Doesn't Colossians 2:16-17 show that the 7th-day Sabbath was a part of the Jewish ceremonial law and made obsolete when Jesus died on the cross? |
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It is easy to understand why most commentators would think that the word translated 'sabbaths' in Colossians 2:16 is the Seventh-day Sabbath. There were two Greek words in common use for 'sabbath' in New Testament times. One of them was sabbaton and the other was sabbata. These words appear a total of 69 times in the New Testament. Besides the one passage in Colossians 2:16, they are translated as the 7th-day 'Sabbath' fifty nine times and as 'week' nine times. Many people think that the Greek word in Colossians 2:16 must be translated as the seventh-day 'Sabbath' to maintain consistency. But is that true? We have already seen that the words sabbaton and sabbata can also mean 'week.' How does a translator understand if the word should mean the seventh-day 'Sabbath' or 'week'?
There are two ways: linguistic markers and context. Linguistic markers are words that are used in conjunction with a phrase that would indicate which meaning is intended. For example, in the New Testament when the word is meant to be the seventh-day 'Sabbath' 88% of the time one or more of the following words appear with the phrase: the definite article 'the', day, lawful, synagogue, keep, and every. The word should be translated 'week' if a numeral appears between the definite article and the Greek term for 'sabbath.' Whenever the definite article appears without a number it means the seventh-day 'Sabbath.'
Another way to determine the meaning of a word is to look at the situation or immediate context of the word. What is the subject at hand in the surrounding paragraphs?
The Greek word in Colossians 2:16 lacks any of the linguistic markers for either the seventh-day 'Sabbath' or 'week' as a possible translation. Is it possible there were other meanings for this word? Indeed there are, and we don't have to search very hard to find them. Let’s examine the Septuagint, the 3rd century B.C. translation of the Hebrew Bible into Greek. There we will see usages of the word that the apostle Paul and his hearers would have found very familiar.
Before we give some examples of other meanings from the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint) we need to clarify which word was used in Colossians 2:16, sabbaton or sabbata? Believe it or not, that is part of the difficulty of translating this passage. Sabbata was a loanword from Aramaic and it had the same form as the plural of the Greek word sabbaton! So deciding which word is being used is not so simple!
Sabbaton = singular 'sabbath'
Sabbata = singular 'sabbath' (Aramaic loan word) or plural of the Greek sabbaton 'sabbaths'
The Greek word in Colossians 2:16 is either a genitive plural of sabbaton or a genitive singular of sabbata. The forms of these two words are exactly the same (sabba,twn). So which is it? Most commentators believe that it is the singular genitive of sabbata because the other words in the sequence, 'feast' and 'new moon' are in the singular.
With this in mind, we look at the Septuagint and see if the word sabbata had any other meanings besides the seventh-day 'Sabbath' and 'week.' We can start by reading what was used to describe the Day of Atonement, a festival that had a ceremonial sabbath.
"It shall be to you a sabbath of solemn rest, and you shall afflict your souls; on the ninth day of the month at evening, from evening to evening, you shall celebrate your sabbath." Leviticus 23:32.
sa,bbata sabba,twn e;stai u`mi/n kai. tapeinw,sete ta.j yuca.j u`mw/n avpo. evna,thj tou/ mhno.j avpo. e`spe,raj e[wj e`spe,raj sabbatiei/te ta. sa,bbata u`mw/n. Leviticus 23:32.
This was not the seventh-day Sabbath. For the second occurrence of the word 'sabbath' in this verse, the Greek Septuagint used the word sabbata. It is in bold letters above in the Greek. It is either the plural of sabbaton or the singular of sabbata. Which is it? The Hebrew original and the context confirm that it is a singular of sabbata. So the word sabbata, the same word used in Colossians 2:16, was used for the Day of Atonement ceremonial sabbath. Was this the only use of the word? No, there is more.
In the Hebrew tabernacle ceremonies and festivals there were sabbatical years. Every seventh year the people were not allowed to sow new crops so the land could lay fallow or rest. What word was used to describe these sabbatical years? Sabbata.
"Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: 'When you come into the land which I give you, then the land shall keep a sabbath to the LORD. Leviticus 25:2.
la,lhson toi/j ui`oi/j Israhl kai. evrei/j pro.j auvtou,j eva.n eivse,lqhte eivj th.n gh/n h]n evgw. di,dwmi u`mi/n kai. avnapau,setai h` gh/ h]n evgw. di,dwmi u`mi/n sa,bbata tw/| kuri,w|. Leviticus 25:2.
The same word used in Colossians 2:16 is used to describe sabbatical, that is septennial, years. Is that all? No, there is more.
At some point in time, the Feast of Trumpets was also designated by the same genitive form that we see in Colossians 2:16 (sabba,twn). This appears in some miniscule (lower case writing) manuscripts of the Septuagint.
Some people claim that the word 'sabbath' is never used in the Bible to refer to a ceremonial sabbath. This is not true as we have seen. The word sabbath is used for ceremonial sabbaths in both the original Hebrew and the Greek translation, the Septuagint.
