Albert Barnes Commentary Psalms 49:10

"For he shall see it. Wise men die; The fool and the brutish alike perish, And leave their wealth to others." — Psalms 49:10 (ASV)

For he seeth that wise men die—He must see this; he does see it. He perceives that no one can be saved from death. It comes on all alike—the wise and the unwise. Nothing saves from it. The allusion here is especially to the rich, whether they are wise or whether they are fools and brutish. The simple fact, as stated, is that no matter what the character of the man of wealth may be, whether wise or foolish, he must certainly die. His wealth cannot save him from the grave. The possessor of wealth himself sees this. It cannot be concealed from him.

Likewise the fool—This refers to the rich man who is a fool, or who lacks wisdom. He who is rich and wise—wise in the things of this life and wise unto salvation (or who is gifted with a high degree of intelligence and shows wisdom regarding the higher matters of existence)—and the rich man who is a fool (who disregards his highest interests and shows no special intelligence, though possessed of wealth)—all, all die alike.

And the brutish person—This describes the rich man who is stupid and dull; who lives like an animal; who lives to eat and drink; who lives for gross sensuality—he dies just as the wise man does. Wealth cannot, in any case, save from death. Whether connected with wisdom or folly, whether managed carefully or lavishly spent, whether a man uses it in the highest and noblest manner to which it can be devoted or in the indulgence of the most low and debasing enjoyments—it is equally powerless in saving people from the grave.

And leave their wealth to others—It all passes into other hands. It must be so left. It cannot be carried away by its possessor when he goes into the eternal world. It not only cannot save him from the grave, but he cannot even take it with him.

All his houses, his lands, his title-deeds, his silver, his gold, his parks, gardens, horses, hounds—all that he had accumulated with so much care and worshipped with such idolatrous affection—is not even his own in the sense that he can take it with him. The title passes absolutely into other hands. Even if he could come back to earth again, he could no longer claim it, for when he dies, it ceases to be his forever. How powerless, then, is wealth regarding the great purposes of human existence!