What is 'THE SABBATH'

Exodus 31:13Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep, for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you

The Seventh day on the Pagan Roman Calendar is without question, what we now call “Saturday”. It was named by the Romans in honour of “Saturnus”, one of their many false gods borrowed from the Greeks (Cronus), who learned them from the Babylonians, etc. As believers we should avoid speaking his name and also avoid worshiping the Most High on the Pagan Calendar inspired by these false planetary deities in obedience to Exodus 23:13. (also Josh 23:7 and Ps 16:4) Calling the day He blessed and set apart after a false god does not honour Him nor does observing his Shabbat on a Calendar inspired by the false gods of the planetary order!!

First allow me to state that the Sabbath is not JUST the 4th Commandment. Its not just a period of rest, but of worship. Why?

In the Beginning:

(Genesis 2:1-3) “1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their array. 2 And on the seventh day Elohim completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made. 3 And Elohim blessed the seventh day and set it apart, because on it He rested from all His work which Elohim in creating had made.”

*Note: In the beginning there were no “Hebrews” or “Gentiles”, however in the beginning the Sabbath had not became Law. It was merely set-apart by Yah to be the day of rest from working. According to Scripture the Sabbath had not become a LAW until the Exodus and also had become apart of a COVENANT between Yahuwah and Yisrael. It was in and after the Exodus that The Sabbath became a LAW and like most laws, it came with Statutes and regulations.

 The Sabbath is the first mentioned and probably the most important of the "moedim" or Elohim ordained appointed times. Therefore it is extremely important.

Scripture doesn’t say that the Sabbath was a Covenant in Genesis. It only mentions it as a covenant in Exodus:

Do we not define a covenant as a mutual agreement between two parties? Is that not the description by which we recognize a covenant in the Bible?

The Fourth Commandment:

(Exodus 20:8-11) Remember the Sabbath day, to set it apart. 9 “Six days you labour, and shall do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath of Yahweh your Elohim. You do not do any work – you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. 11 “For in six days Yahweh made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore Yahweh blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart.”

*Note: Remember that this is one of THE Ten Commandments written in stone by the finger of Elohim
(Ex 31:18).

The Commandment Repeated:

(Exodus 31:12-17) And Yahuwah spoke to Mosheh, saying, 13 “And you, speak to the children of Yisra’ĕl, saying, ‘My Sabbaths you are to guard, by all means, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, to know that I, Yahuwah, am setting you apart. 14 ‘And you shall guard the Sabbath, for it is set-apart to you. Everyone who profanes it shall certainly be put to death, for anyone who does work on it, that being shall be cut off from among his people. 15 ‘Six days work is done, and on the seventh is a Sabbath of rest, set-apart to Yahuwah. Everyone doing work on the Sabbath day shall certainly be put to death. 16 ‘And the children of Yisra’ĕl shall guard the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations as an everlasting covenant. 17 ‘Between Me and the children of Yisra’ĕl it is a sign forever. For in six days Yahuwah made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed.’ ”

Now let us consider Exodus 31:12-18, "And YWHW spake unto Moses, saying, Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, [the children of Israel here have the meaning of the blood descendants of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, the twelve tribes, literally], "saying, Verily My Sabbaths ye shall keep: FOR IT IS A SIGN BETWEEN ME AND YOU THROUGHOUT YOUR GENERATIONS...." These Scriptures make it very clear how serious Yahweh treats the violation of His Sabbath (and laws). It should serve as a reminder to us all.

Between YWHW and whom? The twelve tribes, or descendants of Jacob-Israel, Yah's chosen earthly race. Now WHY? "That ye may know that I am the Elohim that doth sanctify you."

Sanctify -- set apart. The Sabbath, then is their national sign, setting them apart from other nations and peoples, identifying them as Yah's chosen race.

Now does Sabbath-keeping set one apart? You and I know that it does. The rest of the world sets us apart mighty quick when we begin to keep it. "Ye shall keep the Sabbath, therefore; for it is holy unto you; everyone that defileth it shall surely be put to death." Now death ordinarily means "cut off," generally from Yah.

