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GOD ENDED HIS WORK

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Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Oct 7, 1873

FromReview and Herald, Vol. 42, No. 17.

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“GOD ENDED HIS WORK.”

By J. H. W.

The query on Matt. 28:1, reminds us of the oft-repeated question concerning Gen. 2:2. Many seem to find it difficult to harmonize this with Ex. 20:11, and other texts which say that God finished his work on the sixth day. Dr. Clarke suggests that some versions of Gen. 2:3, read “sixth day” instead of “seventh.” The Hebrew says “the seventh.” Prof. Greene says:—
“Vayechal, ended, i. e., by discontinuing, not by performing the concluding portion, so that there is no need either of supposing that part of the work of creation was performed on the seventh day, or of changing ‘seventh’ to ‘sixth’ to evade the fancied difficulty.”
The following is in part the definition of the original word as given by Gesenius:—
“1. To be complete, perfect, finished. The primary idea is to close up, come to a close. . . .
“2. To be finished, ended, past, e g., a season or period of time; Gen. 41:53; Ruth 2:23; Isa. 24:13, ‘when the vintage is ended,’ 10:25, ‘and the indignation will be past.’ . . .
“3. To be ended, spent, consumed.” &c.
Now that there is no necessity of combining with this the idea of doing a part is proved positively by Dan. 9:24, where it is prophesied of the Messiah that he shall “finish the transgression.” No one will contend that he does this by doing the last part of it, but by causing it to cease. And so of Gen. 2:2: “In six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is.” Of course nothing was left to be made on the seventh day. “Thus the heavens and earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made, and he rested the seventh day from all his work which he had made.”
The harmony of these texts is found in giving to “ended” in verse 2, the idea of “discontinued,” or ceased from. The remark of Prof. Greene is, beyond doubt, correct; and there is only a “fancied difficulty” in the text.
J. H. W.