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What does the Bible say about being lazy? Scripture consistently warns against laziness and commends diligent work done for God’s glory. Proverbs 6:6-11 points to the ant as an example of diligence, while other passages show how laziness harms our work, witness, and spiritual life. This study explains the biblical warnings against laziness and practical ways Christians can resist it.
Table of contents
What could help these people? I think the Bible’s teaching on laziness, because it is incredibly convicting.
God’s Work Brings Him Glory
Let’s begin by understanding a little more about God’s work:
Psalm 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows the work of His hands.
God created the heavens and the earth, and they bring Him glory.
Isaiah 6 contains the incredible vision of God sitting on His throne, high and lifted up, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Angels fly around Him giving Him praise:
Isaiah 6:3 One cried to another and said: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!”
Of all the things the angels could say to praise God, they mention His holiness and the earth, His workmanship, giving Him glory.
Think of it like this: We see a beautiful painting and praise the painter. We see an impressive building and praise the architect. Similarly, when we see creation, we should praise the Creator. The greatness of creation reveals the greatness of the Creator. The greatness of creation reveals the greatness of the Creator so well that people are condemned when they refuse to worship the Creator:
Romans 1:20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse.
God reveals Himself to the world through His creation because work says something about the worker. Work reveals character, motivation, and skills. God’s work is of the highest quality because it expresses His character and majesty.
Our Work Should Bring God Glory
Genesis 1:27 God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him.
God created us in His image; we should work because He works. Ephesians 5:1 commands us to “be imitators of God.” We imitate God by bringing Him glory through our work, as He does with His work. We might tend to think that only certain things bring God glory, such as praying, singing, worshiping, and serving, but anything we do can bring God glory if it honors Him:
1 Corinthians 10:31 Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
This includes our work.
Colossians 3:23 Whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.”
While we’re working, we aren’t even really serving man. We’re serving Christ.
Ephesians 6:5-9 discusses bondservants or slaves obeying their earthly masters. This is more like an employee-employer relationship than what we think of as slavery. With that in mind, here are the verses:
Ephesians 6:5 Bondservants, obey your earthly masters (or bosses) with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart, as you would Christ, 6 not by the way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, 7 rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man,
Paul says three times that we serve Christ as we serve our bosses. In the end, he even says we aren’t serving man.
Four Important Points About Serving Christ In Our Jobs
First, we may not like our boss, but we can tell ourselves that we are not primarily working for this person. Instead, we are working for Christ. How much easier is it to do a job when we are doing it for the Lord versus a boss we might dislike?
Second, we might feel like we are doing something menial. I doubt anyone can say that every aspect of their job feels fulfilling and valuable. But if we find ourselves doing something that seems insignificant, we can tell ourselves that we are doing it for Christ, which makes it very significant. Anything becomes significant when it’s being done for the Lord.
Third, because our work is being done for Christ, we should view our jobs as ministries. We like to say, “He’s a pastor, so he’s in ministry.” But Ephesians 4:12 says I’m supposed to equip the saints for the work of the ministry. If you’re a Christian, you’re in ministry. You should see your workplace as your mission field, whether an office building, school, or home.
Fourth, our work is one of our most important testimonies because we are working for Christ. The quality of our work should help reveal that we are Christians. We strive for excellence, not because we want to bring glory to ourselves, but to bring glory to Christ.
Laziness Is a Bad Testimony
When we think of the “worst” sins, lying, adultery, and murder come to mind, but laziness might not. Some people might not even recognize that laziness is a sin. This is unfortunate because:
- As righteous as work is, laziness is equally unrighteous
- As beneficial as work is, laziness is equally detrimental
- As positively as Scripture presents work, laziness is presented equally negatively
Ronald Sailler and David Wyrtzen wrote, “Laziness could run a competitive race for the most underrated sin. Quietly it anesthetizes its victim into a lifeless stupor that ends in hunger, bondage, and death.”1
Laziness has no place in a Christian’s life, but like pride, it is a sin that all of us can identify with to some extent. While some struggle with it more than others, nobody can say they escape its temptation completely.
So let’s consider a few ways God uses Scripture to help us avoid laziness.
Avoid laziness By Learning from the Ant
Proverbs 6:6 Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. 7 Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, 8 she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest.
Two things make the ant a good example. First, the ant works without anyone watching over it. We, too, should work without having someone standing over our shoulders. If you’re a parent, you know the blessing it is when your children work without constantly telling them what to do.
