Biblical Sabbath

Illustration from the first engraved Christian Bible in Russian (1696), depicting God reposing on Sabbath.

Biblical Sabbath is a weekly day of rest or time of worship given in the Bible as the seventh day. It is observed differently in Judaism and Christianity and informs a similar occasion in several other faiths. Though many viewpoints and definitions have arisen over the millennia, most originate in the same textual tradition of "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy".

Observation and remembrance of Sabbath is one of the Ten Commandments (the fourth in the original Jewish, the Eastern Orthodox, and most Protestant traditions, the third in Roman Catholic and Lutheran traditions), sometimes referred to individually as the Sabbath Commandment. Most people who observe Biblical Sabbath regard it as having been made for man (Mark. 2:27) at Creation (Ex. 20:8–11), and instituted as a perpetual covenant for the people of Israel (Ex. 31:13-17, Ex. 23:12, Deut. 5:13-14), a rule that also applies to proselytes, and a sign respecting two events: the seventh day, during which God rested after having completed Creation in six days (Gen. 2:2-3, Ex. 20:8-11), and God's deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt (Deut. 5:12-15).

Etymology

Sabbath

The Anglicized term "Sabbath" is in Hebrew Shabbath (שַׁבָּת, Strong's Concordance number 7676 as šabbāt, now usually Shabbat), meaning "day of rest". It derives from the verb shavath of same Hebrew spelling but different pointing (שָׁבַת, Strong's 7673 as šāvat, often shavat), defined as "repose, i.e. desist from exertion" (often "rest" or "cease"). (Another noun form of this root, shebeth ("cessation", 7674), is identical to the infinitive (7675) of the common word "to sit" (yashav, 3427).) Shabbath is the intensified form and is used only for a weekly cessation, 107 times in the Tanakh.

Sabbatai Zevi in 1665.

The name form is "Shabbethai" (Shabbethay, "restful", 7678), a name appearing three times in the Tanakh. The Talmud also contains a pun on shebeth, where it secondarily means "dill", a spice. Another related word is modern Hebrew shevita, a labor strike, with the same focus on active cessation of labor. And in over thirty languages other than English, the common name for Saturday is a cognate of "Sabbath".

A cognate Babylonian Sapattum or Sabattum is reconstructed from the lost fifth Enûma Eliš creation account, which is read as: "[Sa]bbatu shalt thou then encounter, mid[month]ly". It is regarded as a form of Sumerian sa-bat ("mid-rest"), rendered in Akkadian as um nuh libbi ("day of mid-repose").[1]

The dependent Greek cognate is Sabbaton (4521), used in the New Testament 68 times. Two inflections, Hebrew Shabbathown (7677) and Greek "σαββατισμός" (Sabbatismós, 4520), are both translated "sabbatism" in Strong's (a "special holiday" or "the repose of Christianity"). The Hebrew form refers to High Sabbaths. The Greek form is cognate to the Septuagint verb sabbatizo (e.g., Ex. 16:30; Lev. 23:32; 26:34; 2 Chr. 36:21). In English, the concept of "Sabbatical" is cognate to these two forms.

The King James Bible uses the English form "sabbath(s)" 172 times. In the Old Testament, "sabbath(s)" translates Shabbath all 107 times (including 35 plurals), plus shebeth three times, shabath once, and the related mishbath once (plural). In the New Testament, "sabbath" translates Sabbaton 59 times and prosabbaton once (the day before Sabbath); Sabbaton is also translated as "week" nine times, by synecdoche.

Shmita

Sabbath Year or Shmita (Hebrew: שמטה‎‎, Shemittah, Strong's 8059, literally "release"), also called Sabbatical Year, is the seventh (שביעי, shebiy'iy, 7637) year of the seven-year agricultural cycle mandated by Torah for the Land of Israel, relatively little observed in Biblical tradition, but still observed in contemporary Judaism. During Shmita, the land is left to lie fallow and all agricultural activity—including plowing, planting, pruning and harvesting—is forbidden by Torah and Jewish law.[2] By tradition, other cultivation techniques (such as watering, fertilizing, weeding, spraying, trimming and mowing) may be performed as preventative measures only, not to improve the growth of trees or plants; additionally, whatever fruits grow of their own accord during that year are deemed hefker (ownerless), not for the landowner but for the poor, the stranger, and the beasts of the field; these fruits may be picked by anyone. A variety of laws also apply to the sale, consumption and disposal of Shmita produce. When the year ended, all debts, except those of foreigners, were to be remitted (Deut. 15:1-11); in similar fashion, Torah requires a slave who had worked for six years to go free in the seventh year. Leviticus 25 promises bountiful harvests to those who observe Shmita, and describes its observance as a test of religious faith. The term Shmita is translated "release" five times in the Book of Deuteronomy (from the root שמט, shamat, "desist, remit", 8058).

