1 Unless the Lord builds the house,

the builders labor in vain.

Unless the Lord watches over the city,

the guards stand watch in vain.

2 In vain you rise early

and stay up late,

toiling for food to eat—

for he grants sleep to those he loves.

3 Children are a heritage from the Lord,

offspring a reward from him.

4 Like arrows in the hands of a warrior

are children born in one’s youth.

1 Unless the Lord builds the house,

those who build it labor in vain.

Unless the Lord watches over the city,

the watchman stays awake in vain.

2 It is in vain that you rise up early

and go late to rest,

eating the bread of anxious toil;

for he gives to his beloved sleep.

3 Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,

the fruit of the womb a reward.

4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior

are the children of one’s youth.

1 Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it:

Except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.

2 It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late,

To eat the bread of sorrows:

For so he giveth his beloved sleep.

3 Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord:

And the fruit of the womb is his reward.

4 As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man;

So are children of the youth.

1 Unless the Lord builds a house,

the work of the builders is wasted.

Unless the Lord protects a city,

guarding it with sentries will do no good.

2 It is useless for you to work so hard

from early morning until late at night,

anxiously working for food to eat;

for God gives rest to his loved ones.

3 Children are a gift from the Lord;

they are a reward from him.

4 Children born to a young man

are like arrows in a warrior’s hands.

1 Unless the Lord builds the house,

They labor in vain who build it;

Unless the Lord guards the city,

The watchman stays awake in vain.

2 It is vain for you to rise up early,

To sit up late,

To eat the bread of sorrows;

For so He gives His beloved sleep.

3 Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,

The fruit of the womb is a reward.

4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,

So are the children of one’s youth.

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.

1 Except Jehovah build the house,

They labor in vain that build it:

Except Jehovah keep the city,

The watchman waketh but in vain.

2 It is vain for you to rise up early,

To take rest late,

To eat the bread of toil;

For so he giveth unto his beloved sleep.

3 Lo, children are a heritage of Jehovah;

And the fruit of the womb is his reward.

4 As arrows in the hand of a mighty man,

So are the children of youth.

1 Unless Jehovah build the house, in vain do its builders labour in it; unless Jehovah keep the city, the keeper watcheth in vain: 2 It is vain for you to rise up early, to lie down late, to eat the bread of sorrows: so to his beloved one he giveth sleep. 3 Lo, children are an inheritance from Jehovah, and the fruit of the womb a reward. 4 As arrows in the hand of a mighty man, so are the children of youth.

1 If the Lord does not build the house, 

it is useless for the builders to work on it. 

If the Lord does not protect a city, 

it is useless for the guard to stay alert. 

2 It is useless to work hard for the food you eat 

by getting up early and going to bed late. 

The Lord gives ⸤food⸥ to those he loves while they sleep. 

3 Children are an inheritance from the Lord. 

They are a reward from him. 

4 The children born to a man when he is young 

are like arrows in the hand of a warrior. 

1 Unless the Lord builds the house,

those who build it labor in vain.

Unless the Lord guards the city,

the guard keeps watch in vain.

2 It is in vain that you rise up early

and go late to rest,

eating the bread of anxious toil;

for he gives sleep to his beloved.

3 Sons are indeed a heritage from the Lord,

the fruit of the womb a reward.

4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior

are the sons of one’s youth.

1 Unless Yahweh builds a house,

its builders labor at it in vain.

Unless Yahweh guards a city,

a guard watches in vain.

2 It is in vain for you who rise early and sit late,

eating the bread of anxious toil,

when thus he provides for his beloved in his sleep.

3 Look, children are the heritage of Yahweh;

the fruit of the womb is a reward.

4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,

so are the children of one’s youth.

1 If the Lord doesn’t build a house,

the work of its builders is useless.

If the Lord doesn’t watch over a city,

it’s useless for those on guard duty to stand watch over it.

2 It’s useless for you to work from early morning

until late at night

just to get food to eat.

God provides for those he loves even while they sleep.

3 Children are a gift from the Lord.

They are a reward from him.

4 Children who are born to people when they are young

are like arrows in the hands of a soldier.

1 Unless the Lord builds the house,

They labor in vain who build it;

Unless the Lord guards the city,

The watchman keeps awake in vain.

2 It is vain for you to rise up early,

To retire late,

To eat the bread of painful labors;

For He gives to His beloved even in his sleep.

3 Behold, children are a gift of the Lord,

The fruit of the womb is a reward.

4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,

So are the children of one’s youth.