Albert Barnes Commentary Psalms 90:3

"Thou turnest man to destruction, And sayest, Return, ye children of men." — Psalms 90:3 (ASV)

Thou turnest man to destruction—this is in contrast to His own unchangeableness and eternity. Man passes away; God continues forever the same. The word rendered “destruction”—דכא dakkâ'—means properly anything beaten or broken small or very fine, and thus, “dust.” The idea here is that God causes man to return to dust; that is, the elements that compose the body return to their original condition or seem to mingle with the earth. (Genesis 3:19): dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. The word “man” here, of course, refers to man in general—all people. It is the great law of our being.

Individual people, classes of people, generations of people, races of people, pass away; but God remains the same. The Septuagint and the Latin Vulgate render this, “Thou turnest man to humiliation”—which, though not the sense of the original, is a true idea, for there is nothing more humiliating than that a human body, once so beautiful, should turn back to dust—nothing more humbling than the grave.

And sayest, Return, ye children of men—return to your dust; go back to the earth from which you came.

Return, all of you without exception—kings, princes, nobles, warriors, conquerors; mighty people, captains, and counselors; you learned and great, you honored and flattered, you beautiful and happy, you youthful and vigorous, and you aged and venerable; whatever is your rank, whatever are your possessions, whatever are your honors, whatever you have to make you lovely, to charm, to please, to be admired; or whatever there is to make you loathsome and detestable; you vicious, you profane, low, groveling, sensual, debased—go all of you alike to “dust!”

Oh, how affecting the thought that this is the lot of man; how much should it do to abase the pride of the race; how much should it do to make any man sober and humble, that he himself is soon to turn back to dust—unhonored, undistinguished, and indistinguishable dust!