Psalm 127

A song of ascents. Of Solomon.

1 Unless the LORD builds the house,
its builders labour in vain.
Unless the LORD watches over the city,
the watchmen stand guard in vain.

2 In vain you rise early
and stay up late,
toiling for food to eat—
for he grants sleep to those he loves.

3 Sons are a heritage from the LORD,
children a reward from him.

4 Like arrows in the hands of a warrior
are sons born in one's youth.

5 Blessed is the man
whose quiver is full of them.
They will not be put to shame
when they contend with their enemies in the gate.


King Solomon – reputably the wisest man on earth besides Jesus – wrote this psalm. I love it that he addresses the most basic needs of humans – to have family and work.

The first part of the psalm addresses work. I see the parallel with Ecclesiastes where he spent a considerable amount of time talking about how futile and meaningless work and toil can be when we do not have the right motivations. Working “in vain” is when we think we can do better than God. The key word in verse 1 “unless” is to be pondered. Unless the Lord does it, we labour in vain. All our works and efforts are temporary and futile. Unless we acknowledge His sovereignty over all things, what we do is “in vain”. Let’s be reminded not to make the mistake of leaving God out in our lives. We should make God our highest priority – and He will do the building.

I’d just like to add that God is not against hard work. Hard work honours God (Proverbs 31:10-29). The key thing here is knowing that our primary purpose is to worship Him, and if we think we can make Him love us more by working, we are wrong. Trust Him both in your work and your rest.

The second part of the psalm talks about the gift of children. None of us have our own children (yet) but we are all children. We are a “reward” from Him to our parents! (v.3) Sometimes we might feel like we’re a burden or liability to our parents. But remember that the Lord sees us as a heritage and reward from Him. We matter to Him.

To end off this short devotion, I’d like to add an additional point from verse 2. This is normally not something that’s highlighted when studying this psalm but I felt I need to bring this up because some of you will find freedom and rest in this.

Verse 2 says “he grants sleep to those he loves.” The New King James version translates this as “He gives His beloved sleep.” If you have been experiencing difficulty in sleeping or resting, meditate on this verse. Every time you lie in bed restless, pray this verse and speak it into your spirit. Some years ago I suffered from serious insomnia, often going 3 straight days without sleep. I was stressed out and anxious about things. Someone highlighted this verse to me and I have prayed it ever since. Nowadays I seldom have insomnia (mine’s the opposite… I love to sleep!!) but if I do ever feel restless, I will pray this verse and the Holy Spirit ALWAYS ministers and grants me sleep and rest. I use this verse as ammunition against the enemy who tries to steal my rest.

So, have a good night’s rest and remember that our labour is not in vain when it’s for the Lord.

Love you all incredibly much,
jenn