God give me work, till my life shall end And life, till my work is done.

The couplet is a compact prayer for purposeful endurance: the speaker asks for meaningful labor for as long as life lasts, and for sufficient life to complete that labor. Its balance (“work…till my life shall end / And life…till my work is done”) rejects idleness and also rejects mere longevity as an end in itself. The sentiment aligns with a vocation-centered ethic in which worth is measured by service, contribution, and unfinished tasks rather than comfort. Read this way, the line is less about ambition than about stewardship—treating time and strength as resources to be spent on work that matters, and accepting death not as tragedy but as the natural boundary once one’s work is complete.