THE TEMPLE IN HEAVEN by W. H. Littlejohn

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Michigan · May 5, 1885

FromThe Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, Vol. 62, No. 18

THE TEMPLE IN HEAVEN.

By W. H. Littlejohn

THE SABBATH FROM THE CREATION TO THE CROSS, AND FROM THE CROSS TO THE CLOSE OF THE NEW TESTAMENT RECORD.

BY ELD. W. H. LITTLEJOHN.

Mr. Biblist.—To-night I shall fulfill my promise to Mr. Thoughtful, by presenting an outline of the Bible argument for the perpetuity of the Edenic Sabbath. My task will be an easy one, since the line of evidence is direct and conclusive. I have already remarked that there is but one Sabbath law in the Bible. That is found in the fourth commandment of the decalogue. If you please, Maud, turn to the 20th chapter of Exodus, and read verses 8 to 11 inclusive.

Maud.—Yes, sir; I have it before me: “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work; but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work; thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day; wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.”

Mr. B.—This commandment, as you are aware, was written by the finger of God upon tables of stone, and uttered by his voice in the hearing of the children of Israel who were assembled about the base of Mount Sinai. You will observe, however, from the phraseology of the commandment itself, that the Sabbath did not originate at Sinai. It points back to the creation as the time when it was first brought into being. The reason assigned for the institution of the Sabbath is based upon the fact that after the Lord had devoted six days to the creation of the world, he rested upon the succeeding or seventh day, and blessed and hallowed it because of that rest. Now if Maud will turn to the 2nd chapter of Genesis we shall find the historic record which answers to the statement found in the commandment. If you please, Maud, you may read the 1st, 2nd, and 3d verses of that chapter.

Maud.—Yes, sir: “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 that in it he had rested from all his work which he had created and made.”

Mr. B.—From what has been read two facts are easily demonstrable; first, that the last or seventh day of the week was the Sabbath which God instituted in the beginning; secondly, that in commanding Adam to observe it, he designed to make its commemoration obligatory upon his posterity.

Mr. Thoughtful.—If your premises are correct, your conclusion is sound; but before you can show that the posterity of Adam is under obligation to keep the Sabbath because it was given to him, you must first show that he was commanded to observe it, which you have not done as yet.

Mr. B.—Very true; but nothing is easier to do than that. The fact is expressed in the text we have just read, as you will perceive after a moment’s reflection. It is stated therein in words that God sanctified the seventh day, that in it he had rested from all his work which he had created and made. To sanctify means to set apart to a holy or religious use by public proclamation. I will give you an instance or two of the use of the other word, which will illustrate that point. In Ex. 19:23: “And Moses said unto the Lord, The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai; for thou chargedst us, saying, Set bounds about the mount, and sanctify it.” You see by the very use of the language employed in the text that it plainly implies that God in sanctifying the mountain made a public proclamation to the people to that effect; otherwise they would have been ignorant of the fact that the mountain had been set apart as holy. Here is another passage: Joel 1:14: “Sanctify ye a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the Lord your God, and cry unto the Lord.” It needs no argument that to sanctify a fast means to appoint it; it is also manifest that in order to make such appointment serviceable, it would be necessary to give it publicity. Just so with the Sabbath.

As we have seen that to sanctify the Sabbath implies that it should be set apart to a holy use, it follows that in order to make this available it would be necessary to have it done by public proclamation. The only question which remains to be settled, therefore, is this: For whose benefit did God sanctify the Sabbath in the beginning, for Adam’s or Jehovah’s? That the act of sanctification looked to the future there can be no question, since the record states that God sanctified the seventh day because that in it he had rested from all his work. That is, he rested upon the first seventh day, then sanctified every subsequent seventh day in commemoration of that event. To decide whether the Sabbath was for the benefit of Adam or Jehovah, it will only be necessary to inquire what would be the effect should we adopt one or the other of these theories on that subject. If it be true that God sanctified the day for his own benefit, then it would follow that he placed himself under obligation to observe it for all time to come. Such a position would involve the theory that God has rested every seventh day since the creation, which would be absurd to need refutation. On the contrary, the view that God sanctified the Sabbath to be set apart by solemn proclamation for the benefit of Adam, and all his descendants, is consistent. Adam needed a Sabbath for rest and worship; and so God pointed one out for his use, which would recur weekly, and obligated him to hallow it when it should return. But as Adam was the first of the race, this, like all general commandments to him, was made binding upon his posterity for all time to come.

Mr. T.—I see the point which you make; your logic seems to be conclusive.

