Christ Conversation Breaking Sabbath
The Bible Says That?!? - Mark 2:23-28 www.christconversation.com
[Mark 2:23-28, ESV] One Sabbath he was going through the grainfields, and as they made their way, his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. 24 And the Pharisees were saying to him, “Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” 25 And he said to them, “Have you never read what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: 26 how he entered the house of God, in the time of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those who were with him?” 27 And he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. 28 So the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.” [Luke 6:1] On a Sabbath, while he was going through the grainfields, his disciples plucked and ate some heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands.
Concerning the Sabbath: Exodus 20:8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” Exodus 31:14 You shall keep the Sabbath, because it is holy for you. Everyone who profanes it shall be put to death. Whoever does any work on it, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. Westminster Confession of Faith, Modern English. (Chapter 21, Section 8) The Sabbath is kept holy unto the Lord when men prepare their hearts for it; arrange for their daily affairs to be taken care of beforehand; rest the whole day from their own works and words, and from thoughts about their worldly activities and recreations; and take up the whole time in public and private worship and in the duties of necessity and mercy. Westminster Shorter Catechism: Q. 60. How is the sabbath to be sanctified? A. The sabbath is to be sanctified by a holy resting all that day, even from such worldly employments and recreations as are lawful on other days; and spending the whole time in the public and private exercises of God's worship, except so much as is to be taken up in the works of necessity and mercy. 61. What is forbidden in the fourth commandment? A. The fourth commandment forbiddeth the omission, or careless performance, of the duties required, and the profaning the day by idleness, or doing that which is in itself sinful, or by unnecessary thoughts, words, or works, about our worldly employments or recreations. The Problem: Plucking the ears of corn was considered reaping. Rubbing the ears of corn was considered grinding.
According to Mishnah Tractate Shabbat 7:2, 39 activities are forbidden on the Sabbath. Among them, the first 11 are activities related to making bread – and reaping and grinding are both on the list. According to many Jewish scholars, the Mishnah is thought to be the oral Torah given to Moses at the time on Mt. Sinai when the Torah was given. The oral Torah being the interpretation was an exposition of the Torah. Although it cover a period of about 530 BC – 70 AD, it was compiled in the first and second century AD. While I do not accept the Mishnah to be authoritative, it does let us know what the interpretations and explanations of the Rabbis and Pharisees were at the time preceding and during the earthly life of Jesus. It is this understanding that leads to the accusation against Jesus. Jesus, by way of His disciples taking the grain, was accused of breaking the Sabbath. How could Jesus be so cavalier about what His disciples were doing? How could He uphold the Law while acting against it? The Sabbath, which means “cease” was rooted in God’s ceasing His work of creation. Well before the Law codified the Sabbath, it was rooted in the historical acts of God. Jesus’s Response: 1. Jesus goes back to a precedent set by David. Read 1 Samuel 21:1-6. Compare Leviticus 24:5-9. What is the precedent? __________________________________________ __________________________________________