Psalm 49:14 (ESV)

14 Like sheep they are appointed for Sheol; death shall be their shepherd, and the upright shall rule over them in the morning. Their form shall be consumed in Sheol, with no place to dwell.

As sheep, they belong in Sheol. Death is their shepherd. This image reminds us of Psalm 23:1–6, but then as the opposite. The proud and rich are shepherded by death. And those who were trampled by them, now experience the opposite world: in the morning, the righteous trample on their graves. In Genesis, we read about Sheol. Jacob, who hears that his son Joseph has died, is shocked. We read in Genesis 37:35 All his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted and said, No, I shall go down to Sheol to my son, mourning. Thus his father wept for him. Psalm 110:1 also speaks about humiliating the enemy: “The Lord says to my Lord: ‘Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool” (see also 1 Corinthians 15:25).

Hannah sings about the turn-around of situations in her prayer in 1 Samuel 2:7–8, which is then taken over by Maria in Luke 1:52–53. The ending of this verse indicates that the body of the dead will perish, deteriorate (literally: become old). What a contrast with Psalm 49:6, where it says that those who threaten are proud of their possessions and wealth (compare with Psalm 49:11); now the grave is their home. God will bring justice. Here you taste the end times.