Skip to main content
Bible Q

What day is the Sabbath?

Answered by . April 17, 2010 - 9:57 pm

The word sabbath means “rest” and the practice of resting on the Sabbath is modelled on creation where God rested on the seventh day.

For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. (Exodus 20:11)

So the Sabbath is the seventh day of the week, or Saturday.

However, because Jews have traditionally used sunset as the start of a new day, it is usual to observe the Sabbath from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset.

The practice of calling Sunday the “Christian Sabbath” has no biblical basis, although the practice of Christian worship on a Sunday goes back to Bible times. It seems that the mostly Jewish churches in the first century continued to meet at the synagogue on the Sabbath (Saturday), and held their Christian services on the Sunday (or possibly after sunset on Saturday).

4 Replies to “What day is the Sabbath?”

  1. The Sabbath is a binding institution that God established for all people -Jew and Gentile alike. It was established on the seventh day of creation (the last day of the week). The Jewish people did not exist until approximately 2000 years later; therefore the Sabbath was not binding upon the Israel nation only, but upon all people. God is not a god of confusion. And It makes perfect since that He would establish a specific day for all people.

    Mark 2:27 states “…The Sabbath was made for man (all man) and not man (or one ethnic group of people) for the Sabbath. ” I know some may say that I’m taking this verse a bit out of context; however, I believe verses have more than one application.

    Sunday rest was instituted by the Catholic Church. Saturday/Sabbath day was instituted by God. Herein is the mystery of the mark of the beast revealed. Because man changes God’s Sabbath day and replaces it with Sunday rest. Who will you obey? What day will you keep? The God’s Sabbath or man’s day?

    Sunday represents the mark of the beast. God’s Sabbath represents a sign between Him and His people – Jew and Gentile.

    Remember, the Sabbath was established approximately 2000 years before the Jewish nation; thus it was made for all people, not Jews only. Further, God could have chosen any ethnic group of people, but He chose the nation of Israel, who failed to fulfill the ultimate mission – to be the light of the world. Thus He rejects them as His chosen people (for they rejected Him as their King) and turns to the Gentiles, where the gospel spreads to all people of the world.

    If God had not chosen the Jewish nation, and sent the gospel directly to all people, God’s Ten Commandments would be acknowledged by all people and the original Saturday Sabbath would be kept by everyone.

    Ed

  2. This pro-sabbatarian comment is not surely from a Christadelphian, who are not sabbath keepers (ie Saturday keepers)
    I thought this was a CD site.
    Anthony

  3. I agree with all that Ed said and his comments are Biblically based and historically based on Catholic claims. There is actually a Catholic comment where they claim that the change of the day of rest from Sabbath to Sunday is a MARK of their authority. But I think the Mark of the Beast issue needs to be clarified-NO ONE who keeps Sunday currently has the Mark of the Beast. It is only when Sunday keeping is enforced by legislative fiat that the Mark of the Beast will be in effect. The Pope has been calling for legislative enforcement of Sunday keeping for many years and from what the Bible says, he will eventually get his way.
    Not only does no one currently have the Mark of the Beast, I feel the majority of people who are taken to Heaven at the second coming will be Sunday keepers. Though there have been Sabbath keepers during every period in history since creation, the vast majority of God’s followers since the second or third centuries have observed Sunday. God is a Just and loving God and will judge people according to the light they have Acts 17:30 But when Sunday keeping is legislated it will be a much more visible issue–at that point people will have to make the choice to follow God or continue with man’s traditions.