Bible Verses About Labor

You have six days to labor and do all your work,

but the seventh day is a Shabbat for ADONAI your God. On it, you are not to do any kind of work -not you, your son or your daughter, not your male or female slave, not your livestock, and not the for eigner staying with you inside the gates to your property.

For in six days, ADONAI made heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. This is why ADONAI blessed the day, Shabbat, and separated it for himself. v

"You are not to exploit a hired worker who is poor and needy, whether one of your brothers or a foreigner living in your land in your town.

You are to pay him his wages the day he earns them, before sunset; for he is poor and looks forward to being paid. Otherwise he will cry out against you to ADONAI, and it will be your sin.

"The Kingdom of Heaven is like a farmer who went out at daybreak to hire workers for his vineyard.

After agreeing with the workers on a wage of one denarius, [the standard daily wage,] he sent them off to his vineyard.

Then, on going out at about nine in the morning, he saw more men standing around in the market-square doing nothing,

and said to them, `You go to the vineyard too -- I'll pay you a fair wage.' So they went.

At noon, and again around three in the afternoon, he did the same thing.

About an hour before sundown, he went out, found still others standing around, and asked them, `Why have you been standing here all day, doing nothing?"

They said to him, `Because no one hired us.' `You too,' he told them, `go to the vineyard.'

"When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, `Call the workers and pay them their wages, starting with the last ones hired and ending with the first.'

The workers who came an hour before sunset each received a denarius,

so the workers who came first expected they would get more, but each of them also received just a denarius.

On receiving their wages, they began grumbling to the farmer,

`These latecomers have worked only one hour, while we have borne the brunt of the day's work in the hot sun, yet you have put them on an equal footing with us!'

But he answered one of them, `Look, friend, I'm not being unfair with you. Didn't you agree to work today for a denarius?

Now take your pay and go! I choose to give the last worker as much as I'm giving you.

Haven't I the right to do what I want with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?'

Also, make it your ambition to live quietly, to mind your own business and to earn your living by your own efforts — just as we told you.

Then your daily life will gain the respect of outsiders, and you will not be dependent on anyone.

For you yourselves know how you must imitate us, that we were not idle when we were among you.

We did not accept anyone’s food without paying; on the contrary, we labored and toiled, day and night, working so as not to be a burden to any of you.

It was not that we hadn’t the right to be supported, but so that we could make ourselves an example to imitate.