Bible Strands
Psalms 49:17
For when he dies, he will carry nothing away; his abundance will not follow him down.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The psalmist addresses the wise, specifically targeting those who might fear the increasing wealth and splendor of others. The warning interrupts a meditation on human prosperity to confront the reality of mortality.
The words — לֹא (lo') means "not" and יֵרֵד (ye.Red) means "it will go down," anchoring the declaration that material wealth remains behind at death.
The thread — This theme of inescapable mortality and the futility of earthly wealth appears in 1 Timothy 6:7, Job 27:19, and Job 1:21. Each text reinforces that human accumulation cannot cross the boundary of death.
Why it lands — The verse demands that readers stop anchoring their security in temporary prosperity. It requires a pragmatic assessment of what truly endures beyond a lifetime.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away: his glory shall not descend after him.
Cross-references
- 1 Timothy 6:7 For we brought nothing into the world, so we cannot carry anything out of it.
- Job 27:19 He lies down wealthy, but will do so no more; when he opens his eyes, all is gone.
- Job 1:21 saying: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD.”
- Ecclesiastes 5:15 As a man came from his mother’s womb, so he will depart again, naked as he arrived. He takes nothing for his labor to carry in his hands.
- Luke 16:24 So he cried out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue. For I am in agony in this fire.’
- 1 Corinthians 15:43 It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power.
- Psalms 17:14 from such men, O LORD, by Your hand—from men of the world whose portion is in this life. May You fill the bellies of Your treasured ones and satisfy their sons, so they leave their abundance to their children.
- Isaiah 5:14 Therefore Sheol enlarges its throat and opens wide its enormous jaws, and down go Zion’s nobles and masses, her revelers and carousers!
- Isaiah 10:3 What will you do on the day of reckoning when devastation comes from afar? To whom will you flee for help? Where will you leave your wealth?
- Luke 12:20 But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be required of you. Then who will own what you have accumulated?’