Mr. B.—Having seen that the Sabbath was instituted in Eden, and that it was given in trust for the race, it remains to trace it down to the present time. We shall find no mention of it during the patriarchal age. This need not surprise us when we remember that the book of Genesis was written by Moses more than two thousand years after the creation, and that it was designed to give in the most concise manner only the most prominent events in the history of the race before that time.

The fact, however, that the Sabbath was instituted in Eden by solemn proclamation of Jehovah furnishes presumptive evidence that it was known to the patriarchs, who were men of God, and an intimation that they did so is found in the fact that they recognized the existence of the division of time which would never have been known had it not been for the return of the week at the end of every cycle of seven days. Gen. 29:27, for example, we have these words spoken by Laban to Jacob, respecting Leah, after he had been deceived into the marrying of her in the supposition that she was Rachel: “Fulfil her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven years.” The sentiment is this: You have been betrayed unwittingly into the marriage of one whom you did not wish to marry; but, if you will observe her marriage feast as for a week, I will covenant to give you her for seven years of service. As stated here, this plain recognition of the week is a virtual acknowledgment of the existence and obligation of the Sabbath; since there could be no week without it.

From this point the historian passes down through the family history of Jacob to the captivity of the children of Israel in Egypt. The next time the Sabbath is brought to view is in the wilderness just before they reach Mount Sinai. In Ex. 16:25–30 we read: “And Moses said, Eat that to-day; for to-day is a Sabbath unto the Lord; to-day ye shall not find it in the field. Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the Sabbath, in it there shall be none. And it came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none. And the Lord said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws? See, for that the Lord hath given you the Sabbath, therefore he giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day. So the people rested on the seventh day.”

These verses are important, as they prove that the people were familiar with the seventh day at least thirty days before they reached the mount of God where the Sabbath commandment was formally renewed; thus demonstrating that it had come down to them through the long patriarchal ages from Eden. When subsequently God spoke the “ten words” of the decalogue in the presence of all the people, he commenced the commandment with these words: “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.” This mention of the Sabbath suggests the idea that it was not a new creation, but rather a well-known institution which was introduced into the commandments as something that had previously existed, but the observance of which needed to be emphasized by the creation of an explicit commandment for its enforcement.

As already suggested, this idea is confirmed by the fact that in the last part of the Sabbath commandment the origin of the Sabbath is referred to the creation week. From Moses to David a thousand years elapsed. During that time we have no direct reference to the Sabbath. It is admitted on all hands, however, that it existed during this period, and was regularly observed by the Jews. From David to Christ a thousand years more elapsed. During that time the Sabbath was observed by the Jews with a laxity which repeatedly called forth the denunciations of the Lord. Sabbath-breaking was one of the causes which led to the captivity of the Jews in Babylon. Jeremiah plainly declared to them that if they would observe the Sabbath strictly, Jerusalem should stand. Here are his words: “And it shall come to pass, if ye diligently hearken unto me, saith the Lord, to bring in no burden through the gates of this city on the Sabbath day, but hallow the Sabbath day, to do no work therein; then shall there enter into the gates of this city kings and princes sitting upon the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they, and their princes, the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and this city shall remain forever.”

The words of the prophet were not heeded. Sabbath-breaking went steadily on at Jerusalem, and its inhabitants were cast out from before the Lord and carried away to Babylon to spend seventy years of grievous captivity at the capital of mighty Nebuchadnezzar. At the expiration of this time they returned to Jerusalem, thoroughly cured of their Sabbath-breaking proclivities. From that point until the advent of Christ they rather inclined to carry their Sabbath observance to extremes. It was under these circumstances that the Saviour entered upon his mission.

The inquiry which we now make is, How did he treat the Sabbath? His attitude toward it will settle the question whether it was his design to abolish it altogether or to substitute another day in its place. On a point of this nature there can be no lack of testimony in the Gospels. Let us therefore examine the record. The first text that I will read is Mark 2:27, 28: “And he [Christ] said unto them, The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath; therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath.” These words of our Saviour express in general terms the estimate in which he held the Sabbath. When he says that the Sabbath was made for man, the allusion evidently is to the institution of the Sabbath at the creation of the world. It is difficult to see how he could have pronounced a higher encomium upon the rest day of the Creator than is found in these words. The Sabbath according to them was never designed to be a burden or hindrance; but rather a blessing under all circumstances. So beneficent was it in its character that the Son of man, who was the author of every beneficent institution, did not hesitate to pronounce himself its Lord.

