Psalms 127

Psalms 127:1

Psalm 127: God in EverythingThere is a saying, “Little is much if God is in it,” but the reverse is also true, “Much is nothing if God is not in it.” And that’s what this Psalm says: unless our activity is ordered and directed by the Lord, it is a waste of time and energy. We can set out on projects of our own, even in Christian service; we can build vast organizational empires; we can amass statistics to show phenomenal results; but if the projects are not vines planted by the Lord, they are worse than worthless. “Man proposes but God disposes.” The psalmist chooses four common activities of life to illustrate his point. They are house construction, civil defense, general employment, and family building. 127:1 There are two ways to build a house. One is to move ahead with plans based on one’s own knowledge, skill and financial resources, then ask God’s blessing on the completed structure. The other is to wait until the LORD has given unmistakable guidance, then move ahead in conscious dependence on Him. In the first case, the project never rises above flesh and blood. In the second, there is the thrill of seeing God working through the marvelous provision of needed supplies, through the miraculous timing and sequence of events, and through the converging of circumstances that would never happen according to the laws of chance. It makes all the difference in the world to be building with God. The second illustration of the futility of human effort without God is in the area of security: Unless the LORD guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. This does not mean we should not have a police force or other protective agencies. Rather it means that ultimately our security lies in the Lord, and unless we are really depending on Him, our ordinary precautions are not enough to keep us safe. 127:2 In our everyday employment, it is futile to work long hours, earning one’s living through anxious toil, unless we are in the place of God’s choosing. Please don’t misunderstand. Throughout the Bible we are taught to work diligently to supply our own needs, the needs of our family, and the needs of others. This Psalm does not encourage people to sit around all day drinking Cokes and sponging off friends. But the point is thisif we are working in independence of God, we don’t really get anywhere. Haggai describes the situation very well: You have sown much, and bring in little; you eat, but do not have enough; you drink, but you are not filled with drink; you clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; and he who earns wages, earns wages to put into a bag with holes (Hag_1:6). On the other hand, if we are really yielded to the Lord and living for His glory, He can give us gifts while we are sleeping which we could never obtain through long, weary hours of labor without Him. That seems to be the meaning of the clause, “For so He gives His beloved sleep,” or as Moffatt translates it, “God’s gifts come to His loved ones, as they sleep.” 127:3 The fourth and final illustration has to do with building a family. And children are one of the gifts of God. “Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD; the fruit of the womb is a reward.“What is said about children presupposes that they have been brought up in a home where the Lord has been honored and obeyed. They have been brought up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. 127:4 “Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth.” When parents become old, they can depend on godly children to fight for them as a warrior, and also to provide for them as a hunter does with his bow and arrows. 127:5 “Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them!” In spite of the torrent of modern propaganda against large families, God pronounces a blessing on the man who has a quiver full of children. But once again it is assumed that they are believing children, members of the household of faith. Otherwise they could be an enormous heartache rather than a blessing. “They shall not be ashamed, but shall speak with their enemies in the gate.” F. B. Meyer reminds us that contending armies of a besieged city would meet at the gate. So the thought here is that a man’s children defend him in civil or legal matters so that he does not suffer loss or injury. They see that justice is done. The Psalm is a tremendous unfolding of the word of the Lord through Zechariah, “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the Lord of hosts” (Zec_4:6). There is such a danger that we depend on the power of the dollar or on human ingenuity. But the Lord’s will is not accomplished in that way. It is by His Spirit that we build for eternity. It is not what we do for God through our own resources, but what He does through us by His mighty power. All we can produce is wood, hay, stubble. He can use us to produce gold, silver, precious stones. When we act in our own strength, we are spinning our wheels. When we bring God into everything, our lives become truly efficient. Carnal weapons produce carnal results. Spiritual weapons produce spiritual results.