What Does the Bible Say About Labor?

“And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. the man: or, Adam”

“In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”

“Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:”

“But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:”

“For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.”

“Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thine ox and thine ass may rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed.”

“Six days thou shalt work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest: in earing time and in harvest thou shalt rest.”

“Thou shalt not defraud thy neighbour, neither rob him: the wages of him that is hired shall not abide with thee all night until the morning.”

“Thou shalt not oppress an hired servant that is poor and needy, whether he be of thy brethren, or of thy strangers that are in thy land within thy gates:”

“At his day thou shalt give him his hire, neither shall the sun go down upon it; for he is poor, and setteth his heart upon it: lest he cry against thee unto the LORD, and it be sin unto thee. setteth: Heb. lifteth his soul unto it”

“Thou shalt not muzzle the ox when he treadeth out the corn. treadeth: Heb. thresheth”

“He that tilleth his land shall be satisfied with bread: but he that followeth vain persons is void of understanding.”

“In all labour there is profit: but the talk of the lips tendeth only to penury.”

“Commit thy works unto the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established. Commit: Heb. Roll”

“The sleep of a labouring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much: but the abundance of the rich will not suffer him to sleep.”

“Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that useth his neighbour's service without wages, and giveth him not for his work;”

“And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not me, saith the LORD of hosts. oppress: or, defraud”

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

“For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard.”

“And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard. penny: the Roman penny is the eighth part of an ounce, which after five shillings the ounce is seven pence halfpenny; about fourteen cents”

“And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace,”

“And said unto them; Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way.”

“Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise.”

“And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle?”

“They say unto him, Because no man hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, that shall ye receive.”

“So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first.”

“And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny.”

“But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received every man a penny.”

“And when they had received it, they murmured against the goodman of the house,”

“Saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day. have wrought: or, have continued one hour only”

“But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny?”

“Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, even as unto thee.”

“Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good?”

“And in the same house remain, eating and drinking such things as they give: for the labourer is worthy of his hire. Go not from house to house.”

“I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.”

“Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth . to give: or, to distribute”

“And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily , as to the Lord, and not unto men;”

“And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you;”

“That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing. of: or, of no man”

“For yourselves know how ye ought to follow us: for we behaved not ourselves disorderly among you;”

“Neither did we eat any man's bread for nought; but wrought with labour and travail night and day, that we might not be chargeable to any of you:”

“Not because we have not power, but to make ourselves an ensample unto you to follow us.”

“For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.”

“For we hear that there are some which walk among you disorderly, working not at all, but are busybodies.”

“Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work, and eat their own bread.”

“But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing. be: or, faint not”

“For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.”

“Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth.”