Second, the ant plans and saves. The ant rebukes lazy people who think only about the moment.
Avoid Laziness by Avoiding Oversleeping.
Newton’s first law of motion states that an object in motion tends to remain in motion, and an object at rest tends to remain at rest. This law can also apply to individuals. Some people work hard, and they tend to stay in motion. Other people are lazy, and they tend to stay at rest:
Proverbs 6:9 How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep? 10 A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest,
Oversleeping is often seen as a sign of laziness. The three-fold repetition of “a little” shows that the lazy person prefers “a little” more sleep than work. This captures the temptation of saying, “Let me hit the snooze button a few more times.”
Asking “how long” implies this has been going on too long, and something bad will happen. For example:
Exodus 10:3 Moses [said] to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord God of the Hebrews: “How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me? Let My people go, that they may serve Me.’””
The longer Pharaoh refused to let the Hebrews go, the worse things became for him. The longer the sluggard sleeps, the worse things become for him. And something bad is about to happen to him:
Proverbs 6:11 and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man.
This is the first mention of a truth that is repeated throughout Proverbs: Laziness results in poverty.
Proverbs 20:13 Do not love sleep, lest you come to poverty.
Proverbs 24:34 Poverty will come upon [the sluggard].
Proverbs 28:19 He who follows frivolity will have poverty enough.
The poverty that befalls lazy people is aptly compared to two things. First, a robber. Robbers silently creep in and surprise people, like poverty comes upon lazy people: silently and surprisingly. Second, an armed man. He forcibly imposes his will. Sluggards are overpowered by poverty, the way an armed man overpowers others.
Avoid Laziness By Avoiding Excuses
Lazy people are good at one thing: making excuses.
Proverbs 22:13 The sluggard says, “There is a lion outside! I shall be killed in the streets!”
Proverbs 26:13 records an almost identical verse. God wants us to know sluggards are good at excuses. People who are good at making excuses are rarely good at much else. Billy Sunday said an excuse is “the skin of a reason stuffed with a lie.”2
Lazy people are filled with excuses, even if they’re absurd. This would be like a person in our day saying, “A piano might fall on my head, so I’d better not go to work,” or “The building I’m working in might explode, so I’d better stay home.” Any flimsy reason is enough to prevent lazy people from working. If we’re honest, when we give in to the temptation to be lazy, our excuses are often equally flimsy.
When one of my children was young and we asked her to do simple things, such as pick up her clothes or clean up a mess, she would say, “I’m too shy.”
This excuse has stuck around our house as a joke that Katie and I repeat when we don’t want to do something our kids ask us to do. We hope this reminds them of how ridiculous their excuses sound when they don’t want to work. How our children sound to us when they make excuses might be how we sound to God when we make excuses.
Proverbs 15:19 The way of the lazy man is like a hedge of thorns, but the way of the upright is a highway.
Lazy people find reasons to avoid work: the path to work is filled with thorns. But the righteous find it easy to make it to work: the path is an open highway.
Avoid Laziness by Avoiding Lazy People
2 Thessalonians 3:6 Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us.
The strong language “we command” carried Paul’s apostolic authority behind it. This was a binding order instead of a suggestion or recommendation. The Greek word for “command” is paraggello, a military term meaning “an order handed down from a superior officer.” This is the second of four times Paul used the word, also in verse 4 and twice in verse 10.
Why would Paul use a military term when instructing the church? Because he viewed the church as an army:
- In 2 Timothy 2:3–4, he said a Christian “must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ…that he may please Him who enlisted him as a soldier.”
- In Philippians 2:25 and Philemon 1:2, Paul called Epaphroditus and Archippus “fellow soldiers.”
- In Ephesians 6:11–17, Paul commanded Christians to wear armor and carry a sword.
And what was Paul commanding soldiers to do in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ? Keep away from lazy people! If you want to see just how dangerous laziness is, I don’t know if there is a better verse than this one.
If you hadn’t seen this verse, and I asked, “Who should Christians avoid?” who would you say? Maybe divisive people or unrepentant people. Maybe people commiting really serious sins, such as murder or rape or hurting children. I’m not arguing that we shouldn’t avoid these people. But of all the people Paul could mention, he mentioned lazy people.
1 Corinthians 15:33 (ESV): “Do not be deceived: ‘Bad company ruins good morals.’”
And laziness is a horrible habit to catch from people.
Giving to the Lazy Does More Harm than Good
2 Thessalonians 3:10 For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.
Another command. It’s not a suggestion or recommendation. It’s another binding order with his apostolic authority behind it. Why did Paul have to give this command? Here’s the background: Acts 2:45 says the early church “sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need.”
The early church was happy to care for those who couldn’t care for themselves, but some lazy people took advantage of this generosity and became freeloaders. Paul tried to rectify the problem by telling the Thessalonians they shouldn’t give to them.
Notice Paul said “anyone not willing to work,” versus “anyone unable to work.” Paul isn’t talking about people who, through no fault of their own, can’t work. He’s talking about people who refuse to work:
Proverbs 21:25 The desire of the sluggard kills him, for his hands refuse to labor.
Hunger can provide the necessary motivation to work. The best gift to give lazy people is not food or money, but a job.
It might sound harsh, but it is in the best interests of lazy people to reach a low point that can produce repentance. Giving money to lazy people can hinder the work God wants to do in their lives because they are prevented from experiencing the consequences of their actions. The Prodigal Son might be one of the best examples of this in Scripture:
Luke 15:16 [the prodigal son] was longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, and no one gave him anything. 17 “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.”’
The Prodigal Son reached the point where he wanted to work. He was happy to become a hired servant if he could be fed. But we get the impression that if anyone had given him anything, he wouldn’t have reached the low point that produced this repentance. How much damage would’ve been done if well-meaning people gave him money?
Our government gives people handouts that require little more than standing in line or walking to a mailbox to collect a check. The welfare system in the Mosaic Law was much better than ours. Farmers were told:
Leviticus 23:22 When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not wholly reap the corners of your field when you reap, nor shall you gather any gleaning from your harvest. You shall leave them for the poor and for the stranger: I am the Lord your God.
This approach is better for two reasons. First, it encouraged farmers to be generous. This stands in contrast to socialism, or the redistribution of wealth, which means taking from those with more to give to those with less.
Second, it required effort from the poor. God did not tell farmers to harvest everything and give it to the poor. Instead, He told farmers to leave some for the poor to gather themselves. Work gives people dignity and a sense of purpose, so involving the poor benefits them. We see this approach in action with Ruth.
Ruth 2:2 [Ruth] said to Naomi, “Please let me go to the field, and glean heads of grain after him in whose sight I may find favor.”
Ruth could have said, “I’m with my mother-in-law; we’re childless widows. We’re the pictures of weakness and vulnerability, so people should give to us.” Instead, she went to the field and gathered about twenty-six quarts (Ruth 2:17). Her example is a strong rebuke to lazy people.
Laziness Leads to Other Sins
2 Thessalonians 3:11 For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies.
Laziness is a gateway to other sins. When we don’t work, we often find other unprofitable ways to spend our time and energy. Charles Spurgeon said, “A man who wastes his time in sloth offers himself to be a target for the devil, who is an awfully good rifleman. In other words, idle men tempt the devil to tempt them.”
As an elementary school teacher, I learned quickly that the best way to manage students’ behavior is to keep them busy. When students are busy working, they won’t be busy getting in trouble. It is not coincidental that the laziest students often misbehave the most.
Laziness and Busybodies
And it seems like laziness produces one sin in particular: the sin of being a busybody. There are at least three places in Scripture that I can find that associate laziness with being a busybody.
First, there is this verse. Paul said that some of the Thessalonians were busy worrying about others instead of being busy working.
The second instance is in Paul’s previous letter to the Thessalonians:
1 Thessalonians 4:11 Aspire to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you.
Paul associated minding our own business with working.
Third, he said something similar to Timothy:
1 Timothy 5:13 [Widows] learn to be idlers (or lazy), going about from house to house, and not only idlers, but also gossips and busybodies, saying what they should not.
If widows aren’t busy working, they become busy with others’ affairs.
The Solution to Laziness
Paul gives the solution in the next verse:
2 Thessalonians 3:12 Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living.
This is simple putting off and putting on: put off laziness and put on working and earning a living.
He probably adds quietly to discourage gossip and nosiness.
Any call to resist laziness that isn’t motivated by the gospel will become formulaic and consequently legalistic. It will either produce spiritual pride or despair. But if we labor in the power of the gospel, then we can do so joyfully and thankfully because our work will focus on what Christ did for us.
Want to replace laziness with biblically purposeful work? Work and Rest God’s Way explores diligence, idleness, work, rest, and how the gospel shapes both.
