The plain, simple, surface reading of the text, the overly literalistic reading of a Bible verse might be the WRONG reading without the appropriate, context. Context matters especially the ancient cultural context. Any of John Walton’s work on the Old Testament is helpful. I am a big fan.
Genesis 2:2 is so often taught wrong and misapplied. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy because on it he RESTED from all the work of creating that he had done. Rest does NOT mean NAP, RECHARGE, BINGE NETFLIX.
An ancient audience would have seen Genesis 1 – 2:3 as a cosmic construction story of God’s temple. We are programmed to think of temples in religious terms, not ruling terms, but ancient temples are different from churches today. Don’t think worship. Think White House. Don’t think home. Think headquarters.
Walton notes, “A temple is built in the ancient world so that deity can have a center for his rule. The temple is the residence and palace of the gods. Like the American White House, it is the hub of authority and control. It is where the work of running the country takes place.”
So right away in Genesis 1-2:3, we have an account of a king building a palace from which he will rule. (p. 71,74)
READ 2 TIMOTHY 2:15 to see what is required to read the Bible correctlyIt’s not enough to quote a verse. We need to interpret it and show how exactly it applies.