The Lord God took the man and put him in
the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
By the sweat of your brow you shall eat
bread, until you return to the ground
Six days you shall labor, and do all
your work
Six days you shall labor, and do all
your work
Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her
ways, and be wise. 7 Without having any chief, officer or
ruler, 8 she
prepares her food in summer, and gathers her sustenance in harvest.
9 How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When
will you arise from your sleep? 10 A little sleep, a
little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest,11and poverty will come upon you like a
vagabond,
and want like an armed man.
Being lazy will make you poor, but hard
work will make you rich
Those who work their land will have
abundant food, but those who chase fantasies have no sense.
Proverbs 12:24
For the diligent hand, authority; for the slack hand, forced labor.
Proverbs 12:24
For the diligent hand, authority; for the slack hand, forced labor.
The soul of the sluggard craves, and
gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.
Proverbs 14:23
Hard work always yields its profit, idle talk brings only want.
Proverbs 14:23
Hard work always yields its profit, idle talk brings only want.
The way of a sluggard is overgrown with
thorns, but the path of the upright is a level highway.
Whoever is idle at work is
blood-brother to the destroyer.
Laziness brings on deep sleep, and the
sluggard goes hungry.
Into the dish the idler
dips his hand, but bring it back to his mouth he cannot.
In seedtime sluggards do not plow; when
they look for the harvest, it is not there.
Do not love sleep or you will grow poor; stay
awake and you will have food to spare.
He who loves pleasure will be a poor
man; he who loves wine and oil will not be rich.
The sluggard says, “There is a lion
outside! I shall be slain in the streets!”
I passed by the field of a sluggard, by
the vineyard of a man without sense;31 and lo, it was all overgrown with
thorns; the
ground was covered with nettles, and its stone wall
was broken down. 32 Then I saw and considered it; I looked
and received instruction. 33 A little sleep, a little slumber, a
little folding of the hands to rest, 34 and poverty will
come upon you like a robber, and want like an
armed man.
The sluggard says, “There is a lion in
the road! There is a lion in the streets!”
Into the dish the idler
dips his hand, but is too tired to bring it back to his mouth.
Those who cultivate their land will have
plenty of food, but those who engage in idle pursuits will have plenty of want
Four things on earth are small, but they
are exceedingly wise:
25 the ants are a people not strong, yet
they provide their food in the summer
She seeks wool and flax, and
works with willing hands.
She rises while it is yet night and
provides food for her household and tasks for her
maidens.
She puts her back into her
work and shows how strong her arms can be.
Her lamp does not go out at night.
She looks well to the ways of her
household,
and does not eat the bread of idleness.
My son, perform your tasks in meekness;
then you will be loved by those whom God accepts. 18 The
greater you are, the more you must humble yourself; so you will find favor in
the sight of the Lord.
Concentrate on what has
been assigned you, you have no need to worry over mysteries. 23 Do not meddle with matters that are beyond you; what you have
been taught already exceeds the scope of the human mind. 24 For many have been misled by their own notions, wicked presumption having warped their judgment.
My child, stand by your agreement and attend
to it, grow old while doing your work.
How can a farm hand gain knowledge, when
his only ambition is to drive the oxen and make them work, when all he knows to
talk about is livestock? 26 He takes great pains to plow a straight
furrow and will work far into the night to feed the animals.
27 It is the same with the artist and the
craftsman, who work night and day engraving precious stones, carefully working
out new designs. They take great pains to produce a lifelike image, and will
work far into the night to finish the work.
29 It is the same with the potter, sitting
at his wheel and turning it with his feet, always concentrating on his work,
concerned with how many objects he can produce. 30 He
works the clay with his feet until he can shape it with his hands; then he
takes great pains to glaze it properly, and will work far into the night to
clean out the kiln.
31 All of these people are skilled with
their hands, each of them an expert at his own craft. 32 Without
such people there could be no cities; no one would live or visit where these
services were not available.
Do your work before the appointed time,
and in God’s
time he will give you your reward.
Slaves, be obedient to your human
masters with fear and trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to Christ, 6 not
only when being watched, as currying favor, but as slaves of Christ, doing the
will of God from the heart, 7 willingly serving
the Lord and not human beings, 8 knowing that each
will be requited from the Lord for whatever good he does, whether he is slave
or free.
Slaves, obey in everything those who are
your earthly masters, not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but in singleness
of heart, fearing the Lord. 23 Whatever your task,
work heartily, as serving the Lord and not men, 24 knowing
that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward; you are
serving the Lord Christ.
1 Thessalonians 4:11-12
Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you, 12 so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.
Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you, 12 so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.
Now we command you, brethren, in the
name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is
living in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from
us. 7 For
you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us; we were not idle when we were
with you, 8 we
did not eat any one’s bread without paying, but with toil and labor we worked
night and day, that we might not burden any of you. 9 It
was not because we have not that right, but to give you in our conduct an
example to imitate. 10 For even when we were with you, we gave
you this command: If any one will not work, let him not eat. 11 For
we hear that some of you are living in idleness, mere busybodies, not doing any
work. 12 Now
such persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work in
quietness and to earn their own living.
Let all who are under the yoke of
slavery regard their masters as worthy of all honor, so that the name of God
and the teaching may not be defamed. 2 Those who have
believing masters must not be disrespectful on the ground that they are
brethren; rather they must serve all the better since those who benefit by
their service are believers and beloved.
Slaves are to be under the control of
their masters in all respects, giving them satisfaction, not talking back to
them 10 or
stealing from them, but exhibiting complete good faith, so as to adorn the
doctrine of God our savior in every way.
Servants, be submissive to your masters
with all respect, not only to the kind and gentle but also to the overbearing.