It was not in theory merely that the Son of God paid his respects to the Sabbath. In his life and practice he manifested his esteem for it as well as in his words. Practically speaking, he was a rigid observer of the Sabbath. I read from Luke 4:16 a passage which throws light upon the habitual practice of our Lord in the matter of Sabbath observance: “And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up; and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read.” Mark this language well. It was not an occasional occurrence in the life of our Lord to which the evangelist alludes, but a regular custom. On each recurring Sabbath day, whatever the weather might be, and whatever others might see fit to do, the young teacher of Nazareth was found in his place at the synagogue ready to read the word of God to the assembled people.

If it be true that our Saviour said little in his public teaching respecting the necessity of Sabbath observance, that fact is explained by the circumstance that, as already remarked, he lived in a time when the reaction from former laxity in Sabbath observance had given way to great austerity. The Pharisees in his day had gone over to the opposite extreme, and were in danger of making the Sabbath odious by the senseless restrictions which they placed on Sabbath labor. While they were occupying themselves with discussing such questions as whether or not it was legitimate to walk on green grass on the Sabbath day, or eat of eggs which had been laid on that day, our blessed Lord endeavored to counteract these foolish tendencies by placing the Sabbath in a position where it would commend itself to the judgment and hearts of the people as an institution made for them rather than against them.

Christ seems at times to have taken special pains to work his miracles on the Sabbath day, under circumstances such as would enable him to expose the folly of those who were ever dogging his steps for the purpose of making it appear that he was a Sabbath-breaker. Did he on the Sabbath day heal the woman who for eighteen long years had been unable to lift herself up on account of an infirmity? and did the ruler of the synagogue express his indignation at the act as unlawful? His cutting reply was, “Thou hypocrite, doth not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering? And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?” Again, did he heal the man with the withered hand on the Sabbath day? and were his accusers filled with madness? His defense was formulated in the simple query which silenced all his accusers: “Is it lawful on the Sabbath days to do good, or to do evil? to save life, or to destroy it?”

The object of the Lord in pursuing the course which he did pursue in reference to the Sabbath, as already intimated, was to rid it of the foolish superstition with which its observance had been encumbered in his time. Such a course of conduct on his part, instead of indicating that he was hostile to the Sabbath, proves the reverse. Had he anticipated that the Sabbath was soon to be abolished altogether, he would not have thought it worth his while to contend so earnestly for its proper observance. It was his design to hand it down to posterity, and he was anxious that it should be transmitted to them free from Pharisaic appendages. Not one word or act in all the life of Christ, when properly understood, can be construed into an act of hostility on his part to the Sabbath.

It is admitted by all that the fourth commandment was binding in his day; if, therefore, he was guilty of violating it, that would make him a sinner before God and render him incapable of filling his office of mediator between God and man. The Pharisees knew this, and they tried hard to make out against him a case of Sabbath-breaking; but they failed most signally in every instance. Not only did our Lord observe the Sabbath strictly himself, but he also employed language respecting it which shows beyond a doubt that he anticipated that his disciples would hallow it after his ascension to the Father. In that most remarkable prophecy which is found in the 24th chapter of Matthew, when giving directions to his disciples concerning their conduct when Jerusalem should be besieged by the Romans, he instructed them to pray that their flight might not occur “in the winter, or on the Sabbath day.” The siege in question did not take place until nearly forty years after our Lord’s crucifixion. It follows, therefore, that, according to our Lord’s idea, the Sabbath would have an existence forty years after this dispensation had been fully entered upon. But if it existed then, it must certainly exist now; for it will be admitted that nothing has taken place since A. D. 70, to change the relation of Christendom to the Sabbath question.

We have now traced down the Sabbath from the creation to a point forty years this side of the crucifixion. The testimony has shown most conclusively that the Sabbath has been handed down in a regular succession from Adam to Christ. It has also demonstrated that Christ himself hallowed the day with a regularity and consistency worthy of imitation. It is now time to trace its history to the extreme limit reached by the New Testament record. How was it with the disciples of our Lord? Did they reverence the Sabbath of their fathers in imitation of our Lord’s example, or did they hallow some other day? On this point the record is not silent. Luke tells us, as already seen, that the Sabbath which succeeded the crucifixion was strictly observed by the holy women who had accompanied our Lord in his life-time. By this act they hallowed the first Sabbath of the Christian dispensation proper.

