So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it: some interpreters suggest that God gives his blessing to those who observe the seventh day, but it is more probable that the blessing is given to the seventh day itself. Blessed has the sense of God giving or conferring his favor, so that the one who receives it receives a benefit. In some languages bless may be rendered, for example, “So God gave to the seventh day his special goodness,” “So God made the seventh day good by…,” or “God made the seventh day special.” Hallowed translates a word whose intensive form means “to sanctify,” that is, “to set apart for God’s use, to dedicate to God.” When translating hallowed in this context, it may be necessary to make the purpose clear; for example, “God set it apart as a special day for rest” or “God made it a special day and made it a day when people can rest and worship him.”

The last clause of verse 3 gives the reason God blessed … and hallowed the seventh day: because on it God rested from all his work which he had done in creation. Rested is the same as in verse 2 and has the same sense. Anchor Bible translates “for on it he ceased from all the work he had undertaken,” and New English Bible has “because that day he ceased from all the work he had set himself to do.” See also Good News Translation “stopped working.”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Genesis. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .