You sweep them away as with a flood; they are like a dream, like grass that is renewed in the morning: in the morning it flourishes and is renewed; in the evening it fades and withers.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The text compares human life to grass that springs up, but the Hebrew word used here can also mean "is changed" or "passes away." This subtle choice highlights not just the growth and flourishing of life, but its inherent transience, as it inevitably undergoes a process of fading and disappearing, much like grass in the changing light of day.
You sweep them away as with a flood; they are like a dream, like grass that is renewed in the morning: in the morning it flourishes and is renewed; in the evening it fades and withers.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This psalm opens with a stark reminder of humanity's frailty, contrasting our fleeting existence with God's eternal nature. Moses, the author, begins by lamenting that God turns people to dust and declares, "Return, you mortals." This sets the stage for the verses that follow, which use powerful metaphors to illustrate just how quickly and completely human lives pass away.
Ever feel like life just happens to you, sweeping you along like debris in a river? This verse paints a vivid picture of how quickly our lives can be taken.
The Psalmist uses the powerful image of a flood to describe human life. It's not a gentle stream, but a torrent that sweeps people away. This isn't just about old age; it speaks to the suddenness and irresistibility of death. Life can be ended unexpectedly, like a land overwhelmed by a flash flood.
Think about it:
Does life sometimes feel like a dream you can barely remember upon waking? This verse suggests our experience of time and life itself can be incredibly fleeting and unreal.
The Psalmist compares human existence to 'a dream.' This simile speaks to several aspects of our lives:
A Dream's Brevity
When we wake up, the time spent sleeping often feels like it vanished in an instant. So, too, can years of human life feel like they passed in the blink of an eye when looking back.
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A Dream's Insignificance
Dreams can be vivid, but they rarely have lasting substance or impact. Our earthly pursuits, achievements, and even troubles can seem trivial when viewed from the perspective of eternity.
A Dream's Lack of Satisfaction
Dreams might offer fleeting pleasure or intense fear, but they never truly satisfy or permanently harm. Human life, apart from God, can feel like a pursuit of shadows.
We all know the fresh beauty of morning grass, vibrant and alive. But the Psalmist uses this image to show us how quickly that freshness fades.
The comparison of life to 'grass that is renewed in the morning' is incredibly poignant. It highlights the cycle of life and death, growth and decay, all within a very short span.
The Morning Flourish
In the 'morning' of life—our youth and early adulthood—we often feel strong, vibrant, and full of potential, like grass sprouting and growing. We see the world before us, full of possibility.
The Evening Wither
But just as grass that flourishes in the morning can be cut down and wither by evening, so too can human life be cut short. This imagery emphasizes:
Understand the original words
zerem · Hebrew Noun
A natural occurrence of overwhelming power; often used in the Bible as a symbol of divine judgment, destruction, or the sudden, irresistible sweeping away of humanity.
shenah · Hebrew Noun
A metaphor for the transient, unsubstantial, and quickly passing nature of human life, which appears real but vanishes rapidly from the consciousness of time.
chatsir · Hebrew Noun
Vegetation that grows rapidly but withers quickly in the heat; a common biblical metaphor for the fragility, brevity, and mortality of human life.
This passage echoes Psalm 90:5 by emphasizing the brevity and frailty of human life, describing humanity as born for only a few days and then cut off like a flower.
1 Peter 1:24This New Testament verse directly quotes Isaiah 40:6-8, which is thematically parallel to Psalm 90:5, stating that all people are like grass that withers and flowers that fall, underscoring the transient nature of human existence.
Isaiah 40:6-8This passage provides a vivid image of human life's transience, comparing people to grass that grows and flourishes but is quickly cut down and withers, mirroring the imagery in Psalm 90:5.
James 4:14This verse speaks of life as a 'mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes,' a concise and powerful parallel to the fleeting, dream-like quality of life described in Psalm 90:5.
bensonPsalms 90:5: "Thou carriest them away as with a flood; they are as a sleep: in the morning they are like grass which groweth up."
Psalm 90:5-6 . Thou carriest them away — Namely, mankind, of whom he spake Psalm 90:3 . As with a flood — Unexpectedly, violently, and irresistibly. They are as a sleep — Short and vain as sleep is, and not minded till it be past. Or, like a dream, when a man sleepeth, wherein there may be some real pleasure, but never any satisfaction; or some real trouble, but neve…
ellicottPsalms 90:5: "Thou carriest them away as with a flood; they are as a sleep: in the morning they are like grass which groweth up."
(5, 6) The following is suggested as the most satisfactory rendering of these verses: Time (literally, a year; but the root-idea is the repetition or change of the seasons ) carries them away with its flood; they are in the morning like grass sprouting; in the morning it flourishes and sprouts, in the evening it is cut down and withered. This is obtained by taking th…
The text compares human life to grass that springs up, but the Hebrew word used here can also mean "is changed" or "passes away." This subtle choice highlights not just the growth and flourishing of life, but its inherent transience, as it inevitably undergoes a process of fading and disappearing, much like grass in the changing light of day.
This psalm opens with a stark reminder of humanity's frailty, contrasting our fleeting existence with God's eternal nature. Moses, the author, begins by lamenting that God turns people to dust and declares, "Return, you mortals." This sets the stage for the verses that follow, which use powerful metaphors to illustrate just how quickly and completely human lives pass away.
This psalm opens with a stark reminder of humanity's frailty, contrasting our fleeting existence with God's eternal nature. Moses, the author, begins by lamenting that God turns people to dust and declares, "Return, you mortals." This sets the stage for the verses that follow, which use powerful metaphors to illustrate just how quickly and completely human lives pass away.
"You sweep them away as with a flood; they are like a dream, like grass that is renewed in the morning: in the morning it flourishes and is renewed; in the evening it fades and withers." — The text compares human life to grass that springs up, but the Hebrew word used here can also mean "is changed" or "passes away." This subtle choice highlights not just the growth and flourishing of…
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Last reviewed October 2026