14 “‘Observe the Sabbath, because it is holy to you. Anyone who desecrates it is to be put to death; those who do any work on that day must be cut off from their people.
I believe, (I'm not sure why....maybe its just what I prefer....hahaha) that this verse pertains to physical labor....which is what most people did in those days. You need a break from it. You can't do it everyday and be healthy. This is one of those rules that is intended to help you out.
Having said that. I think we've taken the Sabbath out of the Sabbath. We have pushed it too far. It has now become a day to rest....and also get caught up on laundry, and finish anything in the yard that I didn't get done on Saturday.
My take from this chapter is as follows:
Work hard to keep the Sabbath as holy. It is a day of rest and recuperation. Spending time with God on that day should be priority number 1.
If the punishment for not following this command is death....it must be pretty serious.
tp
17 It will be a sign between me and the Israelites forever, for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.’”
ReplyDeleteGod made us in his image. By his own actions he gave us a model of work as well as the healthy time to rest and refresh. Maybe the phrase he worked himself to death has a tie into God's word which quite literally says if you don't observe the sabbath you'll be put to death. There isn't much of a Sabbath left in American society, or at least not from the standpoint of spending time focused on God which I know I am very poor at doing. To be honest I don't see myself changing, I fill my entire calendar and I'm not sure how to stop.
knut