4:4a
For: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as For introduces the basis for the author’s comment in 4:3e–f. Another way to introduce this basis is:
We know that because
Connect this basis to 4:3 in a natural way in your language.
somewhere He has spoken…in this manner: The phrase somewhere He has spoken…in this manner introduces a quotation. The word somewhere refers to a part of the Scripture. The author used a similar reference to Scripture in 2:6a, which the Berean Standard Bible translates literally as “somewhere it is testified in these words.”
Some other ways to introduce this quotation are:
somewhere in the Scriptures this is said (Good News Translation)
-or-
in God’s Word/Book it tells/says
In some languages it is more natural to use indirect speech for this verse. For example:
In fact, somewhere the Scriptures say that… (Contemporary English Version)
Use a natural way in your language to introduce a quotation from the Scriptures.
about the seventh day: The phrase about the seventh day refers to the seventh day after God began to create the world. In some languages it may be necessary to make this phrase more explicit.
Some other ways to translate the phrase about the seventh day are:
what God did on the seventh day
-or-
the seventh day ⌊after he began to create the world⌋
4:4b
And on the seventh day God rested from all His works: This clause is a quotation from Genesis 2:2b. The author used this quotation to support what he said in 4:3e–f. It indicates that on the seventh day, after God created everything, he rested.
Some other ways to translate this quotation are:
On the seventh day God rested/stopped from all his work.
-or-
It says that God rested on the seventh day, having finished the work that he had done.
on the seventh day God rested: The phrase on the seventh day God rested contrasts with the first six days, when God was creating everything. When he finished this work of creating, he rested on the seventh day. Notice that the seventh day was also mentioned in the phrase “about the seventh day” in 4:4a.
from all His works: The phrase from all His works indicates that ⌊God rested⌋ after he finished all the work of making the universe and everything in it.
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