Let's move on to another term in the sequence of words in Colossians 2:16. What is meant by the word 'festival'? The Greek word heorte has a specific meaning. The word heorte in the Septuagint was used when translating the Hebrew word hag. Hag only referred to the three pilgrimage feasts when the all Israelite males were required to go to Jerusalem to worship. Those feasts were: Passover, Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles. Neither the Feast of Trumpets nor the Day of Atonement, which were ceremonial sabbaths, were called heorte in the Septuagint. What about the New Testament?
In the New Testament the word heorte is used for the Passover/Unleavened Bread Festival and for the Feast of Tabernacles. The verb form of the word (heortazo) is used for Pentecost. In contrast, the Feast of Trumpets is strongly alluded to in Revelation 8:6-11:15 but the word does not appear there. The Day of Atonement (called the Fast in Acts 27:9) is strongly alluded to in Revelation 11:19, but the word does not appear there. The Sabbatical years are never referred to by name in the New Testament. Just as the word hag was used to refer only to the three pilgrim feasts in the Hebrew Old Testament, , so to the Greek equivalent heorte in the New Testament is found similarly to refer to these same three pilgrim feasts. The word heorte is never used in the New Testament to refer to the Feast of Trumpets, Day of Atonement, or the Sabbatical years.
Some people argue that the word translated 'festival' in Colossians 2:16 included all the tabernacle feasts and therefore the word translated 'sabbath' must therefore refer to the seventh-day Sabbath. They argue that if the word translated 'sabbath' meant ceremonial sabbaths it would be an undue repetition. But we see that this argument is invalid. The Greek word heorte should be translated as 'pilgrimages' or 'pilgrim feasts.' Additionally, the word sabbata is not the seventh-day Sabbath. It refers to the Feast of Trumpets, Day of Atonement, and the Sabbatical years.
In conclusion, Colossians 2:16 is not saying that the seventh-day Sabbath was a ceremonial sabbath that became obsolete when Jesus died for our sins. The seventh-day Sabbath is a part of the Ten Commandments, which are a fundamental aspect of the New Covenant. But the text does make abundantly clear that the tabernacle sacrifices and festivals became obsolete at that time. Those festivals and sacrifices pointed to the work and ministry of Jesus.
It is still valuable to study the meaning of those sacrifices for four important reasons. The first is that the sacrificial system, rightly understood, shows the predictive nature of the tabernacle services. That is, the tabernacle services were acted-out prophecies. Second, it establishes faith in the Old And New Testaments as a unit, not as two disconnected, unrelated documents. Third, Jesus is still ministering for us in the heavenly sanctuary right now. If we study the tabernacle festival/prophecies, we can understand where we are in prophetic history and what Jesus is doing and what He is about to do in the heavenly sanctuary. Fourth, the book of Revelation is completely full of tabernacle scenes and imagery. If we want to correctly interpret the book and understand events that will take place just before Jesus comes, we must study the sanctuary model.
There are two ways: linguistic markers and context. Linguistic markers are words that are used in conjunction with a phrase that would indicate which meaning is intended. For example, in the New Testament when the word is meant to be the seventh-day 'Sabbath' 88% of the time one or more of the following words appear with the phrase: the definite article 'the', day, lawful, synagogue, keep, and every. The word should be translated 'week' if a numeral appears between the definite article and the Greek term for 'sabbath.' Whenever the definite article appears without a number it means the seventh-day 'Sabbath.'
Another way to determine the meaning of a word is to look at the situation or immediate context of the word. What is the subject at hand in the surrounding paragraphs?
The Greek word in Colossians 2:16 lacks any of the linguistic markers for either the seventh-day 'Sabbath' or 'week' as a possible translation. Is it possible there were other meanings for this word? Indeed there are, and we don't have to search very hard to find them. Let’s examine the Septuagint, the 3rd century B.C. translation of the Hebrew Bible into Greek. There we will see usages of the word that the apostle Paul and his hearers would have found very familiar.
Before we give some examples of other meanings from the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint) we need to clarify which word was used in Colossians 2:16, sabbaton or sabbata? Believe it or not, that is part of the difficulty of translating this passage. Sabbata was a loanword from Aramaic and it had the same form as the plural of the Greek word sabbaton! So deciding which word is being used is not so simple!
Sabbaton = singular 'sabbath'
Sabbata = singular 'sabbath' (Aramaic loan word) or plural of the Greek sabbaton 'sabbaths'
The Greek word in Colossians 2:16 is either a genitive plural of sabbaton or a genitive singular of sabbata. The forms of these two words are exactly the same (sabba,twn). So which is it? Most commentators believe that it is the singular genitive of sabbata because the other words in the sequence, 'feast' and 'new moon' are in the singular.
With this in mind, we look at the Septuagint and see if the word sabbata had any other meanings besides the seventh-day 'Sabbath' and 'week.' We can start by reading what was used to describe the Day of Atonement, a festival that had a ceremonial sabbath.
