Psalms 127
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Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.
2 It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: for so he giveth his beloved sleep.
3 Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.
4 As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth.
5 Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.
Public Domain KJV text from Wordproject.org
Psalm 127:1-5
Unless the Lord Builds the House
A Song of Ascents. Of Solomon.
1Unless the Lord builds the house,
those who build it labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
the watchman stays awake in vain.
2It is in vain that you rise up early
and go late to rest,
eating the bread of anxious toil;
for he gives to his beloved sleep.
3Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
the fruit of the womb a reward.
4Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
are the children of one’s youth.
5Blessed is the man
who fills his quiver with them!
He shall not be put to shame
when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.
ESV Bible text displayed through the American Bible Society's Global Bible Widget
Psalm 127:1-5
Psalm 127
A song of ascents. Of Solomon.
1Unless the Lord builds the house,
the builders labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
the guards stand watch in vain.
2In vain you rise early
and stay up late,
toiling for food to eat—
for he grants sleep to those he loves.
3Children are a heritage from the Lord,
offspring a reward from him.
4Like arrows in the hands of a warrior
are children born in one’s youth.
5Blessed is the man
whose quiver is full of them.
They will not be put to shame
when they contend with their opponents in court.
NIV Bible text displayed through the American Bible Society's Global Bible Widget
Commentary
The words of this Psalm were written by Solomon – the wisest man who ever lived. We took his advice when we built our house in 2011. We were first time builders and home owners after 18 years of marriage. Before the construction company broke ground on our land, we decided to dedicate the future house we would call home. So we gathered together a few close friends, our realtor and our builder and read from Ps.127.
We stood on our property, held hands in a circle, and spoke to God. We wanted to recognize in front of witnesses that we didn’t want to do this without Him. Here’s why we feel we are blessed: God has helped us built our home (I don’t just mean the physical construction) and promised to dwell with us in our house. This is the difference that makes daily toil worthwhile and sleep at night full of hope.
I want to encourage you today to take God with you into every aspect of your life – without Him, you are nothing; with Him you are blessed!
Thandi Klingbeil
Home-schooling Mother
Collegedale, Tennessee (as of this writing)
