What does "sabbath" mean?
"God blessed the seventh day and made it holy. He blessed it because on that day he rested from all the work he had done" (Genesis 2:3).
"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy" (Exodus 20:8).
The word "sabbath" comes from the Hebrew word Shabbat, which means to rest or to stop.In the Bible, the Sabbath was a special day to rest and reflect on the Lord. God rested after creation on the seventh day (Genesis 2:2-3). During Old Testament times and part of the early New Testament, the Jews honored the seventh day as being the Sabbath Day, which was Saturday. On the Sabbath Day, nobody was permitted to do any work because God had told the Israelites that the Sabbath Day was to be a holy day where they rested (Exodus 20:8-9; Leviticus 23:3). The Sabbath Day had the purpose of causing the Israelites to remember God’s awesome works and to praise Him.
While the word Shabbat means to stop or rest from work, the meaning is deeper. God wanted the Israelites to have a day of rest and to remember the important things of life, which is spending time with Him and praising Him. Christians today do not have to follow Jewish law and customs because we have accepted Jesus as our Savior and Lord. Any day can be dedicated to the Lord for a time for Shabbat to take time, rest, and remember God. What do you think you can do to spend more time remembering and thinking about God? We’re sure you have some great ideas!
