Day Seven — he shabbatted
Three verses, 35 words. “The seventh day” occurs three times, and there is no closing “evening and morning” sentence. See in the original why one root appears as passive, active and perfect.
Verse by verse: which patterns build each sentence, and why — so that you can read it without a translation.
1-1Before you read this page
By chapter number Genesis 2:1–3 belongs to chapter 2, but it is the end of the account that began in 1:1. “The heavens and the earth” of 1:1 return in 2:1, and בָּרָא (“created”) in 2:3 is the verb of 1:1. Chapter divisions are not in the original text; they were added later.
Up to the sixth day every day closed with וַיְהִי־עֶרֶב וַיְהִי־בֹקֶר (“there was evening and there was morning,” pattern 8, six times through 1:31). The three verses of the seventh day have no such sentence. The noun Shabbat (שַׁבָּת) does not occur in these verses either; the verb of the same root ש-ב-ת occurs twice (וַיִּשְׁבֹּת in verse 2, שָׁבַת in verse 3).
1-2What each verse does — Genesis 2:1–3
Before the text, see for each verse of 2:1–3: (1) what it does in the story, (2) what it says, (3) the verbs and sentence structure it uses. Tap a row to go to that verse.
The storyline — the 5 verbs that carry the story of Genesis 2:1–3
Why only these verbs? — In Hebrew narrative the “and he did” verb (wayyiqtol, pattern 1) moves the events forward one by one. Read these verbs in order and you have the storyline of 2:1–3. The other clauses (descriptions, the verbs inside God’s speech, perfects and so on) are added to this line. See this storyline first, and in the text you will notice where a sentence moves forward and where it pauses.
Five wayyiqtols follow one another in these verses. שָׁבַת in the second half of verse 3 is a perfect, not a wayyiqtol — it does not add a new event but gives the reason for the two acts before it.
Tap a word to open its notes below. Pronunciation is by a modern Israeli Hebrew voice.
YLVAnd the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their host.
How this sentence is built — and why
- How many clauses?One, five words: [were finished — the heavens and the earth and all their host].
- What comes first?The wayyiqtol וַיְכֻלּוּ → pattern 1. The chain of events that ran through 1:31 continues.
- So what fills the verb slot?A wayyiqtol, but passive (Pual, pattern 11) — the “they” of the ending ־וּ are not the doers but the things finished. It is 3rd masculine plural because there are several subjects.
- The rest of the orderverb → three subjects (הַשָּׁמַיִם, וְהָאָרֶץ, וְכָל־צְבָאָם). The suffix ־ָם (“their”) on the third picks up the heavens and the earth.
- Why is it written this way?It calls back “the heavens and the earth” of 1:1 and closes the six days in one sentence. The passive puts first “what” was finished; “who” finished it is left to the active וַיְכַל of verse 2.
- The accents matchWith no atnach, the tipcha (◌֖) divides it: [the heavens and the earth | all their host].
Clause by clause
YLVAnd the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their host.
Why?First the wayyiqtol וַיְכֻלּוּ, then three subjects — “verb → subject,” the order of narrative. But the verb is passive (Pual), so the subjects are not the doers but what was done: the heavens, the earth and all their host “were finished.” The doer (God) is not named in this verse; he appears in the next, with the active וַיְכַל of the same root.
Verbs — who did it?
How the accents divide it
The bigger the box, the bigger the pause. Read from right to left.
This short verse has no atnach (◌֑). Its main pause is the tipcha (◌֖) on וְהָאָרֶץ: [were finished · the heavens and the earth | all their host]. The tevir (◌֛) on the first word וַיְכֻלּוּ is a smaller break within the first half.