"It shall be to you a sabbath of solemn rest, and you shall afflict your souls; on the ninth day of the month at evening, from evening to evening, you shall celebrate your sabbath." Leviticus 23:32.
sa,bbata sabba,twn e;stai u`mi/n kai. tapeinw,sete ta.j yuca.j u`mw/n avpo. evna,thj tou/ mhno.j avpo. e`spe,raj e[wj e`spe,raj sabbatiei/te ta. sa,bbata u`mw/n. Leviticus 23:32.
This was not the seventh-day Sabbath. For the second occurrence of the word 'sabbath' in this verse, the Greek Septuagint used the word sabbata. It is in bold letters above in the Greek. It is either the plural of sabbaton or the singular of sabbata. Which is it? The Hebrew original and the context confirm that it is a singular of sabbata. So the word sabbata, the same word used in Colossians 2:16, was used for the Day of Atonement ceremonial sabbath. Was this the only use of the word? No, there is more.
In the Hebrew tabernacle ceremonies and festivals there were sabbatical years. Every seventh year the people were not allowed to sow new crops so the land could lay fallow or rest. What word was used to describe these sabbatical years? Sabbata.
"Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: 'When you come into the land which I give you, then the land shall keep a sabbath to the LORD. Leviticus 25:2.
la,lhson toi/j ui`oi/j Israhl kai. evrei/j pro.j auvtou,j eva.n eivse,lqhte eivj th.n gh/n h]n evgw. di,dwmi u`mi/n kai. avnapau,setai h` gh/ h]n evgw. di,dwmi u`mi/n sa,bbata tw/| kuri,w|. Leviticus 25:2.
The same word used in Colossians 2:16 is used to describe sabbatical, that is septennial, years. Is that all? No, there is more.
At some point in time, the Feast of Trumpets was also designated by the same genitive form that we see in Colossians 2:16 (sabba,twn). This appears in some miniscule (lower case writing) manuscripts of the Septuagint.
Some people claim that the word 'sabbath' is never used in the Bible to refer to a ceremonial sabbath. This is not true as we have seen. The word sabbath is used for ceremonial sabbaths in both the original Hebrew and the Greek translation, the Septuagint.
Let's move on to another term in the sequence of words in Colossians 2:16. What is meant by the word 'festival'? The Greek word heorte has a specific meaning. The word heorte in the Septuagint was used when translating the Hebrew word hag. Hag only referred to the three pilgrimage feasts when the all Israelite males were required to go to Jerusalem to worship. Those feasts were: Passover, Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles. Neither the Feast of Trumpets nor the Day of Atonement, which were ceremonial sabbaths, were called heorte in the Septuagint. What about the New Testament?
In the New Testament the word heorte is used for the Passover/Unleavened Bread Festival and for the Feast of Tabernacles. The verb form of the word (heortazo) is used for Pentecost. In contrast, the Feast of Trumpets is strongly alluded to in Revelation 8:6-11:15 but the word does not appear there. The Day of Atonement (called the Fast in Acts 27:9) is strongly alluded to in Revelation 11:19, but the word does not appear there. The Sabbatical years are never referred to by name in the New Testament. Just as the word hag was used to refer only to the three pilgrim feasts in the Hebrew Old Testament, , so to the Greek equivalent heorte in the New Testament is found similarly to refer to these same three pilgrim feasts. The word heorte is never used in the New Testament to refer to the Feast of Trumpets, Day of Atonement, or the Sabbatical years.
Some people argue that the word translated 'festival' in Colossians 2:16 included all the tabernacle feasts and therefore the word translated 'sabbath' must therefore refer to the seventh-day Sabbath. They argue that if the word translated 'sabbath' meant ceremonial sabbaths it would be an undue repetition. But we see that this argument is invalid. The Greek word heorte should be translated as 'pilgrimages' or 'pilgrim feasts.' Additionally, the word sabbata is not the seventh-day Sabbath. It refers to the Feast of Trumpets, Day of Atonement, and the Sabbatical years.
In conclusion, Colossians 2:16 is not saying that the seventh-day Sabbath was a ceremonial sabbath that became obsolete when Jesus died for our sins. The seventh-day Sabbath is a part of the Ten Commandments, which are a fundamental aspect of the New Covenant. But the text does make abundantly clear that the tabernacle sacrifices and festivals became obsolete at that time. Those festivals and sacrifices pointed to the work and ministry of Jesus.
It is still valuable to study the meaning of those sacrifices for four important reasons. The first is that the sacrificial system, rightly understood, shows the predictive nature of the tabernacle services. That is, the tabernacle services were acted-out prophecies. Second, it establishes faith in the Old And New Testaments as a unit, not as two disconnected, unrelated documents. Third, Jesus is still ministering for us in the heavenly sanctuary right now. If we study the tabernacle festival/prophecies, we can understand where we are in prophetic history and what Jesus is doing and what He is about to do in the heavenly sanctuary. Fourth, the book of Revelation is completely full of tabernacle scenes and imagery. If we want to correctly interpret the book and understand events that will take place just before Jesus comes, we must study the sanctuary model.