Whatever you do, work at it with your whole being, for the Lord and not for men,

Commit your works to the LORD and your plans will be achieved.

There is profit in all labor, but mere talk leads only to poverty.

For even while we were with you, we gave you this command: “If anyone is unwilling to work, he shall not eat.”

Whatever you find to do with your hands, do it with all your might, for in Sheol, where you are going, there is no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom.

Idle hands make one poor, but diligent hands bring wealth.

In everything, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words of the Lord Jesus Himself: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”

The one who works his land will have plenty of food, but whoever chases fantasies lacks judgment.

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all to the glory of God.

The slacker craves yet has nothing, but the soul of the diligent is fully satisfied.

Then the LORD God took the man and placed him in the Garden of Eden to cultivate and keep it.

He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing good with his own hands, that he may have something to share with the one in need.

Do you see a man skilled in his work? He will be stationed in the presence of kings; he will not stand before obscure men.

If anyone does not provide for his own, and especially his own household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

For when you eat the fruit of your labor, blessings and prosperity will be yours.

Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast and immovable. Always excel in the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.

The craving of the slacker kills him because his hands refuse to work.

Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to keep away from any brother who leads an undisciplined life that is not in keeping with the tradition you received from us. For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us, because we were not undisciplined among you, nor did we eat anyone’s food without paying for it. Instead, in labor and toil, we worked night and day so that we would not be a burden to any of you. Not that we lack this right, but we wanted to offer ourselves as an example for you to imitate.

For God is not unjust. He will not forget your work and the love you have shown for His name as you have ministered to the saints and continue to do so.

Dishonest scales are an abomination to the LORD, but an accurate weight is His delight.

And whatever you do, in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish for us the work of our hands—yes, establish the work of our hands!

I went past the field of a slacker and by the vineyard of a man lacking judgment. Thorns had grown up everywhere, thistles had covered the ground, and the stone wall was broken down. I observed and took it to heart; I looked and received instruction: A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and need like a bandit.

Make every effort to present yourself approved to God, an unashamed workman who accurately handles the word of truth.

Whatever you do, work at it with your whole being, for the Lord and not for men, because you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as your reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

And to Adam He said: “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat, cursed is the ground because of you; through toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. Both thorns and thistles it will yield for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your bread, until you return to the ground—because out of it were you taken. For dust you are, and to dust you shall return.”

The hand of the diligent will rule, but laziness ends in forced labor.

For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life.

But Jesus answered them, “To this very day My Father is at His work, and I too am working.”

For even while we were with you, we gave you this command: “If anyone is unwilling to work, he shall not eat.” Yet we hear that some of you are leading undisciplined lives and accomplishing nothing but being busybodies. We command and urge such people by our Lord Jesus Christ to begin working quietly to earn their own living.

Let us not grow weary in well-doing, for in due time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

The slacker does not plow in season; at harvest time he looks, but nothing is there.

Do not love sleep, or you will grow poor; open your eyes, and you will have plenty of food.

and to aspire to live quietly, to attend to your own matters, and to work with your own hands, as we instructed you.

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor.

Do to others as you would have them do to you.

Walk in the manner of the ant, O slacker; observe its ways and become wise. Without a commander, without an overseer or ruler, it prepares its provisions in summer; it gathers its food at harvest. How long will you lie there, O slacker? When will you get up from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, . . .

The one who works his land will have plenty of food, but whoever chases fantasies will have his fill of poverty.

For no word from God will ever fail.”

For the Scripture says, “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain,” and, “The worker is worthy of his wages.”

Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or set foot on the path of sinners, or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the Law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season, whose leaf does not wither, and who prospers in all he does. Not so the wicked! For they are like chaff driven off by the wind. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. . . .

Now about brotherly love, you do not need anyone to write to you, because you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another. And you are indeed showing this love to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to excel more and more and to aspire to live quietly, to attend to your own matters, and to work with your own hands, as we instructed you. Then you will behave properly toward outsiders, without being dependent on anyone.

Whoever is faithful with very little will also be faithful with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think on these things.

The sleep of the worker is sweet, whether he eats little or much, but the abundance of the rich man permits him no sleep.

Whoever is slothful in his work is brother to him who destroys.

For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. By craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.

We work hard with our own hands. When we are vilified, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it;

nor did we eat anyone’s food without paying for it. Instead, in labor and toil, we worked night and day so that we would not be a burden to any of you.

