In the previous post, we took a look at the last part of the ‘sixth’ day and we saw how humans have been created with a vocation to rule this world through wise stewardship. This is not the end of the first creation account, though, and the chapter break after Genesis 1.31 is unfortunate. The first few verses of Genesis 2, which we are dealing with today, actually belong to the first account. We will see how it links to what went before and what we can learn from it.

Hebrew text:

1 וַיְכֻלּ֛וּ הַשָּׁמַ֥יִם וְהָאָ֖רֶץ וְכָל־צְבָאָֽם׃

2 וַיְכַ֤ל אֱלֹהִים֙ בַּיּ֣וֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִ֔י מְלַאכְתּ֖וֹ אֲשֶׁ֣ר עָשָׂ֑ה וַיִּשְׁבֹּת֙ בַּיּ֣וֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִ֔י מִכָּל־מְלַאכְתּ֖וֹ אֲשֶׁ֥ר עָשָֽׂה׃

3 וַיְבָ֤רֶךְ אֱלֹהִים֙ אֶת־י֣וֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִ֔י וַיְקַדֵּ֖שׁ אֹת֑וֹ כִּ֣י ב֤וֹ שָׁבַת֙ מִכָּל־מְלַאכְתּ֔וֹ אֲשֶׁר־בָּרָ֥א אֱלֹהִ֖ים לַעֲשֽׂוֹת׃ פ

Transliteration:

1 way·ḵul·lū  haš·šā·ma·yim wə·hā·’ā·reṣ  wə·ḵāl ṣə·ḇā·’ām.

2 way·ḵal  ’ĕ·lō·hîm bay·yō·wm  haš·šə·ḇî·‘î, mə·laḵ·tōw  ’ă·šer ‘ā·śāh; way·yiš·bōṯ  bay·yō·wm haš·šə·ḇî·‘î, mik·kāl  mə·laḵ·tōw ’ă·šer ‘ā·śāh.

3 way·ḇā·reḵ  ’ĕ·lō·hîm ’eṯ-  yō·wm haš·šə·ḇî·‘î,  way·qad·dêš ’ō·ṯōw; kî  ḇōw šā·ḇaṯ mik·kāl mə·laḵ·tōw,  ’ă·šer- bā·rā ’ĕ·lō·hîm la·‘ă·śō·wṯ.  p̄

NIV:

1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.

2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work.

3 Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.

Study:

After the narrative finishes describing the ‘sixth’ day in Genesis 1.31, we read that the heavens and the earth were completed. And Genesis 2.2 clearly indicates that before the start of the ‘seventh’ day, God had finished his work of creation.

But then we read the strange statement that God ‘rested from all his work’. What doe we make of this statement? Why does God need to rest? Did he get tired? The ‘rest’ of God on this seventh day is an interesting notion and one that we need to look at closely if we are to understand what it means.

In Mark 2.27 Jesus says, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” But why was the Sabbath made for humans? There is, of course, the issue of our needing regular periods of rest. God has made us to work but not to work all the time. We need periods of refreshment from our toil. In this sense, the weekly rest provided by the Sabbath was created for us.

However, the Old Testament indicates that the Sabbath was not simply a day of resting, but a day of resting from whatever constitutes work. Specifically, anything that could be construed as our livelihood was prohibited on the Sabbath.

This means that on the Sabbath the Israelites were declaring that they did not have to work all the time because God would provide for them on the Sabbath. This is demonstrated during the desert wandering. At that time, they would collect twice the amount of manna on Friday and it would last through the Sabbath. However, if they collected more on any other day, it would rot by the next day. Further, no manna would fall on the Sabbath. This pattern clearly indicated that they could trust Yahweh for their sustenance on the Sabbath.

But if they could trust Yahweh to provide for them on the Sabbath when they were not working, this could only mean that Yahweh himself was at work in a crucial sense. Yahweh was not taking a weekly snooze on the Sabbath! He was not resting in the conventional sense of the term.

So what could God’s rest on the Sabbath mean? Psalm 132 is helpful. The entire Psalm is a narration of how David wanted to build and temple for Yahweh and how God promised to bless David’s descendents. But then in v. 14 Yahweh refers to the temple and says, “This is my resting place for ever and ever; here I will sit enthroned, for I have desired it.” The rest of God is not one of disengagement but one of engagement. When he rests, he is enthroned. When he rests, he rules!

This allows us to see why the Sabbath was created for us. On this day, when we abstain from regular work, we allow ourselves the time and space within which we can perceive and appreciate God’s rule over his good creation.

So when in Genesis 2.2 we read that God rested, we understand now that the text is not telling us that God took a short nap, but that, having completed his creative work, he began his work of governing his good creation. In other words, God’s rest on the seventh day has nothing to do with God being tired or God taking a day off. Rather on the seventh day God began to rule the creation he had just ordered. And that is one reason why the seventh day does not end!

Prayer:

Our heavenly Father. We are grateful to know that you are the sovereign of all creation. We are thankful that you provide for us in every circumstance and that you are forever governing your good creation. We are thankful that you give us days of rest from our labors during which we can admire and appreciate your rule over your good creation. We ask you to enable us to recognize our need for regular rest and to grant us the joy of refreshment on these days. We ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen.