Psalm 127

Good News Translation

In Praise of God's Goodness^[a]

127 If the Lord does not build the house,
    the work of the builders is useless;
if the Lord does not protect the city,
    it does no good for the sentries to stand guard.
²It is useless to work so hard for a living,
    getting up early and going to bed late.
For the Lord provides for those he loves,
    while they are asleep.

³Children are a gift from the Lord;
    they are a real blessing.
⁴The sons a man has when he is young
    are like arrows in a soldier's hand.
⁵Happy is the man who has many such arrows.
He will never be defeated
    when he meets his enemies in the place of judgment.