Design to Rest, The Holy Sabbath: God's First Gift to Man

When and by whom was the Sabbath made?

“Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had made; and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made.” Genesis 2:1, 2.

What is the reason for keeping the Sabbath day holy?

“For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.” Exodus 20:11.

Note.—The Sabbath is the memorial of creation, the sign of God’s creative power. God designed it so that, by keeping it, man would forever remember Him as the true and living God, the Creator of all things.

“ ‘Six days shalt thou do all manner of work. But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God.’ It is not thine, but God’s day. He claims it for His own. He always did claim it for His own, even from the beginning of the world. ‘In six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath-day and hallowed it.’ He hallowed it; that is, He made it holy; He reserved it for His own service. He appointed that as long as the sun or the moon, the heavens and the earth, should endure, the children of men should spend this day in the worship of Him who ‘gave them life and breath and all things.’ ”—John Wesley, “A Word to a Sabbath-Breaker,” in Works, vol. 11 (1830 ed.), pp. 164-166.

Did Christ have anything to do with creation and the making of the Sabbath?

“All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made.” John 1:3. (See also Ephesians 3:9; Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 1:2.)

Note.—Christ was the active agent in creation. The Creator rested on the seventh day from the work of His creation; therefore, Christ must have rested on the seventh day with the Father. Consequently, it is His rest day as well as the Father’s.

After resting on the seventh day, what did God do?

“And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested from all His work which God created and made.” Genesis 2:3.

Note.—By three distinct acts, then, was the Sabbath made: God rested on it; He blessed it; He sanctified it. “Sanctify” means “to make sacred or holy,” “to consecrate,” “to set apart as sacred.”

For whom did Christ say the Sabbath was made?

“And He said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath.” Mark 2:27.

Note.—“Jesus says: ‘The Sabbath was made for man;’ and the necessary inference is that from the beginning man knew the primary uses of the day, and received the benefits which it was designed to impart. . . .

“Before the giving of the law from Sinai the obligation of the Sabbath was understood.”—J. J. Taylor (Baptist), The Sabbatic Question (Revell, 1914 ed.), pp. 20-24.

When did God bless and sanctify the seventh day?

“And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He HAD rested from all His work which God created and made.” Genesis 2:3.

Note.—“If we had no other passage than this of Genesis 2:3, there would be no difficulty in deducing from it a precept for the universal observance of a Sabbath, or seventh day, to be devoted to God as holy time, by all of that race for whom the earth and its nature were specially prepared. The first men must have known it. The words ‘He hallowed it’ can have no meaning otherwise. They would be a blank unless in reference to some who were required to keep it holy.”—John Peter Lange, A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, on Genesis 2:3, vol. 1, p. 197.

What does the Sabbath commandment require?

“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: but the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates.” Exodus 20:8-10.

Note.—Luther says, on Exodus 16:4, 22-30: “Hence you can see that the Sabbath was before the law of Moses came, and has existed from the beginning of the world. Especially have the devout, who have preserved the true faith, met together and called upon God on this day.”—Translated from Auslegung des Alten Testaments (Commentary on the Old Testament), in Sammtliche Schriften (Collected Writings), edited by J. G. Walch, vol. 3, col. 950.

How did God prove Israel in the wilderness?

“I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in My law, or no.” Exodus 16:4.

On which day was a double portion of manna gathered?

“And it came to pass, that on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for one man.” Exodus 16:22.

What did Moses say to the rulers?

“This is that which the Lord hath said, Tomorrow is the rest of the holy sabbath unto the Lord.” Exodus 16:23.

Note.—“2. The Sabbath is indispensable to man, being promotive of his highest good, physically, intellectually, socially, spiritually, and eternally. Hence its observance is connected with the best of promises, and its violation with the severest penalties. Exodus 23:12; 31:12-18; Nehemiah 13:15-22; Isaiah 56:2-7; 58:13-14; Jeremiah 17:21-27; Ezekiel 20:12, 13; 22:26-31. Its sanctity was very distinctly marked in the gathering of the manna. Exodus 16:22-30.

“3. The original law of the Sabbath was renewed and made a prominent part of the moral law, or ten commandments, given through Moses at Sinai, Exodus 20:8-11.”—Amos Binney and Daniel Steele, Binney’s Theological Compend Improved (1902 ed.), p. 170.

What did some of the people do on the seventh day?

“It came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none.” Verse 27.

How did God reprove their disobedience?

“And the Lord said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep My commandments and My laws?” Exodus 16:28.

Why was double manna given on the sixth day?

“See, for that the Lord hath given you the sabbath, therefore He giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.” Exodus 16:29.

How, then, did the Lord test the people?

Over the keeping of the Sabbath.

Note.—Thus we see that the Sabbath commandment was a part of God’s law before this law was spoken from Sinai; for this incident occurred before Israel came to Sinai. Both the Sabbath and the law existed from creation.

“As presented to us in the Scriptures, the Sabbath was not the invention of any religious founder. It was not at first part of any system of religion, but an entirely independent institution. Very definitely it is presented in Genesis as the very first institution, inaugurated by the Creator himself. It was purely religious, wholly moral, wholly spiritual. It had no prescribed ceremonies, no sacramentarian significance. It required no priest, no liturgy. It was for man as God’s creature, steward and friend.”—W. O. Carver, Sabbath Observance, p. 41. Copyright, 1940, by the Sunday School Board of the Southern Baptist Convention. Used by permission.

What was the monument erected by Joshua declared to be?

“And these stones shall be for a memorial unto the children of Israel for ever.” Joshua 4:7.

What were these stones to commemorate?

“And he spake unto the children of Israel, saying, When your children shall ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean these stones? then ye shall let your children know, saying, Israel came over this Jordan on dry land.” Joshua 4:21, 22.

Note.—These stones were to be a standing memorial, or reminder, of Israel’s coming dry shod over the Jordan.

What was the Passover called?

“And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the Lord throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever.” Exodus 12:14.

Note.—This, the Passover, was a periodical memorial, to be observed on the fourteenth day of the first month of each year, the day on which the Israelites were delivered from Egyptian bondage, and its celebration was to be, with the seven days’ feast of unleavened bread following and connected with it, in commemoration of that event. (See Exodus 13:3-9.)

What has God commanded men to observe in memory of His work of creation?

“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy; . . . for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.” Exodus 20:8-11.

Of what was this memorial to be a sign?

“And hallow My sabbaths, and they shall be a sign between Me and you, that ye may know that I am the Lord your God.” Ezekiel 20:20.

How long was the Sabbath to be a sign of the true God?

“It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel for ever, for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day He rested, and was refreshed.” Exodus 31:17.

What besides creation was Israel to remember when they kept the Sabbath?

“And remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt, and that the Lord thy God brought thee out thence through a mighty hand and by a stretched out arm: therefore the Lord thy God commanded thee to keep the sabbath day.” Deuteronomy 5:15.

Note.—The recollection of their bondage and oppressed condition in Egypt was to be an additional incentive for keeping the Sabbath in the land of freedom. The Sabbath, therefore, besides being a memorial of creation, was to be to them a memorial of their deliverance from bondage, and of the great power of God as manifested in this deliverance. And as Egypt stands as a symbol of the condition of every one in the world under the slavery of sin, so the Sabbath is to be kept by every saved soul as a memorial of the deliverance from this slavery by the mighty power of God through Christ.

Of what else does God say is the Sabbath to be a sign, or reminder to His people?

