When Did God Finish Creation?

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The first chapter of Genesis describes how God created heaven and earth and all that is therein, ending with the glorious fashioning of humankind on day six. Then, in Genesis 2:1, we read that “The heaven and the earth were finished; and all their array.” It is a bit surprising, therefore, to read the following statement in the very next verse: “On the seventh day God finished the work which He had been doing” (Genesis 2:2). If the work of creation had been completed during the first six days, what was God doing finishing His work on the seventh […]

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Footnotes

The verbs describing what God did on the seventh day vary somewhat. In the Fourth Commandment, we are told that on the seventh day God “rested” (wayyaµnah); in Genesis 2:2 it literally says he “ceased” (wayyishbot) on the seventh day, although many English translations translate the word as “rested.” In Exodus 31:17, we are told God “ceased and was refreshed” (shabat wayyinnafash).

Endnotes

Other ancient versions such as the Peshitta (in Syriac) and the Samaritan Pentateuch also adopt this solution.

Gerhard von Rad, Genesis, a Commentary, tr. J. H. Marks (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1972). p. 60.

Umberto Cassuto, A Commentary on the Book of Genesis, vol. 1, tr. I. Abrahams (Jerusalem, 1972), pp. 61–65.