Vain Labor

Isaiah 55:2 KJV

Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.

These are the words of Albert Barnes on this passage:

"… Where is the man who is satisfied with his wealth, and who says it is enough? Where is there one who is satisfied with pleasure, and vanity, and gaiety? There is a void in the heart which these things do not, cannot fill. There is a consciousness that the soul was made for higher and nobler purposes, and that nothing but God can meet its boundless desires. Where is the man who has ever been satisfied with ambition? Alexander wept on the throne of the world; and though Diocletian and Charles V descended voluntarily from the throne to private life, it was because there was nothing in royalty to satisfy the soul, and not because they found happiness enough there. There never was a more simple and true description of this whole world than in this expression of Isaiah, that people are spending their money and their labor for that which satisfieth not."

What an apt description of man even now. We have never learned where the focus of happiness and satisfaction is. It will never come from the things of this world, and though we often admire men who seem to have succeeded in this life, we are often blind to the dissatisfaction they endure. Even those who have attained what we think is real success in church work have often been discovered to be a mess personally.

Following after righteousness and seeking the Lord; it is the only labor which satisfies. 

Do you find this blog helpful? Consider subscribing to Daily Visit With God