The message of Psalm 49 is simple but profound. The psalmist ends with the words: “A man who has riches without understanding is like the beasts that perish.” What is it that we should therefore understand? We should understand what is most valuable in life and we should invest above all in what has the greatest value. Wealth is not a bad thing, in fact, it can be good. But wealth is a relative good not the absolute good. God is ‘the absolute good’. Hence, above everything, we should value our relationship with God. After this, we should value our relationships with other people. Augustine saw ‘sin’ as the disordering of God’s hierarchy of goods. If we value inanimate wealth over our relationships with God and other people, then we have fallen out of God’s order. Wealth can provide security and pleasure, but only relative security and relative temporal pleasure. The measure of value here is human mortality. The value of wealth does not extend beyond this short life whereas the value of our relationship with God and others extends beyond this life into eternity. We should therefore measure our passions proportionately to the value of things. Jesus said that our hearts will be where our treasure is (Matthew 6:21). Let us therefore cultivate a desire to know and walk with God, above all things, so that our hearts will remain firmly connected with him who is our greatest treasure.
Ask God to direct the passions of your heart towards him and his purposes.
Read Psalm 49