“Moreover also I gave them My sabbaths, to be a sign between Me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify them.” Ezekiel 20:12.

Note.—Sanctification is a work of redemption—of making sinful or unholy beings holy. Like the work of creation itself, this requires creative power. (See Psalm 51:10; John 3:3, 6; Ephesians 2:10.) And as the Sabbath is the appropriate sign, or memorial, of the creative power of God, so it is also of God’s recreative power. This will be one great reason for the saints’ keeping it throughout eternity. It will remind them not only of their own creation and the creation of the universe but also of their redemption.

Through whom do we have sanctification?

“But of Him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption.” 1 Corinthians 1:30.

Note.—The Sabbath is a sign, or memorial, of sanctification through Christ, and of creation. Through the Sabbath, therefore, God designed that the believer and Christ should be very closely linked together.

God’s Memorial in the Hereafter

How often will the redeemed congregate to worship the Lord?

“For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before Me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and your name remain. And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before Me, saith the Lord.” Isaiah 66:22, 23.

Note.—The Sabbath, which is the memorial of God’s creative power, will never cease to exist.

How often will the redeemed congregate to worship the Lord?

“For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before Me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and your name remain. And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before Me, saith the Lord.” Isaiah 66:22, 23.

Note.—The Sabbath, which is the memorial of God’s creative power, will never cease to exist.

What is first commanded in the Sabbath commandment?

“Remember the sabbath day.” Exodus 20:8.

Which day is the Sabbath?

“The seventh day is the sabbath.” Exodus 20:10.

For what purpose are we to remember the Sabbath day?

“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.” Exodus 20:8.

Note.—All through the week we are to “remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.” This means that all our plans are to be made and all our business adjusted before the Sabbath begins. This is just as essential to spiritual growth during the six working days as upon the Sabbath itself. We are to remember that day, also, that when it comes we may not be tempted by circumstances of our own creating to treat it, or any part of it, as secular, or common, time. Thus the Sabbath commandment is to be obeyed every day, though the Sabbath itself can be kept, or observed, only upon the seventh day, for “the seventh day is the sabbath.”

Who made the Sabbath day holy?

“Wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.” Exodus 20:11.

Note.—God made the Sabbath day holy; we are to keep it holy.

What is it that makes a thing holy?

God’s presence in it. (See Exodus 3:5; 29:43-46; Joshua 5:13-15.)

To keep the Sabbath day holy, what must we recognize?

God’s presence in the day, His blessing upon it, and His sanctification of it.

When, according to the Bible, does the Sabbath begin?

“And the evening and the morning were the first day.” “And the evening and the morning were the second day,” etc. (See Genesis 1:5, 8, 13, 19, 23, 31.) “From even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath.” Leviticus 23:32.

Note.—The evening begins “at the going down of the sun.” (See Deuteronomy 16:6; Mark 1:32; Deuteronomy 23:11; 1 Kings 22:35, 36; 2 Chronicles 18:34.)

One advantage of keeping the Sabbath according to the Bible method of reckoning the day from sunset to sunset, rather than the Roman reckoning, from midnight to midnight, is that by the former, one is awake to welcome and to bid adieu to the day when it comes and goes, whereas by the latter, he is asleep when the day begins and ends. Sunset is a great natural sign for marking the division of time into days.

What kind of labor is to be done during the week?

“Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work.” Exodus 20:9.

Is any of this kind of work to be done on the Sabbath?

“In it thou shalt not do any work.” Exodus 20:10.

Note.—If the Sabbath is to be kept “holy,” mere physical rest one day in seven cannot be the great object of the Sabbath institution.

How does the Lord, through the prophet Isaiah, indicate what true Sabbathkeeping is?

“If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on My holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour Him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.” Isaiah 58:13, 14.

Note.—“As the Jews departed from God, and failed to make the righteousness of Christ their own by faith, the Sabbath lost its significance to them. Satan was seeking to exalt himself and to draw men away from Christ, and he worked to pervert the Sabbath, because it is the sign of the power of Christ. The Jewish leaders accomplished the will of Satan by surrounding God’s rest day with burdensome requirements. In the days of Christ the Sabbath had become so perverted that its observance reflected the character of selfish and arbitrary men, rather than the character of the loving Heavenly Father. The rabbis virtually represented God as giving laws that were impossible for men to obey. They led the people to look upon God as a tyrant, and to think that the observance of the Sabbath, as He required it, made men hard-hearted and cruel. It was Christ's work to clear away these misconceptions. Although the rabbis followed Him with merciless hostility, He did not even appear to conform to their requirements, but went straight forward, keeping the Sabbath according to the law of God.”—E. G. White, The Desire of Ages, pp. 283, 284.

What is the character of God, and how only can He be truly worshiped?

“God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth.” John 4:24.

Note.—This is one reason why the attempt to produce Sabbathkeeping by human Sabbath laws is altogether out of place. Such laws can never produce true Sabbathkeeping, for that is spiritual, and must be of the mind and from the heart, and not perfunctory, mechanical, or of force.

What is one thing of which the Sabbath is a sign?

That He sanctifies His people, or makes them holy. (See Exodus 31:13; Ezekiel 20:12; and page 183.)

What does the “Psalm for the Sabbath day” suggest as proper themes for Sabbath thought and action?

“It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto Thy name, O most High: to shew forth Thy lovingkindness in the morning, and Thy faithfulness every night, upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp with a solemn sound. For Thou, Lord, hast made me glad through Thy work: I will triumph in the works of Thy hands. O Lord, how great are Thy works! and Thy thoughts are very deep.” Psalm 92:1-5.

What do the works of God declare?

“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth His handywork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard.” Psalm 19:1-3. (See margin.)

Note.—God designed that the Sabbath should direct the minds of men to His created works, and through these to Him, the Creator. Nature itself speaks to our senses, telling us that there is a God, the Creator and Supreme Ruler of the universe. The Sabbath, ever pointing to God through nature, was designed to keep the Creator constantly in mind. The proper keeping of it, therefore, must naturally tend to prevent idolatry, atheism, agnosticism, infidelity, irreligion, and irreverence; and, being promotive of the knowledge and fear of God, must of necessity be a deterrent to sin. In this, its value and importance may be seen.

Was the Sabbath designed to be a day for public worship?

“Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the sabbath of rest, an holy convocation.” Leviticus 23:3.on means “a calling together,” a meeting.

What example did Christ set in Sabbath observance?

“And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.” Luke 4:16.

What else did Jesus do on the Sabbath?

“And it was the sabbath day when Jesus made the clay, and opened his eyes.” John 9:14.

Note.—A large share of Christ’s ministry consisted of miracles and acts of mercy performed for the relief of suffering humanity; and not a few of these were done on the Sabbath. On this day, as on other days, He “went about doing good.” See next reading.

In what words did He justify acts of mercy on the Sabbath?

“Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days.” Matthew 12:12.

Note.—A great deal of Christ’s earthly ministry was devoted to showing the beneficent character of the Sabbath institution. It was not meant to be a day of sorrow, austerity, or gloom. Disinterested works of love and mercy toward man or beast are always in place on the Sabbath. Lawful means “according to law.”

What is the day on which to prepare for the Sabbath?

“And that day [the sixth day] was the preparation, and the sabbath drew on.” Luke 23:54. (See also Exodus 16:22, 23.)

Note.—In order to keep the Sabbath day holy, it must be remembered all through the week; and on the sixth day, or the day just before the Sabbath, special preparation should be made to be ready to welcome and observe the Sabbath.

