Insuring lives was for a long time seen as a form of gambling and interference with divine providence! Until the last quarter of 18th century, Insurance was a popular means of making money!

Here is what is written on the above playing card:

“Come all ye generous husbands, with your wives,
Insure round sums, on your precarious lives,
That to your comfort, when you are dead and rotten
Your wives may be rich when you are forgotten.”