Two Houses

 

Psalm 48:1 Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised
    in the city of our God!
His holy mountain, 2 beautiful in elevation,
    is the joy of all the earth,
Mount Zion, in the far north,
    the city of the great King.
3 Within her citadels God
    has made himself known as a fortress.

Psalm 49:16 Be not afraid when a man becomes rich,

    when the glory of his house increases.

17 For when he dies he will carry nothing away;

    his glory will not go down after him.

18 For though, while he lives, he counts himself blessed

    —and though you get praise when you do well for yourself—

19 his soul will go to the generation of his fathers,

    who will never again see light.

20 Man in his pomp yet without understanding is like the beasts that perish.

In these two back-to-back psalms of the Sons of Korah, the writers speak of two houses: the temple, which God has built to represent His power and glory, and that of the rich man in this world.  God's stands forever strong, and serves as a place of refuge that we can go to and be safe, forever. The house that the rich man builds, at the expense of others, becomes a refuge on for himself, and he uses it as a platform of boasting. But this house will not last.  When he dies, it will fall into ruin, and so will he. The writes use this contrast to encourage us to turn in our times of trial and suffering to the One Who welcomes us in. The verse before this last paragraph ends: 15 But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol, for he will receive me. Selah. The rich man may shut you out, but God will receive you.