Psalms 127:3

3 Children are a gift from the Lord; babies are a reward.

Psalms 127:3 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 127:3

Lo, children [are] an heritage of the Lord
As all success, safety, and the blessings of life, depend on the providence of God; so this very great blessing is a gift of his; having children, and those good ones, as the Targum interprets it; for of such only can it be understood: so, in a spiritual sense, the children of Christ, the antitypical Solomon, are the gifts of his heavenly Father to him; his portion and inheritance, and a goodly heritage he esteems them;

[and] the fruit of the womb [is his] reward;
"fruit" ^F25 is the same with "children" in the preceding clause; see ( Luke 1:42 ) ; a reward he gives to good men, not of debt, but of grace; the Targum,

``a reward of good works:''

so regenerate persons are a reward to Christ, of his sufferings and death, ( Isaiah 53:10 Isaiah 53:11 ) .

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FOOTNOTES:

F25 "Nascitur ad fructum mulier", Claudian. in Eutrop. l. 1. v. 331.

Psalms 127:3 In-Context

1 If the Lord doesn't build the house, the builders are working for nothing. If the Lord doesn't guard the city, the guards are watching for nothing.

2 It is no use for you to get up early and stay up late, working for a living. The Lord gives sleep to those he loves.

3 Children are a gift from the Lord; babies are a reward.

4 Children who are born to a young man are like arrows in the hand of a warrior.

5 Happy is the man who has his bag full of arrows. They will not be defeated when they fight their enemies at the city gate. A song for going up to worship.