What Sabbath or Rest Remains?

1. Matthew 28:1-2 -- In the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre. And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it.

2. Mark 16:1-2 -- And when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him. And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun.

3. Mark 16:9 -- Now when Yeshua was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils.

4. Luke 24:1-2 -- Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them.

5. John 20:1 -- The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre.

6. John 20:19 -- Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Yeshua and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.

7. 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.

8. 1 Chronicles 16:2 -- Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.

These eight verses in the New Testament are the verses, which pastors use today to justify celebrating the Lord’s Day on Sunday, instead of the original Sabbath Day, in spite of the fact that in Matthew 12:8, Mark 2:28, and Luke 6:5 Yeshua clearly stated that the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.

Pastors and ministers all over say that the original seventh day Sabbath was for a covenant between God and the Jews; however, when God created the earth and all that was in it, He rested the seventh day and Adam and Eve kept the Sabbath with Him. The lineage of the Jews hadn’t begun yet, because there was no need to have a plan of salvation at that time, which God used the Jews for.

The first time that we hear the word Sabbath in the Old Testament is in Exodus 16, but clearly, we see that God appointed it at the beginning of the world, in Genesis 2:3.

Now, besides the refutal that God didn’t have a covenant with the Jews to keep the Sabbath, but it is a commandment for all people, as proven in Isaiah 56, we can also see in logical terms how the change doesn’t agree with God’s wishes.

The first logical way to see this is to go back to Daniel 7:25, and see that the spirit of the antichrist would speak great words against the most High, wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

So, we can see that he would have changed times and dates. When Constantine came into power in Rome, and began his false Christianity religion, he also changed the Sabbath Day, saying that he didn’t want to keep the Lord’s Day on the same day, which the Jews kept theirs.

On March 7, 321 A.D. Constantine declared: "On the venerable day of the Sun let the magistrates and people residing in cities rest, and let all workshops be closed. In the country however persons engaged in agriculture may freely and lawfully continue their pursuits because it often happens that another day is not suitable for grain-sowing or vine planting; lest by neglecting the proper moment for such operations the bounty of heaven should be lost."

The church father, Origin, stated: "After the festival of the unceasing sacrifice [the crucifixion] is put the second festival of the Sabbath, and it is fitting for whoever is righteous among the saints to keep also the festival of the Sabbath. Which is, indeed, the festival of the Sabbath, except that concerning which the Apostle said, 'There remaineth therefore a sabbatismus, that is, a keeping of the Sabbath, to the people of God [Hebrews 4:9]'? Forsaking therefore the Judaic observance of the Sabbath, let us see what sort of observance of the Sabbath is expected of the Christian. On the day of the Sabbath nothing of worldly acts ought to be performed. If therefore you cease from all worldly works, and do nothing mundane, but are free for spiritual works, you come to the church, offer the ear for divine readings and discussions and thoughts of heavenly things, give attention to the future life, keep before your eyes the coming judgment, do not regard present and visible things but the invisible and the future: this is the observance of the Christian Sabbath."

Origin mentions Hebrews 4:9, that a Sabbath remains, but he fails to mention that verses 4-8 say, "Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief: Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts. For if Yeshua had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day" and then we incorporate verse 9, which says, "There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God." If Origin had taken it into context, he would have seen that Yeshua did not change the day, and therefore the day, which was limited remains.

Even aside from all this, we can prove with Scriptures that these pastors are keeping Sunday as the Sabbath, in vain. Going back up to the eight verses above, which supposedly prove the transference of the sacred day.

According to Strong’s Greek Concordance, the word used for week is Sabbaton. Why is this significant? The potential meanings for this word are as follows:

1. The seventh day of each week, which was a sacred festival on which the Israelites were required to abstain from all, work.
a. The institution of the Sabbath, the law for keeping holy every seventh day of the week
b. A single Sabbath, Sabbath day
2. Seven days, a week

The particular meaning used in these verses is number 2, a seven-day period or an entire week. How do I know this?