The Sabbath should be the happiest day of all the week. “The Sabbath is not intended to be a period of useless inactivity. The law forbids secular labor on the rest day of the Lord; the toil that gains a livelihood must cease; no labor for worldly pleasure or profit is lawful upon that day; but as God ceased His labor of creating, and rested upon the Sabbath and blessed it, so man is to leave the occupations of his daily life, and devote those sacred hours to healthful rest, to worship, and to holy deeds.”—E. G. White, The Desire of Ages, p. 207.

The children can be taught the stories of creation and redemption, and taken out amid the handiworks of God to commune with Him through nature. Preparation for the Sabbath, therefore, is essential to its proper observance.

In making the Sabbath, God rested upon, blessed, and sanctified the day. (Exodus 20:11.) Whoever, then, keeps the Sabbath aright, may expect that there will come into his life God’s rest, blessing, and sanctification.

Maker and Keeper of the Sabbath

What did Christ say the Son of Man is Lord of?

“The Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day.” Matthew 12:8. (See also Mark 2:28.)

Who made the Sabbath?

“All things were made by Him [Christ, the Word].” John 1:3.

Note.—Christ was the creative agent.

Did Christ, while on earth, keep the Sabbath?

“As His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.” Luke 4:16.

Maker and Keeper of the Sabbath

Of what did Christ say the Son of Man is Lord?

“The Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day.” Matthew 12:8. (See also Mark 2:28.)

Who made the Sabbath?

“All things were made by Him [Christ, the Word].” John 1:3.

Note.—Christ was the creative agent.

Did Christ, while on earth, keep the Sabbath?

“As His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.” Luke 4:16.

Although the Lord, Maker, and an observer of the Sabbath, how was He watched and spied upon on this day?

“And the scribes and Pharisees watched Him, whether He would heal on the sabbath day; that they might find an accusation against Him.” Luke 6:7.

How did Christ meet their false ideas of Sabbathkeeping?

“Then said Jesus, . . . Is it lawful on the sabbath days to do good, or to do evil? to save life or to destroy it?” Luke 6:9.

How did they manifest their displeasure at His healing the man with the withered hand on the Sabbath?

“And they were filled with madness; and communed one with another what they might do to Jesus.” Luke 6:11. “And the Pharisees went forth, and straightway took counsel . . . , how they might destroy Him.” Mark 3:6.

Note.—Although the miracle Christ performed had given evidence that He was from God, they were angry because He had shown their views of Sabbathkeeping to be wrong. Wounded pride, obstinacy, and malice, therefore, combined to fill them with madness; and they went out immediately and held counsel with the Herodians—their political enemies—for the purpose of accomplishing His death.

Because Jesus healed a man on the Sabbath day, and told him to take up his bed and walk, what did the Jews do?

“Therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus, and sought to slay Him, because He had done these things on the sabbath day.” John 5:16.

How did Jesus answer them?

“But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.” John 5:17.

Note.—The ordinary operations of nature, as manifested in God’s almighty, upholding, beneficent, and healing power, continue on the Sabbath. To cooperate with God and nature in the work of healing on the Sabbath cannot, therefore, be out of harmony with God’s Sabbath law.

What effect did this answer have upon the Jews?

“Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill Him.”

Because the disciples plucked a few heads of grain on the Sabbath day to satisfy hunger, what did the Pharisees say?

“And the Pharisees said unto Him, Behold, why do they on the sabbath day that which is not lawful?” Mark 2:24

What was Christ’s reply?

“And He said unto them, Have ye never read what David did, when he had need, and was an hungred, he, and they that were with him? how he . . . did eat the shewbread, which is not lawful to eat but for the priests, and gave also to them which were with him? And He said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath.” Mark 2:25-27.

What was said of Christ’s healing a woman one Sabbath?

“The ruler of the synagogue answered, . . . There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be healed, and not on the sabbath day.” Luke 13:14.

What was Christ’s answer?

“Thou hypocrite, doth not each one of you on the sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering? and ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?” Luke 13:15, 16.

What effect did Christ’s answers have upon the people?

“All His adversaries were ashamed: and all the people rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him.” Luke 13:17.

How did Christ justify acts of mercy on the Sabbath?

“What man shall there be among you, that shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the sabbath day, will he not lay hold on it, and lift it out? How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days.” Matthew 12:11, 12. (See also Luke 14:5, 6.)

Note.—“Jesus observed the Sabbath Day of his own people. It was his custom to worship in the synagogues on the Sabbath Day. After he entered upon his own ministry, he and his followers continued to recognize and use the Sabbath Day, but according to his own individual and spiritual insight and interpretation. Even when Sabbath observance was made one of the chief grounds of bitter antagonism to him by the Pharisees, he continued his recognition of the Sabbath and uttered no word that can properly be construed as lacking in deep reverence. Apparently, he expected that his followers would continue to hold and inculcate the spirit of the historic Sabbath.”—W. O. Carver, Sabbath Observance, p. 25. Copyright, 1940, by the Sunday School Board of the Southern Baptist Convention. Used by permission.

What dispute did Christ’s miracles cause?

“Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not of God, because He keepeth not the sabbath day. Others said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles?” John 9:16.

Note.—By these miracles God was setting the seal of His approval to Christ’s views and teachings respecting the Sabbath, and to His manner of observing it, and thus condemning the narrow and false views of the Pharisees. Hence the division.

According to Isaiah, what was Christ to do with the law?

“He will magnify the law, and make it honorable.” Isaiah 42:21.

Note.—In nothing, perhaps, was this more strikingly fulfilled than in the matter of Sabbath observance. By their numerous traditional regulations and senseless restrictions, the Jews had made the Sabbath a burden, and anything but a delight. Christ removed all these, and by His life and teachings restored the Sabbath to its proper place as a day of worship, of contemplation of God, a day for doing acts of charity and mercy. Thus He magnified it and made it honorable. Christ did not abolish or change the Sabbath; but He did rescue it from the rubbish of tradition, false ideas, and superstitions by which it had been degraded. The Pharisees had placed the institution above man, and against man. Christ reversed the order, and said, “The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath.” He showed that it was to minister to the happiness and well-being of both man and beast.

In view of the coming destruction and desolation of the city of Jerusalem, for what did Christ tell His disciples to pray?

“But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day.” Matthew 24:20.

Note.—“Christ is here speaking of the flight of the apostles and other Christians out of Jerusalem and Judea, just before their final destruction.”—Jonathan Edwards, Reprint of Worcester ed., 1844-1848, vol. 4, pp. 621, 622.

“The Great Teacher never intimated that the Sabbath was a ceremonial ordinance to cease with the Mosaic ritual. . . . Instead of anticipating its extinction along with the ceremonial law, He speaks of its existence after the downfall of Jerusalem. [See Matthew 24:20.]”—W. D. Killen (Irish Presbyterian), The Ancient Church (1883 ed.), p. 188.

What day immediately precedes the first day of the week?

“In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week.” Matthew 28:1.

Note.—According to the New Testament, therefore, the Sabbath had passed when the first day of the week began.

After the crucifixion, what day did the women who followed Jesus keep?

“They returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the sabbath day according to the commandment.” Luke 23:56.

Which day of the week is the Sabbath, “according to the commandment”?

“But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God.” Exodus 20:10.

What was Christ’s custom respecting the Sabbath?

“And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up: and, as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.” Luke 4:16.

In what instruction to His disciples did Christ recognize the existence of the Sabbath long after His ascension?

“But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day.” Matthew 24:20.