Word by word
וַיְכֻלּ֛וּva-yekhulluand they were finished
The Pual (passive) wayyiqtol of kalah, “to be finished, complete.” It is a wayyiqtol beginning with וַ, but the י has a shewa, so the dagesh drops, as in וַיְהִי. The י in front and the ending ־וּ together mark 3rd masculine plural, “they.” The “they” are the heavens, the earth and all their host that follow — several subjects including a masculine noun (the heavens), so the masculine plural is used. The “u” vowel under כֻ (qibbuts) and the dagesh in לּ (doubling the middle root letter) mark the Pual. The subject does not act; it is acted upon: “were finished.” Tevir (◌֛) on the first word.
הַשָּׁמַ֥יִםha-shamayimthe heavens
The word of 1:1 — article הַ with the dagesh in שּׁ. In 1:1 it was the object created; here it is the subject of a passive verb. “The heavens and the earth” of 1:1 return here, framing the account.
- Parsing
- article “the” + noun · masculine · plural
- Grammar
- definite articlegender and numberaccents
- Form
- שָׁמַיִם (“heavens”) + article הַ → שּׁ
- Accent
- Merkha conjunctive
- Lexicon
- H8064
וְהָאָ֖רֶץve-ha-aretsand the earth
וְ + the article הָ (lengthened before א) + erets. In 1:2 the same form opened a descriptive clause; here it is the second subject after the verb — the verb already stands first, so “and” simply joins the subjects. The tipcha (◌֖) divides the verse: “the heavens and the earth | all their host.”
- Parsing
- conjunction “and” + article “the” + noun · masculine or feminine · singular
- Grammar
- conjunction wawdefinite articlegender and numberaccents
- Form
- וְ + הָ + אָרֶץ
- Accent
- Tipcha a pause within a half-verse
- Lexicon
- H776
וְכָלve-kholand all of
Kol (כֹּל), “all,” in the construct, “all of.” Joined by maqaf, it loses its stress and its vowel becomes a short “o” (qamets hatuf כָ) — “khol,” not “khal.” After the vowel of וְ the כ has no dagesh: a soft “kh.”
- Parsing
- conjunction “and” + noun · masculine · singular · construct
- Grammar
- conjunction wawgender and numberconstruct statemaqqefaccents
- Form
- כֹּל → construct before maqaf כָּל־ · after וְ the dagesh drops: וְכָל־
- Accent
- Maqaf joined to the next word by maqaf (־)
- Lexicon
- H3605
צְבָאָֽםtseva-amtheir host
Tsava (צָבָא), “host, army,” with the 3rd masculine plural suffix ־ָם (“their”). The “they” are the heavens and the earth before it. With the suffix the first vowel reduces to a shewa (צְ). Silluq stroke under אָֽ at the verse end.
- Parsing
- noun · masculine or feminine · singular · construct + pronominal suffix · 3rd masculine plural
- Grammar
- gender and numberconstruct statepronominal suffixaccents
- Form
- צָבָא (“host”) + suffix ־ָם (“their”) → צְבָאָם
- Accent
- Silluq the final pause of the verse
- Lexicon
- H6635a
YLVAnd God finished on the seventh day his work which he had made, and he shabbatted on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
How this sentence is built — and why
- How many clauses?Two: [God finished on the seventh day his work which he made] [he shabbatted on the seventh day from all his work which he made]. Each contains an embedded אֲשֶׁר clause.
- What comes first?Both clauses open with a wayyiqtol (וַיְכַל, וַיִּשְׁבֹּת) → pattern 1. Finishing → shabbatting: two events in order.
- One root, two formsוַיְכֻלּוּ in verse 1 (Pual, “they were finished”) and וַיְכַל in verse 2 (Piel, “he finished”) share the root כ-ל-ה. The vowels (כֻ, כַ) and the person (they, he) separate “what was done” from “the one who did it.”
- The rest of the orderBoth clauses follow one order: verb → (subject) → בַּיּוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי → “his (all) work” → אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה (pattern 10). The second does not repeat the subject, and to suit the meaning “cease” it uses מִכָּל־ (“from all”).
