Psalm 49: No Fear In Death

"But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol, for he will receive me."

Psalm 49:15

The verse above has been my anchor this semester. Before we dive into it, let me ask you: do you have scripture anchors? When you are going through a rough time of sorrow, do you have specific verses that you turn to that remind you of God's promises? If not, I'd encourage you to start a list of them, starting with this verse.

Psalm 49 speaks of the certainty of death. In the beginning of the psalm, he calls everyone to listen to him, "both high and low, rich and poor together." He then speaks of telling them a "proverb" or "riddle," which is introduced in the following question: "Why should I fear in times of trouble?" Next, the psalmist turns to describing how all men will die, and how no man can ransom another from death. However, for the psalmist, death his not his end, which we see in verse 15: "But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol, for he will receive me."

This psalm shows us a few great points. First, death has an undefeated record. If there is one certain thing in life, it is this: you will die. Although modern medical procedures may postpone death, they cannot overcome it. All will die, you and me included. However, this psalm also points out that "no man can ransom another, or give to God the price of his life" (v. 7). In other words, the sad news is that all men die, but the sadder news is that all men are doomed even after death because no man can save another from the power of the grave. Although I would love to save you from hell, I can't. Thus, men is left hopeless. However, verse 15 comes out of nowhere in the psalm and proclaims that "God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol, for he will receive me."

But how is this so? The psalmist has just pointed out how death always wins, and how one man cannot ransom another from death's power. How, then, could the psalmist be ransomed by the power of Sheol? Ultimately, the answer is not in a man, but in a God-man. An ordinary man cannot rescue another from death, but a man who is both fully man and fully God can. Thus, we see that Christ is our only hope in this text, that he is the only one who is able to pay the price for our salvation.

Thus, we see that we cannot save ourselves, but there is hope, because God saves. Praise the Lord.

So, have you taken the Lord's opportunity of salvation, or are you still trying to save yourself? Furthermore, if the Lord has saved you, why do you fear? The entire point of this Psalm is that even though there is a promise of death, for those who trust in the Lord there is nothing to fear, either in life or in death (see the concluding verses of 16-20). If I don't have to fear my own death (the worst thing that could happen to me), what would I have to fear in life? If God will rescue me in death, he will certainly deliver me in life. Trust in him, and do not fear, for we serve a saving God. Amen.