32 Bible Verses about Work, As Ordained By God

So God created humankind in his image, in the likeness of God he created him, male and female he created them. And God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it, and rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of heaven, and over every animal that moves upon the earth."

Six days you will work, and you will do all your work.

Six days you shall work, and you shall do all [of] your work,

Humankind goes out to its work, and to its labor until evening.

By the sweat of your brow you shall eat bread, until your return to the ground. For from it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return."

You will indeed eat of the labor of your hands; you [will be] happy and [it will be] well with you.

so that you may live decently toward those outside, and may have need of nothing.

In all toil, there is profit, but the {talk} of lips [leads] only to poverty.

The one who steals must steal no longer, but instead must labor, working with his own hands [what is] good, so that he may have [something] to share with the one who has need.

And she arises while [it is] still night, and gives food to her household, and tasks to her servant girls.

For you remember, brothers, our labor and hardship: working by night and day in order not to be a burden to any of you, we proclaimed to you the gospel of God.

But if someone does not provide for his own [relatives], and especially the members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

and everything {whatever} you do in word or in deed, giving thanks [for] all [things] in the name of the Lord Jesus to God the Father through him.

Therefore, whether you eat or you drink or whatever you do, do all [things] for the glory of God.

Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ, not {while being watched}, as people pleasers, but as slaves of Christ doing the will of God from the heart, serving with goodwill as to the Lord and not to people,read more.
[because you] know that each one of you, whatever good he should do, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether slave or free.

Slaves, obey your {human} masters in everything, not {while being watched}, as people pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. Whatever you do, accomplish [it] from the soul, as to the Lord, and not to people, [because you] know that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. Serve the Lord Christ.

But also our [people] must learn to engage in good deeds for necessary needs, so that they will not be unfruitful.

Go to the ant, lazy! Consider its ways and be wise.

and to aspire to live a quiet life, and to attend to {your own business}, and to work with your hands, just as we commanded you,

For you yourselves know how it is necessary to imitate us, that we did not behave irresponsibly among you, nor did we eat bread from anyone without paying, but with toil and labor, [we were] working night and day in order not to be a burden to any of you, not that we do not have the right, but so that we may give ourselves [as] an example to you, so that [you] may imitate us.read more.
For even when we were with you, we used to command this to you: that if anyone does not want to work, neither should he eat. For we hear [that] some among you are living irresponsibly, working [at] nothing, but being busybodies. Now we command and we exhort such people in the Lord Jesus Christ that, working with quietness, they eat their own bread.

And Yahweh God took the man and set him in the garden of Eden to cultivate it and to keep it.

And Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, "See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri the son of Hur, from the tribe of Judah. And I have filled him [with] the Spirit of God, with wisdom and with skill and with knowledge and with every [kind of] craftsmanship,read more.
to devise designs, to work with gold and with silver and with bronze, and in stonecutting for setting and in cutting wood, for doing every [kind of] craftsmanship. And, look, I have given with him Oholiab the son of Ahisamach, from the tribe of Dan, and I have put skill in the heart of all [the] skilled of heart, and they will make all that I have commanded you--

And Moses said to the {Israelites}, "See, Yahweh has called by name Bezalel the son of Uri the son of Hur, from the tribe of Judah. And he has filled him [with] the Spirit of God, with wisdom and with skill and with knowledge and with every [kind of] craftsmanship, and to devise designs, to work with the gold and with the silver and with the bronze,read more.
and in stonecutting for setting and in cutting wood, for doing every [kind of] design craftsmanship. And he has put [it] in his heart to teach--he and Oholiab the son of Ahisamach, from the tribe of Dan. He has filled them [with] skill of heart to do every work of a craftsman and a designer and an embroiderer with the blue and with the purple, with the crimson [yarns] and with the fine linen and a weaver; [they are] doers of every [kind of] craftsmanship and devisers of designs.

And he chose David his servant and took him from [the] sheepfolds. He brought him from following nursing ewes to shepherd Jacob, his people, and Israel, his inheritance.

Is not this one the son of the carpenter? Is not his mother called Mary and his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas?

Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?" And they were offended by him.

For because of this you also pay taxes, for [the authorities] are servants of God, busily engaged in this very [thing].

But to each one as the Lord has apportioned. As God has called each one, thus let him live--and thus I order in all the churches.

Whatever you do, accomplish [it] from the soul, as to the Lord, and not to people, [because you] know that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. Serve the Lord Christ.

For [it is] like a man going on a journey. He summoned his own slaves and handed over his property to them. And to one he gave five talents, and to another two, and to another one, to each one according to his own ability, and he went on a journey immediately. The one who had received the five talents went out [and] traded with them and gained five more.read more.
In the same way the one [who had] the two gained two more. But the one who had received the one went away [and] dug up the ground and hid his master's money. Now after a long time, the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. And the one who had received the five talents came up [and] brought five more talents, saying, 'Master, you handed over to me five talents. See, I have gained five more talents!' His master said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful slave! You were faithful over a few [things]; I will put you [in charge] over many [things]. Enter into the joy of your master!' And the one [who had] the two talents also came up [and] said, 'Master, you handed over to me two talents. See, I have gained two talents more!' And the one who had received the one talent came up also [and] said, 'Master, [because I] knew you, that you are a hard man, reaping where you did not sow and gathering from where you did not scatter [seed]. And [because I] was afraid, I went away [and] hid your talent in the ground. See, you have [what is] yours!' But his master answered [and] said to him, 'Evil and lazy slave! You knew that I reap where I did not sow and gather from where I did not scatter [seed]. Then you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and [when I] returned I would have gotten back [what was] mine with interest! Therefore take the talent from him and give [it] to the one who has the ten talents. For to everyone who has, [more] will be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. And throw the worthless slave into the outer darkness--in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth!'

Therefore he said, "A certain nobleman traveled to a distant country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return. And summoning ten of his own slaves, he gave them ten minas and said to them, 'Do business {until I come back}.' But his citizens hated him, and sent a delegation after him, saying, 'We do not want this man to be king over us!'read more.
And it happened that when he returned [after] receiving the kingdom, he ordered these slaves to whom he had given the money to be summoned to him, so that he could know what they had gained by trading. So the first arrived, saying, 'Sir, your mina has made ten minas more!' And he said to him, 'Well done, good slave! Because you have been faithful in a very small thing, {have authority} over ten cities.' And the second came, saying, 'Sir, your mina has made five minas.' So he said to this one also, 'And you be over five cities.' And another came, saying, 'Sir, behold your mina, which I had put away for safekeeping in a piece of cloth. For I was afraid of you, because you are a severe man--you withdraw what you did not deposit, and you reap what you did not sow!' He said to him, '{By your own words} I will judge you, wicked slave! You knew that I am a severe man, withdrawing what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow. And why did you not give my money to the bank, and I, [when I] returned, would have collected it with interest?' And to the bystanders he said, 'Take away from him the mina and give [it] to the one who has the ten minas!' And they said to him, 'Sir, he has ten minas.' 'I tell you that to everyone who has, [more] will be given. But from the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. But these enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them--bring [them] here and slaughter them [in] my presence!'"

For even when we were with you, we used to command this to you: that if anyone does not want to work, neither should he eat. For we hear [that] some among you are living irresponsibly, working [at] nothing, but being busybodies.