Peter Barnes : Psalm 49
SERMON NOTES : WEALTH CANNOT RANSOM US (Psalm 49)
– a wisdom Psalm; like the book of Ecclesiastes with a more definite hope added. 1 Peter 1:18-19.
- A call to all humanity.
– 49:1-4. To whom is the Psalmist speaking? To everybody. Like Micah 1:2 and Acts 17:30.
– verse 2 is literally, not ‘low and high’ but something like ‘all mankind and every man’ as the New English Bible has it. This is a call of wisdom (49:3) and of prophecy (49:4). Music was associated with prophecy at times (e.g. 1 Sam.10:5; 2 Kings 3:15).
- Wealth cannot redeem us.
– 49:5-12. Here are false hopes exposed. We all pursue a kind of counterfeit immortality – 49:11.
– Property or debt slaves could be redeemed in the Old Testament – Lev.25:25, 47-49. But we cannot redeem ourselves or anybody else before God – Ps.49:7-9. God already owns everything – Ps.50:10-12.
– Because we cannot solve the sin problem, we cannot solve the death problem – 49:10-12; Eccles.3:18-21.
-1 Tim.6:7; Mark 8:36-37.
- Two ways to live and die.
– 49:13-20. There is a contrast here.
– 49:15 for the believer. Do not be afraid or envious of the rich (49:12, 20).
– Francis Schaeffer would take a short-cut through the Philadelphia city dump, and noticed where all peoples’ goods ended out. Luke 12:19-21.