Note.—The flight of the Christians took place late in October, A.D. 66, three and one-half years before the fall of Jerusalem.

On what day did Paul and Barnabas preach at Antioch?

“They came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the synagogue on the sabbath day.” Acts 13:14.

When did the Gentiles ask Paul to repeat his sermon?

“And when the Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these words might be preached to them the next sabbath.” Acts 13:42.

On what day did Paul preach to the women at Philippi?

“And on the sabbath we went out of the city by a river side, where prayer was wont to be made; and we sat down, and spake unto the women which resorted thither.” Acts 16:13.

What was Paul’s manner respecting the Sabbath?

“They came to Thessalonica, where was a synagogue of the Jews: and Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures.” Acts 17:1, 2.

Note.—It was Paul’s manner, as it was Christ’s custom (Luke 4:16), to attend religious services on Sabbath.

How did the apostle spend the working days of the week when at Corinth, and what did he do on the Sabbath?

“Because he was of the same craft, he abode with them, and wrought: for by their occupation they were tentmakers.” Acts 18:3. (See Ezekiel 46:1.) “And he reasoned in the synagogue every sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks.” Acts 18:4.

Note.—“He continued there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.” Acts 18:11.

These texts do not definitely prove that the apostle held seventy-eight Sabbath meetings in Corinth, but they show conclusively that it was his custom to observe that day by devoting it to religious purposes. Wherever he was, Paul utilized every opportunity to pursue his gospel work on the Sabbath. The same is true, not only of the apostles, but of most Christians during the first three centuries.

On what day was John in the Spirit?

“I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day.” Revelation 1:10.

Who is Lord of the Sabbath?

“The Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.” Mark 2:28.

What, through Isaiah, does the Lord call the Sabbath

“If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on My holy day.” Isaiah 58:13

Why does the Lord call the Sabbath His day?

“For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.” Exodus 20:11.

Through whom did God create the world?

“God . . . hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, . . . by whom also He made the worlds.” Hebrews 1:1, 2.

Note.—The Bible recognizes but one weekly Sabbath—the day upon which God rested in the beginning; which was made known to Israel at Sinai (Nehemiah 9:13, 14); was observed by Christ and His apostles; and is to be kept by the redeemed in the new earth. (Isaiah 66:22, 23.)

“The sacred name of the seventh day is Sabbath. The truth is stated in concise terms: ‘The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God.’ This utterance is repeated in Exodus 16:26, 23:12, 31:15, 35:2, Leviticus 23:3, and Deuteronomy 5:14. On this point the plain teaching of the word has been admitted in all ages. Except to certain special sabbaths appointed in Levitical law, and these invariably governed by the month rather than the week, the Bible in all its utterances never, no, not once, applies the name Sabbath to any other day.”—J. J. Taylor, The Sabbatic Question (Revell), pp. 16, 17

The first day of the week is mentioned eight times in the New Testament, six of which are found in the four Gospels, and refer to the day on which Christ arose from the dead. (See Matthew 28:1; Mark 16:2, 9; Luke 24:1; John 20:1, 19.) The other two (Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:2) refer to the only religious meeting held on the first day of the week recorded in the New Testament, and to a systematic accounting and laying by in store at home on that day for the poor saints in Judea and Jerusalem.BR-ASI9 299.1

It is evident, therefore, that the Sabbath of the New Testament is the same as the Sabbath of the Old Testament, and that there is nothing in the New Testament setting aside the seventh-day Sabbath, and putting the first day of the week in its place.

Of what is the Sabbath commandment a part?

The law of God. (See Exodus 20:8-11.)

What was foretold of Christ’s attitude toward the law?

“He will magnify the law, and make it honourable.” Isaiah 42:21.

In His most famous sermon, what did Christ say of the law?

“Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.” Matthew 5:17.

How enduring did He say the law is

“Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” Matthew 5:18.

BR-ASI9 299.10

What did He say of those who should break one of the least of God’s commandments, and teach men so to do?

BR-ASI9 299.11

“Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:19.

BR-ASI9 299.12

Note.—From this it is evident that all ten commandments are binding in the Christian dispensation, and that Christ had no thought of changing any of them. One of these commands the observance of the seventh day as the Sabbath. But most Christians keep the first day of the week instead.

BR-ASI9 299.13

“It is a remarkable and regrettable fact that while most Christians regard the decalogue as a whole as being of personal and perpetual obligation, so many should make the fourth commandment an exception. It is the most complete and comprehensive of them all, and, unlike the rest, is expressed both positively and negatively.”—W. C. Procter in Moody Bible Institute Monthly, December, 1933, p. 160.

BR-ASI9 300.1

Many believe that Christ changed the Sabbath. But from His own words, we see that He came for no such purpose. The responsibility for this change must therefore lie elsewhere.

What did God, through the prophet Daniel, say the power represented by the “little horn” would think to do?

“And he shall speak words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High: and he shall think to change the times and the law.” Daniel 7:25, R.V.

What did the apostle Paul say the “man of sin” would do?

“For that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped.” 2 Thessalonians 2:3, 4.

Note.—An effective way by which a power could exalt itself above God would be by assuming to change the law of God, and to require obedience to its own law instead of God’s law.

What power has claimed authority to change God’s law?

The Papacy.

Note.—“The pope is of so great authority and power that he can modify, explain, or interpret even divine laws. . . . The pope can modify divine law, since his power is not of man, but of God, and he acts as vicegerent of God upon earth.”—Translated from Lucius Ferraris, Prompta Bibliotheca (Ready Library), “Papa,” art. 2.

What part of the law of God has the Papacy thought to change?

The fourth commandment.

Note.—“They [the Catholics] allege the change of the Sabbath into the Lord’s day, contrary, as it seemeth, to the Decalogue; and they have no example more in their mouths than the change of the Sabbath. They will needs have the Church’s power to be very great, because it hath dispensed with a precept of the Decalogue.”—The Augsburg Confession (Lutheran), part 2, art. 7, in Philip Schaff, The Creeds of Christendom (Scribner’s, 4th ed.), vol. 3, p. 64.

“It [the Roman Catholic Church] reversed the Fourth Commandment by doing away with the Sabbath of God’s word, and instituting Sunday as a holiday.”—N. Summerbell, History of the Christian Church (1873), p. 415.

Why did God command Israel to hallow the Sabbath?

“And hallow My sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between Me and you, that ye may know that I am the Lord your God.” Ezekiel 20:20.

Note.—As the Sabbath was given that man might keep God in mind as Creator, it can be readily seen that a power endeavoring to exalt itself above God could do this in no other way so effectually as by setting aside God’s memorial—the seventh-day Sabbath. To this work of the Papacy Daniel had reference when he said, “And he shall . . . think to change times and laws.”

Does the Papacy acknowledge changing the Sabbath?

It does.

Note.—The Catechismus Romanus was commanded by the Council of Trent and published by the Vatican Press, by order of Pope Pius V, in 1566. This catechism for priests says: “It pleased the church of God, that the religious celebration of the Sabbath day should be transferred to ‘the Lord’s day.’ ”—Catechism of the Council of Trent (Donovan’s translation 1867), part 3, chap. 4, p. 345. The same, in slightly different wording, is in the McHugh and Callan translation (1937 ed.), p. 402.

“Ques.—How prove you that the Church hath power to command feasts and holydays?

