No matter how you look at it, you can't separate holiness from the word used for sanctified in Genesis 2:3 and Exodus 20:11. You can pick any one of the possible meanings (all of which are the same, by the way), and every one of them has a holy component.
Strong's H6942 sanctified (
qāḏaš):
- to consecrate, sanctify, prepare, dedicate, be hallowed, be holy, be sanctified, be separate
- (Qal)
- to be set apart, be consecrated
- to be hallowed
- consecrated, tabooed
- (Niphal)
- to show oneself sacred or majestic
- to be honoured, be treated as sacred
- to be holy
- (Piel)
- to set apart as sacred, consecrate, dedicate
- to observe as holy, keep sacred
- to honour as sacred, hallow
- to consecrate
- (Pual)
- to be consecrated
- consecrated, dedicated
- (Hiphil)
- to set apart, devote, consecrate
- to regard or treat as sacred or hallow
- to consecrate
- (Hithpael)
- to keep oneself apart or separate
- to cause Himself to be hallowed (of God)
- to be observed as holy
- to consecrate oneself
Let's look at the two passages concerning the Sabbath. Specifically, the last sentence in each.
Creation
- Genesis 2:1-3 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. 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.
Mt. Sinai/Ten Commandments
- Exodus 20:8-11 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.
The last sentence of both links them together. There is no way to separate them. The Sabbath commandment points right back to creation where the Sabbath started.
The same word for sanctification is used 12 more times in the Old Testament, which establishes its meaning as holy (Matthew 18:16).
Sabbath, Creation and Mt. Sinai
If...
- ...Jesus is the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world (Revelation 13:8).
- ...Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath (Mark 2:28).
- ...the Sabbath was made for man (Mark 2:27).
Then...
- ...the Sabbath was planned before creation as God's holy day of rest, for man.
- ...the Lord of the Sabbath is a reference to Jesus being at creation where He sanctified the first Sabbath, and made it for man.
- ...the Lord of the Sabbath is also a reference to Jesus giving the Sabbath commandment by voice and written in stone on Mt. Sinai, at which time He pointed back to creation.
Reasonable conclusions:
- God's plan was set forth from the beginning, before creation. Every act of creation was deliberate and made for man (man was given dominion over the earth; Genesis 1:26), which includes the Sabbath.
- Jesus being the Lord of the Sabbath proves its perpetuity. Jesus is the perpetual Lord of the Sabbath. The Lord of the Sabbath is a title Jesus established (1) at creation and (2) reiterated at Mt. Sinai (Exodus 20:1, 8 I am the Lord thy God... Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy...), and sent the point home by tying the commandment to creation (Genesis 2:3, Exodus 20:11). The Sabbath was sanctified as perpetual (Exodus 31:13-16) and as a sign.
- At no point during Jesus ministry did He relinquish His title as Lord of the Sabbath, which means He is still Lord of the Sabbath (Hebrews 13:8), and the Sabbath was ever binding from the seventh day of creation forward.
The Sabbath: A Perpetual Covenant
There is a reason Jesus calls Himself Lord of the Sabbath. He has emphasized it over and over again. So much so that it covers all time periods, from creation to eternity.
- From creation forward—The Sabbath is observed by God, sanctified as a day of rest.
- Genesis 2:1-3 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. 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.
- From Mt. Sinai back to creation—The Sabbath commandment pointing back to creation shows that the Sabbath was to be observed between creation and Mt. Sinai.
- 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.
- From Mt. Sinai forward—The Sabbath commandment pointing forward has no end, only the command to remember. The Sabbath was/is to be observed.
- Exodus 20:8 Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
- From the Mount of Olives forward—Jesus mentions the Sabbath as being observed when the great tribulation starts.
- Matthew 24:20-21 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
- From the first angel's message back to creation—The last call to worship in Revelation 14:7 pointing back from the end time to creation, spans the whole of earth's history. The Sabbath was/is to be observed from creation forward.
- Revelation 14:7 Saying with a loud voice, 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.
- From the first angel's message forward—The command in Revelation 14:7 to fear God, give glory to Him and worship Him has no end.
- Revelation 14:7 Saying with a loud voice, 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.
- On to eternity—Isaiah says the Sabbath will be observed in the new heavens and the new earth. No end is mentioned.
- Isaiah 66:22-23 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.
I have lost track of the discussion, I may have got my threads crossed.
I recall that Baptist Pastor saying some really good new stuff but then he went on to talk of doctrine I could not agree with; so I reasoned I may have misunderstood him; me providing my own context and so on.
I do not disagree with anything you have said, but you have not addressed the issue being debated and defined many posts back (unfortunately off topic); the person I was debating seemed to have missed the point also; “holy” is a hollow word that places a pagan religiosity veneer over scripture. By hollow I mean that the reader has to provide the meaning of the word, which is the opposite to how it is supposed to work, the writer should define his words or provide the meaning, and this is how I is in the original text.
One comment I remember making, regarding the word “holy”, there are seven Hebrew words and four Greek words rendered/translated “holy”.
From Strong I derived these meanings:
The seven Hebrew words, between them, mean: good, temple, palace, sacred, ceremonial, sanctuary, beginning place, act of making sanctified, sanctified thing or place.
These from the OT are all to do with God's presence, God's commandments, and God's actions.
The four/five Greek words, according to Strong mean:
make sacred, blameless, sacred, right character, pious. These need to be understood, for practical reasons, in the context of Gentiles treading the sanctuary of God, underfoot.
These English words probably have a different meaning for you than they do for me; what I see is the word meaning to make sacred is used once in Rev 22:11, “let them that have been made dear to God remain dear to God.” 1 John 2:20, Änd ye have an anointing from the blameless One.” Holy agitates me grossly.
There are no word for word equivalents, only approximations, between English and Greek or Hebrew. Even so I still prefer word for word translations and rely on the Spirit of God for understanding.
