Harold H. P Dressler begins his discussion on the Sabbath by looking at the different theories about its origin. One of those theories is the Babylonian Origin which states that the Israelites learned about the concept of a seven-day week from the Canaanites who, in turn, learned it from the Babylonians. Other theories are the Lunar, Kenite, Socioeconomic and Calendar Origin. However, Dressler does not see why the Sabbath could not have originated with the Israelites specially since there is not a lot of evidence to refute it. Even the etymology of the word shabbat is not helpful since some scholars don’t see any interdependence of this word and the verb shabat (to cease, stop). Dressler summarizes: “since all available sources have failed to produce conclusive evidence for an alternative origin of the Sabbath, we suggest that the Sabbath originated with Israel and that with the Sabbath came the seven-day week” (24).

He then looks at several texts regarding the Sabbath commandment and the reasons for it. The Sabbath is a sign and it “tells of God’s grace (sanctifying His people), God’s holiness (for the people and Yahweh), and God’s authority (a covenant that must be obeyed)” (26). In summary, the reasons for the Sabbath law are twofold: vertical and horizontal, theological and social (27).

The discussion then turns to the prohibition of the Sabbath. Basically one is not supposed to “profane” (halal) the Sabbath. “A holy day is profaned when it is considered like any other day lacking any special significance” (27). It was only later on when Israel became a commercial nation that additional prohibitions would be added. He moves on to ask if the Sabbath belongs to those universal institutions referred to as “creation ordinances.” He doesn’t think it is a creation ordinance and I will talk more about it later. He then gives us what I believe to be his main thesis that the Sabbath is a sign of the covenant with a promise for “it derives its importance and significance from the covenant itself” (30). We also see this in the sabbatical year and the year of Jubilee. The Sabbath celebrations then become “covenant feasts.” He quotes McCarthy who said that the Sabbath “was a medium which handed on knowledge of the covenant as a relationship and a doctrine” (31).

He then talks about the observance of the Sabbath and what its true meaning was. “Keeping the Sabbath was not simply an external affair; it was a spiritual attitude as well, since everything Sabbath celebration was, in a sense, a renewal of the covenant relationship” (32). That’s why “only those who celebrated the Sabbath with ‘all their heart’ truly kept the Sabbath” (33).

His concluding remarks capture the essence of his understanding of the Sabbath in the Old Testament:

“God instituted the Sabbath for His people as a constant, regular source of blessing for both spiritual and physical renewal; it was to express social con¬cern and compassion. The Sabbath was a reminder that God was in control of man’s time. Consequently, the Sabbath should have been celebrated as a day of joyfully assembling before God. He had liberated them from slavery, and their devotions, praises, and thanksgivings were to How from grateful and appreciative hearts. The death penalty, introduced after their rebellion against this commandment, showed that God intended to secure the observance of the Sabbath even in the midst of an arrogant and rebellious people. For an institution of this magnitude with such far-reaching theological implications austere and drastic measures were appropriate.

For those among the people with spiritual discernment, no threats were necessary. No one had to compel them to enjoy the blessings of this consecrated day. At Sinai, the Sabbath had been instituted for the benefit of man (and not man for the Sabbath). After that encounter with God the glory of the Sabbath permeated Israel’s working days and enabled her to see all her labors, anxieties, and shortcomings in the light of His grace. Trained by the regular recurrence of this gracious gift of the Sabbath, Israel was to be able to stand before the Creator in freedom, responsibility, trust, and gratitude; she worshiped Him, the Lord of the Sabbath, and looked forward with joy and anticipation to the coming of the final Rest” (35).

The Sabbath as creation ordinance, or is it something else?

On the seventh day God finished the work that He had been doing, and He ceased on the seventh day from all the work that He had done. And God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, because on it God ceased from all the work of creation that He had done. (TNK Gen 2:2-3)

Basically the argument here is that this is not a creation ordinance for the Sabbath because nowhere in this account does God mention the Sabbath unless you already understand the Sabbath to be the seventh day. As a matter of fact, Dressler interprets God’s “separation” of the seventh day in terms of “an eschatological, proleptic sign indicating some future rest” (29). This is possible if God is only separating (sanctifying) the seventh day for the purpose of this eschatological rest. For this argument to work, the verb barakh has to be understood to have the same function as the verb kidash (they are synonymous) which Dressler says has been convincingly argued. In his notes he cites an article in the Biblische Zeitschrift called “Segen und Erwählung” (Blessing and Election). Since I don’t have access to this journal, I can’t check the arguments there (I will try to track it down), but it is telling that other scholars don’t take that to be the case. By blessing the seventh day, God would be would be pressing upon it some special importance. It seems to me that Dressler is trying to bring an interpretation in the NT to bear on this account as he says towards the end of this section: “the mystery of this seventh day cannot be explained away in human terms but find its goal and solution in the revelation related in the New Testament” (29).

But I think that we need to take seriously the observations by G. K. Beale and John Walton that what we see in Genesis 1-2:3 is (functionally) the creation of a Temple. Although I need to think more carefully about this, it makes sense to me. And the fact that God rests on the seventh day after creating adam as His image to “serve” the land (adamah) has everything to do with the Sabbath. I am not denying that there is a future rest that it points to, but this “pointing to” doesn’t seem to be the only thing that is happening here.

His analysis here is unfortunate because if he is correct in his interpretation, he did not elaborate on it sufficiently. The irony is that this is the crucial hermeneutical question in my view. If he is wrong, which I think he probably is, then the seventh day in this account is definitely referring to the Sabbath and points not only to an eschatological rest but to Sinai itself!

I think he is right in the sense that this is not an explicit ordinance, but does it establish a pattern for the history of humanity?

This was a nice contribution, but I thought it was kind of short since it is the “only” one on the Old Testament. Because of its conciseness, Dressler wasn’t able to develop his arguments the way he might have wished.

Bibliography

Dressler, Harold H. P. “The Sabbath in the Old Testament.” In From Sabbath to Lord’s Day, ed. D. A. Carson, 22-41, 1982.

2 Comments

• By promosyon, August 7, 2008 @ 9:24 am

  You have excellent analysis. thanks for writting

• By Scott Ahern, March 25, 2011 @ 9:56 am

  Thanks!

  Great review. I plan to read Carsons compilation on the subject soon. I am currently reading a Genesis commentary by Walton. I’m still not entirely clear as to what the different views held by Carson, Beale and others. But I think I’m getting there.

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