“Ans.—By the very act of changing the Sabbath into Sunday, which Protestants allow of; and therefore they fondly contradict themselves, by keeping Sunday strictly, and breaking most other feasts commanded by the same Church.”—Henry Tuberville, An Abridgment of the Christian Doctrine (1833 approbation), p. 58. (Same statement in Manual of Christian Doctrine, ed. by Daniel Ferris [1916 ed.], p. 67.)

“Ques.—Have you any other way of proving that the Church has power to institute festivals of precept?

“Ans.—Had she not such power, she could not have done that in which all modern religionists agree with her;—she could not have substituted the observance of Sunday the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday the seventh day, a change for which there is no Scriptural authority.”—Stephen Keenan, A Doctrinal Catechism (3d ed.), p. 174.

“The Catholic Church, . . . by virtue of her divine mission, changed the day from Saturday to Sunday.”—The Catholic Mirror, official organ of Cardinal Gibbons, Sept. 23, 1893.

“1. Is Saturday the 7th day according to the Bible & the 10 Commandments?

“I answer yes.

“2. Is Sunday the first day of the week & did the Church change the 7th day—Saturday—for Sunday, the 1st day:

“I answer yes.

“3. Did Christ change the day.

“I answer no! Faithfully yours,

“J. Card. Gibbons”

—Gibbons’ Autograph letter.

“Ques.—Which is the Sabbath day?

“Ans.—Saturday is the Sabbath day.

“Ques.—Why do we observe Sunday instead of Saturday?

“Ans.—We observe Sunday instead of Saturday because the Catholic Church transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday.”—Peter Geiermann, The Convert’s Catechism of Catholic Doctrine (1946 ed.), p. 50. Geiermann received the “apostolic blessing” of Pope Pius X on his labors, Jan. 25, 1910.

Do Catholic authorities acknowledge that there is no command in the Bible for the sanctification of Sunday?

They do.

Note.—“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.”—James Cardinal Gibbons, The Faith of Our Fathers (1917 ed.), pp. 72, 73.

“Nowhere in the Bible is it stated that worship should be changed from Saturday to Sunday. The fact is that the Church existed for several centuries before the Bible was given to the world. The Church made the Bible; the Bible did not make the Church.

“Now the Church . . . instituted, by God’s authority, Sunday as the day of worship. This same Church, by the same divine authority, taught the doctrine of Purgatory long before the Bible was made. We have, therefore, the same authority for Purgatory as we have for Sunday.”—Martin J. Scott, Things Catholics Are Asked About (1927 ed.), p. 136.

“If we consulted the Bible only, we should still have to keep holy the Sabbath Day, that is, Saturday.”—John Laux, A Course in Religion for Catholic High Schools and Academies, vol. 1 (1936 ed.), p. 51. Quoted by permission of Benziger Brothers, Inc., proprietors of the copyright.

“Some theologians have held that God likewise directly determined the Sunday as the day of worship in the New Law, that He Himself has explicitly substituted the Sunday for the Sabbath. But this theory is now entirely abandoned. It is now commonly held that God simply gave His Church the power to set aside whatever day or days, she would deem suitable as Holy Days. The Church chose Sunday, the first day of the week, and in the course of time added other days, as holy days.”—Vincent J. Kelly (Catholic), Forbidden Sunday and Feast-Day Occupations (1943 ed.), p. 2.

Do Protestant writers acknowledge the same?

They do.

Note.—“The Lord’s day was merely of ecclesiastical institution. It was not introduced by virtue of the fourth commandment.”—Jeremy Taylor (Church of England), Ductor Dubitantium, part 1, book 2, chap. 2, rule 6, secs. 51, 59 (1850 ed.), vol. 9, pp. 458, 464.

“The Lord’s Day is not sanctified by any specific command or by any inevitable inference. In all the New Testament there is no hint or suggestion of a legal obligation binding any man, whether saint or sinner, to observe the Day. Its sanctity arises only out of what it means to the true believer.”—J. J. Taylor (Baptist), The Sabbatic Question, p. 72.

“Because it was requisite to appoint a certain day, that the people might know when they ought to come together, it appears that the [Christian] Church did for that purpose appoint the Lord’s day.”—Augsburg Confession, part 2, art. 7, in Philip Schaff, The Creeds of Christendom (Scribner’s, 4th ed.), vol. 3, p. 69.

“And where are we told in the Scriptures that we are to keep the first day at all? We are commanded to keep the seventh; but we are nowhere commanded to keep the first day. . . . The reasons why we keep the first day of the week holy instead of the seventh is for the same reason that we observe many other things, not because the Bible, but because the church, has enjoined it.”—Isaac Williams (Anglican), Plain Sermons on the Catechism, vol. 1, pp. 334, 336.

How did this change in observance of days come about?

Through a gradual transference.

Note.—“The Christian Church made no formal, but a gradual and almost unconscious, transference of the one day to the other.”—F. W. Farrar, The Voice From Sinai, p. 167. This of itself is evidence that there was no divine command for the change of the Sabbath.

For how long a time was the seventh-day Sabbath observed in the Christian church?

For many centuries. In fact, its observance has never wholly ceased in the Christian church.

Note.—Mr. Morer, a learned clergyman of the Church of England, says: “The Primitive Christians had a great veneration for the Sabbath, and spent the Day in Devotion and Sermons. And ’tis not to be doubted but they derived this Practice from the Apostles themselves.”—A Discourse in Six Dialogues on the Name, Notion, and Observation of the Lord’s Day, p. 189.

“A history of the problem shows that in some places, it was really only after some centuries that the Sabbath rest really was entirely abolished, and by that time the practice of observing a bodily rest on the Sunday had taken its place.”—Vincent J. Kelly, Forbidden Sunday and Feast-Day Occupations, p. 1

Lyman Coleman says: “Down even to the fifth century the observance of the Jewish Sabbath was continued in the Christian church, but with a rigor and a solemnity gradually diminishing until it was wholly discontinued.”—Ancient Christianity Exemplified, chap. 26, sec. 2.

The church historian Socrates, who wrote in the fifth century, says: “Almost all the churches throughout the world celebrate the sacred mysteries on the Sabbath of every week, yet the Christians of Alexandria and at Rome, on account of some ancient tradition, have ceased to do this.”—Ecclesiastical History, book 5, chap. 22, in A Select Library of Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, 2d Series, vol. 2, p. 32.

Sozomen, another historian of the same period, writes: “The people of Constantinople, and almost everywhere, assemble together on the Sabbath, as well as on the first day of the week, which custom is never observed at Rome or at Alexandria.”—Ecclesiastical History, book 7, chap. 19, in the same volume as the above quotation.

All this would have been inconceivable had there been a divine command given for the change of the Sabbath. The last two quotations also show that Rome led in the apostasy and in the change of the Sabbath.

How did Sunday observance originate?

As a voluntary celebration of the resurrection, a custom without pretense of divine authority.

Note.—“Opposition to Judaism introduced the particular festival of Sunday very early, indeed, into the place of the Sabbath. . . . The festival of Sunday, like all other festivals, was always only a human ordinance, and it was far from the intentions of the apostles to establish a Divine command in this respect, far from them, and from the early apostolic Church, to transfer the laws of the Sabbath to Sunday. Perhaps, at the end of the second century a false application of this kind had begun to take place; for men appear by that time to have considered laboring on Sunday as a sin.”—Augustus Neander, The History of the Christian Religion and Church, Rose’s translation, p. 186.

“The observance of the Sunday was at first supplemental to that of the Sabbath, but in proportion as the gulf between the Church and the Synagogue widened, the Sabbath became less and less important and ended at length in being entirely neglected.”—L. Duchesne, Christian Worship: Its Origin and Evolution (tr. from the 4th French ed. by M. L. McClure, London, 1910), p. 47.

