The Psalm 119:18.org team was recently asked about Colossians 2:16-17 after the following comment was shared with one of the authors:
Regarding Col 2:16, some hold that Paul was merely teaching that believers have a choice as to which day of the week they observe the Sabbath, while others believe Paul meant that our liberty extends to the choice of whether to observe a Sabbath at all. Under either interpretation, however, the Christian is not be bound to a Saturday observance.
Here is our response:
"Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one!" Deuteronomy 6:4
The Lord is one. One what?
The Hebrew word for "one" in this verse is ekhad. It is Strong's #259 and means "one". This word is used 712 times in the Tanakh. Sometimes it is translated as "one" and other times it is translated (in the NASB) as "first". The first time it is used is in Genesis 1:5-
God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.
Yom echad: one day. Here we see what is being counted: days.
In the first part of this series we examined Scripture that referenced the "first day of the week" to see if the Sabbath day was changed to Sunday in the New Covenant. In the second part of the series we examined Scripture that referenced the "day of the Lord" or "the Lord's day". In this third part of the series we will consider a few other points to discover the answer.
In the first part of this series we examined passages from Scripture that spoke of the apostles meeting on "the first day of the week". In this second portion we will examine Scriptural references to the "day of the Lord" to see if the Sabbath day was changed in the New Covenant.
Acts 2:20 is the first reference in the writings of the Apostles to "the day of the Lord". The particular "day of the Lord" noted in this passage mentions that the sun will be turned to darkness and the moon will be turned into blood before the "great and glorious day of the Lord shall come". This passage clearly references "the last days" (verse 17) and is not speaking of any weekly event nor does it make any mention of the Sabbath.
In a previous article we discovered the myth that Sabbath observance has been abolished does not match the testimony of Scripture.
In this series we will examine the question "Did the Sabbath Day Change to Sunday in the New Covenant?" I know the opinion of some is "yes!" and the opinion of others is "no!" Let's examine Scripture and see what it has to say on the matter:
The first verse of Scripture that uses the Hebrew word for Sabbath (shabbat) is found in Genesis 2:2-3. This passage tells us that G-d sanctified the seventh day... what we know as Saturday.
I found this excellent analysis of Matthew 5 that included this observation:
“Fulfill” in Matthew
The verb “fulfill” is used 16 times in Matthew. Of the 13 times where the word is used in the passive voice, 12 are used in expressing the ‘fulfillment’ of prophecy, and one relates to a boat being filled with fish (13:48). Prophecy is viewed as being fulfilled (passive) by the active hand of God in the events of history.
The Merriam-Webster Word of the Day for July 27th was quaff.
to drink deeply
In addition to the definition they provided this:
Nowadays, "quaff" has an old-fashioned, literary sound to it. For more contemporary words that suggest drinking a lot of something, especially in big gulps and in large quantity, you might try "drain," "pound," or "slug." If you are a daintier drinker, you might say that you prefer to "sip," "imbibe" or "partake in" the beverage of your choice. "Quaff" is by no means the oldest of these terms — earliest evidence of it in use is from the early 1500s, whereas "sip" dates to the 14th century — but it is the only one with the mysterious "origin unknown" etymology.