The Sabbath Day

Elohim's Sabbath

As we read Scripture, one of the striking elements regarding the Sabbath is that it belongs to Elohim and that it was given to man for his sanctification. Elohim made the rest on the seventh day of the creation week and set it apart. He rested not because of tiredness or fatigue. Instead, He ceased His work of building up and creating the universe and the world because it was complete. Afterwards, observance of the Sabbath becomes part of mankind's relationship with the Almighty through past, present, and future and is used to identify His people.

Sanctifying His People

The Almighty used the Sabbath as a remembrance of the creation, as a sign of His people, and as a test of His people which carried with it a judgment. It is clearly stated that the Sabbath was given to the people of Israel through all generations as a sign that He is setting His people apart. That it shall be considered set-apart because it is set-apart to YHVH. It is perpetual, to all generations, and forever. He gave Israel the Sabbaths so they would know it is He who sanctifies them.

The Seventh Day in Scripture

The Hebrew language distinguishes between the seventh day and the action of resting. The seventh day comes in the form of (pronounced hayom hashvee'ee) while Sabbath comes in the form (pronounced shabbat). A literal reading of the Hebrew language reveals where the emphasis is placed regarding this topic. The phrase 'Sabbath Day', as commonly in many translations, comes from the Hebrew phrase (hayom hashabbat) which more literally reads as 'day of rest'. Just as the phrase 'son of David' would emphasize the topic of the son and not David himself, the phrase 'day of rest' emphasizes the day and not the rest which is only a modifier of day. This phrase is frequently used to refer to the seventh day when instructions and commandments are being given to the people of Israel.

The Sabbath at Creation

During the week of creation, Elohim made the Heavens and the Earth for six days. On the seventh day, the work was complete and He rested from His labor. At this time Elohim blessed and sanctified the seventh day thereby setting it apart for special use for all time. The Hebrew word, normally translated as holy in most English Bibles, is qadosh, but more accurately means “to set apart”. So we see that the Sabbath is the very first thing that the Scriptures record as being set-apart by our Creator. The Sabbath of Elohim is mentioned in Scripture over 100 times and always refers to the seventh day of the week.

Sabbath in the Sinai Covenant

After the Egyptian slavery, the time had come for the Nation of Israel to physically receive from the promises given to Abraham by going to the promised land. During this journey Elohim made a covenant with the people that, if obeyed, would give them blessing and that, if disobeyed, would bring cursing and the eventual removal from the land. This covenant is summed up in the Ten Commandments which were written in Stone. The fourth commandment states that the Sabbath, the seventh day rest, is to be observed. Furthermore this rest, which was set-apart to Yahveh, was chosen as a sign of the sanctification of the Nation of Israel.

The Messiah and the Sabbath

The Messiah was perfect and righteous in every way and serves as our example for both thought and action. In regards to the Sabbath, His example shows clearly some of the things that are and are not allowed. Messiah regularly attended synagogue on the Sabbath. He also regularly did good deeds like healing on the Sabbath which is against Pharisaic tradition but not against Scripture. The Messiah regularly visited with others on the Sabbath. The disciples were His students and followed what they were taught. After the resurrection, the disciples went out and continued the practice of attending fellowship on the seventh day of the week.

Attacking the Sabbath

From the beginning of the rebellion, Satan has tried to imitate or steal away from the Almighty. Continuing in this approach, there are attempts by both believers and non-believers to remove the Sabbath and even further to discredit the Almighty's claim as Creator. Much of this is intentional by non-believers and unintentional by believers. In particular, the Bishops declared for themselves the authority to decide which commandments people are to obey in worshiping the Almighty. One of the foremost of these changes was the keeping of the Sunday Sabbath.

Doing Good on the Sabbath

Many times in the Gospels, the Messiah is accused of breaking the Sabbath rest. Often, He did not break a commandment of Elohim, but rather one of the man-made laws of the Pharisees. Yet through His actions and teachings we see that there is a time to make effort on the day of rest. This often involves stopping or preventing the loss of something. Such examples of a persons health being lost and having a healing, or of an animal falling in a pit and being rescued, of gathering food when suffering from hunger, or sharing with others who have a need. These types of situations are all answered by Messiah with a message of guiltless or innocent. In our rest we are instructed not to build up or increase what we have on the Sabbath and yet effort is allowed to prevent suffering and loss. A great work indeed is loosing those that are bound by Satan.