- Why is it written this way?The two halves have seven OSHB words each and, apart from the verb and one word each (אֱלֹהִים, מִכָּל־), are built of the same words in the same order. “The seventh day” stands in both, so the two things of that day — finishing and shabbatting — stand side by side. How to read “finished” is taken up below in “Going deeper.”
- The accents matchThe atnach (◌֑) on the first עָשָׂה: [finishing | shabbatting]. In both halves the zaqef falls on “seventh” and the tipcha on “his work.”
Clause by clause
YLVAnd God finished on the seventh day his work which he had made,
Why?Wayyiqtol וַיְכַל → subject אֱלֹהִים → time “on the seventh day” → object “his work.” After the object an אֲשֶׁר clause, “which he made,” tells which work. Its verb עָשָׂה is a perfect, inside the relative clause.
YLVand he shabbatted on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
Why?Again a wayyiqtol, וַיִּשְׁבֹּת — the subject is not repeated (God, from before); then the time “on the seventh day,” “from all his work,” and the same אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה. Same pattern and order as the previous clause; the verb changes (finished → shabbatted), the subject אֱלֹהִים drops out, and מִכָּל־ (“from all”) is added.
How the accents divide it
The bigger the box, the bigger the pause. Read from right to left.
The atnach (◌֑) on the first עָשָׂה divides it: [finishing | shabbatting]. The accents of the two halves stand in the same places — pashta (◌֙) at the end of the opening verb group (אֱלֹהִים, וַיִּשְׁבֹּת), zaqef (◌֔) on “seventh,” tipcha (◌֖) on “his work.” Each half has seven OSHB words.
Word by word
וַיְכַ֤לva-yekhaland he finished
The Piel (active) wayyiqtol of the same root כ-ל-ה as verse 1 — verse 1 said “were finished” (passive); here “he finished” (someone acts). The י in front = “he,” and with nothing at the end it is singular. The “he” is Elohim, right after it. It is the short form of the Piel imperfect יְכַלֶּה, with the final ה and its vowel dropped; at the end of the word the doubling of ל is not shown. As in verse 1, the shewa under י removes the dagesh.
אֱלֹהִים֙ElohimGod
The one who finished — the subject right after the verb. Plural in form, but the verb וַיְכַל is singular. The pashta (◌֙) sits over the last letter (pashta is always written there).
- Parsing
- noun · masculine · plural
- Grammar
- gender and numberaccents
- Form
- אֱלוֹהַּ (“god”) with the plural ending ־ִים
- Accent
- Pashta a smaller pause
- Lexicon
- H430
בַּיּ֣וֹםba-yomon the day
When the preposition בְּ (“in, on”) meets the article הַ, the ה disappears and its “a” vowel moves to ב → בַּ. The article’s dagesh stays in the next letter (יּ). So not “on a day” but “on the day.”
- Parsing
- preposition + article + noun · masculine · singular
- Grammar
- prepositiondefinite articlegender and numberaccents
- Form
- בְּ + הַ + יוֹם → בַּיּוֹם
- Accent
- Munach conjunctive — joins to the next word
- Lexicon
- H3117
הַשְּׁבִיעִ֔יha-shevi’ithe seventh
The ordinal “seventh,” from sheva (שֶׁבַע) “seven,” with the ordinal ending ־ִי. Article הַ with the dagesh in שּׁ. Like an adjective it follows the noun and agrees with “the day” in gender, number and the article (בַּיּוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי, “the day, the seventh”). The zaqef (◌֔) marks a break in the first half of the verse here. “The seventh day” occurs three times in 2:1–3.
מְלַאכְתּ֖וֹmelakhtohis work
Melakhah (מְלָאכָה), “work,” with the 3rd masculine singular suffix ־וֹ (“his”). Before a suffix the feminine ending ־ָה returns to ת (מְלֶאכֶת → מְלַאכְתּ־). The א is silent, and after the shewa תּ has a dagesh. The “his” is God. It is the object, yet written without אֵת — אֵת often stands before a definite object, but not always. Tipcha (◌֖).
