God Cares About Your Home

Psalm 128

A song for the ascent to Jerusalem.

1How happy are those who fear the LORD—

all who follow his ways!

2You will enjoy the fruit of your labor.

How happy you will be! How rich your life!

3Your wife will be like a fruitful vine,

flourishing within your home.

And look at all those children!

There they sit around your table

as vigorous and healthy as young olive trees.

4That is the LORD’s reward

for those who fear him.

5May the LORD continually bless you from Zion.

May you see Jerusalem prosper as long as you live.

6May you live to enjoy your grandchildren.

And may Israel have quietness and peace.

Psalms 127 and 128 both speak about the family. There are some things, however, that we must be careful not to misunderstand from these psalms. They are not saying:

• Every good Christian will enjoy marital bliss.
• The primary purpose of a woman is to bear lots of children.
• Every good Christian couple will have scores of children and grandchildren descending on their homes every Christmas.

But what do these psalms teach us?

• Family blessings are from the Lord. If you have a wonderful family, praise God for them.
• Joy and peace should characterize the family.
• God cares about your home just as he cares about the church and nation.

But we live in a sinful world, and evil encroaches upon us and our families. Some of the finest saints have not enjoyed all the blessings of this psalm. In some cases they never married, although they wanted to; in other cases, they had childless marriages; and still in other cases, children died at an early age, a spouse died, or a child got into serious trouble.

Luther made a good point when he said, “Let the Lord build the home and keep it. . . . The concern for these matters is his, not yours.” In other words, live verse 1 day by day, and let God concern himself with the rest.

O perfect Love, all human thought transcending,

Lowly we kneel in prayer before thy throne,

That theirs may be the love that has no ending,

Whom thou forevermore dost join in one.

DOROTHY GURNEY

Notable Quotable

“The fear (verse 1) is an inward principle; the walk is an outward expression. No one really fears the Lord who does not walk in his ways. The Christian life is ethical as well as emotional.”

W. GRAHAM SCROGGIE