And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.

Genesis 2:2–3

Excellent stories have compelling beginnings. The story God tells in the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, has a very good beginning. There is nothing, and then there is everything. Over six days, God speaks the entire cosmos into being—it is the most productive workweek imaginable. But what happens next is striking. God stops. Into his pattern of daily work, he weaves an entire day of rest. It’s a holy pause. 

Did God stop because he was tired? The work of creating an entire universe exhausted him, and he needed to catch his breath? Absolutely not. This is the God who needs “neither slumber nor sleep” (Ps. 121:4), who is all-powerful and all-creative, who possesses a well of infinite resources and strength from which to draw for all eternity. No, God rested because he knew the creatures he had made in his image—including you and me—would need rest. 

Adam and Eve, the first humans, were given the work of tending the garden of Eden and stewarding all God had made. Even before sin brought futility and frustration into their work, God gave them a day of rest to replenish and refresh them. It was to be a holy pause in which they could remember and worship the God who provided for their every need—even, and especially, their need for rest.

As we begin to define rest, we consider the purpose of the very first rest. God’s rest was the cessation of “his work that he had done” (a phrase repeated for emphasis three times in these two verses). It signaled an end to his work of creation.

But we also see that God’s rest established a pattern of rest for his creatures. God is infinite; we are finite. Goddidn’t need to rest: God chose to rest, knowing that we would need to rest. We worship a God who knew we would need to take breaks from our work. 

What work fills this season of your life? A job may be the first thing that comes to mind, but work isn’t limited to paid employment. Work is anything you do with some degree of necessity that involves your sustained effort. This may include studying in school, managing your home, tending your land or yard, parenting children, caring for your parents or your spouse, and volunteering in your church, school, or community. What will your rest be? At its simplest, rest is pausing from this work.

—Heather Nelson, author, Rest: A 31-Day Devotional for Life