'Work' in the Bible

The strong man will become tinder,And his work a spark.So both will burn togetherAnd there will be none to quench them.

Their land has also been filled with idols;They worship the work of their hands,That which their own fingers have made.

So when the Lord has completed all His work [of judgment] on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, He will say, “I will punish the fruit [the thoughts, the declarations, and the actions] of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria and the haughtiness of his pride.”

And he will not have regard for the [idolatrous] altars, the work of his hands,Nor will he look to that which his fingers have made,Neither the Asherim (symbols of the goddess Asherah) nor the incense altars.

Moreover, those who make linen from combed flaxAnd those who weave white cloth will be ashamed.

[Those who are] the pillars and foundations of Egypt will be crushed;And all those who work for wages will be grieved in soul.

There will be no work for EgyptWhich head or tail, [high] palm branch or [low] bulrush, may do.

whom the Lord of hosts has blessed, saying, “Blessed is Egypt My people, and Assyria the work of My hands, and Israel My heritage.”

For the Lord has said this to me, “Within a year, according to the years of a hired man [who will work no longer than was agreed], all the splendor of [the tribe of] Kedar will end;

For the Lord will rise up as at Mount Perazim,He will be stirred up as in the Valley of Gibeon,To do His work, His unusual and incredible work,And to accomplish His work, His extraordinary work.

For when he sees his children, the work of My hands, in his midst,They will sanctify My Name;They will sanctify the Holy One of JacobAnd will stand in awe and reverent fear of the God of Israel.

Yet He is also wise and will bring disaster,And does not retract His words,But will arise against the house of evildoersAnd against the helpers of those who do evil.

and have cast the gods [of those peoples] into the fire, for they were not gods but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone. Therefore they have destroyed them.

Hear this! You [idols] are less than nothing,And your work is worthless;The worshiper who chooses you [as a god] is repulsive.

“Even from eternity I am He,And there is no one who can rescue from My hand;I act, and who can revoke or reverse it?”

“Woe (judgment is coming) to him who quarrels with his Maker—A [worthless] piece of broken pottery among other broken pieces [equally worthless]!Shall the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you doing?’Or does the thing say, ‘He has no hands’?

For the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, and its Maker says this,“Ask Me about the things to come concerning My sons,And give Me orders concerning the work of My hands.

Listen carefully, all you who kindle your own fire [devising your own man-made plan of salvation],Who surround yourselves with torches,Walk by the light of your [self-made] fireAnd among the torches that you have set ablaze.But this you will have from My hand:You will lie down in [a place of] torment.

‘Why have we fasted,’ they say, ‘and You do not see it?Why have we humbled ourselves and You do not notice?’Hear this [O Israel], on the day of your fast [when you should be grieving for your sins] you find something you desire [to do],And you force your hired servants to work [instead of stopping all work, as the law teaches].

“Then all your people will be [uncompromisingly and consistently] righteous;They will possess the land forever,The branch of My planting,The work of My hands,That I may be glorified.

Listen carefully, the Lord has proclaimed to the end of the earth,Say to the Daughter of Zion, “Look now, your salvation is coming [in the Lord];Indeed, His reward is with Him, and His restitution accompanies Him.”

Yet, O Lord, You are our Father;We are the clay, and You our Potter,And we all are the work of Your hand.

“They will not build and another occupy;They will not plant and another eat [the fruit].For as the lifetime of a tree, so will be the days of My people,And My chosen [people] will fully enjoy [and long make use of] the work of their hands.