Who first enjoined Sundaykeeping by law?

Constantine the Great.

Note.—“(1) That the Sunday was in the beginning not looked on as a day of bodily repose; nor was an analogy drawn between the Jewish Sabbath and the Christian Sunday, except as days of worship. . . .

“(3) The keeping of the Sunday rest arose from the custom of the people and the constitution of the Church. . . .

“(5) Tertullian was probably the first to refer to a cessation of worldly affairs on the Sunday; the Council of Laodicea issued the first conciliar legislation for that day; Constantine I issued the first civil legislation; St. Martin of Braga was probably the first to use the term ‘servile work’ in its present theological sense.”—Vincent J. Kelly, Forbidden Sunday and Feast-Day Occupations, p. 203.

“The earliest recognition of the observance of Sunday as a legal duty is a constitution of Constantine in 321 A.D., enacting that all courts of justice, inhabitants of towns, and workshops were to be at rest on Sunday (venerabili die solis), with an exception in favor of those engaged in agricultural labor.”—Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th ed., art. “Sunday.” (See page 216.)

This edict, issued by Constantine, who first opened the way for the union of church and state in the Roman Empire, in a manner supplied the lack of a divine command for Sunday observance. It was one of the important steps in bringing about and establishing the change of the Sabbath.

What testimony does Eusebius bear on this subject?

“All things whatsoever that it was duty to do on the Sabbath, these we [the church] have transferred to the Lord’s day.”—Commentary on the Psalms, in Migne, Patrologia Graeca, vol. 23, col. 1171.

Note.—The change of the Sabbath was the result of the combined efforts of church and state, and it took centuries to accomplish it. Eusebius of Caesarea (270-338) was a noted bishop of the church, biographer and flatterer of Constantine, and the reputed father of ecclesiastical history.

By what church council was the observance of the seventh day forbidden, and Sunday observance enjoined?

The Council of Laodicea, in Asia Minor, fourth century.

Note.—Canon 29 reads: “Christians shall not Judaize and be idle on Saturday [sabbato, the Sabbath], but shall work on that day; but the Lord’s day they shall especially honor, and, as being Christians, shall, if possible, do no work on that day. If, however, they are found Judaizing, they shall be shut out from Christ.”—Charles Joseph Hefele, A History of the Councils of the Church, vol. 2 (1896 English ed.), p. 316.

The Puritan William Prynne said (1655) that “the Council of Laodicea . . . first set[t]led the observation of the Lords-day, and prohibited . . . the keeping of the Jewish Sabbath under an Anathema.”—A Briefe Polemicall Dissertation Concerning . . . the Lordsday-Sabbath, p. 44. Also, Geiermann’s Catholic catechism says that “the Catholic church, in the Council of Laodicea,” made the change. (The Convert’s Catechism of Catholic Doctrine [1937 ed.], p. 50.)

What was done at the Council of Laodicea was but one of the steps by which the change of the Sabbath was effected. It was regarded as the first church council to forbid Sabbath observance and enjoin Sunday rest as far as possible, but it was not as strict as later decrees. Different writers give conflicting dates for this council of Laodicea. The exact date is unknown, but may be placed “generally somewhere between the years 343 and 381.” (Hefele, vol. 2, p. 298.)

What do Catholics say of Protestant Sundaykeepers?

They are obeying the authority of the Catholic Church.

Note.—“For ages all Christian nations looked to the Catholic Church, and, as we have seen, the various states enforced by law her ordinances as to worship and cessation of Labor on Sunday. Protestantism, in discarding the authority of the church, has no good reason for its Sunday theory, and ought logically to keep Saturday as the Sabbath.”

“The State, in passing laws for the due Sanctification of Sunday, is unwittingly acknowledging the authority of the Catholic Church, and carrying out more or less faithfully its prescriptions.

“The Sunday, as a day of the week set apart for the obligatory public worship of Almighty God, to be sanctified by a suspension of all servile labor, trade, and worldly avocations and by exercises of devotion, is purely a creation of the Catholic Church.”—The American Catholic Quarterly Review, January, 1883, pp. 152, 1

“If protestants would follow the Bible, they should worship God on the Sabbath Day. In keeping the Sunday, they are following a law of the Catholic Church.”—Albert Smith, Chancellor of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, replying for the Cardinal in a letter of Feb. 10, 1920. (See also the quotation from Monsignor Segur on page 200.)

What determines whose servants we are?

“Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey?” Romans 6:16.

When asked to bow to Satan, how did Christ reply?

“It is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.” Matthew 4:10, 11.

What kind of worship does the Savior call that which is not according to God’s commandments?

“But in vain they do worship Me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.” Matthew 15:9.

What appeal did Elijah make to apostate Israel?

“How long halt ye between two opinions? if the Lord be God, follow Him: but if Baal, then follow him.” 1 Kings 18:21.

Note.—In times of ignorance God winks at that which otherwise would be sin; but when light comes He commands men everywhere to repent. (Acts 17:30.) The period during which the saints, times, and the law of God were to be in the hands of the Papacy has expired (Daniel 7:25); the true light on the Sabbath question is now shining; and God is sending a message to the world, calling upon men to fear and worship Him, and to return to the observance of His holy rest day, the seventh-day Sabbath. (Revelation 14:6-12; Isaiah 56:1; 58:1, 12-14.) (See pages 108, 198, 199, 204, 242.)

What is the purpose of a sign, or seal?

“Now, O king, establish the decree, and sign the writing, that it be not changed.” Daniel 6:8.

Note.—That is, affix the signature of royalty, that it may have the proper authority. Ancient kings used a seal ring, containing the name, initials, or monogram, for this purpose. Jezebel, the wife of Ahab, “wrote letters in Ahab’s name, and sealed them with his seal.” 1 Kings 21:8. Of a Persian decree it is said that “in the name of King Ahasuerus was it written, and sealed with the king’s ring.” Esther 3:12.

What are the three essentials of an official seal?

The seal of a lawgiver must show three things: (1) his name; (2) his official position, title, or authority, and so his right to rule; and (3) the extent of his dominion and jurisdiction.

Significance of a Seal

What is the purpose of a sign, or seal?

“Now, O king, establish the decree, and sign the writing, that it be not changed.” Daniel 6:8.

Note.—That is, affix the signature of royalty, that it may have the proper authority. Ancient kings used a seal ring, containing the name, initials, or monogram, for this purpose. Jezebel, the wife of Ahab, “wrote letters in Ahab’s name, and sealed them with his seal.” 1 Kings 21:8. Of a Persian decree it is said that “in the name of King Ahasuerus was it written, and sealed with the king’s ring.” Esther 3:12.

What are the three essentials of an official seal?

The seal of a lawgiver must show three things: (1) his name; (2) his official position, title, or authority, and so his right to rule; and (3) the extent of his dominion and jurisdiction

Where is God’s seal to be found?

“Bind up the testimony, seal the law among My disciples.” Isaiah 8:16.

Which commandment alone of the Decalogue reveals the name, authority, and dominion of the Author of this law?

“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: but the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.” Exodus 20:8-11.

Note.—In six days, (1) the Lord (name); (2) made (office, Creator); (3) heaven and earth (dominion). This commandment alone, therefore, contains “the seal of the living God.” This commandment shows God’s authority to enact all the commandments, and shows all other gods to be false gods. The Sabbath commandment, therefore, contains the seal of God.

