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What the Bible Says About Sabbath, the

Overview

The Bible addresses sabbath, the across 85 verses, drawn from both the Old and New Testaments. These passages cluster most in Exodus, Nehemiah and Acts. Closely related themes include Sabbath, Harvest, Traffic and Desert, Journey of Israel Through The. Figures whose stories touch this theme include Moses, Jesus, Paul and Aaron.

Key Bible verses about sabbath, the

Old Testament

Exodus

Exodus 16:23

And he said unto them, This is that which the LORD hath said, To morrow is the rest of the holy sabbath unto the LORD: bake that which ye will bake to day, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning.

Exodus 16:27

And it came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none.

Exodus 20:8

Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.

Exodus 20:9

Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:

Exodus 20:10

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 20:11

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 23:12

Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thine ox and thine ass may rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed.

Exodus 31:13

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

Exodus 31:14

Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you: every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death: for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people.

Exodus 31:15

Six days may work be done; but in the seventh is the sabbath of rest, holy to the LORD: whosoever doeth any work in the sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death. holy: Heb. holiness

Exodus 31:16

Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant.

Exodus 31:17

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.

Numbers

Numbers 15:32

And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man that gathered sticks upon the sabbath day.

Numbers 15:33

And they that found him gathering sticks brought him unto Moses and Aaron, and unto all the congregation.

Numbers 15:34

And they put him in ward, because it was not declared what should be done to him.

Numbers 15:35

And the LORD said unto Moses, The man shall be surely put to death: all the congregation shall stone him with stones without the camp.

Numbers 15:36

And all the congregation brought him without the camp, and stoned him with stones, and he died; as the LORD commanded Moses.

Numbers 28:9

And on the sabbath day two lambs of the first year without spot, and two tenth deals of flour for a meat offering, mingled with oil, and the drink offering thereof:

Nehemiah

Nehemiah 9:14

And madest known unto them thy holy sabbath, and commandedst them precepts, statutes, and laws, by the hand of Moses thy servant:

Nehemiah 10:31

And if the people of the land bring ware or any victuals on the sabbath day to sell, that we would not buy it of them on the sabbath, or on the holy day: and that we would leave the seventh year, and the exaction of every debt. every: Heb. every hand

Nehemiah 13:15

In those days saw I in Judah some treading wine presses on the sabbath, and bringing in sheaves, and lading asses; as also wine, grapes, and figs, and all manner of burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on the sabbath day: and I testified against them in the day wherein they sold victuals.

Nehemiah 13:16

There dwelt men of Tyre also therein, which brought fish, and all manner of ware, and sold on the sabbath unto the children of Judah, and in Jerusalem.

Nehemiah 13:17

Then I contended with the nobles of Judah, and said unto them, What evil thing is this that ye do, and profane the sabbath day?

Nehemiah 13:18

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 13:19

And it came to pass, that when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark before the sabbath, I commanded that the gates should be shut, and charged that they should not be opened till after the sabbath: and some of my servants set I at the gates, that there should no burden be brought in on the sabbath day.

Nehemiah 13:20

So the merchants and sellers of all kind of ware lodged without Jerusalem once or twice.

Nehemiah 13:21

Then I testified against them, and said unto them, Why lodge ye about the wall? if ye do so again, I will lay hands on you. From that time forth came they no more on the sabbath. about: Heb. before

Nehemiah 13:22

And I commanded the Levites that they should cleanse themselves, and that they should come and keep the gates, to sanctify the sabbath day. Remember me, O my God, concerning this also, and spare me according to the greatness of thy mercy. greatness: or, multitude

Isaiah

Isaiah 56:2

Blessed is the man that doeth this, and the son of man that layeth hold on it; that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his hand from doing any evil.

Isaiah 56:6

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;

Isaiah 58:13

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:

Isaiah 58:14

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.

Ezekiel

Ezekiel 20:13

But the house of Israel rebelled against me in the wilderness: they walked not in my statutes, and they despised my judgments, which if a man do, he shall even live in them; and my sabbaths they greatly polluted: then I said, I would pour out my fury upon them in the wilderness, to consume them.

Ezekiel 20:16

Because they despised my judgments, and walked not in my statutes, but polluted my sabbaths: for their heart went after their idols.

Ezekiel 22:8

Thou hast despised mine holy things, and hast profaned my sabbaths.

Ezekiel 22:26

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. violated: Heb. offered violence to

Ezekiel 46:3

Likewise the people of the land shall worship at the door of this gate before the LORD in the sabbaths and in the new moons.

New Testament

Luke

Luke 4:16

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 4:31

And came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath days.

Luke 6:6

And it came to pass also on another sabbath, that he entered into the synagogue and taught: and there was a man whose right hand was withered.

Luke 13:14

And the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because that Jesus had healed on the sabbath day, and said unto the people, There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be healed, and not on the sabbath day.

Luke 13:15

The Lord then answered him, and said, 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?

Luke 14:1

And it came to pass, as he went into the house of one of the chief Pharisees to eat bread on the sabbath day, that they watched him.

Luke 23:56

And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the sabbath day according to the commandment.

Acts

Acts 13:14

But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and sat down.

Acts 13:15

And after the reading of the law and the prophets the rulers of the synagogue sent unto them, saying, Ye men and brethren, if ye have any word of exhortation for the people, say on.

Acts 13:27

For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets which are read every sabbath day, they have fulfilled them in condemning him.

Acts 13:44

And the next sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God.

Acts 15:21

For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day.

Acts 16:13

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. sabbath: Gr. sabbath day

Acts 17:2

And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures,

Acts 18:4

And he reasoned in the synagogue every sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks.

Acts 20:7

And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight.

People in the Bible and sabbath, the

Biblical figures whose stories intersect with this theme.

In the Bible dictionary

Studying sabbath, the for yourself

  • Begin with Genesis 2:2, then read the passages below in canonical order.
  • Compare how Exodus, Nehemiah and Acts each treat the theme.
  • Consider the lives of Moses, Jesus and Paul and how their stories intersect with it.
  • Widen the study to related themes: Sabbath, Harvest, Traffic and Desert, Journey of Israel Through The.

Frequently asked questions

What does the Bible say about sabbath, the?

The Bible addresses sabbath, the across 85 verses, drawn from both the Old and New Testaments. These passages cluster most in Exodus, Nehemiah and Acts. Closely related themes include Sabbath, Harvest, Traffic and Desert, Journey of Israel Through The. Figures whose stories touch this theme include Moses, Jesus, Paul and Aaron.

How many Bible verses are about sabbath, the?

The Bible references sabbath, the in 85 verses (King James Version).

Where does the Bible first mention sabbath, the?

In canonical order, the first of these passages is Genesis 2:2: “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.”

Which people in the Bible are associated with sabbath, the?

Moses, Jesus, Paul, Aaron and Thomas.

Preach & teach

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