As early as the second verse of Genesis chapter 2 we see the Sabbath. God created the world in six days and rested on the seventh day which is the Sabbath. Long before any Jew was born God gave the Sabbath to man to keep holy. As early as Genesis we see Abraham keeping God’s laws in Gen. 26:5. Before God gave the Ten Commandments in stone in Exodus 20:8-11, four chapters before we see the Israelites getting in trouble for breaking the Sabbath so we know that the Ten Commandments were known orally but were given in stone later. Isa. 66:22,23 says that we will still be keeping the Sabbath in Heaven. It is not the purpose of this article to dispute whether the Sabbath should still be kept. For such an article see here:
The Real 2012 The World Should be Thinking About | Relijournal
The aim of this article is to prove that the Sabbath is the seventh day – the day we call Saturday today. Here is the evidence:
(1) The Jews keep Saturday
While the Sabbath was made for man and not for the Jews only, the Jews were custodians of that Law, meaning that they were expected to spread the knowledge of the Ten Commandments to the world. They know which day is the seventh day. For thousands of years they have kept Saturday and they still do.
(2) Sabbath is the day after Good Friday
Almost everybody knows that Jesus was crucified on a Friday. It is called Good Friday all over the world. The Bible adds that that day was the preparation – meaning the day to prepare all work before Sabbath began. Luke 23:54 says “And that day was the preparation, and the sabbath drew on.” So if Jesus died on Good Friday and the next day was the Sabbath what day is the Sabbath? Saturday of course! Then Matt. 28:1 tells us clearly that the day after the Sabbath was the first day of the week. (See also Mark 16:1,2; Luke 23:56, 24:1; John 20:1). It is unmistakeable. Saturday is the Bible Sabbath!
(3) Geographic, Linguistic Evidence
Even calendars that have not been tampered with show that Saturday is the Sabbath. There has been a trend of late to make calendars start with Monday so that the week can end on Sunday but never mind that twisted plan to confuse the issue. That is a fulfillment of prophecy. Dan. 7:25 says:
“And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.”
Would you believe that there is actually a religious power that claims to “change times and laws” using the same wording that the Bible used in Dan. 7:25? But that is a whole topic by itself. Let us see the names of the seventh day of the week in many different languages and a clear picture will emerge if it has not already.
In Latin (Italy) the seventh day was Sabbatum.
In Spanish the seventh day is sábado and the Spanish say it is Saturday.
In French it is samedi derived from the Latin word Sambati which in turn came from the Greek word “Sabati.” They too say it is Saturday.
In Italian it is sabato.
In Portuguese and in Congo (Africa) it is sabbado.
In Polish, Bohemian and new Slovenian it is sobota.
In Russian it is subbota.
In Prussian it is sabatico.
In Hebrew it is Shabbat.
In Arabic it is Assabt.
In Hindustani, Afghan and Kurdish it is Shamba.
In Turkish it is Yomessabt.
In Maltese it is Is-sibt.
In Coptic (Egypt) it is Pi sabbaton.
In Shona (Zimbabwe) it is Sabata.
These should be sufficient to show that in different parts of the world despite the various cultures and creeds the seventh day is the Sabbath on their calendar. In addition to this their Sabbath day is the equivalent of our Saturday. Students learning Spanish as second language are never taught that “sábado” really means “Sabbath” but that it means “Saturday.” The same goes for the teaching of French so I suspect that this is new light for those reading this article.
(4) Not only is Sabbath the seventh day (Saturday) but by its very nature it cannot be any other day.
Many see the Sabbath as one day in seven or any day in seven. They do not realize that it has to be the seventh and not just any day in seven. You cannot keep a day holy if it was never holy. You cannot keep a cup clean if it was not clean to begin with. Similarly, God only made one day holy and that is the seventh day. He set it apart from the rest of days and put it in the Ten Commandments and that is the only commandment that He went out of His way to specifically say “Remember.” All the other commandments say “Thou shalt not” with the exception of the fifth commandment.
Do you know that the Hebrew word for “seventh” and the Hebrew word for “Sabbath” are almost identical in spelling? In Bible times Hebrew was written without vowel points so for instance if you saw M-N you were supposed to know that was “man” and not “moon.” The Hebrew word for “seventh” is “SH-B-Y-TH” and “Sabbath” is “SH-B-TH.” The only difference is a “y.” The Sabbath was meant to be the seventh day.
Even the Hebrew word for “remember” (Zakar) is associated with the number seven. In the acrostic psalms where every verse starts with a consecutive Hebrew alphabetic letter, when you reach “Z’ which is the seventh letter, you often see the word “Zakar” which is the same word used in the Commandments to say “Remember.”
So which day is the Sabbath? It is the seventh day called Saturday in English. No wonder the pagans used Saturn as the planet to represent that day. Saturn is the one planet that has a ring like a halo around it. Saturday is a blessed day.