- Parsing
- noun · feminine · singular · construct + pronominal suffix · 3rd masculine singular
- Grammar
- gender and numberconstruct statepronominal suffixaccents
- Form
- מְלָאכָה (“work”) → מְלֶאכֶת + suffix ־וֹ (“his”) → מְלַאכְתּוֹ
- Accent
- Tipcha a pause within a half-verse
- Lexicon
- H4399
אֲשֶׁ֣רasherwhich
The relative word “which, that.” It never changes form and serves for masculine, feminine, singular and plural alike. It picks up the noun before it, “his work,” and attaches a clause with its own verb (עָשָׂה, “he made”): “his work which he made.”
asahhe made
Perfect 3rd masculine singular of asah, “make, do” — the bare form, “he did.” The final ־ָה is not the feminine ending of הָיְתָה (־תָה, 1:2) but the third root letter ה (verbs whose third root letter is ה end in “-ah” in the bare form). The “he” is God, from before; no subject is written in this clause. Inside a relative clause the verb is a perfect, not a wayyiqtol. Atnach (◌֑): verse 2 divides here.
וַיִּשְׁבֹּת֙va-yishbotand he shabbatted
Qal wayyiqtol of shavat, “cease, stop, rest.” וַ + dagesh יּ; the י in front = “he” — God (the subject is not repeated in this clause). The shewa under שְׁ is silent, so בּ has a dagesh: a hard “b.” The name Shabbat (שַׁבָּת) comes from this very root ש-ב-ת. Its root meaning is to “cease” from what one was doing, so מִן (“from”) follows. Pashta (◌֙).
בַּיּ֣וֹםba-yomon the day
The same two words בַּיּוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי return in the second half of the verse, in the same place (right after the verb).
- Parsing
- preposition + article + noun · masculine · singular
- Grammar
- prepositiondefinite articlegender and numberaccents
- Form
- בְּ + הַ + יוֹם → בַּיּוֹם
- Accent
- Munach conjunctive — joins to the next word
- Lexicon
- H3117
הַשְּׁבִיעִ֔יha-shevi’ithe seventh
The second “the seventh.” Exactly as in the first half, the zaqef (◌֔) falls on this word — both halves break at the same place.
מִכָּלmi-kolfrom all of
The preposition מִן (“from”) attaches to the next word, and its נ merges into the following letter, doubling it — the dot in כּ is that doubling (dagesh), and מ takes “i” (מִ). Then comes כָּל־ (“all of,” short “o” before maqaf). After shavat (“cease”), מִן means “cease from.”
- Parsing
- preposition + noun · masculine · singular · construct
- Grammar
- prepositiongender and numberconstruct statemaqqefaccents
- Form
- מִן + כָּל־ → the נ assimilates: מִכָּל־
- Accent
- Maqaf joined to the next word by maqaf (־)
- Lexicon
- H3605
מְלַאכְתּ֖וֹmelakhtohis work
“His work” of the first half returns, now bound to מִכָּל־: “from all his work.” Tipcha (◌֖), as in the first half.
- Parsing
- noun · feminine · singular · construct + pronominal suffix · 3rd masculine singular
- Grammar
- gender and numberconstruct statepronominal suffixaccents
- Form
- מְלָאכָה (“work”) → מְלֶאכֶת + suffix ־וֹ (“his”) → מְלַאכְתּוֹ
- Accent
- Tipcha a pause within a half-verse
- Lexicon
- H4399
אֲשֶׁ֥רasherwhich
YLVAnd God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it he shabbatted from all his work which God created to make.
How this sentence is built — and why
- How many clauses?Three: [God blessed the seventh day] [he sanctified it] [because in it he shabbatted …]. The third contains an embedded אֲשֶׁר clause.
