Bible Verses About Hard Work

There are many Bible Verses About Hard Work worth knowing by followers of Christ. It is in this light that we’ll reveal what the Bible says about handwork. Behold, there is much that the Bible says about handwork. In addition to encouraging us to work hard, the Bible tells us that such is pleasing to God. The beginning of an essay penned by Bob Black in 1985 entitled “The Abolition of Work” read, “No one should ever work. Work is the source of nearly all the misery in the world. Almost any evil you’d care to name comes from working or from living in a world designed for work. In order to stop suffering, we have to stop working.” Undoubtedly, many dwelling in a leisure loving culture would wholeheartedly echo Black’s sentiment. However, such is the approach that leads to lack and poverty as discussed in Proverbs 6:10-12.

Americans spend about 50% of their working hours devoted to work. With this in mind, one might ask, “is work a curse, or is it something that humans were uniquely designed to do?” In stark contrast to the claims of Bob Black, the importance and beneficial nature of work is more of a resounding theme in both the Old and New Testament of the Bible. The origin of work is clearly depicted in the Biblical book of Genesis. In its opening passage, God Himself is the primary worker, busy with the creation of the World (Genesis 1:1-15). God worked for six days and rested on the seventh day. Thus, God was the first to do work on Earth. Hence, we can say without doubt that legitimate work reflects the activity of God. And because God is inherently good, work is also inherently good (Psalm 25:8; Ephesians 4:28).

Bible Verses About Hard Work

Genesis 1:31 tells us that when God viewed the fruit of His labor, He called it “very good.” That is, God examined and accessed the quality of His work, and when He concluded that He had done a good job, He took pleasure from it. In this light, it is apparent that work should be productive. That is, we should always conduct work in a way that produces the highest quality outcome. Likewise, the reward for work is the honor and satisfaction that comes from a job well done. We are told in Psalm 19 that God reveals Himself to the world through His work. This means that through natural revelation, God’s existence is made known to everyone through His might works. This points to the fact that work reveals something about the one doing the work, It clearly exposes underlying motivations, character, abilities, skills, and personality traits.

Jesus Christ echoed the principle we are trying to explain here in Matthew 7:15-20 when He openly declared that bad trees produce only bad fruit and good trees only good fruit. Always remember that God created man for His own glory (Isaiah 43:7). It was with this in mind that Apostle Paul told us that whatsoever we do, we should do it for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31). Behold, we were created by God to glorify Him. Here, to glorify means “to give an accurate representation.” That is why all work done by Christians should give the world an accurate picture of God in His righteousness, excellence, mercy, love, and faithfulness.

What does the Scriptures say about Hard Work?

The Scriptures tell us that God created man in His image with characteristics like Him (Genesis 1:26-31). That is, God created man to work with Him in the world. The Bible tells us that God created a garden and put Adam in it to cultivate and maintain it (Genesis 2:8, 15). In addition, Adam and Eve were commanded by God to subdue and rule over the Earth. So what does this original work mandate mean? In simple terms, to cultivate means to foster growth and to bring improvement. To maintain means to preserve from failure or decline. To control means to exercise discipline and control in the situation at hand. Ruling over on its part means administering, taking responsibility for, and making wise decisions. This very mandate applies to all vocations in the midst of God’s people.

The 15th-century Reformation Leaders saw an occupation as a ministry before God. Likewise, jobs should be acknowledged as ministries. Also, workplaces should be considered as mission fields. In Genesis 3, we hear of the Fall of Man, a situation that generated a change in the nature of work. As a result of Adam’s sin or rebellion, God pronounced several judgments in Genesis 3:17-19, the most severe of which is physical and spiritual death. Whatever the case, labor and the results of labor figure centrally in the rest of the judgments. Behold, God cursed the ground. Work became difficult. The word toil which is used actually implies difficulty, challenge, struggle, and exhaustion. Although work itself remained good, man must expect to have it accomplished at “the sweat of his brow.”

Facts about hard work

The Bible does not promise us that the results of hard work will always be positive. Although man will eat the plants of the field, the field will also produce thorns and thistles. That is why you should get it once and for all that hard work and effort will not always be rewarded in the way the laborer expects or desires. The Scripture tells us that man would be eating from the produce of the field, not the garden. A garden is symbolic of an earthly paradise designed by God as a save enclosure. Also, gardens symbolize purity and innocence. On the other hand, the earth or field, represents an unbounded, unprotected space and an emphasis on loss of inhibition and worldliness. Thus, the work environment can turn to be very hostile, especially for Christians (Genesis 39:1-23; Exodus 1:8-22; Nehemiah 4).

It is said that man has three basic needs in life: love, purpose, and significance. It is rather unfortunate that on many occasions, humans attempt to find purpose and significance in work itself. In Ecclesiastes 2:4-11, King Solomon clearly details his search for meaning in a variety of projects and works of all kinds. Despite the fact that the work brought some degree of satisfaction in accomplishment, his conclusion was “Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.” The Bible tells us that work is done not only to benefit the worker, but others also (Exodus 23:10-11; Deuteronomy 15:7-11; Ephesians 4:28). In addition, work is a gift from God and, for His people, will be blessed (Psalm 104:1-35; 127:1-5; Ecclesiastes 3:12-13, 5:18-20; Proverbs 14:23).

