| | 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. | |