Yeshua was arrested on the 10th of Aviv, just as the Passover sheep was taken and examined for four days to make sure that it had no blemishes, and so Yeshua, also found without blemish, was crucified on the Day of Passover, the 14th day of Aviv. The Feast of Unleavened Bread begins on the 15th day of Aviv, which is symbolic of Yeshua's death and burial. The Feast of First Fruits begins on the first day after the Sabbath during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. And from the first day after the Sabbath during the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Hebrews were instructed to count 49 days to Pentecost, on the 6th of Sivan, and including the Sabbath was 50 days. This time is called the Feast of Weeks.

So, what the New Testament should have been translated was not the first day of the week, but the first day of the (Feast of the) Weeks.

This covers the gospels, but we still have the instances in Acts and 1 Corinthians, where Paul is dealing with the first day of the week. This should have also been translated the first day of the (Feast of the) Weeks. How do I know this?


Date......Old Testament Compared -- New Testament
14 Aviv Angel passed over Hebrews’ houses – annual feast held -- Passover – Yeshua crucified, and we are passed over now, because of it.
15 Aviv...God delivers Hebrews from bondage -- Feast of Unleavened Bread begins – Yeshua's body is broken and buried (He delivers us from bondage.)
16 Nisan..First fruits of the harvest are presented to the Lord -- Feast of First Fruits – Yeshua was resurrected
6 Sivan....Hebrews travel to Mount Sinai. God gives His Law to Moses in stone. -- First day after the Sabbath – 49 days to Pentecost God gives His law in man’s heart and Pentecost.


Yeshua, being the first fruit of the Resurrection, was raised on the Feast of First Fruits.

Leviticus 23:39 tells us how this feast works: Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye have gathered in the fruit of the land, ye shall keep a feast unto the Lord seven days: on the first day shall be a Sabbath, and on the eighth day shall be a Sabbath. So, the Feast of First Fruits was on the fifteenth day of Tishrei.


In Acts 20:7, it is recorded that Paul and the disciples came together to break bread. This would have been done on the 16th day of Aviv, the day on which the Lord was buried, during the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which is 50 days until Pentecost. We know this, because it was so close to Pentecost, as in verse 16 it says, “For Paul had determined to sail by Ephesus, because he would not spend the time in Asia: for he hasted, if it were possible for him, to be at Jerusalem the day of Pentecost.”

The same thing occurs in 1 Corinthians 16:2. Paul instructs the Corinthians to lay aside some money at the first day of the week – to store it in their own home, not to take up an offering on that day, but we see again, that at the time he wrote this letter, it was again near Pentecost, as he writes in verse 8 that he will tarry at Ephesus until Pentecost, so I believe that again, he was instructing them to start saving up money during the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for a collection for the saints, which he would collect at a later time, when he expected to return and spend the winter with them (verses 6-7).

The Lord shared this revelation with me: that Yeshua rose on the 16th of Aviv, the Feast of First Fruits. He was on the earth for 40 days. Forty is the number of cleansing. The earth was under water for forty days at the time of the flood, Moses fasted 40 days, Elijah fasted forty days and Yeshua was tempted and fasted for 40 days, the Hebrew people bore their iniquities for forty years, and Nineveh bore their sins for forty days. So, the number 40 is the time in which a cleaning process takes place, and Yeshua returned for forty days convincing the people to repent and cleanse themselves of their sins, by proving with infallible truth that indeed the Kingdom of Heaven and the Resurrection were true (Acts 1:3). After forty days, He ascended and ten days were left, which He instructed the disciples to go to Jerusalem and tarry until they had the Holy Spirit enter them. These 50 days in Jewish custom are known as the Counting of the Omar, in which people reflect on themselves and refining their spiritual connection to God. Ten is the number of God’s Word, and represents law and responsibility. The Commandments came in ten, and so ten days lead to the day, which God wrote the Ten Commandments and His law in the hearts of man. So, that is the reason, which He rose and fifty days later, His Spirit was given to believers, and these are the reasons, that we know that the first day of the week is not Sunday.

©Kimberly Padilla, A.A. Religion
24 May 2008