Boro Nut

I know that god rested after six days, but which day? It doesn't say "Let there be light, and let it be Tuesday" does it? So how do we know he had a kip on Sunday? I mean, it's not the only time the bible has cocked up a date is it?

Take Christmas for instance. We don't know when Jesus was born, but one thing we do know for definite is it wasn't on Christmas day. No all-knowing omnipotent being could possibly have arranged for his birthday to be the only day guaranteed that he'd only get one present.

So how do we know that we've got the days right? According to the bible there was no Odin or Thor, so we're two days short to start with. So it would have been much more believable if Genesis said it took 4 days and he knocked off on the 5th. One day for sowing, one for reaping, one for baking, one for feasting, and a good lie-in the day after. Makes sense to me. Then the Vikings added the two extra days later to fit in rape and pillage. If god was made in our image as they say, is it a coincidence I'm always knackered by Wednesday? I think not.

Boro Nut

Joan of Bark

We don't know, of course. I believe some Judaic scholar calculated backwards and determined that He rested on a Saturday, which is why practicing Jews observe that day as the sabbath. Whichever day it was, I figure He just wanted to relax and watch the Angels -Demons football game.

Kosh

Perhaps a more appropriate question would be ..... WHY?

NOGO

You probably mean why does a God need to rest?

Loomis

Check this out: Genesis 2:2-3 describes the elohim as growing tired on the seventh day and needing rest. But Isaiah 40:28 says "Yahweh is an everlasting elohim, he created the boundaries of the earth, he does not grow tired or weary".

It looks to me like the author of Isaiah 40:28 is dissing the first creation story.

Loomis

He probably didn't.

It looks to me like the author of the first creation story used a literary formula to delineate each of the seven days. At the end of each day’s activities, except for the second and seventh days, the elohim reviewed what he/they did and declared, “it was good.�

See for yourself. The phrase “it was good� occurs seven times.

Gen 1:4 – first day
Gen 1:10 – third day (first instance)
Gen 1:12 – third day (second instance)
Gen 1:18 – fourth day
Gen 1:21 – fifth day
Gen 1:25 – sixth day (first instance)
Gen 1:31 – sixth day (second instance)

It looks to me like this creation story got screwed up and rewritten. And I don’t think it was a mistranslation.

I think that in its original form the acts of creation were distributed evenly across all seven days, and that there was no “day of rest.� I think that the “on the seventh day the elohim ended their work which they had made and they rested,� stuff was added later.

I think that someone scrunched up seven days of activities and compressed them into six, so that they could insert the part about the elohim resting on the seventh day.

I bet that whoever did this did it for a political reason. I bet it was some sort of power play to enslave the proletariat. I bet they argued, “Since the gods worked six days per week, you should too.�

Boro Nut

Erm... I don't want to seem pedantic, but doesn't resting on the seventh day imply they were back to work on Monday? If so it would appear productivity slumped significantly. That's elohim for you I suppose. Introduce a few thoughtful working practices as a caring employer, next thing you know they've formed a union and are demanding paid eternity leave. So why mention resting on that particular day if they have been sitting on their hands ever since then?

Boro Nut

Boro Nut

Well I for one agree with you Boro Nut.

Someone Else Entirely.

markfiend

Why seven days? Why not six or eight? Or even ten? Is there any objective justification of a seven-day week? I mean I get years based on the Sun, and months based on the Moon, but why weeks?

Wallener

Pretty unlikely: when Greeks ran into Jews and Israelites, they considered them lazy because they needed a holiday every seven days. Their expectation was that people would work more or less continually - no weekends.