Psalm 127/Commentary

Psalm 127 “In Vain?”

“One of the most telling features of this short poem is that it singles out three of our most universal preoccupations---building, security, raising a family---and makes us ask what they all amount to, and to whom we owe them. The psalm is ascribed to Solomon….Yet, like much of Solomon’s wisdom, the lessons of this psalm, relevant as they were to his situation, were mostly lost on him. His building, both literal and figurative, become reckless (1 Kings 9:10ff), his kingdom a ruin (1 Kings 11:11ff) and his marriages a disastrous denial of God (1 Kings 11:1ff)” (Kidner p. 440). “’Useless!’ That was the first word of a sermon I heard some years ago, and it was arresting. The speaker…in the introduction to that sermon he said that of all the words in the English language useless was the word he hated most, at least if it was applied to him. He was willing to work hard, to start early and labor late. He was willing to forego present pleasures or benefits, but not if it was useless, ‘because’, he exclaimed, ‘if you say that what I do is useless, you are saying that I am useless. And what that means is that somehow I don’t count.’

Most of us would agree wholeheartedly, but what strikes me strongly and sadly is that much of what we pour our lives and energies into is just that: useless---at least in the light of eternity” (Boice pp. 1116-1117).

Fruitless Efforts?

127:1 “Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain you build it” “The two human activities of verse 1 are samples of a great area of life: its enterprises and its conflicts, the work of creating and of conserving. For each of them this verse sees only two possibilities: either it will be the Lord’s doing or it will be pointless; there is no third option” (Kidner p. 441).

Points To Note: 1.

The verse isn’t teaching that God will prevent things from being constructed which are against His will. For God has allowed men to create all sorts of temples of the gods of their imagination. God has also allowed man to create entire religious systems which are opposed to Him and His truth. 2. The 1

point is that work done independently of God, will in the long run prove to be futile. 3. This is Jesus’ point in Matthew 7:24-27 about the man who builds his life upon the sand. 4. If we leave God out of the picture, then man’s greatest efforts and most diligent toil and sacrifices are completely meaningless. Building is useless, unless God approves of what we are constructing. Precautions are useless---unless the Lord is on our side.

127:1 “Unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman keeps awake in vain”: If we aren’t right with God, then all the security measures in the world (alarms, guns, and so on, are vain). If a nation isn’t right with God, then having tremendous military might is futile. It is futile to exercise, watch your diet and carefully monitor your health—if you aren’t serving God. 127:2 “It is vain for you to rise up early, to retire late”: Redoubling our efforts, working like an animal or a madman doesn’t change anything. God doesn’t reward diligent or supreme sacrifices which are made apart from His will (Matthew 7:21-23; 1 Corinthians 13:1-4). “Verse 2 underlines the fact that to work still harder is not answer to it: it can be a fresh enslavement” (Kidner p.

441).

Point To Note: Yet, how many people argue that God will save and reward the hard working unbeliever or the diligent worker who is involved in some false religion? God makes it clear that He isn’t going to give anyone credit for pouring their life into some false religious system. Read again, Matthew 7:21-23.

Encouraging Truths The above verses infer that there is work which is meaningful. God Himself works, so there must be some kind of work that is meaningful and eternally productive. The Lord does build houses or families, the Lord does catch over individuals, cities and nations (Jeremiah 18:1ff), and God can make our work meaningful. God will reward the work that is done in harmony to His will (Colossians 3:23-24).

Living Assets “In contrast to the frantic, self-absorbed, and self-sufficient work ethic described in the first stanza (vv. 1-2), the second stanza (vv. 3-5) unfolds the quiet blessing of God on a family through the gift of children….Most of us think of work and our families in nearly separate categories. We live highly compartmentalized lives.

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But the Jew (godly person) would ask, Why is the house being built if it is not for the family? And why are the watchmen protecting the city if not for the families that live in it?” (Boice pp. 1119-1120). “Nothing is said of monetary wealth or of position: an upstanding family is wealth enough and honor enough” (Kidner p.

441).

We see a great contrast in Genesis chapters 11 and 12. While in chapter 11 man builds for glory and security, to achieve only a fiasco, at the end of chapter 11 God quietly blesses Terah with a son (Abraham), whose blessings have proliferated ever since (Genesis 12:3; Galatians 3:26ff).

127:3 “Behold, children are a gift of the Lord; and the fruit of the womb is a reward”: “To extend our name and our blood into the next generation is a part of God’s blessings and promise to us (Genesis 1:28)” (Williams p. 428). The writer reminds us that we aren’t independent of God, even when it comes to having children, we are still dependent upon God’s providential care and blessings.

Point To Note: It is so sad in our culture that children are often viewed as headaches, hindrances to what people want to do, and almost a curse instead of a reward.

Do we view our children as a precious gift from God? Do we view our children as a reward?

127:4-5 Sons help defend the family for they are like weapons or arrows in the hands of a mighty man. “Sons are capable of defending the family in civil cases (at the gate civil cases were discussed and decided)” (Bible Knowledge Comm. p. 885).

Points To Note: 1.

“Since the family is the basic unit of society, if the family prospers, the nation will prosper too. If families are neglected and decline, the entire society will decline with them” (Boice p. 1120). 2. The growth of families is slow and unpretentious. It is a blessing that builds over time. While many people are impressed with the instant and the spectacular, be impressed with the great blessing which is growing with your family. 3. We cannot raise our families without God. Without God, we will become selfish (Titus 3:3; Romans 1:18-32), and these seeds of destruction will also be sown in our children. “We must seek God’s help and do everything we are told to do in order to raise our children well. We need to pray for our children, teach them the Bible, bring them to church, and above all set an example by living for God ourselves. If we do this, the work expended on our families will not be worthless” (Boice pp. 1121-1122).

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Parents, if you follow God (Ephesians 6:1-4), your “handful” of children at the present time, will eventually become a “quiver full” of mature men and women ready to serve God and take on the world. Are we raising God’s future enemies or are we raising God’s future soldiers?

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