the weak minded shall perish and leave their wealth to others.

11Their graves shall be their only habitations for ever, and their dwelling places throughout generations; their marked graves will be their only remembrance on earth.

12Nevertheless, such a man is not sustained by his honour; his end will be as the beasts, and he will perish.

13This their way is their folly; in the end, demented, they will graze like cattle.

14Like sheep they are consigned to the grave; death shall feed on them; and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning; the grave shall consume their beauty, and they shall be cast out from their glory.

15But God will redeem my soul; from the power of the grave he will raise me up.

16Be not afraid when one is made rich, when the glory of his house is increased;

17For when he dies he shall carry nothing away; neither shall his glory descend after him.

18For while he lived, he lived comfortably; he praised you when you favored him.

19His end shall be as his father's was before him; they shall never see light.

20Man cannot depend upon his honor for consolation, for if he does, he resembles the wild beasts.