Passing to the history of the church as contained in the book of Acts, we shall find that the Sabbath is mentioned therein in a variety of places. In Acts 15:21, we have these words: “For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every Sabbath day.” This text, penned as it was in A. D. 51, is important, as it shows that the Sabbath of the book of Acts was the same as that of the Jews; i. e., the seventh day. Remembering this, it is now proposed to examine the life and practice of the apostle Paul with reference to his observance of the Sabbath. If we shall find that he hallowed it strictly, it will be safe to conclude that the Christian church to whom he was an example did likewise. I read Acts 13:42, 44: “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.” In these texts mention is made of two Sabbaths on which the apostle Paul engaged in public labor as a minister of the gospel. On the first of them he addressed the Jews, on the second the Gentiles. I turn now to Acts 16:13, where I read as follows: “And on the Sabbath we went out of the city by a river side where prayer was wont to be made; and we sat down, and spake unto the women which resorted thither.” Here is the record of another Sabbath meeting. There can be no doubt that the Sabbath in question was the seventh-day Sabbath, as it was the one on which the Jewish women resorted to the place of prayer. In A. D. 52, therefore, the ancient Sabbath of the Lord still remained the only Sabbath known to the Christian church.

I read again, this time from Acts 18:3, 4: “And because he [Paul] was of the same craft, he abode with them [Aquila and Priscilla], and wrought; for by their occupation they were tent-makers. And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks.”

Heretofore we have been dealing with isolated instances of Sabbath observance on the part of Paul. Now we are brought face to face with the fact that in Corinth Paul went into the synagogue every Sabbath day and reasoned with the Jews and the Greeks. Just how many Sabbaths were thus spent by him we cannot tell. The record indicates, however, that they must have been quite numerous. In verse 11 we are told that Paul remained in Corinth a year and six months. Taking it for granted that he continued his practice of teaching the people on the Sabbath day during that period, we shall have seventy-eight Sabbaths as the number which Paul devoted to public ministrations during his visit at Corinth. The last text which I shall read is found in Acts 17:1, 2: “Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where was a synagogue of the Jews. And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three Sabbath days reasoned with them out of the Scriptures.” Bringing these scattered Sabbaths together on the basis of calculation heretofore adopted, we shall have eighty-four in all.

But why attempt to particularize? From the last text read, it was ascertained that it was the manner or custom of Paul to resort to the synagogue on every Sabbath day, for the purpose of teaching the people. If, therefore, we would arrive at the actual facts in reference to Paul’s Sabbath-keeping record, and learn the precise number of Sabbaths which he celebrated, we must multiply the years of his Christian ministry by the number of Sabbaths in each one of them.

Here I must close our talk for this evening. I will do so by calling attention to the contrast between the records of the first day and the seventh day of the week as found in the Bible. The former is mentioned only nine times in all the Scriptures, while the latter is spoken of fifty-six times in the New Testament alone. The first day of the week is never called the Sabbath, while the seventh day is in nearly every instance dignified by that title. The Lord Jesus Christ throughout his whole life made the first day of the week a day of labor; but at each of its weekly returns he observed the Sabbath of the Lord with scrupulous exactness, it being his custom to repair to the synagogue every Sabbath day. Never in all his life, so far as we can learn from the record, did the Saviour take the name of the first day of the week upon his lips; whereas he not only mentioned the Sabbath frequently in his public teaching, but he also referred to it in the greatest of his prophecies as something that would exist forty years after his death. Coming down in the history of the church to a point of time this side of the ascension, and tracing it hitherward as far as it is covered by the book of Acts, we find the first day of the week, whenever mentioned, spoken of as a secular day, while the seventh day is always styled the Sabbath, and always devoted to religious work by the great apostle to the Gentiles.

He who, under these circumstances, would find any difficulty in ascertaining which day of the two is the Sabbath of the Bible, must be obtuse indeed. The evidence is all on one side. From the creation to the death of Paul and the destruction of Jerusalem, the seventh day of the week was always called the Sabbath and regularly observed as such; while the first day of the week is never called the Sabbath and never treated as such.

Mr. T.—Well, I am more and more perplexed. Your argument, to all appearance, is unanswerable; and yet the conclusions which you reach are so diametrically opposed to all my former notions on this subject that I find it very difficult to adopt them. I am thoroughly resolved, however, to follow the teachings of the Bible on this subject. The change that you ask me to make is so radical that I cannot undertake it until I feel positive that there is no other view of the subject which you have failed to bring out. It seems to me incredible that our ministers should ever have been induced to adopt the theory of the change of the Sabbath, unless they can support it by a line of argument differing somewhat from any that you have considered as yet. Pardon me, but I am so anxious to be right before moving out in this matter that I am going to venture to ask a personal favor of you. It is this: Will you grant me the privilege of inviting several of the ministers of the town to be present at our interview to-morrow evening, with the view of discussing this subject in a friendly manner?

Mr. B.—I have not the slightest objection in the world, sir. You are at liberty to invite as many of your friends, clergymen and laymen, as you may think best.