Psalm 49

1 For praise; by the sons of Korah; a hymn. 2 Hear this declaration, all peoples; give ear, all dwellers on earth. 3 Even the sons of the first Adam, even the sons of Jacob together, righteous and sinner.⁠ 4 My mouth will speak wisdom, and the murmur of my heart is understanding. 5 I will incline my ear to a parable, I will begin to open my riddle with the lyre. 6 Why should I fear on the day of the visitation of evil, except that the guilt of my sin at my end will encompass me? 7 Woe to the sinners, who trust in their possessions, and who boast in the size of their riches. 8 A man will by no means redeem his brother, who was taken captive, by his riches; and he will not give to God his price of redemption. 9 And he gives his glorious redemption, and his evil will cease, and vengeance forever. 10 And he will live again for eternal life; he will not see the judgment of Gehenna. 11 For the wise will see the wicked, in Gehenna they will be judged; together fools and the stupid will perish, and they will leave their money to the righteous.⁠ 12 In their tomb they will abide forever, and they will not rise from their tents for all generations, because they have exalted themselves; and they have acquired an evil name upon the earth. 13 And a wicked man will not lodge in glory with the righteous; he is likened to a beast, he is worth nothing. 14 This their way has caused folly for them; and in their end with their mouth they will recount their offenses in the world to come. 15 Like sheep, they have assigned the righteous to death, and killed them; they have destroyed the righteous and those who serve the Torah, and the upright they have punished; because of this, their bodies will decay in Gehenna, because they extended their hand and wrecked the dwelling place of his Presence. 16 David said in the spirit of prophecy, “Truly God will redeem my soul from the judgment of Gehenna, for he will teach me his Torah forever.” 17 About Korah and his party he prophesied and said, “Do not fear, Moses, because Korah, the man of dispute, has become rich, because the glory of his house will increase.” 18 For in his death he will keep nothing, his glory will not descend after him. 19 For the soul of Moses during his life will bless you; and the righteous will thank you, for you are good to those who worship in your presence. 20 The memory of the righteous will come to the generation of their fathers; but the wicked will not see light forever and ever. 21 The sinful man, when he is in honor, will have no insight; and when his honor is taken from him, he becomes like a beast and worth nothing.

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Compare Psalm 49 and Targum Psalm 49

Hebrew Bible · Targum

Summary

Psalm 49 says death comes to all, even the rich. The Aramaic Targum intensifies this by referencing Adam and changing death into final judgment in Gehenna, then contrasts this with the righteous who are the wise people who obey the Torah.

Passages

Psalm 49

Hebrew Bible

1 For the music director, a psalm by the Korahites. Listen to this, all you nations. Pay attention, all you inhabitants of the world. 2 Pay attention, all you people, both rich and poor. 3 I will declare a wise saying; I will share my profound thoughts. 4 I will learn a song that imparts wisdom; I will then sing my insightful song to the accompaniment of a harp. 5 Why should I be afraid in times of trouble, when the sinful deeds of deceptive men threaten to overwhelm me? 6 They trust in their wealth and boast in their great riches. 7 Certainly a man cannot rescue his brother; he cannot pay God an adequate ransom price 8 (the ransom price for a human life is too high, and people go to their final destiny), 9 so that he might continue to live forever and not experience death. 10 Surely one sees that even wise people die; fools and spiritually insensitive people all pass away and leave their wealth to others. 11 Their grave becomes their permanent residence, their eternal dwelling place. They name their lands after themselves, 12 but, despite their wealth, people do not last. They are like animals that perish. 13 This is the destiny of fools, and of those who approve of their philosophy. (Selah) 14 They 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. 15 But God will rescue my life from the power of Sheol; certainly he will pull me to safety. (Selah) 16 Do not be afraid when a man becomes rich and his wealth multiplies.

600–201 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Psalms

Targum Psalm 49

Targum

1 For praise; by the sons of Korah; a hymn. 2 Hear this declaration, all peoples; give ear, all dwellers on earth. 3 Even the sons of the first Adam, even the sons of Jacob together, righteous and sinner. 4 My mouth will speak wisdom, and the murmur of my heart is understanding. 5 I will incline my ear to a parable, I will begin to open my riddle with the lyre. 6 Why should I fear on the day of the visitation of evil, except that the guilt of my sin at my end will encompass me? 7 Woe to the sinners, who trust in their possessions, and who boast in the size of their riches. 8 A man will by no means redeem his brother, who was taken captive, by his riches; and he will not give to God his price of redemption. 9 And he gives his glorious redemption, and his evil will cease, and vengeance forever. 10 And he will live again for eternal life; he will not see the judgment of Gehenna. 11 For the wise will see the wicked, in Gehenna they will be judged; together fools and the stupid will perish, and they will leave their money to the righteous. 12 In their tomb they will abide forever, and they will not rise from their tents for all generations, because they have exalted themselves; and they have acquired an evil name upon the earth. 13 And a wicked man will not lodge in glory with the righteous; he is likened to a beast, he is worth nothing. 14 This their way has caused folly for them; and in their end with their mouth they will recount their offenses in the world to come. 15 Like sheep, they have assigned the righteous to death, and killed them; they have destroyed the righteous and those who serve the Torah, and the upright they have punished; because of this, their bodies will decay in Gehenna, because they extended their hand and wrecked the dwelling place of his Presence. 16 David said in the spirit of prophecy, “Truly God will redeem my soul from the judgment of Gehenna, for he will teach me his Torah forever.”

200–600 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Targum Psalms

References

"... The two references to Adam in 1 Corinthians 15:22 and verses 45–48 puts Paul’s understanding of Christ and his resurrection in a frame of a contrast and comparison between the first Adam and the second, which is Christ. In his quotation of Genesis 2:7 in verse 45 Paul adds the word “first” and changes “the man” to the proper name “Adam”. Using Adam as an archetype of humanity was a common understanding in Judaism. Referring to “the man” as “the first Adam” appears in the Targum Psalms (49:2; 69:32; 92:1; 94:10), and Philo uses very similar language in his comments on Genesis 2:7 (Allegorical Interpretations 1:31–32). The parallel passage of Romans 5:12–14 Paul refers to Adam as the one “who was the type of the one who was to come” . The word τύπος means “archetype,” “pattern,” or “model,” in the sense of being determined by the nature of the subject involved in the discussion. In this case, although Paul in Romans 5:12–14 mainly focuses on the antithetical relationship, the way Adam is a type of Christ is that they both infer the nature of all those that come after them, in the case of Adam all humanity, in Christ all those that “belong to him” (1 Corinthians 15:23) ..."

Timothy J. Corum, Theosis of the Body in Paul’s Cosmic Narrative: Apocalyptic Intertextuality of Resurrected Bodies in 1 Corinthians 15 (Southwestern Assemblies of God University, 2017), 75.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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Psalm 49

Targum Psalm 49

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