- What comes first?The first and second clauses open with wayyiqtols (וַיְבָרֶךְ, וַיְקַדֵּשׁ, both Piel) → pattern 1. The third opens not with a verb but with כִּי → pattern 20.
- So what fills the verb slot?No wayyiqtol is possible inside a כִּי clause, and בוֹ (“in it”) also stands before the verb. So the root that was the wayyiqtol וַיִּשְׁבֹּת in verse 2 is here the perfect שָׁבַת (bare form = “he”).
- The rest of the orderמִכָּל־מְלַאכְתּוֹ (“from all his work”) → an אֲשֶׁר clause (pattern 10), this time with the subject אֱלֹהִים written, “which God created” → finally לַעֲשׂוֹת (לְ + infinitive, pattern 13).
- Why is it written this way?Blessing and sanctifying are joined in the chain of events (1); their reason is attached outside the chain, in a כִּי clause. “The seventh day” is the time in verse 2, the object blessed in verse 3, and is pointed to twice more by the suffixes of אֹתוֹ and בוֹ. בָּרָא of 1:1 returns here and closes the account.
- The accents matchThe atnach (◌֑) on אֹתוֹ divides it: [blessing · sanctifying | the reason].
Clause by clause
YLVAnd God blessed the seventh day
Why?Wayyiqtol וַיְבָרֶךְ → subject אֱלֹהִים → object אֶת־יוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי. In verse 2 “the seventh day” was the time; here it is the object that is blessed.
YLVand sanctified it,
Why?Next the wayyiqtol וַיְקַדֵּשׁ — the subject is not repeated, and the object is the suffixed אֹתוֹ (“it” = that day). Blessing → sanctifying: two events in order.
YLVbecause in it he shabbatted from all his work which God created to make.
Why?כִּי opens the reason for the two acts before it. Inside a כִּי clause no wayyiqtol is possible, and בוֹ (“in it”) is also placed before the verb, so the verb is the perfect שָׁבַת. Then come “from all his work,” the אֲשֶׁר clause “which God created” (pattern 10), and finally לְ + the infinitive לַעֲשׂוֹת (pattern 13).
Verbs — who did it?
How the accents divide it
The bigger the box, the bigger the pause. Read from right to left.
The atnach (◌֑) on אֹתוֹ divides it: [blessing · sanctifying | the reason]. The first half breaks again at the zaqef (◌֔) on “seventh”: [blessing | sanctifying]; the second half breaks in turn at the pashta (◌֙) on שָׁבַת, the zaqef (◌֔) on מְלַאכְתּוֹ and the tipcha (◌֖) on אֱלֹהִים. The first half (to the atnach) has seven OSHB words.
Word by word
וַיְבָ֤רֶךְva-yevarekhand he blessed
The Piel wayyiqtol of barakh, “bless.” The י in front = “he”; the “he” is Elohim, after it. The Piel doubles the middle root letter, but ר cannot take a dagesh, so the vowel before it lengthens instead to בָ (qamets). The imperfect יְבָרֵךְ in the wayyiqtol moves its stress back (mahpakh on בָ֤), and the last vowel becomes segol (רֶךְ). The same form was used in 1:22 and 1:28 for the fish and birds and for man.
אֱלֹהִים֙ElohimGod
The one who blessed — the subject after the verb. Pashta (◌֙).
- Parsing
- noun · masculine · plural
- Grammar
- gender and numberaccents
- Form
- אֱלוֹהַּ (“god”) with the plural ending ־ִים
- Accent
- Pashta a smaller pause
- Lexicon
- H430
אֶתet(object marker)
The object marker — it points to “the seventh day” as what was blessed. Unlike “his work” in verse 2, here אֶת־ is written. Joined by maqaf, its vowel is short.