--->Note, however, that the following words seem to define the meaning here. "For whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off FROM AMONG HIS PEOPLE." Cut off from Yah? No, it says cut off from his people -- Israel.

Cut off from being considered one of Yah's chosen earthly race of people. So, then, consider an Israelite. And, as you know, there is ample scriptural evidence that an outsider can be GRAFTED IN, and considered an ADOPTED child of Israel. And this passage I am discussing tells what cuts one off, and what the national sign is.

The Warning:

(Ezekiel 20:10-20) ...so I took them out of the land of Mitsrayim, and I brought them into the wilderness. 11 “And I gave them My laws and showed them My right-rulings, ‘which, if a man does, he shall live by them.’ 12 “And I also gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between them and Me, to know that I am Yahwuah who sets them apart. 13 “But the house of Yisra’ĕl rebelled against Me in the wilderness. They did not walk in My laws, and they rejected My right-rulings, which, if a man does, he shall live by them. And they greatly profaned My Sabbaths. Then I said I would pour out My wrath on them in the wilderness, to consume them. 14 “But I acted for My Name’s sake, not to profane it before the gentiles, before whose eyes I had brought them out. 15 “And I Myself also lifted My hand in an oath to them in the wilderness, not to bring them into the land which I had given them, flowing with milk and honey, the splendour of all lands, 16 because they rejected My right-rulings and did not walk in My laws, and they profaned My Sabbaths. For their heart went after their idols. 17 “And My eye pardoned them, from destroying them. And I did not make an end of them in the wilderness. 18 “And I said to their children in the wilderness, ‘Do not walk in the laws of your fathers, nor observe their rulings, nor defile yourselves with their idols. 19 ‘I am Yahuwah your Elohim. Walk in My laws, and guard My right-rulings, and do them. 20 ‘And set apart My Sabbaths, and they shall be a sign between Me and you, to know that I am Yahuwah your Elohim.’”

*Note: These Scriptures make it very clear how serious Yahuwah treats the violation of His Sabbath (and laws). It should serve as a reminder to us all.

Why does violation of the Sabbath cut one off from Israel? "To observe the Sabbath throughout their generations, FOR A PERPETUAL COVENANT."

------> Get that word COVENANT. The Sabbath, then, is a covenant, all by itself. And THIS covenant is given as a PERPETUAL covenant. A WHOLLY SEPARATE AND DISTINCT COVENANT IN ITSELF. Entirely apart from the Ten Commandments.

That is, Yah here takes ONE of those Ten Commandments, and makes a separate and distinct and perpetual covenant out of it. Yah, the party of the first part, agrees to be their Yah that doth set them apart as His chosen people, provided the children of Israel, party of the second part, keep His Sabbath command. Failure on the part of the party of the second part to perform their side of the covenant agreement annuls Yah's promise to keep His part of the agreement of setting them apart as His chosen people.

Thus, failure to keep the Sabbath breaks the covenant and cuts one off from being of Israel. The passage continues, "It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel FOREVER."

The Sabbath, here is presented as the SIGN which Yah gave to Israel between Him and them. It formed a new and separate covenant. THIS covenant is a perpetual covenant, to be a sign FOREVER.

I am fully aware of the fact that this passage has been used time and again by both the Church of God and the Adventists. But has it been used as a SEPARATE COVENANT by itself? Has it been considered in the light here analyzed?

Let us analyze it further. It is a SIGN between them -- pointing to Him as their Elohim, and to them as His chosen people.

The Blessing to the Gentiles:

(Isaiah 56:6-7) Also the sons of the foreigner who join themselves to Yahuwah, to serve Him, and to love the Name of Yahuwah, to be His servants, all who guard the Sabbath, and not profane it, and hold fast to My covenant – 7 them I shall bring to My set-apart mountain, and let them rejoice in My house of prayer...”
*Note: The Sabbath is for those who wish to be “grafted into” Yisra’ĕl.

