Is Saturday the 7th day of the Week?
Question: How can we be sure that our present Saturday is the original
seventh day of the week?
Answer: To prove that the day called Saturday is the seventh day
of the week we will consider the history of
mankind in three parts:
- From the Creation to the Exodus.
- From the Exodus to the Apostolic era.
- From the Apostolic era to the present time.
1. From the Creation to the Exodus
We will suppose for the moment that the Sabbath was ‘lost’
between the creation and the exodus. It may not have been of course, for Jehovah’s
(Yahweh’s) laws were known and kept by faithful believers long before they
were given to Israel at Mount Sinai (Genesis 26: 5) and the sacred calendar and weekly
cycle was followed as far back as the days of Noah (Genesis 7: 11, 8: 9-14). But
even supposing that the Sabbath had been lost we can be certain that is was
identified and established again by the Almighty in the days of Moses. Here is how we
can know this fact.
In (Exodus 16: 14-30) we read of how the Almighty fed Israel with manna.
By the following 3 miracles, performed every week for 40 years, Yahweh made
known His Sabbath day to the nation of Israel.
- He gave Israel twice as much manna on the sixth day
- He withheld manna on the Sabbath, the seventh day
- And He kept the manna given on the sixth day from spoiling overnight
(which it normally did) in order that His people might
rest on the seventh day of the week.
By these three distinct miracles which occurred every week for 40 years
the Creator identified the seventh day of the week as His Sabbath.
2. From the Exodus to the Apostolic era
Was the identity of the seventh day ‘lost’ between
the exodus and the time of Jesus Christ? The answer is No it wasn't.
But again, for the sake of this investigation, we'll assume that it was. We can
be certain that it was again identified when the Messiah observed it, for
just prior to his death on Calvary the Saviour categorically
stated that he had kept his father's
commandments (MP3),
one of which is the seventh-day Sabbath.
“If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my
Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.” (John 15: 10)
The Master could hardly have said this if the Sabbath day He had been keeping
for some thirty three years was the wrong one! Besides, if He had kept the wrong day
as the Sabbath He would have been a sinner and that would have disqualified
Him from being our Saviour. We are, therefore, certain that the Saviour kept the
correct seventh daySabbath. He was no law breaker.
3. From the Apostolic era to the Present Time
Has the identity of the seventh day of the week been ‘lost’
since the Saviour's resurrection some 1965 years ago? We can assure the reader that
it hasn't been. Here is the proof.
Soon after the capture of Jerusalem in AD 70 the ‘Diaspora’
took place. The ‘Diaspora’ is the scattering of the people of Israel
to lands other than their own. Initially the exiles had fled to the surrounding countries
of Egypt, Syria and Phoenicia, but in the course of time, as persecution mounted, the
people of Israel travelled further and further afield and today you will find Jewish
communities in every country on the face of the earth. With them the Jews took the Holy
Scriptures and their knowledge of the true Sabbath day. Every seventh day
since their first century banishment, orthodox Jews all over the world have remembered
the weekly Sabbath. And what do we find in this 21th century? We find the
Jews still keeping the original seventh day Sabbath, the same day they knew at
the time of the Diaspora, which was the same day that Jesus kept. There is absolutely
no disagreement or dispute amongst the Jews as to which day is the seventh day
of the week. Every synagogue in every country is in perfect agreement that Saturday
is the seventh day of the week.
Had there been any change of the day, any loss or gain of time, any deliberate or
accidental slip or alteration in the weekly cycle, which would have resulted in the
Jews in one country observing a different weekly Sabbath from Jewish believers
in the next, then we would readily agree that the identity of the seventh day
of the week is now in doubt. But we do not find that situation anywhere on earth.
Instead we have total agreement amongst all the Jews of all nations that the day
known throughout the world as ‘Saturday’ is the seventh day of the
week. Nor is this fact disputed by any reputable theologian of whatever denomination.
Leading churchmen all agree that Sunday is the first day of the week and Saturday is
the seventh. Look up any dictionary and this fact will be verified. Only the
unenlightened continue to argue that Saturday is not the 7th day of
the week.
4. Calendar Changes
Some point out that the civil calendar was changed in the sixteenth century and that
the weekly cycle itself was altered - all over the world - so no one can be certain that
Saturday is the true seventh day of the week. Those who use this argument are
misinformed. Here are the facts of history: In the year 1582 the Julian calendar
(named after the Emperor Julius Caesar) was found to be 10 days late when compared
with the position of the sun. That is, the vernal equinox was not occurring on or about
March 20/21, as it should do in a correct solar calendar, but was gradually
receding towards the beginning of March. The reason for this error was that the Julian
calendar worked on the basis that the year was 365 days, 6 hours in length, whereas in
truth it is about 11 minutes more than that. Over the centuries this 11
minute discrepancy accumulated causing the Julian calendar to steadily recede, till by
the sixteenth century it had lost 10 days and the equinox was occurring on March 11th
in that calendar. To correct this discrepancy Pope Gregory X111 ordered that 10 days be
added to the Julian calendar dates to bring them into line with the sun. The month of
October was chosen for the amendment and in the calendar of 1582 that month
appeared as follows:
OCTOBER 1582
|
Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat
|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 15 | 16
|
17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23
|
24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30
|
31
|
You will notice from the above that the weekly cycle, the order of the days of the
week, remained unchanged even though the Gregorian calendar dates had increased by ten
between the Thursday 4th and the following day - Friday 15th. In other words in both
calendars the day after Thursday remained a Friday. This amendment, understandably, was
not very popular in some countries, mainly because it had been authorized by a Roman
Catholic Pope. Several Protestant countries refused to acknowledge it and continued
to use the Julian calendar; but one by one they came into line. Here is a short list of
when they did:
Germany (Catholic States) | 1583
|
Germany (Protestant States) | 1700
|
Netherlands | 1700
|
England | 1752
|
Rumania, Turkey and Russia | 1919
|
All those years between 1582 and 1919 while both calendars were in use,
the sequence of the days in the weekly cycle was the same in every country. In other
words Sunday in Rome in 1900 was also Sunday in Russia in that
year even though both countries were using a different calendar. And as each nation
adopted the Gregorian calendar it simply added 10 days to its Julian calendar
date. There was no need to change the order of the days of the week, because they
already agreed.
5. Summary
- Yahweh identified the seventh day of the week as the Sabbath in the
days of Israel's Exodus from Egypt. By performing 3 separate miracles each week for
40 years in the wilderness of Sinai the Almighty clearly identified the true
Sabbath day.
- Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus Christ) kept the seventh day of the week as the
Sabbath. Had he not done so he would have been classified as a sinner.
- Jewish communities around the world have since the Diaspora kept track of the
seventh day Sabbath; and all agree it is the day commonly known as
Saturday.
- Calendar changes in the year 1582 did not affect the days of the week in the
weekly cycle.
- Christian theologians all agree that Saturday is the 7th day of the week
and Sunday is the 1st.
These facts prove that Saturday is the seventh day of the week. They also mean
that all true believers in Yahweh the Almighty God of Israel should keep this
day holy as required in the Ten Commandments.
(MP3) Failure to do so is sin.
AMEN!
In the Son’s Name - For the Father’s glory.
Elder: Max W. Mader