Tanakh

Torah

Yemenite Jew blowing the shofar (ram's-horn trumpet) for Sabbath in the 1930s.

Prophets

"Der Samstug (Sabbath)", Frederich Campe, 1800: German Jews, wearing baretta hats, gather outside a synagogue on Sabbath.

Writings

Oldest Sabbatarian Meeting House in America (Seventh Day Baptist), built in 1729 in Newport, Rhode Island, now owned by Newport Historical Society.

New Testament

Gospels

Matthew, Mark, and Luke contain several synoptic accounts, which John occasionally concurs in.

Epistles

Apocrypha

Religious books from no Biblical canon

Frameworks

Table set for Shabbat eve.

Three primary interpretative frameworks exist, with many subcategories. Interpretation is complicated by the differing meanings attributed to unambiguous seventh-day Sabbath prior to the resurrection of Jesus; the ambiguity of events after the resurrection, including first-day and seventh-day events (Acts 20:7, 1 Cor. 16:2, perhaps Rev. 1:10; Acts 1:12, 13:13-45, 15:19-29, 16:13, 17:2, and 18:4); and several early Christian observances being attested as daily or on nonspecific days (Mk. 2:1-2, Lk. 19:47-20:1, Acts 2:42-47). Early Christians also observed Jewish practices as a sect of Judaism (Acts 3:1, 5:27-42, 21:18-26, 24:5, 24:14, 28:22), and observed Tanakh feasts (Passover, Acts 12:3-4, 20:6, 1 Cor. 5:7-8, 15:20, Jude 12; Pentecost, Acts 2:1, 18:21, 20:16, 1 Cor. 16:8; Atonement, Acts 27:9). Interpreters of each framework consider the high regard for the New Covenant described in Jer. 31:31 (cf. Heb. 8:1-13) as supporting their Sabbath positions.

Seventh day

Observing the Sabbath-closing havdalah ritual in 14th-century Spain.

At least two branches of Christianity keep a seventh-day Sabbath, though historically they are not derived one from the other: the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Seventh-day Sabbatarians. Of different outlooks in some respects, they share others. Just as in the Jewish calendar, the Orthodox begin and end every ecclesial day at sunset, including the Sabbath. Both branches thus observe the Sabbath from what the civil calendar identifies as Friday sunset until Saturday sunset. Both identify the Sabbath with the day of rest established by God as stated in Genesis 2, a day to be kept holy. Both identify Jesus Christ as the Lord of the Sabbath, and acknowledge that he faithfully kept the Sabbath throughout his life on earth. Both accept the admonitions of St. Ignatius on the keeping of the Sabbath.[14]

Seventh-day Sabbatarians

Seventh-day Sabbatarians rest on the seventh Hebrew day. Jewish Shabbat is observed from sundown on Friday until the appearance of three stars in the sky on Saturday night; it is also observed by a minority of Christians. Thirty-nine activities prohibited on Shabbat are listed in Tractate Shabbat (Talmud). Customarily, Shabbat is ushered in by lighting candles shortly before sunset, at halakhically calculated times that change from week to week and from place to place. Observance in Hebrew Scriptures was universally from sixth-day evening to seventh-day evening (Neh. 13:19, cf. Lev. 23:32) on a seven-day week; Shabbat ends approximately one hour after sunset by rabbinical ordinance to extend the Tanakh's sunset-to-sunset Sabbath into the first day of the week. The Jewish interpretation usually states that the New Covenant (Jer. 31:31) refers to the future Messianic Kingdom.

Several Christian denominations (such as Seventh Day Baptist, Seventh-day Adventist, Sabbath Rest Advent Church, Church of God (Seventh Day), and other Churches of God) observe Sabbath similarly to or less rigorously than Judaism, but observance ends at Saturday sunset instead of Saturday nightfall. Like the Jews with Shabbat, they believe that keeping seventh-day Sabbath is a moral responsibility, equal to that of any of the Ten Commandments, that honors God as Creator and Deliverer. The Christian seventh-day interpretation usually states that Sabbath belongs inherently to all nations (Ex. 20:10, Is. 56:6-7, 66:22-23) and remains part of the New Covenant after the crucifixion of Jesus (Lk. 23:56, Mt. 24:20, Acts 16:13, Heb. 8:10).[7][15] Many seventh-day Sabbatarians also use "Lord's Day" to mean the seventh day, based on Scriptures in which God calls the day "my Sabbath" (Ex. 31:13) and "to the LORD" (16:23); some count Sunday separately as Lord's Day and many consider it appropriate for communal worship (but not for first-day rest, which would be considered breaking the Ten Commandments[16]).

In this way, St. Ignatius saw believers "no longer observing the [Jewish] Sabbath, but living in the observance of the Lord's Day", and amplified this point as follows: "Let us therefore no longer keep the Sabbath after the Jewish manner, and rejoice in days of idleness .... But let every one of you keep the Sabbath after a spiritual manner, rejoicing in meditation on the law, not in relaxation of the body, admiring the workmanship of God, and not eating things prepared the day before, nor using lukewarm drinks, and walking within a prescribed space, nor finding delight in dancing and plaudits which have no sense in them. And after the observance of the Sabbath, let every friend of Christ keep the Lord's Day as a festival, the resurrection-day, the queen and chief of all the days."[14]

The Seventh-day Adventist official 28 fundamental beliefs (at 20) state:

The beneficent Creator, after the six days of Creation, rested on the seventh day and instituted the Sabbath for all people as a memorial of Creation. The fourth commandment of God's unchangeable law requires the observance of this seventh-day Sabbath as the day of rest, worship, and ministry in harmony with the teaching and practice of Jesus, the Lord of the Sabbath. The Sabbath is a day of delightful communion with God and one another. It is a symbol of our redemption in Christ, a sign of our sanctification, a token of our allegiance, and a foretaste of our eternal future in God's kingdom. The Sabbath is God's perpetual sign of His eternal covenant between Him and His people. Joyful observance of this holy time from evening to evening, sunset to sunset, is a celebration of God's creative and redemptive acts. (Gen. 2:1-3; Ex. 20:8-11; Luke 4:16; Isa. 56:5, 6; 58:13, 14; Matt. 12:1-12; Ex. 31:13-17; Eze. 20:12, 20; Deut. 5:12-15; Heb. 4:1-11; Lev. 23:32; Mark 1:32.)[17]

The Doctrinal Points of the Church of God (7th day) (Salem Conference, at 17) state:

We should observe the seventh day of the week (Saturday), from even to even, as the Sabbath of the Lord our God. Evening is at sunset when day ends and another day begins. No other day has ever been sanctified as the day of rest. The Sabbath Day begins at sundown on Friday and ends at sundown on Saturday. Genesis 2:1-3; Exodus 20:8-11; Isaiah 58:13-14; 56:1-8; Acts 17:2; Acts 18:4, 11; Luke 4:16; Mark 2:27-28; Matthew 12:10-12; Hebrews 4:1-11; Genesis 1:5, 13-14; Nehemiah 13:19.[18]

Both Jewish and Christian seventh-day interpretation usually state that Jesus' teachings relate to the Pharisaic position on Sabbath observance, and that Jesus kept seventh-day Sabbath throughout his life on earth.

Sunday law

Noticing the rise of blue laws, the Seventh-day Adventist church in particular has traditionally taught that in the end time a coalition of religious and secular authorities will enforce an international Sunday law; church pioneers saw observance of seventh-day Sabbath as a "mark" or "seal" or test of God's people that seals them, even as those who do not observe Sunday rest will be persecuted and killed. Ellen G. White interpreted Dan. 7:25, Rev. 13:15, Rev. 7, Ezek. 20:12-20, and Ex. 31:13 in this way, describing the subject of persecution in prophecy as being about Sabbath commandments.

First day

Most Christians worship communally on the first (Hebrew or Roman) day. In most Christian denominations (Roman Catholic, some Eastern Orthodox, and most Protestant), the "Lord's Day" (Sunday) is the fulfillment of the "Sabbath" (Catholic Catechism 2175), which is kept in commemoration of the resurrection of Christ, and often celebrated with the Eucharist (Catholic Catechism 2177).[19] It is often also the day of rest. Lord's Day is considered both the first day and the "eighth day" of the seven-day week, symbolizing both first creation and new creation (2174).[19] (Alternatively, in some calendars, Sunday is designated the seventh day of the week.) Relatively few Christians regard first-day observance as entailing all of the ordinances of Shabbat. This interpretation usually states that the Holy Spirit through the Apostles instituted the worship celebration of the first day to commemorate Jesus' resurrection, and that the New Covenant transfers Sabbath-keeping (whether defined as rest or communal worship or both) to the first day by implication.[20] In Roman Catholicism, the transfer is described as based on their church's authority and papal infallibility.[21]

Roman Catholics (and many Protestants) view the first day as a day for assembly for worship (2178, Heb. 10:25),[19] but consider a day of rigorous rest not obligatory on Christians (Rom. 14:5, Col. 2:16).[22] Catholics count the prohibition of servile work as transferred from seventh-day Sabbath to Sunday (2175-6),[19][23] but do not hinder participation in "ordinary and innocent occupations".[24] Similarly, second-century father Justin Martyr believed in keeping perpetual Sabbath by repentance,[25] holding that Gentile Christians need not rest as Jews were commanded;[26] but he accepted extant non-Judaizing seventh-day Sabbatarian Christians "in all things as kinsmen and brethren".[27]

In other Protestant denominations, Lord's Day is kept as a rest day with similar rigor as Jewish Sabbath. The Westminster Confession of Faith 21:7-8, a Reformed Sabbatarian creed, states:

As it is the law of nature, that, in general, a due proportion of time be set apart for the worship of God; so, in His Word, by a positive, moral, and perpetual commandment binding all men in all ages, He has particularly appointed one day in seven, for a Sabbath, to be kept holy unto him (Ex. 20:8, 20:10-11, Is. 56:2, 56:4, 56:6-7): which, from the beginning of the world to the resurrection of Christ, was the last day of the week: and, from the resurrection of Christ, was changed into the first day of the week (Ge. 2:2-3, 1 Cor. 16:1-2, Ac. 20:7), which, in Scripture, is called the Lord's Day (Rev. 1:10), and is to be continued to the end of the world, as the Christian Sabbath (Ex. 20:8, 20:10, Mt. 5:17). This Sabbath is to be kept holy unto the Lord when men, after a due preparing of their hearts, and ordering of their common affairs beforehand, do not only observe an holy rest all the day from their own works, words, and thoughts about their worldly employments and recreations (Ex. 20:8, 16:23, 16:25-26, 16:29-30, 31:15-17, Is. 58:13, Neh. 13:15-19, 13:21-22), but also are taken up the whole time in the public and private exercises of His worship, and in the duties of necessity and mercy (Is. 58:13).[28]

Likewise, the General Rules of the Methodist Church required "attending upon all the ordinances of God" including "the public worship of God" and prohibited "profaning the day of the Lord, either by doing ordinary work therein or by buying or selling".[29]

Assemblies

The following textual evidence for first-day assembly is usually combined with the notion that the rest day should follow the assembly day to support first-day Sabbatarianism. On the first day of the week (usually considered the day of Firstfruits), after Jesus has been raised from the dead (Mk. 16:9), he appears to Mary Magdalene, Peter, Cleopas, and others. "On the evening of that first day of the week" (Roman time), or the evening beginning the second day (Hebrew time), the resurrected Jesus appears at a meeting of ten apostles and other disciples (Jn. 20:19). The same time of the week "a week later" (NIV) or, more literally, "after eight days again" inclusive (KJV), Jesus appears to the eleven apostles and others (Jn. 20:26). After Jesus ascends (Acts 1:9), on the feast of Pentecost or Shavuot (the 50th day from Firstfruits and thus usually calculated as the first day of the week), the Spirit of God is given to the disciples, who baptize 3,000 people into the apostolic fellowship. Later, on one occasion in Troas, the early Christians meet on the first day (Hebrew) to break bread and to listen to Christian preaching (Acts 20:7). Paul also states that the churches of Corinth and Galatia should set aside donations on the first day for collection (1 Cor. 16:2). Didache 14:1 (AD 70-120?) contains an ambiguous text, translated by Roberts as, "But every Lord's day gather yourselves together, and break bread, and give thanksgiving";[30] the first clause in Greek, "κατά κυριακήν δέ κυρίου", literally means "On the Lord's of the Lord",[31] and translators supply the elided noun (e.g., "day", "commandment" (from 13:7), or "doctrine").[32] Gleason Archer regards this as clearly referring to Sunday.[33] Breaking bread may refer to Christian fellowship, agape feasts, or Eucharist (cf. Acts 2:42, 20:7). Other interpreters believe these references do not support the concept of transfer of the seventh-day rest, and some add that they do not sufficiently prove that Sunday observance was an established practice in the primitive New Testament church.

By the second century, Justin Martyr stated, "We all gather on the day of the sun" (recalling both the creation of light and the resurrection);[34] and the Epistle of Barnabas on Is. 1:13 stated the eighth-day assembly marks the resurrection and the new creation: "He is saying there: 'It is not these sabbaths of the present age that I find acceptable, but the one of my own appointment: the one that, after I have set all things at rest, is to usher in the Eighth Day, the commencement of a new world.' (And we too rejoice in celebrating the Eighth Day; because that was when Jesus rose from the dead, and showed Himself again, and ascended into heaven.)"[35]

Both days

Ethiopian Orthodox and Eritrean Orthodox Christians (both of which are branches of Oriental Orthodoxy) distinguish between the Sabbath (seventh day) and Lord's Day (first day) and observe both. Seventh-day Adventists in several islands of the Pacific (Tonga; Western Samoa; Tokelau; Wallis & Futuna; Phoenix & Line Islands) observe Sunday as the practice on ships in the Pacific had been to change days at the 180° meridian. The islands were well to the east of this line, so the missionaries observed the Sabbath on the day sequence of the Western Hemisphere. However, the Tonga islands used the same days as New Zealand and Australia, so the missionaries were observing the seventh-day Sabbath on the day the secular authorities called Sunday.[36][lower-alpha 1]

The International Date Line (IDL) was placed east of Tonga to align its weekdays with New Zealand and Fiji. Consequently, Tonga's time zone is UTC+13 rather than UTC−12:00, as it would be if the Date Line ran along the 180° meridian.[37] However, the SDA church observes the Sabbath as though the IDL followed the 180° meridian.

When the International Date Line was moved, islanders who had been worshiping on Sabbath were suddenly worshiping on Sunday because of a man made international treaty. After much discussion within the church, it was decided that the islanders would continue to worship on the same day as they always had, even though the name of the day had been changed from Saturday to Sunday by decree. However this situation is not without conflict.[38]

Note:

  1. ↑ Governments are free to select the time zone of their choice.

Unspecified day

Non-Sabbatarians affirm human liberty not to observe a weekly rest or worship day. While keepers of weekly days usually believe in religious liberty,[39] non-Sabbatarians are particularly free to uphold Sabbath principles, or not, without limiting observance to either Saturday or Sunday. Some advocate Sabbath rest on any chosen day of the week, and some advocate Sabbath as a symbolic metaphor for rest in Christ; the concept of "Lord's Day" is usually treated as synonymous with "Sabbath". The non-Sabbatarian interpretation usually states that Jesus' obedience and the New Covenant fulfilled the laws of Sabbath, which are thus often considered abolished or abrogated.

Some of Jesus' teachings are considered as redefining the Sabbath laws of the Pharisees (Lk. 13:10-17, Jn. 5:16-18, 9:13-16). Since Jesus is understood to have fulfilled Torah (Mk. 2:28, Mt. 5:17), non-Sabbatarian Christians believe that they are not bound by Sabbath as legalists consider themselves to be. Non-Sabbatarians can thus exhibit either Christian liberty or antinomianism. On principles of religious liberty, non-Sabbatarian Jews similarly affirm their freedom not to observe Shabbat as Orthodox Jews do.

Non-Sabbatarian Christians also cite 2 Cor. 3:2-3, in which believers are compared to "a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written ... not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts"; this interpretation states that Christians accordingly no longer follow the Ten Commandments with dead orthodoxy ("tablets of stone"), but follow a new law written upon "tablets of human hearts". 3:7-11 adds that "if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory ..., will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? .... And if what was fading away came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!" This is interpreted as teaching that new-covenant Christians are not under the Mosaic law, and that Sabbath-keeping is not required. Further, because "love is the fulfillment of the law" (Rom. 13:10), the new-covenant "law" is considered to be based entirely upon love and to rescind Sabbath requirements.

Non-Sabbatarians who affirm that Sabbath-keeping remains for God's people (as in Heb. 4:9) often regard this as present spiritual rest and/or future heavenly rest rather than as physical weekly rest. For instance, Irenaeus saw Sabbath rest from secular affairs for one day each week as a sign of the way that Christians were called to permanently devote themselves to God[40] and an eschatological symbol.[41]

Interpretations

Genesis 2

Based on Genesis 2:1-4, Sabbath is considered by seventh-day Sabbatarians to be the first holy day mentioned in the Bible, with God, Adam, and Eve being the first to observe it. In order to reconcile an omnipotent God with a resting on the seventh day of Creation, the notion of active cessation from labor, rather than passive rest, has been regarded as a more consistent reading of God's activity in this passage. Non-Sabbatarians and many first-day Sabbatarians consider this passage not to have instituted observance of Sabbath, which they place as beginning with Moses and the manna. Walter Brueggemann emphasizes Sabbath is rooted in the history of the Book of Exodus.[42]

Matthew 5

Jesus' statement, "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them," is highly debated. Some non-Sabbatarians and others such as Anabaptists believe Jesus greatly reformed the Law and thus that Sabbath could only be justified if it were reaffirmed by Jesus. Antinomianism, generally regarded as a heresy, holds that, because Jesus accomplished all that was required by the law, thus "fulfilling" it, he made it unnecessary for anyone to do anything further. Strict Sabbatarians follow or expand Augustine's statement in Reply to Faustus that Jesus empowered his people to obey the law and gave additional commands that furthered its true intentions. This passage is often related to Colossians 2, from which maintenance, transference, or abolition of Sabbath are variously taught.

Colossians 2

The English Standard Version at Col. 2:16-7 ("Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.") is taken as affirming non-Sabbatarian freedom from obligations to Sabbath, whether this means only annual Sabbaths (Lev. 23:4–44)[43] or specifically weekly Sabbath (Lev. 23:1–3).[44] This passage's threefold categorization of events is parallel to Num. 28-29, 1 Chr. 23:31, 2 Chr. 2:4, Is. 1:13, Ezek. 45:17 (Lev. 23 mentions Sabbaths and festivals but not new moons). Accordingly, non-Sabbatarians and some first-day Sabbatarians believe this passage indicates Sabbath-keeping is part of an Old Covenant that is not mandatory (cf. Heb. 8:13). Seventh-day Sabbatarians and strict first-day Sabbatarians believe this passage indicates that weekly Sabbath remains to be kept as a shadow of things future to Paul's day[45] and/or a memorial of creation past.[43]

Additionally, Col. 2:13-5 states, "And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him." The ESV footnote regards "in it (that is, the cross)" as equivalent to the closing in him (Christ). First-day Sabbatarians and non-Sabbatarians often regard Sabbath as changed, either to Lord's Day or to spiritual Sabbath, by the Mosaic law being the "record of debt" (ESV) nailed to the cross. Some seventh-day Sabbatarians regard only High Sabbaths as abolished due to their foreshadowing the cross, holding it impossible for weekly Sabbath (which preceded sin) to foreshadow deliverance from sin in the cross.[12] Others see the "record of debt" (accusations) as distinct from God's unchanging law, believing it to be in force and affirmed by the evangelists after Jesus died on the cross,[7] regarding Sabbath, new moon, and High Sabbaths not as nailed to the cross but as foreshadowing the eternal plan of God.[13]

Hebrews 4

The unique word sabbatismos in Hebrews 4:9 is translated "rest" in the Authorized Version and others; "Sabbath rest" in the New International Version and other modern translations; "Sabbatism" (a transliteration) in the Darby Bible; "Sabbath observance" in the Scriptures 98 Edition; and "Sabbath keeping" in the Bible in Basic English. The word also appears in Plutarch, De Superstitione 3 (Moralia 166A); Justin, Dialogue with Trypho 23:3; Epiphanius, Adversus Haereses 30:2:2; Martyrium Petri et Pauli 1; and Apostolic Constitutions 2:36:2. Andrew Lincoln states, "In each of these places the term denotes the observance or celebration of the Sabbath .... Thus the writer to the Hebrews is saying that since the time of Joshua an observance of the Sabbath rest has been outstanding."[46] Sabbatarians believe the primary abiding Christian duty intended is weekly Sabbath-keeping, while non-Sabbatarians believe it is spiritual or eschatological Sabbath-keeping; both meanings may be intended. Justin uses sabbatismos in Trypho 23:3 to mean weekly Sabbath-keeping.

However, Justin does not speak of Hebrews 4, instead holding that there is no longer any need for weekly Sabbath-keeping for anyone. Hippolytus of Rome, in the early third century, interpreted the term in Hebrews 4 to have special reference to a millennial Sabbath kingdom after six millennia of labor. St. Chrysostom interpreted the term as having reference to three rests: God's rest from His labor on the seventh day, the rest of the Israelites in arriving in Canaan, and the heavenly (eschatological) rest for the faithful. He argued that the "rest" that "has been outstanding" is the heavenly rest, since the first two rests had already been going on. He also interpreted weekly Sabbath as a symbol of this heavenly rest: "And well did he conclude the argument. For he said not rest but 'Sabbath-keeping'; calling the kingdom 'Sabbath-keeping,' by the appropriate name, and that which they rejoiced in and were attracted by. For as, on the Sabbath He commands to abstain from all evil things; and that those things only which relate to the Service of God should be done, which things the Priests were wont to accomplish, and whatsoever profits the soul, and nothing else; so also [will it be] then."[47]

Matthew Henry calls this "a rest of grace, and comfort, and holiness, in the gospel state. And a rest in glory, where the people of God shall enjoy the end of their faith, and the object of all their desires .... undoubtedly the heavenly rest, which remains to the people of God, and is opposed to a state of labour and trouble in this world. It is the rest they shall obtain when the Lord Jesus shall appear from heaven .... God has always declared man's rest to be in him, and his love to be the only real happiness of the soul."[48] This is taken to support the belief that Sabbath-keeping is a metaphor for the eternal "rest" that Christians enjoy in Christ, prefigured by the promised land of Canaan.

Hebrews 8

Non-Sabbatarians and some first-day Sabbatarians believe Hebrews 8 indicates Sabbath-keeping is not mandatory, because "in that he saith, a new covenant, he hath made the first old" (Heb. 8:13 KJV; or "obsolete" NIV). Seventh-day Sabbatarians and strict first-day Sabbatarians believe Hebrews 8 indicates the Law of God (including Sabbath) remains on the hearts of God's people to be kept, but not fallibly as in the older covenant (Heb. 8:9–10).

See also

References

  1. ↑ Pinches, T.G. (2003). "Sabbath (Babylonian)". In Hastings, James. Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics. 20. Selbie, John A., contrib. Kessinger Publishing. pp. 889–891. ISBN 978-0-7661-3698-4. Retrieved 2009-03-17. It has been argued that the association of the number seven with creation itself derives from the circumstance that the Enuma Elish was recorded on seven tablets. "emphasized by Professor Barton, who says: 'Each account is arranged in a series of sevens, the Babylonian in seven tablets, the Hebrew in seven days. Each of them places the creation of man in the sixth division of its series." Albert T. Clay, The Origin of Biblical Traditions: Hebrew Legends in Babylonia and Israel, 1923, p. 74.
  2. ↑ "Sabbatical Year: every seventh year, during which the land, according to the law of Moses, had to remain uncultivated (Lev. 25:2-7; comp. Ex. 23:10, 11, 12; Lev. 26:34, 35). Whatever grew of itself during that year was not for the owner of the land, but for the poor and the stranger and the beasts of the field." Easton's Bible Dictionary, 1897.
  3. ↑ Dabney, Robert L. "The Christian Sabbath: Its Nature, Design and Proper Observance". Discussions of Robert L. Dabney. 1. Center for Reformed Theology and Apologetics. pp. 497–8.
  4. ↑ Lincoln, Prof. Andrew T. (1982). "Sabbath, rest and eschatology in the New Testament". In Carson, D. A. From Sabbath to Lord's Day. Zondervan. pp. 197–220.
  5. ↑ Edwards, Jonathan. First Sermon: The Perpetuity of the Sabbath. After the Christian dispensation was fully set up .... even then Christians were bound to a strict observation of the sabbath.
  6. ↑ "The Sabbath and the Gospels". Sabbath in the Bible. World's Last Chance. 2004–2012.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Wohlberg, Steve. "Sabbath Basics". "Ten Reasons why the Sabbath is not Jewish". Truth Left Behind.
  8. ↑ "Mark 16:9". Oxford NIV Scofield Study Bible. Scofield, C.I., ed.; English, E. Schuyler, chmn. New York City: Oxford University Press. 1984 [1909]. p. 1047.
  9. ↑ "Sunday". The Catholic Encyclopedia. 1913. The practice of meeting together on the first day of the week for the celebration of the Eucharistic Sacrifice is indicated.
  10. ↑ Richards, H.M.S. Hard Nuts Cracked. p. 6. After all there is nothing in the Scriptures to show that the celebration of the Lord's Supper was confined to any particular day of the week. Cf. Acts 2:46.
  11. ↑ Stern, David H. (1992). "Notes on Gal. 4:8-10". Jewish New Testament Commentary. Clarksville, Maryland: Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc. p. 557. ISBN 965-359-008-1. When Gentiles observe these Jewish holidays ... out of fear induced by Judaizers who have convinced them that unless they do these things, God will not accept them, then they are not obeying the Torah but subjugating themselves to legalism .... An alternative interpretation, however, is that the 'days, months, seasons and years' of this passage do not refer to the Jewish holidays at all but to pagan Gentile feasts, naturally and directly reflecting 'those weak and miserable elemental spirits.' According to this understanding Sha'ul was worried that his ex-pagan converts might be returning to these pagan festivals.
  12. 1 2 "6. Doesn't Colossians 2:14-17 do away with the seventh-day Sabbath?". The Lost Day Of History. Amazing Facts. 2010.
  13. 1 2 Howard, Kevin (1997). The Feasts of the Lord. Zion's Hope. p. 224. ISBN 978-0-7852-7518-3.
  14. 1 2 St. Ignatius. "Epistle to the Magnesians". 9.
  15. ↑ "8. But wasn't the Sabbath changed to Sunday at Christ's death or resurrection?". The Lost Day Of History. Amazing Facts. 2010.
  16. ↑ Wohlberg, Steve. "Anti-Sabbath Arguments: Are They Really Right?". Truth Left Behind.
  17. ↑ "Fundamental Beliefs". 20.
  18. ↑ "Doctrinal Points of the Church of God (7th Day)" (PDF). Salem, West Virginia: The Church of God Publishing House. p. 18.
  19. 1 2 3 4 United States Catholic Conference, Inc. (1997). "You Shall Love the Lord Your God with All Your Heart, and with All Your Soul, and with All Your Mind, Article 3, The Third Commandment (2168-2195)". Catechism of the Catholic Church (2d ed.). New York City: Doubleday. pp. 580–6.
  20. ↑ James Cardinal Gibbons, The Faith of Our Fathers (1917 edition), p. 72-73 (16th Edition, p. 111; 88th Edition, p. 89). "You may read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, and you will not find a single line authorizing the sanctification of Sunday. The Scriptures enforce the religious observance of Saturday, a day which we never sanctify."
  21. ↑ Catholic Virginian, October 3, 1947, p. 9, article "To Tell You the Truth." "For example, nowhere in the Bible do we find that Christ or the Apostles ordered that the Sabbath be changed from Saturday to Sunday. We have the commandment of God given to Moses to keep holy the Sabbath day, that is the 7th day of the week, Saturday. Today most Christians keep Sunday because it has been revealed to us by the [Roman Catholic] church outside the Bible."
  22. ↑ "Sabbath". The Catholic Encyclopedia. 1913.
  23. ↑ "Ten Commandments". The Catholic Encyclopedia. 1913.
  24. ↑ "Sabbatarians". The Catholic Encyclopedia. 1913.
  25. ↑ Justin Martyr. "Dialogue with Trypho". 12.
  26. ↑ Justin Martyr. "Dialogue with Trypho". 23.
  27. ↑ Justin Martyr. "Dialogue with Trypho". 47.
  28. ↑ "Westminster Confession of Faith". 21.7-8.
  29. ↑ Tucker, Karen B. Westerfield (27 April 2011). American Methodist Worship. Oxford University Press. p. 46. ISBN 9780199774159.
  30. ↑ "14:1". Didache. Roberts, trans. Early Christian Writings.
  31. ↑ Holmes, M. The Apostolic Fathers: Greek Texts and English Translations.
  32. ↑ Strand, Kenneth A. (1982). The Sabbath in Scripture and History. Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association. pp. 347–8. In Morgan, Kevin (2002). Sabbath Rest. TEACH Services, Inc. pp. 37–8.
  33. ↑ Archer, Gleason L. An Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties (PDF). p. 114.
  34. ↑ Justin Martyr. "First Apology". 67.
  35. ↑ "Epistle of Barnabas". 15. Staniforth, Maxwell, trans.
  36. ↑ Hay 1990, p. 4.
  37. ↑ Greene 2002, p. 80.
  38. ↑
  39. ↑ Berkowitz, Richard & Michele (1991). Shabbat. Baltimore: Lederer Publications. pp. 11–2. ISBN 1-880226-00-6. We have a remembrance–a physical Sabbath day–to remind us anew of our spiritual freedom in him .... Observance paints a sacred picture of what it is like to be united in faith with Messiah Yeshua. One other reason to observe Shabbat is God has a blessing for us.
  40. ↑ "Against Heresies". 3.16.1.
  41. ↑ "Against Heresies". 4.33.2.
  42. ↑ Brueggemann, Walter (2002). The Land: Place as Gift, Promise, and Challenge in Biblical Faith. Overtures to Biblical Theology (2d ed.). Fortress Press. pp. 60, 225. ISBN 978-0-8006-3462-9. Retrieved 2011-09-28. The tradition of Deuteronomy appeals for Sabbath on more historical grounds. Sabbath is rooted in the history of Exodus, which led to the land of fulfillment.
  43. 1 2 Walker, Allen. "Please explain Colossians 2:14". The Law and the Sabbath. pp. 113–116.
  44. ↑ "Notes on Col. 2:16-7". Holy Bible, English Standard Version. The false teacher(s) were advocating a number of Jewish observances, arguing that they were essential for spiritual advancement .... The old covenant observances pointed to a future reality that was fulfilled in the Lord Jesus Christ (cf. Heb. 10:1). Hence, Christians are no longer under the Mosaic covenant (cf. Rom. 6:14–15; 7:1–6; 2 Cor. 3:4–18; Gal. 3:15–4:7). Christians are no longer obligated to observe OT dietary laws ('food and drink') or festivals, holidays, and special days ('a festival ... new moon ... Sabbath,' Col. 2:16), for what these things foreshadowed has been fulfilled in Christ. It is debated whether the Sabbaths in question included the regular seventh-day rest of the fourth commandment, or were only the special Sabbaths of the Jewish festal calendar.
  45. ↑ Stern, David H. (1992). "Notes on Col. 2:17". Jewish New Testament Commentary. Clarksville, Maryland: Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc. p. 611. ISBN 965-359-008-1. These are a shadow of things that are coming, meaning the good things that will happen when Yeshua returns. Both verbs in 17a are present tense.
  46. ↑ Lincoln, Prof. Andrew T. "From Sabbath to Lord's Day (symposium)". p. 213.
  47. ↑ John Chrysostom. "6th Homily on the Epistle to the Hebrews".
  48. ↑ Henry, Matthew. Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible.
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