The Sabbath as a Sign:
(Exodus 31:16-17) And the children of Yisra’ĕl shall guard the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations as an everlasting covenant. 17 ‘Between Me and the children of Yisra’ĕl it is a sign forever...”

*Note: Some get confused over who Yisra’ĕl actually is, but as we see in Isaiah in the verse preceding; Yisra’ĕl can also pertain those who hold fast to His Covenant. See also: Hos 2:23, Rom 10:12, Gal 3:28. Notice the Sabbath is a sign forever.

“I shall not profane My covenant, Neither would I change what has gone out from My lips.” (Psalm 89:34)
(Ezekiel 20:12 ) And I also gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between them and Me, to know that I am Yahuwah who sets them apart.”

(Ezekiel 20:20) And set apart My Sabbaths, and they shall be a sign between Me and you, to know that I am Yahuwah your Elohim.’”

*Note: The Sabbath being a “sign” is indicative that others should be able to recognise this observance in an obedient believer. This is what it means to be "set apart". We are different from all the rest of the world who follow after vain pagan traditions.

So such a sign should point to Him AS ELOHIM, and to them AS HIS PEOPLE. Does this Sabbath sign do that? Yes, in a way nothing else could. The proof that He is ELOHIM is the fact of Creation.

By pointing to Creation -- by being a memorial of Creation, it points to Him as the true Elohim. Now how does it point to them as His people? If you will notice whenever Yah has chosen anyone for special office, He has put them to the test of OBEDIENCE. The test is always one of obedience, and if one can pass that test, they qualify for the office of being an Israelite, one of Yah's chosen.

The Commands:

Now let's examine the specific commands pertaining to the keeping of the Sabbath:
(“And You made known to them Your set-apart Sabbath, and You commanded them commands and laws and Torot , by the hand of Mosheh Your servant.”) (Nehemiah 9:14)

No Work:

(Exodus 20:8-10 ) Remember the Sabbath day, to set it apart. 9 “Six days you labour, and shall do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath of Yahuwah your Elohim. You do not do any work – you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates.”

*Note: This is most serious aspect of honouring the Sabbath in that it is repeated so many times and is one of the commandments that carries the death penalty for infraction.

(Exodus 31:14-15) And you shall guard the Sabbath, for it is set-apart to you. Everyone who profanes it shall certainly be put to death, for anyone who does work on it, that being shall be cut off from among his people. 15 ‘Six days work is done, and on the seventh is a Sabbath of rest, set-apart to Yahuwah. Everyone doing work on the Sabbath day shall certainly be put to death.”

(Leviticus 23:3) Six days work is done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, a set-apart gathering. You do no work, it is a Sabbath to Yahuwah in all your dwellings.”

(Exodus 35:2) Work is done for six days, but on the seventh day it shall be set-apart to you, a Sabbath of rest to Yahuwah. Anyone doing work on it is put to death.”

(Numbers 15:32-36) And while the children of Yisra’ĕl were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath day. 33 And those who found him gathering sticks brought him to Mosheh and to Aharon, and to all the congregation. 34 And they put him in under guard, because it had not been declared what should be done to him. 35 And Yahuwah said to Mosheh, “The man shall certainly be put to death, all the congregation stoning him with stones outside the camp.” 36 And all the congregation brought him outside the camp and stoned him with stones, as Yahuwah commanded Mosheh, and he died.”

*Note: These verses make it clear that there is no such thing as a “minor infringement” and even light work is prohibited. Another implication is that the offender was intending to make a fire with the wood; also prohibited in the Torah

No Cooking:

(Exodus 16:23) And he said to them, “This is what Yahuwah has said, ‘Tomorrow is a rest, a Sabbath set-apart to Yahuwah. That which you bake, bake; and that which you cook, cook. And lay up for yourselves all that is left over, to keep it until morning.’ ”


*Note: Cooking is just another form of work and usually involves a fire to cook.

(Exodus 12:16) and on the seventh day you have a set-apart gathering. No work at all is done on them, only that which is eaten by every being, that alone is prepared by you.”

*Note: This verse pertains to the festival of unleavened bread, but defines some light food preparation is permissible.

