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Psalm 62:9
ESV Those of low estate are but a breath; those of high estate are a delusion; in the balances they go up; they are together lighter than a breath.
NIV Surely the lowborn are but a breath, the highborn are but a lie. If weighed on a balance, they are nothing; together they are only a breath.
NASB People of low standing are only breath, and people of rank are a lie; In the balances they go up. Together they are lighter than breath.
CSB Common people are only a vapor; important people, an illusion. Together on a scale, they weigh less than a vapor.
NLT Common people are as worthless as a puff of wind, and the powerful are not what they appear to be. If you weigh them on the scales, together they are lighter than a breath of air.
KJV Surely men of low degree are vanity, and men of high degree are a lie: to be laid in the balance, they are altogether lighter than vanity.

What does Psalm 62:9 mean?

David has been describing God using terms implying stability, reliability, and power (Psalm 62:6–8). Here, he draws a contrast to human lives, which are all limited and temporary. Human wealth is meaningless from an eternal perspective. Though David uses different phrases for the rich and the poor, both statements apply to all humans. Life is brief (James 4:14). What looks like power and influence is, ultimately, a short-lived illusion (Psalm 49:10; Luke 12:20). Comparing human power and importance to that of God is like measuring weights on scale against a breath of air.

In view of the brevity of life, James exhorts readers to live every day according to the will of God (James 4:15). Job painfully understood that life is brief and uncertain. He observed, without David's optimism, that his days would pass quickly and with little to show for their passing (Job 7:6–7). The point of David's comment here is to set up the warning of the next verse (Psalm 62:10).
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