(REFLECTIONS ON Psalm 127:1-5)

For something to be done in vain means that no matter how much effort is put in, there are no results. Doing something in vain means that our efforts are pointless and without meaning, because in the end nothing will change.

Interestingly, when we say someone is vain, which is related to the word vanity, it means that someone is excessively proud of their appearance, abilities, or achievements. According to today’s Scripture, unless the Lord is the one to do the work through us and in us, then our efforts alone are in vain. And if we know this, but are not willing to turn from this in vain path, then we need to reflect on whether or not there is a deeper issue of vanity.

The psalmist writes,

1 Unless the Lord builds the house,
They labor in vain who build it;
Unless the Lord guards the city,
The watchman keeps awake in vain.
2 It is vain for you to rise early,
To retire late,
To eat the bread of painful labors;
For He gives to His beloved even in his sleep.

Unless the Lord is the builder, the guard, the source of our vision, the power behind our efforts, we are reminded that we may be doing all this hard work in vain. Brothers and sisters, this doesn’t mean that we won’t have success in life, but it is a deeper spiritual question of whether our success is meaningful.

No, not just meaningful to us, but more importantly meaningful to God’s kingdom. Brothers and sisters, are our efforts in vain? Perhaps they have results, but are these results meaningful? Are they meaningful for God’s kingdom purposes or are they just vanity and pride rather than glorifying God?

Let us meditate on today’s Psalm, and consider if the Lord is working through us for Him, or are all these just the works of our own hands for our own end. For when the psalmists writes, “it is vain for you to rise early, to retire late, to eat the bread of painful labors,” it should lead us to consider to what end and by whose strength we are laboring.

Pastor Michael Lu
Enduring Word Bible Commentary: Psalm 127