- Parsing
- object marker
- Grammar
- object marker אֵתmaqqefaccents
- Form
- אֵת → before maqaf אֶת־
- Accent
- Maqaf joined to the next word by maqaf (־)
- Lexicon
- H853
י֣וֹםyomday (of)
Unlike בַּיּוֹם in verse 2, this יוֹם has no article; only “seventh” after it has one (יוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי). OSHB parses this יוֹם as a construct, bound to the next word — like “the day of the seventh.” Munach (◌֣) joins it to the next word.
- Parsing
- noun · masculine · singular · construct
- Grammar
- gender and numberconstruct stateaccents
- Form
- יוֹם (“day”) — the construct has the same form
- Accent
- Munach conjunctive — joins to the next word
- Lexicon
- H3117
הַשְּׁבִיעִ֔יha-shevi’ithe seventh
The third “the seventh.” Here too the zaqef (◌֔) falls on this word — in all three places where “the seventh day” occurs, “seventh” carries a zaqef.
וַיְקַדֵּ֖שׁva-yeqaddeshand he sanctified
The Piel wayyiqtol of qadash, “be holy, set apart” — in the Piel, “make holy, sanctify.” The dagesh in דּ doubles the middle root letter, the mark of the Piel; the patach under קַ is also the Piel vowel. The י in front = “he” — God (the subject is not repeated). With a shewa under י, the dagesh drops. Tipcha (◌֖).
אֹת֑וֹotoit
The object marker אֵת with the 3rd masculine singular suffix ־וֹ: “it.” With a suffix אֵת becomes אֹת (ot). The “it” is the masculine noun יוֹם — the seventh day just named. Atnach (◌֑): verse 3 divides here, blessing and sanctifying | the reason.
- Parsing
- object marker + pronominal suffix · 3rd masculine singular
- Grammar
- object marker אֵתpronominal suffixaccents
- Form
- אֵת + suffix ־וֹ (“him, it”) → אֹתוֹ
- Accent
- Atnach the main pause in mid-verse — divides the verse in two
- Lexicon
- H853
כִּ֣יkibecause
All six כִּי of chapter 1 were “saw … that” (pattern 7). Here it does not follow “see”; it follows the two acts (blessing and sanctifying) and opens their reason: “because.” This is the first causal כִּי in Genesis 1–2. Munach (◌֣) joins it to the next word.
- Parsing
- conjunction
- Grammar
- conjunction wawaccents
- Form
- כִּי — unchanging
- Accent
- Munach conjunctive — joins to the next word
- Lexicon
- H3588a
ב֤וֹvoin it
The preposition בְּ (“in, on”) with the 3rd masculine singular suffix ־וֹ — “in it,” that is, on the seventh day. After כִּי, which ends in a vowel and is read on, the ב has no dagesh: a soft “v.” It is placed before the verb שָׁבַת.
- Parsing
- preposition + pronominal suffix · 3rd masculine singular
- Grammar
- prepositionpronominal suffixaccents
- Form
- בְּ + suffix ־וֹ → בּוֹ · after a vowel the dagesh drops: בוֹ
- Accent
- Mahpakh conjunctive
- Lexicon
shavathe shabbatted
Qal perfect 3rd masculine singular of the same root ש-ב-ת as וַיִּשְׁבֹּת in verse 2 — the bare form, “he ceased.” The “he” is God. The same verb is a wayyiqtol in verse 2 and a perfect here, because כִּי and בוֹ stand before it. After a vowel ב has no dagesh: “sha-vat.” The pashta (◌֙) sits over the last letter.
מִכָּלmi-kolfrom all of
The same “from all of” as in verse 2 — the מִן that goes with shavat, “cease from.”
- Parsing
- preposition + noun · masculine · singular · construct
- Grammar
- prepositiongender and numberconstruct statemaqqefaccents
- Form
- מִן + כָּל־ → the נ assimilates: מִכָּל־
- Accent
- Maqaf joined to the next word by maqaf (־)
- Lexicon
- H3605
מְלַאכְתּ֔וֹmelakhtohis work
“His work” for the third time: מְלַאכְתּוֹ occurs three times in 2:1–3 (twice in verse 2, once in verse 3). Zaqef (◌֔).