For more on this topic see:
The Real 2012 The World Should be Thinking About | Relijournal
A New Perspective on Christmas From The Bible | Relijournal
Why October 10, 2010 is Not Really 10/10/10 | Socyberty
The Tenth Day of The Tenth Month in The Bible | Relijournal
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Good share. Thanks!
Wonderful article and very informative. I have often wondered why, knowing that we were celebrating the wrong day, the Christian religions keep Sunday as the sabbath.
Greetings. However, did you know that our calendar was changed by 11 days back in the 1700s. I think it went from Julian to Gregorian, so it happens to be out of whack by 11 days. So what we call Saturday just is not Saturday.
The other thing is there is nothing to point that Christ died on Friday–that’s tradition. The only way one can come up with Christ in the grave for 3 days and 3 nights and maintaining Friday was the day He died on is to take portions of days and count them as a whole. But personally I find that a stretch, especially when the Scripture speaks of days and nights.
What day of the week He died on is not as important as the fact He did die–and rise again.
Hi Pete Macinta. Yes, I know that the Gregorian calendar is different from the Julian calendar but when the Gregorian calendar was instituted in 1582 it did not interfere with the weekly cycle. Thursday 4th October was followed by Friday 15th October. That is 15 days difference but yet it does not affect the fact that after the Thursday came the Friday and then the Sabbath.
Concerning the three days and three nights only once are we told that and that is in Matt. 12:40. Elsewhere in Matt. 26:61; Matt. 27:63; Mark 8:31 and John 2:19 say “three days.” It is cetain that some rounding off of figures is going on there. In the Bible the drought in Elijah’s day is said to be three years in the main reference to the story we have in 1 Kings. However, in James 5 we are told that it is more accurately three years and six months. It seems then that three parts of days counting as three days is not a stretch biblically. Even in the modern world if someone disappears Friday evening and is found on Sunday morning we would say that they were missing for three days and not X hours which would be more accurate. It does not have to be 24 hour days.
I learn a lot here. Thanks
Thanks for the comments eveyone. There was a typo in my previous reply. There is a 11 days difference when the calendar was changed and not a 15 days difference.
Will those who worship on Sunday be condemned to hell?
What a fantastic article again! Thanks for all the great information, Shelpeare!
great artical
Thanks again everyone.
Concerning what you asked Minister Marlene, it is really not just about which day you go to church on or worship God on. It is about keeping the day God set apart for us holy. Some people say they keep Sunday as their Sabbath, they go to church for a few hours and come back and that is the end of the Sabbath. God wants us to keep it holy by not working for the whole day. Eveything secular must be put away. Think of it as a spiritual honeymoon where the bride (the church) gives the groom (God) her full attention. The television is switched off (or at least from secular channels), the dirty clothes are left in the laundry basket. Only spiritual things are engaged in for the full length of the day. It is not torture. It is bliss. Imagine your boss commanding you to stop working. It can’t get better than that!
Also, God judges us based on the light that we have. To whom much is given much is expected (Luke 12:48).
Prov. 4:18 says “But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.”
Acts 17:30 “And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent.”
However, the time comes when we know better and are asked by God to change as Acts 17:30 pointed out.
James 4:17 adds “Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.”
Great work. Thanks for sharing this one.
grt work
Interesting… I thought it was Sunday which is why some people opposed Jesus healing people on “the Sabbath” – day of rest.
This was very interesting but at the moment I don’t agree with it all completely however, Friday sunset to Saturday sunset is Sabbath, a day of rest, a Holy day ordained by God and what God has ordained man cannot unordain. Sunday was a day of worship declared by the Roman Catholic Church. They even claim they did that and it was meant to appease the pagan worshipers and draw them into the fold. Only once is Sunday, the first day mentioned and that was by Paul. It was on the first day of the week that Paul asked the church to meet him with their tithes and offerings and to meet on the work of the church. Sunday was a church work day and it would stand to reason a day of learning and teaching as well. Jesus died during Passover which is a separate sabbath from the weekly Sabbath and probably did not die on Friday as we have been taught but I am not learned enough to dispute this so I won’t. None the less, very good article on the whole.
Thanks for everyone’s comments. I added the exact timing of the Sabbath here:
http://relijournal.com/christianity/does-the-day-really-begin-at-1200-am/
As A. Bromley said the Sabbath is from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset. We can look at the timing from two angles that do not conflict with each other.
(1) In God’s eyes Saturday really starts from Friday sunset and ends at Saturday sunset.
(2) Sabbath is from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset.
Both are the same periods of time.
James 4:17 is a good scripture to give. I find your efforts to prove the correct day sincere as well as heart wrenching. I did some study and I did not read this article. I know that Catholics changed the day from Saturday to Sunday. I did not know that before. Now how do we know what’s what? Calenders and date changes, he said, she said… It’s a crying same! Denominations have mixed the devil up into their boiling pot of abominable confusion.
