Psalms 90:3-4

90:3 You make mankind return ¹  to the dust, ² 

and say, “Return, O people!”

90:4 Yes, ³  in your eyes a thousand years

are like yesterday that quickly passes,

or like one of the divisions of the nighttime. ⁴ 

Psalms 90:12

90:12 So teach us to consider our mortality, ⁵ 

so that we might live wisely. ⁶ 

Luke 12:19-21

12:19 And I will say to myself, ⁷  “You have plenty of goods stored up for many years; relax, eat, drink, celebrate!”’ 12:20 But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life ⁸  will be demanded back from ⁹  you, but who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ ¹⁰  12:21 So it is with the one who stores up riches for himself, ¹¹  but is not rich toward God.”

James 5:1-6

Warning to the Rich

5:1 Come now, you rich! Weep and cry aloud ¹²  over the miseries that are coming on you. 5:2 Your riches have rotted and your clothing has become moth-eaten. 5:3 Your gold and silver have rusted and their rust will be a witness against you. It will consume your flesh like fire. It is in the last days that you have hoarded treasure! ¹³  5:4 Look, the pay you have held back from the workers who mowed your fields cries out against you, and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. 5:5 You have lived indulgently and luxuriously on the earth. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. ¹⁴  5:6 You have condemned and murdered the righteous person, although he does not resist you. ¹⁵ 

[90:3]  ¹ tn In this context the shortened prefix form does not function as a preterite, but indicates what is typical of the world.

[90:3]  ² tn The Hebrew term דַּכָּא (daka’) carries the basic sense of “crushed.” Elsewhere it refers to those who are “crushed” in spirit or contrite of heart (see Ps 34:18; Isa 57:15). If one understands this nuance here, then v. 3 is observing that God leads mankind to repentance (the term שׁוּב, shuv, “return,” which appears twice in this verse, is sometimes used of repentance.) However, the following context laments mankind’s mortality and the brevity of life, so it is doubtful if v. 3 should be understood so positively. It is more likely that דַּכָּא here refers to “crushed matter,” that is, the dust that fills the grave (see HALOT 221 s.v. s.v. I דַּכָּא; BDB 194 s.v. דַּכָּא). In this case one may hear an echo of Gen 3:19.

[90:4]  ³ tn Or “for.”

[90:4]  ⁴ sn The divisions of the nighttime. The ancient Israelites divided the night into distinct periods, or “watches.”

[90:12]  ⁵ tn Heb “to number our days,” that is, to be aware of how few they really are.

[90:12]  ⁶ tn Heb “and we will bring a heart of wisdom.” After the imperative of the preceding line, the prefixed verbal form with the conjunction indicates purpose/result. The Hebrew term “heart” here refers to the center of one’s thoughts, volition, and moral character.

[12:19]  ⁷ tn Grk “to my soul,” which is repeated as a vocative in the following statement, but is left untranslated as redundant.

[12:20]  ⁸ tn Grk “your soul,” but ψυχή (yuch) is frequently used of one’s physical life. It clearly has that meaning in this context.

[12:20]  ⁹ tn Or “required back.” This term, ἀπαιτέω (apaitew), has an economic feel to it and is often used of a debt being called in for repayment (BDAG 96 s.v. 1).

[12:20]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “the things you have prepared, whose will they be?” The words “for yourself” are not in the Greek text, but are implied.

[12:21]  ¹¹ sn It is selfishness that is rebuked here, in the accumulation of riches for himself. Recall the emphasis on the first person pronouns throughout the parable.

[5:1]  ¹² tn Or “wail”; Grk “crying aloud.”

[5:3]  ¹³ tn Or “hoarded up treasure for the last days”; Grk “in the last days.”

[5:5]  ¹⁴ sn James’ point seems to be that instead of seeking deliverance from condemnation, they have defied God’s law (fattened your hearts) and made themselves more likely objects of his judgment (in a day of slaughter).

[5:6]  ¹⁵ tn Literally a series of verbs without connectives, “you have condemned, you have murdered…he does not resist.”