- Parsing
- noun · feminine · singular · construct + pronominal suffix · 3rd masculine singular
- Grammar
- gender and numberconstruct statepronominal suffixaccents
- Form
- מְלָאכָה (“work”) → מְלֶאכֶת + suffix ־וֹ (“his”) → מְלַאכְתּוֹ
- Accent
- Zaqef qatan a major pause within a half-verse
- Lexicon
- H4399
אֲשֶׁרasherwhich
The third relative word. Here it is joined by maqaf to בָּרָא and has no accent. This relative clause writes its subject: בָּרָא אֱלֹהִים (“God created”).
barahe created
The verb of 1:1 — the bare perfect 3ms, “he created.” The “he” is Elohim, right after it. In 1:1 it was a perfect because “in beginning” stood first; here because it follows the relative אֲשֶׁר. Merkha (◌֥) joins it to the next word.
אֱלֹהִ֖יםElohimGod
The subject inside the relative clause, “God (created).” Elohim occurs three times in 2:1–3 (once in verse 2, twice in verse 3). Tipcha (◌֖).
- Parsing
- noun · masculine · plural
- Grammar
- gender and numberaccents
- Form
- אֱלוֹהַּ (“god”) with the plural ending ־ִים
- Accent
- Tipcha a pause within a half-verse
- Lexicon
- H430
לַעֲשֽׂוֹתla-asotto make
The preposition לְ + the infinitive construct עֲשׂוֹת of asah (“make”). Verbs whose third root letter is ה form the infinitive construct with ־וֹת. Because ע has a hateph patach (ֲ), the לְ before it takes the matching “a” vowel, לַ, instead of a shewa. An infinitive has no person marker — the doer is God, from the context. Both halves of verse 2 and the end of verse 3 close with the same root ע-שׂ-ה (עָשָׂה, עָשָׂה, לַעֲשׂוֹת). Silluq.
- Parsing
- preposition + verb · Qal · infinitive construct
- Grammar
- prepositionQal steminfinitive constructaccents
- Form
- root ע-שׂ-ה → infinitive construct עֲשׂוֹת + לְ → לַעֲשׂוֹת
- Accent
- Silluq the final pause of the verse
- Lexicon
- H6213a
All the sentence patterns of this page in one table, and the places where views differ.
2-1Sentence patterns on this page
Which patterns build the clauses of this page, in one table.
| Pattern | On this page |
|---|---|
| 1. The wayyiqtol narrative sentence | 2:1 And the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their host.2:2 And God finished on the seventh day his work which he had made,2:2 and he shabbatted on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.2:3 And God blessed the seventh day2:3 and sanctified it, |
| 10. The relative clause with אֲשֶׁר | 2:2 And God finished on the seventh day his work which he had made,2:2 and he shabbatted on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.2:3 because in it he shabbatted from all his work which God created to make. |
| 11. The passive — Niphal (and Pual) | 2:1 And the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their host. |
| 13. לְ + infinitive construct, “to …” | 2:3 because in it he shabbatted from all his work which God created to make. |
| 20. The causal כִּי clause, “because …” | 2:3 because in it he shabbatted from all his work which God created to make. |
2-2Going deeper
Verse 2, “God finished on the seventh day …” — did he work on the seventh day?
What the text makes clear — the Masoretic text reads בַּיּוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי (“on the seventh day”) in both halves. וַיְכַל (“finished”) and וַיִּשְׁבֹּת (“shabbatted”) are both wayyiqtol 3ms with God as subject. The sixth day was already closed in 1:31 (“evening, morning, the sixth day”), and 2:1 first says that the heavens and the earth “were finished.”