Do not oppress a hired hand who is poor and needy, whether he is a brother or a foreigner residing in one of your towns.

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith virtue; and to virtue, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities and continue to grow in them, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now even more in my absence, continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.

I have seen that there is nothing better for a man than to enjoy his work, because that is his lot. For who can bring him to see what will come after him?

And we urge you, brothers, to admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, and be patient with everyone.

But remember that it is the LORD your God who gives you the power to gain wealth, in order to confirm His covenant that He swore to your fathers even to this day.

Do not be deceived: God is not to be mocked. Whatever a man sows, he will reap in return. The one who sows to please his flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; but the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not grow weary in well-doing, for in due time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

These are the words of King Lemuel—the burden that his mother taught him: What shall I say, O my son? What, O son of my womb? What, O son of my vows? Do not spend your strength on women or your vigor on those who ruin kings. It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine, or for rulers to crave strong drink, lest they drink and forget what is decreed, depriving all the oppressed of justice. . . .

As good stewards of the manifold grace of God, each of you should use whatever gift he has received to serve one another. If anyone speaks, he should speak as one conveying the words of God. If anyone serves, he should serve with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.

Walk in the manner of the ant, O slacker; observe its ways and become wise.

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a future and a hope.

A song of ascents. Of Solomon. Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain; unless the LORD protects the city, its watchmen stand guard in vain.

I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.

In everything, then, do to others as you would have them do to you. For this is the essence of the Law and the Prophets.

Serve with good will, as to the Lord and not to men, because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.

and to aspire to live quietly, to attend to your own matters, and to work with your own hands, as we instructed you. Then you will behave properly toward outsiders, without being dependent on anyone.

Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. And by the seventh day God had finished the work He had been doing; so on that day He rested from all His work. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because on that day He rested from all the work of creation that He had accomplished. This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made them. Now no shrub of the field had yet appeared on the earth, nor had any plant of the field sprouted; for the LORD God had not yet sent rain upon the earth, and there was no man to cultivate the ground. . . .

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Give generously to him, and do not let your heart be grieved when you do so. And because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything to which you put your hand.

Allow perseverance to finish its work, so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

For whoever enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from His.

In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for bread to eat—for He gives sleep to His beloved.

The integrity of the upright guides them, but the perversity of the faithless destroys them.

The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender.

Therefore I urge you, brothers, on account of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything, not only to please them while they are watching, but with sincerity of heart and fear of the Lord.

But I said, “I have labored in vain, I have spent My strength in futility and vanity; yet My vindication is with the LORD, and My reward is with My God.”

Whoever is wise, let him understand these things; whoever is discerning, let him know them. For the ways of the LORD are right, and the righteous walk in them but the rebellious stumble in them.

Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God, on which you must not do any work—neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant or livestock, nor the foreigner within your gates.

For those who sleep, sleep at night; and those who get drunk, get drunk at night.

The plans of the heart belong to man, but the reply of the tongue is from the LORD.

The plans of the diligent bring plenty, as surely as haste leads to poverty.

I know that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice and do good while they live, and also that every man should eat and drink and find satisfaction in all his labor—this is the gift of God.

Of course, godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, so we cannot carry anything out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with these. Those who want to be rich, however, fall into temptation and become ensnared by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. By craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, fully equipped for every good work.

Therefore, beloved, as you anticipate these things, make every effort to be found at peace—spotless and blameless in His sight.

Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one another. “Be angry, yet do not sin.” Do not let the sun set upon your anger, and do not give the devil a foothold. He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing good with his own hands, that he may have something to share with the one in need. Let no unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building up the one in need and bringing grace to those who listen. . . .

But now, O LORD, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You are the potter; we are all the work of Your hand.

If the axe is dull and the blade unsharpened, more strength must be exerted, but skill produces success.

When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap all the way to the edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Leave them for the poor and the foreign resident. I am the LORD your God.’”

And God looked upon all that He had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.

Dishonest wealth will dwindle, but what is earned through hard work will be multiplied.

Share with the saints who are in need. Practice hospitality.

Therefore, since you have been raised with Christ, strive for the things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. Put to death, therefore, the components of your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry. . . .

As soon as night had fallen, the brothers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went into the Jewish synagogue. Now the Bereans were more noble-minded than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if these teachings were true.

Let no one despise your youth, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.

For we walk by faith, not by sight.

Do not let your zeal subside; keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.

Then Jesus declared, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.