Saturday, February 20, 2010

Popular Arguments against Shabbat Observances

I found an excellent resource to help explain better some misunderstood scriptures that would seem to support 'Sunday' worship. With a greater examination of these scriptures we can see that Sunday worship is not what is being admonished ...here is an excerpt of the article:

If you ever engage in discussions with Sunday keepers about the Sabbath, you will almost certainly be called on to answer six specific passages in the New Testament. Three of these are typically used in support of Sunday as the Sabbath. The other three are cited in an effort to show that there is no need to keep the Sabbath holy.

Let us look at the first three passages used in an effort to show that Sunday is the day of rest.

THE PASSAGE IN QUESTION…

•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."

Wrong interpretation—The common idea is that Paul was holding a Sunday worship service.

Proper explanation—Note that the word "day" is italicized in the King James Version, meaning it was added by translators. The phrase should properly read, "And upon the first of the…" The word "week" in the Greek is Sabbaton, or Sabbath, Strong’s Greek Dictionary. In Word Studies in the New Testament, M.R. Vincent notes, "The noun Sabbath is often used after numerals in the signification of a week" (Acts 20:7 note). The Greek text behind this phrase, therefore, literally reads "And upon the first of the Sabbaths."

First for what? The verse refers to the first weekly Sabbath in the seven-Sabbath (seven-week) count to Pentecost. Paul was moved to give a message on this day. This occurred following a regular meal that the disciples had enjoyed on a weekly Sabbath, not Sunday.

You can read the rest of the article here

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