In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for bread to eat—for He gives sleep to His beloved.It is vain for you to rise up early, to stay up late, eating the bread of toil, for he gives sleep to his loved ones.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.It is vain for you to rise up early, To take rest late, To eat the bread of toil; For so he giveth unto his beloved sleep.
3 sermons cite this verse
… A couple more verses for you. Psalm 127, verses one through two. You've heard these before, but I want you to think about them in light of the sovereignty of God. Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it. Unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is vain then for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows. Translation, be all stressed out, for so he gives his beloved sleep. So does that mean we don't build or we don't guard? No, we do it with all that we have. But then at the end of the day, we lay our heads down on the pillow knowing I gave you my best today. And I'm so grateful that you have it all under control. He gives his beloved sleep. And the one who is kept or keeping themselves in his love. that even though they don't know what the product of today will be, they don't know what tomorrow holds, they really know the one who not only holds tomorrow, but the next day and the day after that and the day after that, and we can trust him. …
… We work to feed our appetites, but meanwhile, our souls go hungry. Or how about this verse, Psalm 127, verse 2. God says this, the Living Bible. It is senseless, senseless for you to work so hard from early morning until late at night Fearing and worrying. There's the reason, insecurity. Fearing and worrying that you won't have enough. For God, let's read this aloud together. For God wants his loved ones to get their proper rest. So go home right now and take a nap. All right? That's probably some of all you need is we looked at the causes of our difficulties. So how do you do this? How do I learn to relax? How do I live a more sane life, a more balanced life, a less stressed and more blessed life? Instead of living a restless life, how in the world do I live a rest-filled or restful life? I'm going to show you the antidotes to all five of these because God, in his word, gives us the antidote to every one of these causes. …
II. Secondly, it is certain that WE CAN ONLY GATHER WHAT GOD GIVES. However eager we may be, there is the end of the matter. The most diligent bird shall not be able to gather more than the Lord has given it—neither shall the most avaricious and covetous man! "It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: for so He gives His Beloved sleep." "Except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watchman wakes but in vain." What God gives you, you will be able to gather. But if you set about to heap up what your avarice lusts after, no blessing will attend it. What a difference is often seen in two men placed in the same position in life, with the same work to do and very much the same possessions! You see one of them working cheerfully, happy as a king, sweetening his bread with content and joy in the Lord—while the other murmurs and repines, envying those who are richer and filled with harsh thoughts of God. What makes the one happy and the other wretched? Truly, only that the one has the Grace of God to give him contentment and so is full—and the other has a brutish hunger and greed and so, is left to be his own tormentor. As it is with the poor, so is it with the rich—the heart has more to do with making us happy than our possessions have. He whose soul is full of God, faith and contentment, is a truly rich man! The reflection that we can, after all, gather no more than God gives, should make us restful and contented. It teaches us our dependence upon God and tends to lessen our self-confidence, to moderate our desires and to abate our cares. …