📖 Biblical Definition
God worked for six days and rested on the seventh — and He made man in His image to work. Adam was placed in the garden "to dress it and to keep it" (Genesis 2:15) before the fall. Work is not a curse; it is a reflection of God's creative nature. The curse added thorns, sweat, and frustration to labor (Genesis 3:17-19), but the vocation itself remains dignified. Paul commanded: "If any would not work, neither should he eat" (2 Thessalonians 3:10). Whatever work a believer does should be done "heartily, as to the Lord" (Colossians 3:23). All honest labor — from farming to teaching to building — is worship when done under God's authority and for His glory.
📜 Webster 1828 Definition
LABOR: Exertion of muscular strength, or bodily exertion which occasions weariness; toil; work.
expand to see more
LABOR, n. [L. labor.] 1. Exertion of muscular strength, or bodily exertion which occasions weariness; toil; work. 2. Intellectual exertion; application of the mind. 3. Work done or to be done. 4. The pangs or travail of childbirth. Webster saw labor as a normal, dignified human activity — not drudgery to be escaped but exertion to be applied skillfully and diligently.
📖 Key Scripture
• Genesis 2:15 — "And the LORD God took the man, and put Him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it."
• Colossians 3:23 — "And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men."
• 2 Thessalonians 3:10 — "If any would not work, neither should he eat."
• Proverbs 14:23 — "In all labour there is profit: but the talk of the lips tendeth only to penury."
• 1 Corinthians 15:58 — "Your labour is not in vain in the Lord."
⚠️ Modern Corruption
Work has been reduced to a necessary evil or an identity-defining idol.
expand to see more
Two opposite errors distort the biblical view of labor. The leisure culture treats work as drudgery to be minimized — the goal of life is retirement, entertainment, and freedom from toil. This view despises the creation mandate and contradicts Paul's command that the unwilling worker should not eat. On the other extreme, hustle culture and careerism make work an idol — identity, meaning, and worth are derived entirely from professional achievement. This is equally unbiblical: man's identity comes from being made in God's image, not from his job title. The biblical balance is work as vocation — a calling from God to be pursued diligently, joyfully, and in proper proportion with rest, worship, and family.
Usage
• "Work was given before the fall — it is not a curse but a calling. The curse added thorns to the labor, but the labor itself bears the dignity of the image of God."
• "The Hebrew word for work and worship is the same — avodah. Every honest labor done unto the Lord is an act of worship."