The Parable of the Rich Fool

¹³ Someone in the crowd said to him, ‘Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.’¹⁴But he said to him, ‘Friend, who set me to be a judge or arbitrator over you?’¹⁵And he said to them, ‘Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.’¹⁶Then he told them a parable: ‘The land of a rich man produced abundantly.¹⁷And he thought to himself, “What should I do, for I have no place to store my crops?”¹⁸Then he said, “I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.¹⁹And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”²⁰But God said to him, “You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?”²¹So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich towards God.’

BOOK V

(Psalms 107-150)

Psalm 107

Thanksgiving for Deliverance from Many Troubles

¹ O give thanks to the ^Lord, for he is good;   for his steadfast love endures for ever.² Let the redeemed of the ^Lord say so,   those he redeemed from trouble³ and gathered in from the lands,   from the east and from the west,   from the north and from the south. ⁴ Some wandered in desert wastes,   finding no way to an inhabited town;⁵ hungry and thirsty,   their soul fainted within them.⁶ Then they cried to the ^Lord in their trouble,   and he delivered them from their distress;⁷ he led them by a straight way,   until they reached an inhabited town.⁸ Let them thank the ^Lord for his steadfast love,   for his wonderful works to humankind.⁹ For he satisfies the thirsty,   and the hungry he fills with good things. ⁴³ Let those who are wise give heed to these things,   and consider the steadfast love of the ^Lord.