On the Seven of Pentacles we see a man who has labored long and hard in his garden. The foliage is full, the blossoms are out - it seems that his work has paid off. Now he's taking a break to admire his handiwork. How satisfying it is to see such fine results! How rewarding is sweet success!

Rachel Pollack, in Seventy Eight Degrees of Wisdom, says:

From the image of work we move to its reward. Like the Nine the Seven shows the pentacles as a living development from the person's labor. Meaningful work gives more than material benefit; the person too grows. The Seven shows that moment of being able to look back with satisfaction on something accomplished. The "something" may be as broad as a career or as simple as an immediate project. The card implies that whatever has been built up (including relationships between people) has reached a point where it can grow by itself, and the person can step back from it without it collapsing.

I looked at a site called Paranormality this morning, and its interpretation of the Seven of Pentacles is:

Promising projects that fail.  A warning not to rest upon one's laurels as success is only attainable through continued hard work.  Material success may be possible but the nettle must be grasped.  Previous past effort wasted through inertia in the present.  Reaping no reward from charitable work.

Pretty harsh.

I know that the interpretations are subjective, and that's part of the reason that I like it, I guess. Funny how this one is so negative, though, when the other two I ran across first were so positive. Lots to learn.