| NET Bible | New Living Translation |
| 1For the music director, a psalm by the Korahites. Listen to this, all you nations! Pay attention, all you inhabitants of the world! | 1Listen to this, all you people! Pay attention, everyone in the world! |
| 2Pay attention, all you people, both rich and poor! | 2High and low, rich and poor—listen! |
| 3I will declare a wise saying; I will share my profound thoughts. | 3For my words are wise, and my thoughts are filled with insight. |
| 4I will learn a song that imparts wisdom; I will then sing my insightful song to the accompaniment of a harp. | 4I listen carefully to many proverbs and solve riddles with inspiration from a harp. |
| 5Why should I be afraid in times of trouble, when the sinful deeds of deceptive men threaten to overwhelm me? | 5Why should I fear when trouble comes, when enemies surround me? |
| 6They trust in their wealth and boast in their great riches. | 6They trust in their wealth and boast of great riches. |
| 7Certainly a man cannot rescue his brother; he cannot pay God an adequate ransom price | 7Yet they cannot redeem themselves from death by paying a ransom to God. |
| 8(the ransom price for a human life is too high, and people go to their final destiny), | 8Redemption does not come so easily, for no one can ever pay enough |
| 9so that he might continue to live forever and not experience death. | 9to live forever and never see the grave. |
| 10Surely one sees that even wise people die; fools and spiritually insensitive people all pass away and leave their wealth to others. | 10Those who are wise must finally die, just like the foolish and senseless, leaving all their wealth behind. |
| 11Their grave becomes their permanent residence, their eternal dwelling place. They name their lands after themselves, | 11The grave is their eternal home, where they will stay forever. They may name their estates after themselves, |
| 12but, despite their wealth, people do not last, they are like animals that perish. | 12but their fame will not last. They will die, just like animals. |
| 13This is the destiny of fools, and of those who approve of their philosophy. (Selah) | 13This is the fate of fools, though they are remembered as being wise. Interlude |
| 14They will travel to Sheol like sheep, with death as their shepherd. The godly will rule over them when the day of vindication dawns; Sheol will consume their bodies and they will no longer live in impressive houses. | 14Like sheep, they are led to the grave, where death will be their shepherd. In the morning the godly will rule over them. Their bodies will rot in the grave, far from their grand estates. |
| 15But God will rescue my life from the power of Sheol; certainly he will pull me to safety. (Selah) | 15But as for me, God will redeem my life. He will snatch me from the power of the grave. Interlude |
| 16Do not be afraid when a man becomes rich and his wealth multiplies! | 16So don’t be dismayed when the wicked grow rich and their homes become ever more splendid. |
| 17For he will take nothing with him when he dies; his wealth will not follow him down into the grave. | 17For when they die, they take nothing with them. Their wealth will not follow them into the grave. |
| 18He pronounces this blessing on himself while he is alive: "May men praise you, for you have done well!" | 18In this life they consider themselves fortunate and are applauded for their success. |
| 19But he will join his ancestors; they will never again see the light of day. | 19But they will die like all before them and never again see the light of day. |
| 20Wealthy people do not understand; they are like animals that perish. | 20People who boast of their wealth don’t understand; they will die, just like animals. |
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