More facts

God always equips His people for their work (Exodus 31:2-11). The Biblical welfare system was one of hard work (Leviticus 19:10; 23:22). Always remember that the Bible is harsh in its condemnation of laziness (Proverbs 18:9). Apostle Paul under the influence of the Holy Spirit was clear in establishing the Christian work ethics: “If anyone does not provide for his own, and especially those of his own household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever” (1 Timothy 5:8). Likewise, Apostle Paul’s instructions to another church in regard to those who chose not to work was to “keep away from every brother who is idle and does not live according to the teaching you received from us.”

Apostle Paul goes on to say that “For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: ‘If a man will not work, he shall not eat.’” Let’s get his instructions to those who had been idle by reading from 2 Thessalonians 3:12 – “Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the bread they eat.” Despite the fact that God’s original plan for work was perverted by Man’s rebellion or sin, He will one day restore work without the burden that sin introduced (Isaiah 65:17-25; Revelation 15:1-4; 22:1-11). Until that day when the New Heavens and the New Earth are set in place, the Christian attitude towards work should reflect that of Jesus as we can read from John 4:34 – “My food, said Jesus, is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.”

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Best Bible Verses About Hard Work

Colossians 3:23 – “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men,”

Proverbs 14:23 – “In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty.”

Proverbs 13:4 – “The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.”

2 Thessalonians 3:10-12 – “For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies. Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living.“

Philippians 4:13 – “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

Proverbs 16:3 – “Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.“

1 Corinthians 10:31 – “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.“

Luke 1:37 – “For nothing will be impossible with God.”

1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 – “And to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.”

Group 1 – Bible Verses About Hard Work

Colossians 3:17 – “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

Ecclesiastes 9:10 – “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might, for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going.”

1 Timothy 5:8 – “But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.“

Galatians 6:9 – “And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”

2 Timothy 2:6 – “It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops.”

Colossians 3:24 – “Knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.”

Titus 2:7-8 – “Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, and sound speech that cannot be condemned, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us.”

Ephesians 6:7 – “Rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man,”

Group 2 – Bible Verses About Hard Work

Proverbs 6:6-8 – “Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest.”

Proverbs 12:11 – “Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless pursuits lacks sense.“

Psalm 128:2 – “You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands; you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you.”

Genesis 2:15 – “The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.“

Jeremiah 29:11 – “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.“

Proverbs 6:10-12 – “A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man. A worthless person, a wicked man, goes about with crooked speech,“

Acts 20:35 – “In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”

Group 3 – Bible Verses About Hard Work

Isaiah 41:13 – “For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, “Fear not, I am the one who helps you.”“

John 5:17 – “But Jesus answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.”“

Ephesians 4:28 – “Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.”

Proverbs 18:9 – “Whoever is slack in his work is a brother to him who destroys.”

Proverbs 22:29 – “Do you see a man skillful in his work? He will stand before kings; he will not stand before obscure men.”

Psalm 90:17 – “Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands!“

Matthew 5:16 – “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

Psalm 37:5 – “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.“

Group 4 – Bible Verses About Hard Work

Ephesians 5:15-17 – “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.“

James 2:17 – “So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.”

2 Timothy 4:7 – “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.“

Ecclesiastes 2:24 – “There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God,”

Psalm 138:8 – “The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands.“

Romans 12:11 – “Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord.“

Colossians 3:23-24 – “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.“

John 3:34 – “For he whom God has sent utters the words of God, for he gives the Spirit without measure.“

2 Thessalonians 3:10 – “For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.“

Group 5 – Bible Verses About Hard Work

Jeremiah 31:16-17 – “Thus says the Lord: “Keep your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears, for there is a reward for your work, declares the Lord, and they shall come back from the land of the enemy. There is hope for your future, declares the Lord, and your children shall come back to their own country.”

Ephesians 5:15-16 – “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.”

Psalm 127:1 – “A Song of Ascents. Of Solomon. Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.”

Jeremiah 29:5 – “Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce.“

Proverbs 10:4 – “A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.”

Proverbs 16:26 – “A worker’s appetite works for him; his mouth urges him on.”

Isaiah 40:31 – “But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”

1 Corinthians 4:12 – “And we labor, working with our own hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure;“

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Group 6 – Bible Verses About Hard Work

1 Corinthians 15:58 – “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.”

Nehemiah 4:6 – “So we built the wall. And all the wall was joined together to half its height, for the people had a mind to work.”

Luke 12:48 – “But the one who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, will receive a light beating. Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more.”

