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Want to know what the Bible says about Idleness? Here are 214 Bible verses about Idleness from the Old and New Testaments of the Holy Bible, New International Version (NIV), sorted from the most relevant to the least relevant.

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Note: Always check the context of a verse; Click the "Read Full Chapter" button next to each verse to read more. The context of a verse might put a very different slant on what the verse seems to say.

1 Timothy 5:13 NIV
Besides, they get into the habit of being idle and going about from house to house. And not only do they become idlers, but also busybodies who talk nonsense, saying things they ought not to.
1246
Ecclesiastes 10:18 NIV
Through laziness, the rafters sag;
    because of idle hands, the house leaks.
1121
Proverbs 19:15 NIV
Laziness brings on deep sleep,
    and the shiftless go hungry.
1059
Proverbs 13:4 NIV
A sluggard’s appetite is never filled,
    but the desires of the diligent are fully satisfied.
890
2 Thessalonians 3:10 NIV
For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.”
867
2 Thessalonians 3:11 NIV
We hear that some among you are idle and disruptive. They are not busy; they are busybodies.
829
Proverbs 31:27 NIV
She watches over the affairs of her household
    and does not eat the bread of idleness.
822
Proverbs 12:24 NIV
Diligent hands will rule,
    but laziness ends in forced labor.
721
Ezekiel 16:49 NIV
“‘Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy.
702
Proverbs 20:13 NIV
Do not love sleep or you will grow poor;
    stay awake and you will have food to spare.
633
Proverbs 18:9 NIV
One who is slack in his work
    is brother to one who destroys.
630
Proverbs 20:4 NIV
Sluggards do not plow in season;
    so at harvest time they look but find nothing.
619
Proverbs 10:4 NIV
Lazy hands make for poverty,
    but diligent hands bring wealth.
554
Proverbs 14:23 NIV
All hard work brings a profit,
    but mere talk leads only to poverty.
548
Proverbs 21:25 NIV
The craving of a sluggard will be the death of him,
    because his hands refuse to work.
513
1 Thessalonians 5:14 NIV
And we urge you, brothers and sisters, warn those who are idle and disruptive, encourage the disheartened, help the weak, be patient with everyone.
511
Matthew 12:36 NIV
But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken.
457
2 Thessalonians 3:6 NIV
In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers and sisters, to keep away from every believer who is idle and disruptive and does not live according to the teaching you received from us.
434
Proverbs 6:6 NIV
Go to the ant, you sluggard;
    consider its ways and be wise!
414
Matthew 20:6 NIV
About five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’
411

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