Genesis chapters 1 and 2 outline God’s grand act of creation. Chapter 1 divides God’s creative process into six distinct phases which the scriptures refer to as “days.” At the conclusion of many of these phases, God declared the progress of creation during that “day” as “good.” The main achievement of the sixth “day” was God’s creation of the first man and woman, Adam and Eve (Genesis 1:27). At the conclusion of the sixth “day,” after mankind’s creation, God looked over all of His creation and declared it to be “very good” (Genesis 1:31). The addition of the qualifier “very” adds strength to the thought that all of creation up to that point was leading up to mankind’s creation. With the achievement of that purpose, the sixth phase of God’s creation ended. However, the creative process was not yet complete, as indicated by Genesis 2:2-3 when the following seventh creative “day” begins. 

Although there are varying calculations regarding Bible chronologies, one of the most basic chronologies maintains that roughly 6,000 years have elapsed since Adam’s creation, and thus from the conclusion of the sixth creative “day.” This period of time may be calculated by reviewing a combination of scriptures from both the Old and New Testaments. A detailed walkthrough of these scriptures and the time periods associated with them can be found here. 

Having overseen the creative process up to that point, God “rested” from His creation (Genesis 2:2-3). This does not mean the creative process was over. Mankind, the centerpiece of God’s creation, still had further development to undergo. However, this development would be facilitated through a different means; one that would not require the same direct involvement from God that the previous phases required. In this sense, God “rested” from the creative process.  

In His wisdom, God understood that mankind, being created with free will, would need to learn the concept of obedience and to be able to differentiate between right and wrong. Adam and Eve were given a test of obedience. Upon failing that test, they, and all their descendants, including us today, were subject to the punishment of death (Genesis 2:17, 3:6, 3:17-19). However, it was not God’s will for this condition to be permanent. In time, God would reveal that mankind would be given the opportunity to be restored to their lost condition of human perfection (Isaiah 35:8-10, Acts 3:19-21). The enabler of this restitution is Jesus. In sacrificing his perfect human life after a lifetime of perfect obedience to God’s laws, Jesus balanced the scales of God’s justice by paying a corresponding price for Adam’s disobedience (1 Corinthians 15:22, Romans 5:17-19, 1 Corinthians 15:3).

Additionally, Jesus’ sacrifice would enable a further blessing for mankind. Through following in Jesus’ footsteps in the devotion of their hearts and minds to God, those who are found worthy of maintaining their faith and commitments will be granted the beautiful reward of the divine nature and be part of Christ’s church (2 Peter 1:2-4, Romans 8:13-17, Revelation 19:7-9). The completion of the development of mankind thus waits for the completion of this class of mankind that will form Christ’s church class of faithful individuals. This completion is what is referred to in Romans 8:22-23, that “the whole creation [mankind in particular, but in a broader sense all of God’s creation as well] groaneth and travaileth” for.

From this perspective, the main purpose of the seventh creative day does not involve God’s direct hand, and in this sense, God “rested.” The main purposes of the seventh creative day, namely the paying of the corresponding price for Adam’s disobedience, the restitution of mankind, and the opening of the way for those of mankind judged worthy to receive an even higher reward, was left in the hands of Jesus (John 5:16-17). Since Jesus’s death and resurrection, the full truth of the beautiful work of the seventh creative day as revealed in the fullness of the scriptures have come to be more fully understood by mankind. As God’s plan continues to unfold, this knowledge will be made known to all mankind – past, present and future – resulting in mankind reaching its full restitution (Revelation 22:1).

When God delivered His set of commandments to the fledgling Jewish nation, one of the commandments He gave was to “remember the sabbath day and keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8-11). By reflecting on the seventh creative day, God’s followers are drawn to the remembrance of the purpose of this period, namely, the restitution of mankind, as well as the invitation to become footstep followers of Christ. Even more so, by remembering the reason God “rested” in the seventh creative day brings one’s thoughts back to Jesus and the great sacrifice he made in order to facilitate the work of the seventh creative “day” (John 1:29, 2 Peter 1:7). 

Additional Resources:
Christian Questions Podcast Episode #1090: “What Profound Secret Does Creation Reveal? Contradictions (Part V)”
Startling revelations from Genesis 2
Preview Video
CQ Rewind Show Notes

Christian Questions Podcast Episode #1127: “What Does the Sabbath Look Like for Christians?”
Discovering what the Sabbath really means for Christians
Preview Video 
CQ Rewind Show Notes

Sermon: (Audio only) “The Rest of the Story,” Allen Springer 
(Video) Video Version