Why is the Sabbath a sign between God and His peopl

“It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day He rested, and was refreshed.” Exodus 31:17.

Note.—The Sabbath is the sign, or mark, or seal, of the Creator.

In what two ways does God say the Sabbath is a sign?

1. “And hallow My sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between Me and you, that ye may know that I am the Lord your God.” Ezekiel 20:20.

2. “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.” Exodus 31:13.

Note.—The Sabbath is the sign of God’s creative power, and redeeming or recreating power. God designs that each Sabbath shall call Him to mind as the One who created us, and whose grace and sanctifying power are working in us to fit us for His eternal kingdom.

What special sealing work is to take place just before the letting loose of the winds of destruction upon the earth?

“And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, . . . saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.” Revelation 7:1-4. (See Ezekiel 9:1-6.)

What is said of the character of these sealed ones?

“And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God.” Revelation 14:5.

How is the remnant church described?

“Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” Revelation 14:12.

What threefold warning does the third angel give?

“And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God.” Revelation 14:9, 10.

Note.—The beast represents the Papacy; the image to the beast represents another ecclesiastical body dominating the civil power. (See readings on pages 113, 115.) And over against the seal of God stands the mark of the beast, the mark of apostasy. Against this false and idolatrous worship and the reception of this mark, God sends this solemn warning.

What power is to enforce this mark?

“And he [the two-horned beast] causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads.” Revelation 13:16.

Note.—The two-horned beast is understood to represent the United States of America, with her principles of civil and religious liberty. (See page 116.) As this nation repudiates these principles and becomes a persecuting power, other nations will follow her example in oppressing those who refuse to yield their allegiance to God.

What is the Papacy’s mark, or sign, of authority?

“Ques.—How prove you that the Church hath power to command feasts and holy days?

“Ans.—By the very act of changing the Sabbath into Sunday, which Protestants allow of.”—Henry Tuberville, An Abridgment of the Christian Doctrine (1833 approbation), p. 58.

Note.—In a letter written on February 8, 1898, Mr. C. F. Thomas, chancellor to Cardinal Gibbons, replying to an inquiry addressed to the cardinal said:

“If Protestants observe the first day of the week, are they in that act recognizing the authority of the Catholic Church? . . . It looks that way: Since the custom they observe is of the Church and from the Church.”

The official newspaper of the Cleveland Diocese says:

“By what authority did the Church change the observance of the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday?

“The Church changed the observance of the Sabbath to Sunday by right of the divine, infallible authority given to her by her Founder, Jesus Christ. The Protestant, claiming the Bible to be the only guide of faith, has no warrant for observing Sunday. In this matter, the Seventh-day Adventist is the only consistent Protestant. Sunday as the day of rest to honor our Lord’s Resurrection dates to Apostolic times and was so established, among other reasons, to mark off the Jew from the Christian. St. Justin the Martyr speaks of it in his Apologies.”—The Catholic Universe Bulletin, Aug. 14, 1942, p. 

The true Sabbath being a sign of loyalty to the true God, it is but natural that the false sabbath should be regarded as a sign of allegiance to the apostate church. Such we find to be the case.

What do Catholics say of Protestant Sundaykeepers?

“The observance of Sunday by the Protestants is an homage they pay, in spite of themselves, to the authority of the [Catholic] church.”—Monsignor Louis Segur, Plain Talk About the Protestantism of Today (1868), p. 213.

Note.—A full realization of this fact will lead those who honestly, but ignorantly, have been observing Sunday as the Sabbath, to refuse any longer to pay homage to apostasy, and return to the observance of that which is the sign of loyalty to heaven—the only weekly day of rest which God, in His word, has commanded men to keep holy, the seventh day.

How will the dragon treat God’s remnant people?

“And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” Revelation 12:17.

How far will the enforcement of this mark be urged?

“That the image of the beast should both speak, and cause [decree] that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark.” Revelation 13:15-17.

Over what do the people of God finally gain the victory?

“And I saw . . . them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God.” Revelation 15:2.

From what time was Christ associated with the Father?

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God.” John 1:1, 2. (Compare verse 14.)

By whom were all things created?

“God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 3:9. “God . . . hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, . . . by whom also He made the world.” Hebrews 1:1, 2. “For by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, . . . all things were created by Him, . . . and by Him all things consist.” Colossians 1:16, 17.

Christ, Agent of Creation

From what time was Christ associated with the Father?

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God.” John 1:1, 2. (Compare verse 14.)

By whom were all things created?

“God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 3:9. “God . . . hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, . . . by whom also He made the world.” Hebrews 1:1, 2. “For by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, . . . all things were created by Him, . . . and by Him all things consist.” Colossians 1:16, 17.

By whom was the Sabbath made?

By Christ.

Note.—This conclusion is inevitable. If all things were made by Christ, and the Sabbath was one of the things that were made, then it follows that the Sabbath must have been made by Christ. This being so, the Sabbath must be the Lord’s day.

What did God do in the beginning on the seventh day?

“He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested from all His work.” Genesis 2:2, 3.

Note.—If all things were made by Jesus Christ, then He, with the Father, rested on the first seventh day from His work of creation, blessed the day, and sanctified it.

Did Christ keep the Sabbath?

“As His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.” Luke 4:16. “I have kept My Father’s commandments.” John 15:10.

Did Christ’s followers keep the Sabbath after His death?

“They returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the sabbath day according to the commandment.” Luke 23:56.

On what day does John say he was in the Spirit?

“I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day.” Revelation 1:10.

What day does the commandment say is the Lord’s?

“The seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord.” Exodus 20:10.

What does the prophet Isaiah, speaking for God, call the seventh-day Sabbath?

“My holy day.” Isaiah 58:13.

On what day must John have been in the Spirit?

The seventh, if he referred to a day of the week at all.

Note.—No other day of the week in all the Bible is claimed by God as His day.

When and by what acts was the Sabbath made?

“And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had made; and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested from all His work which God created and made.” Genesis 2:2, 3.

The Seven-Day Week

What division of time is marked off by the Sabbath?

The week.

Note.—The week is “a time unit that, unlike all others, has proceeded in an absolutely invariable manner since what may be called the dawn of history.”—Nature, June 6, 1931.

Genesis 7:4, 10; 8:10, 12, show that the week was known at the time of the Flood.

Why did God set apart the seventh day as holy?

“For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day.” Exodus 20:11.

What promise did God make to Israel, through Jeremiah, if they would keep the Sabbath?

“If ye diligently hearken unto Me, saith the Lord, to bring in no burden through the gates of this city on the sabbath day, but hallow the sabbath day, to do no work therein; then shall there enter into the gates of this city kings and princes sitting upon the throne of David, . . . and this city shall remain forever.” Jeremiah 17:24, 25.

What would happen if they did not hallow the Sabbath?

“But if ye will not hearken unto Me to hallow the sabbath day, and not to bear a burden, even entering in at the gates of Jerusalem on the sabbath day; then will I kindle a fire in the gates thereof, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched.” Jeremiah 17:27.

What befell Jerusalem in fulfillment of this when it was captured by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon?

“And all the vessels of the house of God . . . he brought to Babylon. And they burnt the house of God, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem, and burnt all the palaces thereof with fire.” 2 Chronicles 36:18, 19, 21.

After Israel’s restoration from the Babylonian captivity, what did Nehemiah say was the reason for their punishment

“What evil thing is this that ye do, and profane the sabbath day? Did not your fathers thus, and did not our God bring all this evil upon us, and upon this city? yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the sabbath.” Nehemiah 13:17, 18.

