Put not your trust in princes: They are born of men, And all by nature in this world are equal in honour

Put not your trust in princes:
They are born of men,
And all by nature in this world are equal in honour.
The earth brings forth, the earth devours;
Everyone born, being born, shall die,
Rich and poor, despised and renowned.
Then those flatteries shall vanish
That were given to vanity,
And in which men shamelessly took pride;
Their brief days shall come to an end,
And they shall flow away for ever,
Like proud rivers, rushing swiftly, with a roar.
When the spirit goes out from them,
Only a rumour of them shall remain,
Of those lying insensible in the womb of the earth;
They shall lose their pride,
Their schemes shall perish,
And all the splendid titles shall be hidden in the grave.

Literal translation

Psalm 145 in Sumarokov's paraphrase