The thought of the insignificance of man is present in a more general sense in this verse: the life of man is like a breath that vanishes, or like a shadow that disappears. We also encounter these thoughts in other psalms of David, for example, Psalm 39:1–13, Psalm 62:1–12, and Psalm 109:1–31.
4 L'homme est semblable à un souffle,Ses jours sont comme l'ombre qui passe.