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Exodus 20:11

in Exodus 20

For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth and the sea and all that is in them, but on the seventh day He rested. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

for in six days Jehovah made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore Jehovah blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

KJV

For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

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This verse in Exodus 20

Commentary

3 notes on this verse

This site's exposition

But the seventh day is the sabbath

on Exodus 20:10-11

The rest reaches down the whole household to the son, the daughter, the servants, the cattle and the stranger inside the gates, so the one day covers people who own nothing. The ground given here is the creation, that in six days the LORD made heaven and earth and rested the seventh. Deuteronomy 5:15 repeats the commandment and gives a different ground, that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt, and both stand in the canon side by side.

The record, by era

The Medieval Church1 voice

A commentator

Bonaventure

Collationes de Decem Praeceptis, Collation 4 · Written in the 13th century.

proposed

The reason for the precept is added, where it says: In six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea and all things that are in them, and he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed and sanctified it. But why does …

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, &c.

How the passage was read

What the Jewish commentators add

The verse is stating that the Sabbath-day will be blessed and hallowed because He has commanded to bless it and glorify it by remembering it.
Ramban: Spain, 1194–1270 · Ramban on Exodus 20:11:1, via Sefaria, Commentary on the Torah by Ramban (Nachmanides). Translated and annotated by Charles B. Chavel. New York, Shilo Pub. House, 1971-1976
2 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
In line with the plain meaning of Scripture, “the stranger of the gate” is always the geir toshav, 460 Literally: “resident alien,” so called because he was permitted to dwell within the Land of Israel.
Ramban: Spain, 1194–1270 · Ramban on Exodus 20:10:1, via Sefaria, Commentary on the Torah by Ramban (Nachmanides). Translated and annotated by Charles B. Chavel. New York, Shilo Pub. House, 1971-1976
Having finished all that we are obligated towards the Creator Himself and His glory, He turns now to command us about those matters which concern created beings.
Ramban: Spain, 1194–1270 · Ramban on Exodus 20:12:1, via Sefaria, Commentary on the Torah by Ramban (Nachmanides). Translated and annotated by Charles B. Chavel. New York, Shilo Pub. House, 1971-1976

This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.

Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 4 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.

The words behind it

26 Hebrew words

Every Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

  • כִּ֣יfor

    kiH3588 →4482 times

  • שֵֽׁשֶׁת־six

    sheshet-H8337 →216 times

  • יָמִים֩days

    yamimH3117 →2304 times

  • עָשָׂ֨הhe made

    ʾasahH6213 →2628 times

  • יְהוָ֜הYahweh

    yahwehH3068 →6520 times

  • אֶת־<obj.>

    ʾet-H853 →10935 times

  • הַשָּׁמַ֣יִםthe heavens

    hashamayimH8064 →421 times

  • וְאֶת־and <obj.>

    veetH853 →10935 times

  • הָאָ֗רֶץthe earth

    haaretzH776 →2504 times

  • אֶת־<obj.>

    ʾet-H853 →10935 times

  • הַיָּם֙the sea

    haiyamH3220 →396 times

  • וְאֶת־and <obj.>

    veetH853 →10935 times

  • כָּל־all

    kol-H3605 →5413 times

  • אֲשֶׁר־that

    ʾasher-H834 →5497 times

  • בָּ֔ם[is] in <the> them

    bam

  • וַיָּ֖נַחand he rested

    vaiyanachH5117 →142 times

  • בַּיּ֣וֹםon the day

    baiyomH3117 →2304 times

  • הַשְּׁבִיעִ֑י<the> seventh

    hasheviiH7637 →98 times

  • עַל־there-

    ʾal-H5921 →5755 times

  • כֵּ֗ן-fore

    kenH3651 →771 times

  • בֵּרַ֧ךְhe blessed

    berakhH1288 →330 times

  • יְהוָ֛הYahweh

    yahwehH3068 →6520 times

  • אֶת־<obj.>

    ʾet-H853 →10935 times

  • י֥וֹם[the] day of

    yomH3117 →2304 times

  • הַשַּׁבָּ֖תthe sabbath

    hashabatH7676 →110 times

  • וַֽיְקַדְּשֵֽׁהוּ׃ סand he set apart as holy it

    vaykadeshehuH6942 →171 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

18 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

Genesis 1:1In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.153 worksJeremiah 32:17“Oh, Lord GOD! You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too difficult for You!54 worksActs 4:24When the believers heard this, they lifted up their voices to God with one accord. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “You made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them.31 worksPsalms 102:25In the beginning You laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands.22 worksRevelation 14:7And he said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come. Worship the One who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and the springs of waters.”22 worksIsaiah 48:13Surely My own hand founded the earth, and My right hand spread out the heavens; when I summon them, they stand up together.16 works
The other 12 cross-references, with their words ▾
Genesis 2:2–3And by the seventh day God had finished the work He had been doing; so on that day He rested from all His work.13 worksGenesis 1:31And God looked upon all that He had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.13 worksHebrews 4:4For somewhere He has spoken about the seventh day in this manner: “And on the seventh day God rested from all His works.”12 worksExodus 31:17It is a sign between Me and the Israelites forever; for in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, but on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed.’”11 worksGenesis 2:1Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.10 worksMark 2:27–28Then Jesus declared, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.9 worksPsalms 146:6the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them. He remains faithful forever.9 worksPsalms 95:4–7In His hand are the depths of the earth, and the mountain peaks belong to Him.6 worksRevelation 4:11“Worthy are You, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for You created all things; by Your will they exist and came to be.”6 worksHebrews 4:3Now we who have believed enter that rest. As for the others, it is just as God has said: “So I swore on oath in My anger, ‘They shall never enter My rest.’” And yet His works have been finished since the foundation of the world.5 works1 Kings 9:3And the LORD said to him: “I have heard your prayer and petition before Me. I have consecrated this temple you have built by putting My Name there forever; My eyes and My heart will be there for all time.4 worksExodus 29:1“Now this is what you are to do to consecrate Aaron and his sons to serve Me as priests: Take a young bull and two rams without blemish,3 works

The walk

5 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    Exodus 31:17

    It is a sign between Me and the Israelites forever; for in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, but on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed.’”

    it leads to

    • Genesis 1:31

      And God looked upon all that He had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.

    • Exodus 31:13

      “Tell the Israelites, ‘Surely you must keep My Sabbaths, for this will be a sign between Me and you for the generations to come, so that you may know that I am the LORD…

    • Genesis 2:2–3

      And by the seventh day God had finished the work He had been doing; so on that day He rested from all His work.

    • Ezekiel 20:12

      I also gave them My Sabbaths as a sign between us, so that they would know that I am the LORD who sanctifies them.

    • Hebrews 4:10

      For whoever enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from His.

Where this verse is studied

About Exodus

The Giving of the Law on Mount Sinai — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain
The Giving of the Law on Mount Sinai — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain
Exodus: the study guide →Read Exodus 20 →

This page draws on Bonaventure, Collationes de Decem Praeceptis, Collation 4; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch.

Read on in Exodus 20 →