But I now say, since I know Catholics did change the day and I have read this. We should then be worshipping on Saturday.
And I must say, despite 7th Day Adventist being known as a cult to me and others. The denomination desires with a fierce heart to follow the commandments as closely as possible.
Your articles have been a blessing to me. I apologize for negative responses to you. In fact I un-kowingly found myself on three 7th day websites on end time teachings which confirmed some things I came to know through study. Especially on the Catholic cult.
About what Pete said-it is important to know that Christ rose from the dead no matter the day. But keeping the Sabbath is one of the 10 commandments which we must do. And dietary laws, as I shared with you must be kept as well. As Christians many have become very flippant. I look at the Church as a whole and shake my head now. I certainly was flippant to ask if days make a difference and shall we go to hell. I apologize once again. We do have to stop playing at Christianity.James 4:17 and Acts 17:30 speak volumes to me today and so it should for all those in Christ.
I accept your apology Minister Marlene. I forgave you from the first day since you reacted based on what others say about Adventists. But those who call the Adventist church a cult are wrong because we have no beliefs that cannot be backed up by the Word of God. Cults follow a man. We follow the man Christ Jesus. One day soon I will do an article on that but I am not sure if people are ready. There are so many biases against truth to combat so falsehood rides as king while, as the Bible says, truth is fallen in the street.
John 8:36 If the son therefore shall make you free you shall be free indeed.
Brother Shelpeare, I came by to share a testimony. I have a friend who has a ministry for the disabled in an SDA church.
She invited me to speak at her church about recovery from depression and how the Lord delivered me, it was a blessing to have had the opportunity to share the love of Christ with SDA members. In fact they invited me back to speak.
Sister Sheryl is special to me in so many ways. Anyway, I was praying this morning and the Lord placed it in my spirit that I should call her.
As you know your articles have led me to study the true Sabbath day and dietary laws. I do understand and went back and read some of the materials I studied in Catholic school. Yes, the Sabbath was changed by the Catholic church to Sunday, a day the pagans worship the sun god.
Anyway, I left my prayer time to call Sister Sheryl you see we had a few disagreements on doctrine, just as you and I had. I called my SDA sister to confess that I now knew the truth.
We had such a glorious time of rejoicing. Sister S said she had been praying for me since the time of our disagreement. We kept friendship but relations were a little strained.
And who would I have talked to. Who would I have confessed these new found truths to. My ministry association is in disagreement, and so are many others I know. I am in a new place of truth in ministry and I could have felt very alone. Yet here was Sister Sheryl, my SDA friend, ready to rejoice and comfort me.
It was a blessed morning. I had been praying about the church, knowing that I would have to present these new truths. The truth about the Sabbath and the truth about dietary laws.
I\’m so greatfull, Brother Shelpeare, that the Lord has put you in my path. If you remember from the very first ,I felt the Lord lead me to your writings.
And I\’m so greatfull for Sister Sheryl my dear SDA friend. Well,with these new truths, I have a lot of praying to do and new testimony to give.
Yes, Jesus has set us free and the Holy Spirit will lead us to all truth and we must not be stubborn or we will be led astray.
Bless you Brother Shelpeare, I shared my full testimony with this sister. I told her that it was the abundance of scripture you used that broke through the barriers. I invited her to come to Triond and read your works.
This wonder sister not only has a ministry in SDA church but she has written a book on recovery from abuse.
Here is her website:
http://www.thesonginthesilence.net
Her name is Sheryl Silvera and her book is called-A Song in the Silence.
Take care Brother Shealpeare, I just wanted to share this testimony with you.
Another confession more to the point. I must not be stubborn myself. I thank God for his forgiveness and yours.
And I see you left an explanation of what the true Sabbath entails. Thank you, I shall read more on this and ask my SDA sister to teach more on the topic.
Hi Minister Marlene. Praise God for your experience!!! It makes all the writing worthwhile. Thanks for sharing this with me. It is a blessing to hear how God has led you. Your friend and I were just willing instruments in the hands of a Mighty God. If you like I wrote an article entitled “Are God’s Laws Bondage?” on Bukisa. This is the link:
http://www.bukisa.com/articles/428615_are-gods-laws-bondage
God bless.
Thanks Brother Shelpeare. Willing instruments in the hands of an almighty God. Yes and amen! I’m even more blessed, since I was invited to share this testimony at my sisters SDA church only moments ago. What a day! What a blessed day. Plus, my son will be taught correctly as well. To God be all the glory. I will read your article. There is so much that Christians are unaware of. This is the great importance of you writing these articles. I will read the above…
Read it, it’s excellent. As soon as I get my printer up and running I’m going to print it out.
Thanks