by Travis King

Created on: April 16, 2009   Last Updated: April 17, 2009

What day is the Sabbath? Any Jew can tell you the answer to that. Saturday; or more specifically, Friday evening to Saturday evening. But why? Where did the Sabbath come from, and is it still applicable today?

The Sabbath began on the last day of creation, the seventh day. "By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work." (Genesis 2:2) In the Bible, a day is an evening and a morning (hence the repetition of "evening and morning" in the creation story), unlike a day as we think of it in the modern world. So God rested on the seventh day, evening and morning, after he finished creating the world. "And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done." (Genesis 2:3) Not only did God rest on the seventh day, he set it aside for his created humans to rest as well. It's clear that before sin ever entered the world, the Sabbath was already in existence, contrary to the idea that the Sabbath was created at Mount Sinai.

After the entrance of sin, there is not much mention of the Sabbath, but we can assume that it was kept just as marriage was still recognized. Many years later, when God delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt, He reminded them of the Sabbath, because they had not been able to keep it while they were slaves. "Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the LORD your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the LORD your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day." (Deuteronomy 5:15) But deliverance from slavery was not the only reason that God commanded Israel to keep the Sabbath. "For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy." (Exodus 20:11) When God re-instituted the Sabbath, He reminded His people of the original reason, creation, but also added a new reason for the Sabbath: deliverance.

Throughout the whole Old Testament, you will find many mentions of the Sabbath. The Sabbath is called a sign between God and his people (Exodus 31:13). God repeatedly must remind His people to keep it. Eventually, the Sabbath becomes a list of rules. When Jesus came, He tried to reform Sabbath keeping and tell people how they should really keep the Sabbath. "Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath." (Matthew 12:12)

It's a common belief that

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