① The Masoretic text as it stands — “on the seventh day he finished”
- Evidence
- It is the reading of the Hebrew Masoretic text, and the Aramaic Targum Onkelos and the Latin Vulgate (“die septimo”) also have “seventh.” It fits the text-critical principle that the harder reading is more likely original — “he finished on the seventh day” is a difficult phrase, so there was little reason for anyone to change a text into “seventh.”
- Problems
- Read flatly, it sounds as if something was still done on the seventh day, which is hard to square with the sixth day already closed in 1:31 and with Exod 20:11, “For in six days YHWH made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and He rested on the seventh day.” So those who keep this reading still need to explain what “finished” means (③, ④).
- Sources
- Masoretic text · Targum Onkelos · Vulgate
② “On the sixth day he finished” — Samaritan Pentateuch, Septuagint, Peshitta
- Evidence
- The Samaritan Pentateuch reads הַשִּׁשִּׁי (“the sixth”), the Septuagint “ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τῇ ἕκτῃ” (“on the sixth day”), and the Syriac Peshitta also “sixth.” This gives “he finished on the sixth day and rested on the seventh,” matching 1:31 and Exod 20:11 directly. The Babylonian Talmud, Megillah 9a, lists this verse among the places the Septuagint translators rendered differently for King Ptolemy.
- Problems
- It is the easier reading that removes the difficulty, so many regard it as a smoothing of the awkward “seventh.” Megillah 9a itself lists it as a place “changed” in translation, which assumes the original read “seventh.” “Sixth” also breaks the built-in repetition of verse 2, whose two halves use nearly the same words in the same order and both say “the seventh day” (seven OSHB words each).
- Sources
- Samaritan Pentateuch · Septuagint · Peshitta · Babylonian Talmud, Megillah 9a · BHS apparatus (Gen 2:2)
③ “By the seventh day he had finished” — a pluperfect reading
- Evidence
- It reads וַיְכַל as “he had finished” (pluperfect): when the seventh day came, the work was already complete. This fits 2:1, which first says it “was finished,” and the relative clause אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה (“which he made”), which points to past work. The NIV (1984, 2011) renders, “By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing.”
- Problems
- A wayyiqtol normally reports what follows the previous event; whether a wayyiqtol can be read as a pluperfect is disputed among grammarians. Also, בְּ + “day” means “on the day,” not “by the day,” and the identical בַּיּוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי in the very next half is read “on the seventh day (he shabbatted),” so the same words would have to be read differently in the first half alone.
- Sources
- NIV (1984, 2011) · grammarians’ discussion of a pluperfect wayyiqtol
④ “He finished by ceasing” — the seventh day’s rest is the completion
- Evidence
- The two halves of verse 2 stand side by side in the same structure, so the second, וַיִּשְׁבֹּת (“he ceased”), is taken to say “how” the first, וַיְכַל (“he finished”), came about — the making was all done in six days, and on the seventh day the work was brought to its end by his ceasing. This fits the root ש-ב-ת, “stop what one was doing,” and 1:31 and Exod 20:11, “in six days … made.” Rashi, following Genesis Rabbah, explains that what the world still lacked was rest; when Shabbat came, rest came, and with it the work was completed.
- Problems
- Two wayyiqtols are normally read in sequence, “he finished → and he shabbatted,” so taking the second as the “manner” of the first is an explanation drawn from the structure. And since the object of “finished” is “his work,” those who take “finishing” as the completion of the work itself regard this as a broad interpretation.
- Sources
- Genesis Rabbah · Rashi on Gen 2:2
① and ② are questions of the text (which letters are original); ③ and ④ are questions of how to read the Masoretic “seventh.” What the grammar says for certain is that in the Masoretic text “the seventh day” stands in both halves, and that finishing and shabbatting stand side by side as two wayyiqtols of the same structure. The YLV follows the Masoretic text: “And God finished on the seventh day his work which he had made.”