Exodus 18:18-23 – “You and the people with you will certainly wear yourselves out, for the thing is too heavy for you. You are not able to do it alone. Now obey my voice; I will give you advice, and God be with you! You shall represent the people before God and bring their cases to God, and you shall warn them about the statutes and the laws, and make them know the way in which they must walk and what they must do. Moreover, look for able men from all the people, men who fear God, who are trustworthy and hate a bribe, and place such men over the people as chiefs of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens. And let them judge the people at all times. Every great matter they shall bring to you, but any small matter they shall decide themselves. …“

Group 7 – Bible Verses About Hard Work

Proverbs 16:11 – “A just balance and scales are the Lord’s; all the weights in the bag are his work.”

Job 1:10 – “Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.”

Acts 20:33-35 – “I coveted no one’s silver or gold or apparel. You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my necessities and to those who were with me. In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”

Proverbs 21:5 – “The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty.“

Isaiah 54:17 – “No weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall confute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord and their vindication from me, declares the Lord.”

Ephesians 2:10 – “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.“

Group 8 – Bible Verses About Hard Work

2 Chronicles 15:7 – “But you, take courage! Do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded.”

Deuteronomy 15:10 – “You shall give to him freely, and your heart shall not be grudging when you give to him, because for this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake.”

Proverbs 13:11 – “Wealth gained hastily will dwindle, but whoever gathers little by little will increase it.”

Genesis 1:31 – “And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.”

Proverbs 24:30-34 – “I passed by the field of a sluggard, by the vineyard of a man lacking sense, and behold, it was all overgrown with thorns; the ground was covered with nettles, and its stone wall was broken down. Then I saw and considered it; 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 want like an armed man.”

Genesis 3:17-19 – And to Adam he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

Group 9 – Bible Verses About Hard Work

Romans 12:11-12 – “Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.”

Matthew 25:16-30 – “He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money. Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here I have made five talents more.’ …“

Proverbs 4:16 – “For they cannot sleep unless they have done wrong; they are robbed of sleep unless they have made someone stumble.”

Luke 16:10 – “One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much.“

Philippians 1:13-14 – “So that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.”

Psalm 37:4 – “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.“

Group 10 – Bible Verses On Hard Work

Ephesians 6:5-9 – “Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart, as you would Christ, not by the way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man, knowing that whatever good anyone does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free. Masters, do the same to them, and stop your threatening, knowing that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and that there is no partiality with him.”

Romans 16:12 – “Greet those workers in the Lord, Tryphaena and Tryphosa. Greet the beloved Persis, who has worked hard in the Lord.”

Proverbs 3:5-6 – “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”

Proverbs 17:27 – “Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding.”

Hebrews 3:13-14 – “But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end.”

John 4:38 – “I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.”

Group 11 – Bible Verses On Hard Work

1 Corinthians 8:1-13 – “Now concerning food offered to idols: we know that “all of us possess knowledge.” This “knowledge” puffs up, but love builds up. If anyone imagines that he knows something, he does not yet know as he ought to know. But if anyone loves God, he is known by God. Therefore, as to the eating of food offered to idols, we know that “an idol has no real existence,” and that “there is no God but one.” For although there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”— …“

Psalm 119:66 – “Teach me good judgment and knowledge, for I believe in your commandments.“

John 4:34 – “Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work.”

2 Timothy 2:15 – “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.“

Ecclesiastes 5:18-20 – “Behold, what I have seen to be good and fitting is to eat and drink and find enjoyment in all the toil with which one toils under the sun the few days of his life that God has given him, for this is his lot. Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil—this is the gift of God. For he will not much remember the days of his life because God keeps him occupied with joy in his heart.“

Group 12 – Bible Verses On Hard Work

Hebrews 1:1-14 – “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs. For to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son, today I have begotten you”? Or again, “I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son”? …“

Proverbs 12:14 – “From the fruit of his mouth a man is satisfied with good, and the work of a man’s hand comes back to him.”

1 Corinthians 3:8 – “He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor.“

Proverbs 24:32-34 – “Then I saw and considered it; 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 want like an armed man.“

Proverbs 23:4 – “Do not toil to acquire wealth; be discerning enough to desist.”

Group 13 – Bible Verses On Hard Work

Ecclesiastes 3:1-22 – “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die, a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted, a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up, a time to weep, and a time to laugh, a time to mourn, and a time to dance, a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together, a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; ...”

Proverbs 6:6-11 – “Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest. How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, ...”

Matthew 4:16-18 – “The people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned.” From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.”

Deuteronomy 28:8 – “The Lord will command the blessing on you in your barns and in all that you undertake. And he will bless you in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.”

Group 14 – Bible Verses On Hard Work

Psalm 119:55 – “I remember your name in the night, O Lord, and keep your law.”

Deuteronomy 24:14 – “You shall not oppress a hired servant who is poor and needy, whether he is one of your brothers or one of the sojourners who are in your land within your towns.”

1 Corinthians 9:27 – “But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.”

John 3:32 – “He bears witness to what he has seen and heard, yet no one receives his testimony.”

Leviticus 23:22 – “And when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your field right up to its edge, nor shall you gather the gleanings after your harvest. You shall leave them for the poor and for the sojourner: I am the Lord your God.”

Genesis 2:5 – “When no bush of the field was yet in the land and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up—for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground,”

Isaiah 32:18 – “My people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.”