Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb, a reward, like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them. He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.
– Psalm 127:3–5
I can’t read this Psalm without thinking about how God clearly spoke to my heart and my wife, Heather’s heart as we were reading through these verses just a couple of years ago. God opened our eyes and our heart in a way we did not see coming to bring another child through adoption into our home.
There’s a lot I could talk about when it comes to how God spoke to my heart and her heart on that particular day, in separate ways. And then we came together and realized what he was saying to both of us. But it revolved around this picture of children being a heritage and a blessing, which we had at that time, four children in our home. We were actually waiting on the process of adopting one other. Then God put it on our hearts to continue with another adoption process because of the blessing that children are. Lots of them, a quiver full of them.
Psalm 127:3–5 Teaches Us That Children Are a Blessing, Not a Burden
And it’s interesting, this Psalm talks about building in the first two verses. And when we think about building, we often think about building careers, businesses, portfolios, and resumes. But the Bible actually prioritizes building a family with quivers full of children. That’s a really different perspective than the world around us today. You look at the trend lines, they’re clear. Young adults are putting off marriage until later and later. Oftentimes in the name of building a resume, getting an education and a job, building a career. As if marriage is a barrier to that. And kids an even larger barrier or even burden that would prevent that.
You see what’s wrong with this picture that we are prone to buy into? We live in a culture that sees marriage and children as barriers and burdens when the Bible calls them blessings. So, let’s be really careful with the way we talk about children. Even as followers of Jesus, we say things like, “Well, I have one kid or two kids or three kids and I don’t want anymore”. Is that the way we talk about blessings? Or is that the way we talk about burdens?
Psalm 127:3–5 Reminds Us We Are to Steward Our Lives According to Scripture, Not the Culture
If God has called you to be single, then, by all means, maximize, steward singleness to his glory. If not, the Bible encourages you to pursue a wife, not years from now, but now, in dependence on God. And when you get married and for all who are married, unless God clearly says otherwise, pursue and prize children. Trusting that in some cases he doesn’t provide children the way we hope.
But knowing that we should not see children as barriers or burdens to be avoided or minimized, but as blessings to be sought from the Lord. God, we pray for a biblical perspective of marriage and children, especially in a culture that has, well, wandered in so many ways, run in so many ways, rebelled in so many ways against your word about marriage and children.
So God, help us to be transformed by the renewing of our minds and help us to speak in ways that align with your word and live in ways that align with your word. We do pray for thriving in singleness for all you call two singleness for your glory. And God, we pray for thriving in marriages in a way that depicts the gospel according to Ephesians 5. And God, we pray for thriving in parenting and for quivers full of children of rewards.
It’s the fruit of the womb. And we pray that you would give grace to moms and dads and kids with quiver full families. We pray that you would be exalted based on your word by the blessing you provide to families who live according to your word, and not according to the ways of this world.
Praying for our Single and Married Brethren
And God, I do pray specifically for those who are single, who long for marriage, and I pray for contentment in singleness, and I pray for your provision of a husband or a wife according to your will. And God, I pray for husbands and wives who long for children and you’ve not provided in the way they long for you to provide.
God, we pray. I pray for your blessing over barren marriages right now, and I pray for contentment and trust in you and pray that you would open doors for foster care and adoption, not even just among those who are barren, but in your church, that we would care for children in need of families. That we would have our quivers full in all kinds of ways that bring all kinds of glory to your name. We pray all of this in light of Psalm 127:3–5. In Jesus’ name, amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