How does he speak of God’s giving the Sabbath to Israel?

“Thou camest down also upon Mount Sinai, and spakest with them from heaven, and gavest them right judgments, and true laws, good statutes and commandments: and madest known unto them Thy holy sabbath.” Nehemiah 9:13, 14.

Note.—Let it be noted that this text does not say that God made the Sabbath then, but simply that He made it known to Israel then. They had largely forgotten it while in Egypt. 

How did Christ, while on earth, regard the Sabbath?

“As His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.” Luke 4:16.

By what did Christ recognize the Sabbath law?

“And He said unto them, . . . It is lawful to do well on the sabbath days.” Matthew 12:11, 12.

Note.—“The fact, however, that Christ until His death, and His Apostles at least for a time after Christ’s Ascension, observed the Sabbath is evidence enough that our Lord Himself did not substitute the Lord’s day for the Sabbath, during His lifetime on earth.”—Vincent J. Kelly (Catholic), Forbidden Sunday and Feast-Day Occupations (1943 ed.), pp. 19, 20.

William Prynne says: “It is certain, that Christ himself, his Apostles, and the Primitive Christians, for some good space of time did constantly observe the seventh day Sabbath.”—A Briefe Polemicall Dissertation, Concerning . . . the Lordsday-Sabbath, p. 33.

What kind of worship does Christ say results from doctrines based on the commandments of men?

“But in vain they do worship Me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.” Matthew 15:9.

What commandment had the Pharisees made void?

“God said, ‘Honour thy father and thy mother’; . . . but you say; ‘If a man says to his father or mother, “This thing is consecrated, otherwise you should have received it from me,” he shall be absolved from honouring his father’; and so you have rendered futile God’s word for the sake of your tradition.” Matthew 15:4-6, Weymouth.

Note.—By a gift of property to the temple service, they taught that a man might be freed from the duties enjoined by the fifth commandment.

What is true of the fifth commandment is true of every other commandment. If through tradition men set aside any other of God’s commandments, these words are equally applicable to them. They are guilty of making void the commandment of God, and of instituting vain worship.

When, and by whom, was the Sabbath “planted”?

“For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.” Exodus 20:11.

Who claims to have planted the Sunday institution?

“Q.—Has the [Catholic] Church a power to make any alterations in the commandments of God?

“A.—. . . Instead of the seventh day, and other festivals appointed by the old law, the Church has prescribed the Sundays and holidays to be set apart for God’s worship; and these we are now obliged to keep in consequence of God’s commandment, instead of the ancient Sabbath.”—Rt. Rev. Dr. Challoner, The Catholic Christian Instructed (1853), p. 204.

Note.—“We Catholics, then, have precisely the same authority for keeping Sunday holy instead of Saturday as we have for every other article of our creed, namely, the authority of ‘the Church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth’ (1 Timothy 3:15).”—Clifton Tracts, vol. 4, art. “A Question for All Bible Christians,” p. 15.

When is final salvation to be brought to God’s people?

“Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” 1 Peter 1:5.

Is this promised blessing confined to any one class?

“Also the sons of the stranger that join themselves to the Lord, to serve Him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be His servants, every one that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of My covenant; even them will I bring to My holy mountain, and make them joyful in My house of prayer.” Isaiah 56:6, 7.

Note.—It is evident from these scriptures that in the last days, when men are waiting for the Saviour to appear, there will be a call for those who really love the Lord, to separate themselves from the world, to observe the Lord’s true Sabbath, and to depart from all evil.

What does God tell His ministers to do at this time?

“Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew My people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.” Isaiah 58:1.

What message of Sabbath reform does He send?

“If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on My holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour Him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.” Isaiah 58:13, 14.

Note.—The Sabbath of Jehovah is not now, by the majority even of professed Christians, called holy and honorable. By many it is stigmatized as “Jewish.” The Lord foresaw how this would be in this age, and inspired the prophet to write as he did. “If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath.” This is a strong expression, indicating that many would be trampling upon God’s day, and doing their own pleasure upon it, instead of seeking God, and honoring Him by keeping the Sabbath holy.

What will those be called who engage in this reformation?

“And thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in.” Isaiah 58:12.

What does another prophet say professed teachers among God’s people have done?

“Her priests have violated My law, and have profaned Mine holy things: they have put no difference between the holy and profane; neither have they shewed difference between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from My sabbaths, and I am profaned among them.” Ezekiel 22:26.

What have they done to maintain their theories?

“And her prophets have daubed them with untempered morter, seeing vanity, and divining lies unto them, saying, Thus saith the Lord God, when the Lord hath not spoken.” Ezekiel 22:28.

Note.—Untempered mortar is that which is improperly worked, and will not therefore hold together or stand the test. Thus it is with the reasons advanced for keeping Sunday instead of the Bible Sabbath, the seventh day. They are not only unsound and untenable in themselves, but are utterly inconsistent, contradictory, and destructive to one another, among themselves. In nothing, perhaps, is a lack of agreement better illustrated than in the reasons assigned for Sundaykeeping. Note the following:

One says the Sabbath has been changed from the seventh to the first day of the week.

Another says that the Sabbath commandment requires only one day of rest after six of labor, and hence there has been no change.

Some reason that all ought to keep Sunday, because although, as they affirm, God did not appoint a particular day, yet agreement is necessary; and to have any or every day a sabbath would be equal to no sabbath at all.

Others, to avoid the claims of God’s law, assert that the Sabbath precept is one of those ordinances which was against us, contrary to us, blotted out, and nailed to the cross. Still, they admit that a day of rest and convocation is necessary, and therefore the day of Christ’s resurrection, they say, has been chosen.

Another class says they believe it is impossible to know which is the seventh day, although they have no difficulty in locating the first.

Some are so bold as to declare that Sunday is the original seventh day.

Others, with equal certainty, say that those who keep the seventh day are endeavoring to be justified by the law, and are fallen from grace.

Another class, with more liberal views, say they believe that every one should be fully persuaded in his own mind, whether he keep this day, or that, or none at all.

Still again, as if having found the great desideratum or missing link in the argument, men credited with even more than ordinary intelligence, will sometimes declare that it is impossible to keep the seventh day on a round and rolling earth; yet, strangely, they find no difficulty in keeping Sunday anywhere, and believe that this day should be observed the world over!

Said Christ, “Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:19.

What does the Lord say will become of this wall thus daubed with untempered mortar?

“Say unto them which daub it with untempered morter, that it shall fall: there shall be an overflowing shower; and ye, O great hailstones, shall fall; and a stormy wind shall rend it.” Ezekiel 13:11.

When are these hailstones to fall?

“Hast thou entered into the treasures of the snow? or hast thou seen the treasures of the hail, which I have reserved against the time of trouble, against the day of battle and war?” Job 38:22, 23.

Under which of the seven last plagues will this hail fall?

“And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; . . . and the cities of the nations fell: . . . and every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent.” Revelation 16:17-21.

During these closing scenes, what message is God sending to the world to turn men from false worship to the worship of the true and living God?

“Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters. . . . Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. . . . If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation.” Revelation 14:7-10.

Note.—This is the last gospel message to be sent to the world before the Lord comes. Under it will be developed two classes of people, one having the mark of the beast (the Papacy), and the other keeping the commandments of God, and having His seal, the Sabbath of the fourth commandment.

How does God describe His people in this awful hour?

“Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” Revelation 14:12.