Light No Fire:

(Exodus 35:3) Do not kindle a fire in any of your dwellings on the Sabbath day.”

*Note: There is some debate about what “kindling a fire” entails. Some even hold that igniting a spark in a combustion engine (fire up an engine) is a violation of this law, but the question is moot in light of the fact that travel is forbidden on Sabbath. It is also common sense that just because we have electric ovens and microwaves today does not mean we can contravene the no cooking law.

Limited Travel:

(Exodus 16:29) See, because Yahuwah has given you the Sabbath, therefore He is giving you bread for two days on the sixth day. Let each one stay in his place, do not let anyone go out of his place on the seventh day.”

*Note: The Yisra’ĕlites dwelt in tents in their tribal groups up to a kilometre square (their place) and it is evident that the Yahudim were still keeping this law at Yahushua's time based on the verse below:

(Acts 1:12) Then they went back to Yerushalayim from the Mount of Olives, which is near Yerushalayim, a Sabbath day’s journey.”


*Note: Some use Matt 12-13 as an excuse to go to fellowship or wherever because Yahushua is recorded to have walked through the grain fields (12:1) to a house congregation (12:9) them to the sea (13:1) then back to the house (13:36). Most people fail to realise that the villages at this time were not much bigger than a kilometre across and fields nowhere near as big as today.
-->Yahushua even warned about travel in the end days:

(Matthew 24:20)...And pray that your flight does not take place in winter or on the Sabbath.”

*Note: This obviously implies that there is a restriction on travel.

New Covenant Sabbath:
 Yahushua and the people of Yisra’ĕl all observed the Sabbath:
(Luke 4:16) And He came to Natsareth, where He had been brought up. And according to His practice, He went into the congregation on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.”


(Luke 23:56) And having returned, they prepared spices and perfumes. And they rested on the Sabbath according to the command.”

Sha'ul and the apostles kept the Sabbath:

(Act 13:42-44) And when the Yehudim went out of the congregation, the gentiles begged to have these words spoken to them the next Sabbath. 43 And when the meeting of the congregation had broken up, many of the Yehudim and of the worshipping converts followed Sha’ul and Barnabah, who, speaking to them, were urging them to continue in the favour of Elohim. 44 And on the next Sabbath almost all the city came together to hear the Word of Elohim.”

(Acts 17:2) And according to his practice, Sha’ul went in unto them, and for three Sabbaths was reasoning with them from the Scriptures...”

(Acts 18:4) And he was reasoning in the congregation every Sabbath, and won over both Yehudim and Greeks.”

*Note: Because of mistranslation, the following verse has caused much confusion to some:

(Colossians 2:16-17) Let no one therefore judge you in eating or in drinking, or in respect of a festival or a new moon or Sabbaths – 17 which are a shadow of what is to come – but the Body of the Messiah.”

*Note: This verse states that the Body of Messiah are the only ones to judge in these matters but is confusing in Bible translations with the added word of “is” - “but the body is of the messiah.” (KJV). This changes the whole meaning of the Scripture and the last sentence becomes an irrelevant statement.

(Hebrews 4:9) so there remains a Sabbath-keeping for the people of Elohim.

 *Note: This verse in Bibles has been poorly (or deliberately) mistranslated. It reads: “There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.”(KJV). This word “rest” is “Sabbatismos” in Greek and literally means Sabbath-keeping.

Turn from Self-Pleasing:


(Isaiah 58:13-14) “If you do turn back your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on My set-apart day, and shall call the Sabbath ‘a delight,’ the set-apart day of Yahuwah ‘esteemed,’ and shall esteem it, not doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words, 14 then you shall delight yourself in Yahuwah. And I shall cause you to ride on the heights of the earth, and feed you with the inheritance of Yaʽaqob your father. For the mouth of Yahuwah has spoken!”


*Note This is by far the most defining Scripture regarding the Sabbath. If any task or entertainment we undertake on the Sabbath is purely self-pleasing then Yahuwah will not delight in us.


***CONCLUSION***

--> (Ecclesiastes 12:13) Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear Yahuwah, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.