I was shocked when I was approached with this argument regarding Colossians 2:16. This will be a short essay discussing the point I was presented with as I do not know how widespread this perception is.
Colossians 2:16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:
The assertion made (apparently by the Seventh-day Adventist church) is that the Sabbath days here are the annual Holy Days called Sabbaths listed in Leviticus 23. It is said that the fact that the KJV renders it “sabbbath days” is important in that it isn’t referring to the seventh-day Sabbath, but the annual “High” Sabbaths. First of all, pluralized references to Sabbaths are taken in many places by Seventh-day Adventists to mean the seventh-day Sabbath. For instance:
Leviticus
Ezekiel
Ezekiel
Ezekiel
Isaiah 56:4 For thus saith Yahweh unto the eunuchs that keep my sabbaths, and choose the things that please me, and take hold of my covenant;
So, it s not the plurality of the term “sabbath days” that fuels this declaration. Interestingly, it is the word “days” that is its basis. Look again at the Bible quotations above. You will notice the words in italics. These words are singled out for a reason. The King James Version of the Bible is a good study tool in that the words we see used in it generally are translated directly from the Hebrew and Greek. But another reason is that when this is not so, it is made certain that we will know. The words are in italics for this purpose. In other words, the word “days” is not in the original Greek text. You may question whether or not I have Masters in Greek or Hebrew, or believe I don’t have enough scholarship to challenge the true KJV scholars. But check it out for yourself. There are ample Bible helps and concordances in stores and online.
The word rendered “sabbath” in Colossians 2:16 is σαββατων, a form of σάββατον (sabbaton). This very form of sabbaton is used elsewhere in the Bible to refer to none other than the seventh-day Sabbath. It can also be translated as “week”. Below is some of the places in Scripture that σαββατων (transliterated as sabbatwn), and the word from which it was translated is bolded:
Matthew 28:1 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.
Mark 16:2 And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun.
Luke
Luke 24:1 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.
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.
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 Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.
Acts
Acts 16:13 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.
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.
1 Corinthians 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.
As you can see there is no linguistic difference between the “sabbath days” in Colossians 2:16 and the “sabbath” (σαββατων) of Matthew 28:1, Acts 13:14 and Acts 16:13. The added word days means nothing at all. There is absolutely nothing in Colossians 2, or Colossians for that matter, that hints at the Sabbath mentioned here being anything other than Shabbat, the seventh-day Sabbath. If the holydays and New Moon festivals are “against us”, then so is the seventh-day Sabbath! The Sabbath is a shadow of things to come; a grand future and a marvellous time when the saints will partake of God’s rest for all eternity. ש
Note: All Old
Testament quotations come from the Hebrew Names King James Bible. New Testament
quotations come from the King James Version. In the King James and Hebrew Names
King James quotations, words in italics are additions by translators. Bolded
words in Bible quotations are my own emphasis.
© Copyright 2006, 2007 Keneil Thomas
· To learn more about the Sabbath’s future meaning, see a study by Anthony Coore, Should Christians Keep the Sabbath Day?
· Take of Your Sandals: A Look at the Sabbath
· Colossians 2: Paul’s True Message
· Feasts of God: The Hidden Design – An overview of the meaning behind the Festivals instituted by God and recorded in the Bible; both annual and weekly.
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