Children Built by the Lord Become Their Parents' Joy

George Swinnock offered a prayer that captures the heart of Psalm 128:6—a prayer for godly offspring. He prayed: "Lord, let thy blessing so accompany my endeavours in their breedings, that all my sons may be Benaiahs, the Lord's building, and then they will all be Abners, their father's light; and that all my daughters may be Bethias, the Lord's daughters, and then they will all be Abigails, their father's joy."

Swinnock understood a profound principle: children are not merely products of parental effort alone. They are built by Adonai—shaped by His hand through faithful instruction. The names are instructive. Benaiah was "built by Yahweh." When children are genuinely constructed by the Lord's Spirit through disciplined training and prayer, they become Abners—lights to their fathers, reflecting wisdom and character. Similarly, daughters who belong to the Lord become Abigails—sources of deep joy and blessing to their households.

This is not sentimental hoping; it is covenantal praying. The parent's role is to labor faithfully in breeding—in instruction, discipline, and spiritual formation—while entrusting the outcome entirely to Elohim's grace. The result is not vanity or disappointment, but children whose very existence illuminates their parents' lives and fulfills the blessed promise of Psalm 128:6: "Yea, thou shalt see thy children's children."