Shabbat in Dallas with Benei Avraham

Is the Shabbat for everyone, forever? What the Bible says

A study from the Bible alone. Read each question, then let the Scripture answer it. Verses are from the King James Version, modernized, with Hebrew names (“Hashem” for the LORD).

1. 1When did God make the Shabbat, and for whom?

   “Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had made; and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it, because in it He had rested from all His work which God created and made.”

   Genesis 2:1–3

   “And he said unto them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.””

   Mark 2:27

   God blessed and set apart the seventh day at creation, before there was a Jew or a Gentile, and before sin entered the world. Yeshua says the Sabbath was made for man (Greek anthrōpos, humankind), not for one nation only.

2. 2Which day is the Shabbat?

   “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work; but the seventh day is the Sabbath of Hashem your God. In it you shall not do any work, you, nor your son, nor your daughter, your manservant, nor your maidservant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger that is within your gates. For in six days Hashem made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day; therefore Hashem blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.”

   Exodus 20:8–11

   “And that day was the preparation, and the Sabbath was drawing on… And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the Sabbath day according to the commandment. Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the tomb.”

   Luke 23:54–24:1

   The Shabbat is the seventh day, the day between the “preparation” (Friday) and “the first day of the week” (Sunday). It is what we call Saturday, beginning Friday at sundown.

3. 3Was the Shabbat kept before the Torah was given at Sinai?

   “Then said Hashem unto Moshe, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you… and it shall come to pass, that on the sixth day they shall prepare that which they bring in; and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily… Six days you shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the Sabbath, in it there shall be none.” … And Hashem said unto Moshe, “How long do you refuse to keep My commandments and My laws? See, for Hashem has given you the Sabbath.” … So the people rested on the seventh day.”

   Exodus 16:4–5, 26–30

   Before Yisrael reached Mount Sinai, Hashem was already teaching the Shabbat with the manna and calling it one of “My commandments and My laws.” The Shabbat is older than Sinai.

4. 4Is the Shabbat part of God’s Ten Commandments?

   “And He gave unto Moshe, when He had made an end of speaking with him upon Mount Sinai, two tablets of testimony, tablets of stone, written with the finger of God.”

   Exodus 31:18

   “Keep the Sabbath day to sanctify it, as Hashem your God has commanded you.”

   Deuteronomy 5:12

   The fourth commandment stands in the middle of the Ten, written by God’s own finger in stone. No one would say the other nine commandments, against idolatry, murder or theft, have expired.

5. 5Do God’s commandments ever change?

   “The works of His hands are truth and judgment; all His commandments are sure. They stand fast forever and ever, and are done in truth and uprightness.”

   Psalm 111:7–8

   “For I am Hashem, I change not.”

   Malachi 3:6

   “Think not that I am come to destroy the Torah, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For truly I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the Torah, till all be fulfilled.”

   Matthew 5:17–18

   Heaven and earth are still here. Yeshua said not even the smallest stroke of a letter would pass from the Torah while they remain.

6. 6How long is the Shabbat covenant meant to last?

   “Therefore the children of Yisrael shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between Me and the children of Yisrael forever; for in six days Hashem made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day He rested, and was refreshed.”

   Exodus 31:16–17

   “Moreover also I gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between Me and them, that they might know that I am Hashem that sanctifies them… And hallow My Sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between Me and you, that you may know that I am Hashem your God.”

   Ezekiel 20:12, 20

   God calls the Shabbat a perpetual covenant and a sign forever. Its reason is creation itself, which has not changed.

7. 7Was the Shabbat only for the Jewish people, or also for people from the nations?

   “…nor your stranger that is within your gates.”

   Exodus 20:10

   “One Torah shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourns among you.”

   Exodus 12:49

   “Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves to Hashem, to serve Him, and to love the name of Hashem, to be His servants, every one that keeps the Sabbath from polluting it, and takes hold of My covenant; even them will I bring to My holy mountain, and make them joyful in My house of prayer… for My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.”

   Isaiah 56:6–7

   From the beginning, the stranger who lived among Yisrael rested too. Through Yeshayahu, Hashem promises special blessing to people from the nations who keep the Shabbat and hold fast to His covenant.

8. 8Did Yeshua keep the Shabbat?

   “And he came to Natzeret, where he had been brought up; and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.”

   Luke 4:16

   “Therefore the Son of Man is Lord also of the Sabbath.”

   Mark 2:28

   “Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath days.”

   Matthew 12:12

   Keeping Shabbat was Yeshua’s custom. He never abolished it; he showed its true purpose: healing, mercy and doing good. As Lord of the Sabbath, he is the one who rightly explains it.

9. 9Did Yeshua expect his followers to keep Shabbat in the future?

   “But pray that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the Sabbath day.”

   Matthew 24:20

   Speaking of events after his resurrection, including the destruction of Yerushalayim in 70 CE, Yeshua assumed his disciples would still be honoring the Shabbat.

10. 10Did the disciples keep Shabbat after Yeshua’s death and resurrection?

    “And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the Sabbath day according to the commandment.”

    Luke 23:56

    “And Shaul, as his custom was, went in unto them, and three Sabbath days reasoned with them out of the Scriptures.”

    Acts 17:2

    “And on the Sabbath we went out of the city by a river side, where prayer was customarily made; and we sat down, and spoke unto the women which gathered there.”

    Acts 16:13

    Even at Yeshua’s death his followers “rested the Sabbath day according to the commandment.” Years later Shaul (Paul) still kept Shabbat as his custom, even where there was no synagogue.

11. 11Did Gentile believers gather on the Shabbat?

    “And when the Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these words might be preached to them the next Sabbath… And the next Sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God.”

    Acts 13:42, 44

    “And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks.”

    Acts 18:4

    Non-Jews asked to hear the message on the next Shabbat, not on the next day. Jews and Greeks met together, every Shabbat.

12. 12Does a Shabbat rest still remain for God’s people today?

    “For he spoke in a certain place of the seventh day in this way: “And God did rest the seventh day from all His works.” … There remains therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also has ceased from his own works, as God did from His.”

    Hebrews 4:4, 9–10

    The word translated “rest” in verse 9 is sabbatismos, literally “a Sabbath-keeping.” It remains for the people of God.

13. 13Will the Shabbat be kept in the world to come?

    “For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before Me, says Hashem, so shall your seed and your name remain. And it shall come to pass, that from one New Moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before Me, says Hashem.”

    Isaiah 66:22–23

    In the new heavens and new earth, “all flesh,” all people, will come to worship Hashem from Shabbat to Shabbat. The Shabbat began at creation and continues into the new creation.

14. 14What blessing does God promise to those who keep Shabbat?

    “If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on My holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of Hashem, honorable; and shall honor Him, not doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words: then shall you delight yourself in Hashem; and I will cause you to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed you with the heritage of Yaakov your father; for the mouth of Hashem has spoken it.”

    Isaiah 58:13–14

    The Shabbat is not a burden but a delight, a weekly appointment with the Creator, with the promise of the heritage of Yaakov.

Common questions

Candle lighting & Havdalah times for 5787

Times for DeSoto and the Dallas area (ZIP 75115). Light Shabbat candles 18 minutes before sunset on Friday. Shabbat ends with Havdalah on Saturday night, when three stars appear. Holiday rows marked “after” are lit from an existing flame after nightfall.

The times for 5787 have ended. Times for 5788 are coming soon. Text us at (469) 608-9944 for this week’s times.

Past dates are removed automatically. Times from Hebcal. See all the holy days on our Jewish Holydays page.

Good questions before your first visit