Golden Text: Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, when the glory of his house is increased. – Psalm 49:16.

Lesson Outline

1. The Wisdom of God – Ps. 49:1-4 2. The False Hope of Wealth – Ps. 49:5-9 3. The False Hope of the World – Ps. 49:10-13 4. The Hope of Believers- Ps. 49:14-15 5. The Destiny of Unbelievers – Ps. 49:16-20

Folly – A lack of sense; foolishness; foolish actions or beliefs. A foolish and useless but expensive undertaking. Undertaking – Guarantee Foolish – Silly, unwise, ridiculous Psalm – A sacred song or poem Poem – An arrangement of words, rhythmical composition, sometimes rhymed in a style more imaginative than ordinary speech or prose.

INTRODUCTION

Today we’re going to look more closely at what foolish values people pursue. Nothing has changed since the psalmist’s day; people were pursuing riches, power, and status; in this dispensation, people chase after the same things. The psalmist lived in a day when many evil men boasted of their wealth; the psalmist therefore wrote to enable God’s people to rise above the ungodly drive for riches. The psalm is attributed to the sons of Korah.

Lesson Outline I – The Wisdom of God – Ps. 49:1 Verse 1 of Psalm 49:1 begins with the word “hear”. The psalmist is saying Hear this, and give ear; pay attention to what I have to say. He’s addressing his announcement to “all ye people” and all ye inhabitants of the world. He wasn’t just addressing the Israelites; he had a message for the whole world.

He addresses the low and high, rich and poor together; he’s leaving no one out of his message. Rich people can learn from the psalm as much as poor people or those in the middle. The psalmist’s message is of wisdom and understanding that comes from the meditation of the psalmist’s heart as he thought about God and true riches.

The psalmist gave the form of his message by using a parable and a dark saying, or riddle. He stated that he was accompanying his parable and riddle on the harp, presumably to help his hearers better remember his words.

Lesson Outline II – The False Hope of Wealth – Ps. 49:5-9

Next, the psalmist asked a rhetorical question: Why should he be afraid in difficult times? Verse 5 states he was surrounded by the guilty deeds of an adversary. It is a word that underlies Jacob’s name and implies grabbing at someone’s heel. Jacob’s heel-grabbing was that of a con artist.

The psalmist’s problem is not with wealth but with those who seek security through wealth and antagonize others to accrue wealth. The love of money, not money itself, is the problem; it’s the love of it. When someone loves money, they will do anything to acquire it. The psalmist’s rivals may not have been physical threats; perhaps they had accrued wealth in a way that made the psalmist’s life difficult.

He goes on to say that these antagonists related to their ill-gotten riches in two ways: trust and boasting. The Hebrew word for “trust” expresses that sense of well-being and security which results from having something or someone in whom to place confidence. These con artists bragged about their wealth while others were in dire need. The psalmists thought that influential people trusting in and boasting about wealth in a way that harms others is a global problem, not just in their immediate area.

The psalmist knew that although they were wealthy, they could not redeem his brother nor give to God a ransom for him. Redemption to the modern Christian is different from that of those in the psalmist’s dispensation. Redemption in the Old Testament was basically financial; it often referred to God’s costly rescue of His people from enslavement and danger. The psalmist knew they could not bribe God nor redeem anyone. He knew the results of trusting and placing confidence in wealth could lead to spiritual destruction. Only by grace through faith does God do for free what money can never purchase.

Lesson III – The False Hope of the World – Ps. 49:10-13

The psalmist made several observations about the destiny of those who put their trust in riches. Just like the wise, foolish, and brutish people, they will also die and leave their riches to others. The wise, foolish, rich, and the poor will all face death and stand before their Creator in judgment. The psalmist reminds us that man is no different from the beasts and that death comes for all living creatures. The psalmist turned his attention to the reality that money cannot avoid death. The body returns to the dust, and the soul returns to God.

Lesson IV – The Hope of Believers – Ps. 49:14-15

The psalmist turned his attention to himself and others who trust in the Lord. He affirmed his belief that God would redeem his soul from the grave and receive him into His presence. The psalmist presents the Lord as a kind and gentle shepherd in Psalm 23. He describes the death of the believer as a bright morning when the sun rises after judgment. Believers who place their trust in Jesus and live according to Scripture should not fear death because they will be in a better place; they will be in the presence of the Lord to die no more. Pain, sickness, disease, anything or anyone that would harm will not be there. Love will surround the believer, and there will be nothing there to hurt or harm in any way.

Lesson V – The Destiny of Unbelievers – Ps. 49:16-20

There is nothing to be afraid of when God has blessed one to be rich. The believer places their trust in God and not their wealth. They will use their wealth to be a blessing to others who are in need. The psalmist speaks about those who place their trust in their wealth. Even though they think highly of themselves and are praised by others, they cannot take wealth with them when they die. You will never see an ATM or bank accounts following behind a hearse! They will go to the grave and never see light again. Their honor on earth will end, and like animals, they will perish.

The psalmist matched the fourfold success of the wicked with their fourfold fate: they take nothing with them when they die, they part ways with their precious wealth, they fare the same as their bygone ancestors, and they will dwell far away from God’s light. Believers will enjoy an eternal bright morning, while the unrepentant dwell in darkness for eternity. The choice is ours while we live to prepare ourselves for death. We will spend eternity either in heaven or hell.

Sunday School Lesson is taken from the Bible Expositor and Illuminator.