Bible Strands
Psalms 49:20
A man who has riches without understanding is like the beasts that perish.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The psalmist addresses the assembly of Israel regarding the inevitable fate of the wealthy. He observes that regardless of their accumulation, they will ultimately join their ancestors in the grave.
The words — The Hebrew term בִּיקָר (biqar) denotes "honor" or "wealth," while יָבִין (yavin) means "he understands." The text contrasts possessing honor without the capacity for discernment.
The thread — This comparison to perishable animals appears earlier in Psalms 49:12 and recurs in Ecclesiastes 3:18. The motif emphasizes that mortality levels all human distinctions.
Why it lands — The verse demands recognition that material accumulation cannot secure lasting significance or escape mortality. It requires the reader to evaluate what endures beyond physical death.
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
Man that is in honour, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish.
Cross-references
- Psalms 49:12 But a man, despite his wealth, cannot endure; he is like the beasts that perish.
- Ecclesiastes 3:18 I said to myself, “As for the sons of men, God tests them so that they may see for themselves that they are but beasts.”
- Esther 7:10 So they hanged Haman on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the fury of the king subsided.
- Job 4:21 Are not their tent cords pulled up, so that they die without wisdom?’
- Esther 5:11 Haman recounted to them his glorious wealth, his many sons, and all the ways the king had honored and promoted him over the other officials and servants.
- Psalms 73:18 Surely You set them on slick ground; You cast them down into ruin.