New English Translation
Genesis 2:3
3God blessed the seventh day and made it holy because on it he ceased all the work that he had been doing in creation.
Genesis 2:3 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.
- New International Version (NIV)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.
- English Standard Version (ESV)So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.
Context of Genesis 2:3
1The heavens and the earth were completed with everything that was in them. 2By the seventh day God finished the work that he had been doing, and he ceased on the seventh day all the work that he had been doing. God blessed the seventh day and made it holy because on it he ceased all the work that he had been doing in creation. 4This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created – when the Lord God made the earth and heavens. 5Now no shrub of the field had yet grown on the earth, and no plant of the field had yet sprouted, for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to cultivate the ground.
Read all of Genesis 2Genesis 2:3 word by word
וַיְבָ֤רֶךְ אֱלֹהִים֙ אֶת־י֣וֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִ֔י וַיְקַדֵּ֖שׁ אֹת֑וֹ כִּ֣י ב֤וֹ שָׁבַת֙ מִכָּל־מְלַאכְתּ֔וֹ אֲשֶׁר־בָּרָ֥א אֱלֹהִ֖ים לַעֲשֽׂוֹת׃ פRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- blessedבָּרַךְbârak · to blessH1288
- the seventhשְׁבִיעִיshebîy‛îy shebi‛îy · seventhH7637
- dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
- and sanctifiedקָדַשׁqâdash · to consecrate: consecateH6942
- it: becauseכִּיkîy · forH3588
- that in it he had restedשָׁבַתshâbath · to ceaseH7673
- from all his workמְלָאכָהmelâ'kâh · workH4399
- createdבָּרָאbârâ' · to createH1254
- and madeעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213
Cross-references for Genesis 2:3
- Exodus 16:22And on the sixth day they gathered twice as much food, two omers per person; and all the leaders of the community came and told Moses.
- Exodus 20:8“Remember the Sabbath day to set it apart as holy.
- Exodus 23:12For six days you are to do your work, but on the seventh day you must cease, in order that your ox and your donkey may rest and that your female servant’s son and any hired help may refresh themselves.
- Exodus 31:13“Tell the Israelites, ‘Surely you must keep my Sabbaths, for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you.
- Exodus 34:21“On six days you may labor, but on the seventh day you must rest; even at the time of plowing and of harvest you are to rest.
- Exodus 35:2In six days work may be done, but on the seventh day there must be a holy day for you, a Sabbath of complete rest to the Lord. Anyone who does work on it will be put to death.
- Leviticus 23:3“‘Six days work may be done, but on the seventh day there must be a Sabbath of complete rest, a holy assembly. You must not do any work; it is a Sabbath to the Lord in all the places where you live.
- Leviticus 25:2“Speak to the Israelites and tell them, ‘When you enter the land that I am giving you, the land must observe a Sabbath to the Lord.
- Deuteronomy 5:12Be careful to observe the Sabbath day just as the Lord your God has commanded you.
- Nehemiah 9:14You made known to them your holy Sabbath; you issued commandments, statutes, and law to them through Moses your servant.
- Nehemiah 13:15In those days I saw people in Judah treading winepresses on the Sabbath, bringing in heaps of grain and loading them onto donkeys, along with wine, grapes, figs, and all kinds of loads, and bringing them to Jerusalem on the Sabbath day. So I warned them on the day that they sold these provisions.
- Proverbs 10:22The blessing from the Lord makes a person rich, and he adds no sorrow to it.
- Isaiah 56:2The people who do this will be blessed, the people who commit themselves to obedience, who observe the Sabbath and do not defile it, who refrain from doing anything that is wrong.
- Isaiah 58:13You must observe the Sabbath rather than doing anything you please on my holy day. You must look forward to the Sabbath and treat the Lord’s holy day with respect. You must treat it with respect by refraining from your normal activities, and by refraining from your selfish pursuits and from making business deals.
- Jeremiah 17:21The Lord says, ‘Be very careful if you value your lives! Do not carry any loads in through the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day.
- Ezekiel 20:12I also gave them my Sabbaths as a reminder of our relationship, so that they would know that I, the Lord, sanctify them.
Commentaries on Genesis 2:3
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3And God blessed the seventh day - The original word ברך barach, which is generally rendered to bless, has a very extensive meaning. It is frequently used in Scripture in the sense of speaking good of or to a person; and hence literally and properly rendered by the Septuagint , from , good or well, and , I speak. So God has spoken well of the Sabbath, and good to them who conscientiously observe it. Blessing is applied both to God and man: when God is said…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-3Verses 1-3 - The Seventh Day 1. צבא tsābā' “a host in marching order,” a company of persons or things in the order of their nature and the progressive discharge of their functions. Hence, it is applied to the starry host Deuteronomy 4:19, to the angelic host 1 Kings 22:19, to the host of Israel Exodus 12:41, and to the ministering Levites Numbers 4:23. ́ kosmos חשׁביעי chashebı̂y‛ı̂y Here השׁשׁי hashshı̂y is read by the Samaritan Pentateuch, the…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3During the first six days of creation, God separated light from darkness, day from night, and water from dry land. The final act of creation separated the ordinary from the holy. This was the basis for Israel’s worship. It also anticipated a future time of rest (Hebrews 4:1–11; 12:2; 13:14). The lack of the usual "evening … morning" phrase shows the creator's desire for endless fellowship with humans.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. blessed and sanctified the seventh day--a peculiar distinction put upon it above the other six days, and showing it was devoted to sacred purposes. The institution of the Sabbath is as old as creation, giving rise to that weekly division of time which prevailed in the earliest ages. It is a wise and beneficent law, affording that regular interval of rest which the physical nature of man and the animals employed in his service requires, and the neglect…Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 2:3
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Genesis 2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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