1 Hear this, all ye people; give ear, all ye inhabitants of the world:
2 Both low and high, rich and poor, together.
3 My mouth shall speak of wisdom; and the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding.
4 I will incline mine ear to a parable: I will open my dark saying upon the harp.
5 Wherefore should I fear in the days of evil, when the iniquity of my heels shall compass me about?
6 They that trust in their wealth, and boast themselves in the multitude of their riches;
7 None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him:
8 (For the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever:)
9 That he should still live for ever, and not see corruption.
10 For he seeth that wise men die, likewise the fool and the brutish person perish, and leave their wealth to others.
11 Their inward thought is, that their houses shall continue for ever, and their dwelling places to all generations; they call their lands after their own names.
12 Nevertheless man being in honour abideth not: he is like the beasts that perish.
13 This their way is their folly: yet their posterity approve their sayings. Selah.
14 Like sheep they are laid in the grave; death shall feed on them; and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning; and their beauty shall consume in the grave from their dwelling.
15 But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave: for he shall receive me. Selah.
16 Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, when the glory of his house is increased;
17 For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away: his glory shall not descend after him.
18 Though while he lived he blessed his soul: and men will praise thee, when thou doest well to thyself.
19 He shall go to the generation of his fathers; they shall never see light.
20 Man that is in honour, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish.
<html><b>Hear this, all you peoples</b> Because this psalm is based on people who rely on their riches, he says, “all you peoples,” for they all require admonition. <b>earth</b> Heb. חלוד. That [term] is [used to describe] the earth because it is old and rusty (חלודה), rodile in Old French, rust, rouille in modern French. But our Sages explained that it is because of the weasel (חֻלְדָה), which frequents the dry land but is not found in the sea, for the Rabbis taught (Hul. 127a): Whatever is on the dry land is found in the sea, except the weasel.</html>
<html><b>Both the sons of “adam”</b> The sons of Abraham, who was called (Josh. 14:15): “the greatest man (האדם) among the giants”; the sons of Ishmael and the sons of Keturah. <b>and the sons of “ish”</b> The sons of Noah, who was called (Gen. 6:9): “a righteous man (איש צדיק).”</html>
<html><b>and the thoughts of my heart are understanding</b> The thoughts of my heart are understanding.</html>
<html><b>I will bend my ear to a parable</b> To the words of Torah, which is called (I Sam. 24:13), “the parable of the Ancient One.” <b>I will solve</b> this my riddle for you with a lyre. And this is the riddle: Why must I fear in days of misfortune, on the day of the visitation for iniquity? Because the iniquity of my heels surrounds me. The iniquities that I tread with my heels, that I treat lightly, that I view as minor sinsthey condemn me in judgment, and surely the wealthy.</html>
<html><b>Those who rely on their possessions</b> Of what use is their money? Is it not so that…</html>
<html><b>A brother</b> cannot ransom his brother with money because the ransom of their soul is dearer than any possession. Therefore, perforce, his redemption is forever unattainable.</html>
<html><b>will be too dear</b> that he will live forever and not see the Pit. Menachem (p. 158) associated it as an expression of withholding, as (Isa. 13:12): “I will make mortal man dearer (אוקיר) than fine gold”; (Lev. 26:21), “I will go with them with wrath of withdrawal (קיר)” i.e., the ransom of their soul will be withheld.</html>
<html><b>For he sees that wise men die</b> and are not saved from death. So, perforce, he stops wearying himself and toiling for his brother’s ransom. <b>their possessions</b> Heb. חילם, their money. Death is mentioned in reference to the wise men, because in this world they die only in the body, whereas concerning the fool and the boorish man, perishing is mentioned, because both body and soul perish.</html>
<html><b>In their heart, their houses are forever</b> Their thoughts are to build for themselves houses that will exist forever. <b>they call by their names</b> their houses that they build so that they will have a memorial. (Gen. 4:17): “and named the city after his son Enoch.” Antiochus built Antioch; Seleucus built Seleucia.</html>
<html><b>in his glory</b> Heb. ביקר, an expression of glory and majesty. <b>he is compared</b> Heb. נמשל, an expression of a parable (משל). <b>silenced</b> Heb. נדמו, an expression of silence.</html>
<html><b>folly</b> Heb. כסל, madness. <b>and after them they will tell with their mouth forever</b> And those who come after them will speak of them and tell with their mouth what happened to the earlier ones. <b>will tell</b> Heb. ירצו, an expression of narration, retreyront in Old French, But our Sages (Shab. 32b) explained: This is the way of the wicked: they perish in the end but כֶסֶל is theirs. They have fat on their flanks (כסליהם), which covers their kidneys, and they [their kidneys] do not advise them to repent of their evil. Perhaps you will say that it is forgetfulness, that they have forgotten that ultimately they will die? Scripture therefore states: and their end they tell with their mouth; i.e., the day of their end is constantly in their mouth and they are not afraid of it.</html>
<html><b>Like sheep, they are destined to the grave</b> Like sheep that are gathered to the shed, so are they into the grave. <b>they are destined</b> Heb. שתו. The “tav” is punctuated with a “dagesh,” in place of the second “tav.” שּׁוֹתתוּ into the midst of the foundations (שתותיה) of the nether world, to the lowest level. Likewise (above 73:9): “They have set their mouth against heaven,” is also an expression of foundations; they set their mouth in heaven; their slander. <b>death will devour them</b> Heb. ירעם. The angel of death will devour them. Do not wonder about this expression of eating because we find elsewhere (Job 18:13): “the prince of death shall devour his branches.” Another explanation: [It is] an expression of breaking, as (Jer. 15:12): “Will iron break (הירע)?” <b>and the upright will rule over them in the morning</b> On the day of the redemption, when the morning of Israel shines, they will rule over them, as it is stated (Malachi 3:21): “And You shall crush the wicked, etc.” <b>and their form will outlast the grave</b> The form of the wicked will outlast the grave. Gehinnom will end, but they will not end. <b>as his dwelling place</b> From being a dwelling place for them. And the Holy One, blessed be He, takes the sun out of its case, and it will burn them up, as it is stated (Mal. 3:19, Ned. 8b). Our Sages, however, explained מִזְבֻל לוֹ to mean that because they stretched out their hand on His dwelling place, they destroyed the Temple (Mid. Ps. 49:3).</html>
<html><b>But God will redeem my soul</b> But I, who have bent my ear to the parable—God will redeem my soul so that I do not go to the grave, because He will take me in my lifetime to go in His ways.</html>
<html><b>Because in his lifetime he blesses himself</b> The wicked man blesses himself during his lifetime and says, “All will be well with you, my soul. No harm will befall you.” But others do not say so about him. <b>but [all] will praise you, for you will benefit yourself</b> But you, if you hearken to my words, all will praise you, for you will benefit your soul by straightening your way.</html>
<html><b>You shall come to the generation of his forefathers</b> When you complete your days and die, you will come and see the generation of the wicked man being judged in Gehinnom, so that they will not see light to eternity.</html>
<html><b>Man is in his glory but he does not understand</b> The way of life is placed before him; if he follows it, he will be honored, but he does not understand the good [resulting therefrom].</html>