Q. 117. How is the sabbath or the Lord's day to be sanctified? A. The sabbath or Lord's day is to be sanctified by an holy resting all the day, not only from such works as are at all times sinful, but even from such worldly employments and recreations as are on other days lawful; and making it our delight to spend the whole time (except so much of it as is to be taken up in works of necessity and mercy⚫) in my house of prayer: their burnt-offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people. z Rev. i. 10. I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet. 117. a Exod. xx. 8. Remember the sabbath-day, to keep it holy-Ver 10. But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, &c. 6 Exod xvi. 25. 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. Ver. 26. Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the sabbath, in it there shall be none. Ver. 27. And it came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none. Ver. 28. And the Lord said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws? Neh. xiii. 15 In those days saw I in Judah some treading wine-presses on the sab bath, and bringing in sheaves, and lading asses; as also wine. grapes, and figs, and all manner of burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on the sabbath-day and I testified against them in the day wherein they sold victuals. Ver. 16. There dwelt men of Tyre also therein, which brought fish, and all manner of ware, and sold on the sabbath unto the children of Judah, and in Jerusalem Ver 17. Then I contended with he nobles of Judah, and said unto them. What evil thing is this that ye do, and profane the sab bath-day? Ver. 18. Did not your fa thers thus, and did not our God bring all this evil upon us, and upon this city? yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the sabbath. Ver. 19. And it came to pass, that when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark before the sabbath, I commanded that the gates should be shut, and charged that they should not be opened till after the sabbath: and some of my servants set I at the gates, that there should no burden be brought in on the sabbath-day. Ver. 20. So the merchants, and sellers of all kind of ware, lodged without Jerusalem once or twice. Ver. 21. Then I testified against them, and said unto them, Why lodge ye about the wall? If ye do so again, I will lay hands on you. From that time forth came they no more on the sabbath. Ver 22. And I commanded the Levites, that they should cleanse themselves, and that they should come and keep the gates, to sanctify the sabbath-day. Remember me, O my God, concerning this also, and spare me according to the greatness of thy mercy. Jer. xvii. 21. Thus saith the Lord, Take heed to yourselves, and bear no burden on the sabbath-day, nor bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem. Ver. 22. Neither carry forth a burden out of your house on the sabbath-day, neither do ye any work, but hallow ye the sabbath-day, as I commanded your fathers. e Mat. xii. from Verse 1 to 13. At that time Jesus went on the sabbathday through the corn, and his disciples were an hungered, and began to pluck the ears of corn, and to eat Ver. 2. But when the Pharisees saw it, &c. the publick and private exercises of God's worship: and, to that end, we are to prepare our hearts, and with such foresight, diligence, and moderation, to dispose and seasonably dispatch our worldly business, that we may be the more free and fit for the duties of that day e. Q. 118. Why is the charge of keeping the sabbath more specially directed to governors of families, and other superi ors? A. The charge of keeping the sabbath is more specially directed to governors of families, and other superiors, because they are bound, not only to keep it themselves, but to see that it be observed by all those that are under their charge; and because they are prone oft-times to hinder them by employments of their own. d Isa. Iviii. 13. If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day, and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable, and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words. Luke iv. 16. 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. Acts xx. 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. 1 Cor. xvi. 1. Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye. Ver. 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. Psal. xcii [title, A psalm or song for the sabbath-day.] Isa Ixvi. 23. 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, saith the Lord. Lev. xxiii. 3. Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is the sabbath of rest, an holy convocation; ye shall do no work therein; it is the sabbath of the Lord in all your dwellings. e Exod. xx. 8. Remember the sabbath-day, to keep it holy. Luke xxiii. 54. And that day was the preparation, and the sabbath drew on. Ver. 56. And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the sabbath-day, according to the command. ment. Exod. xvi. 22. And it came to pass, that on the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for one man: and all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses. Ver. 25. And Moses said, Eat that today; for to-day is a sabbath unto the Lord: to-day ye shall not find it in the field. Ver. 26. Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the sabbath, in it there shall be none. Ver. 29. 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. Neh. xiii 19. [See letter b.] 118. f Exod xx. 10 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 man-servant, nor thy maid-servant nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates Josh. xxiv. 15. And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which Q. 119. What are the sins forbidden in the fourth command ment? A. The sins forbidden in the fourth commandment, are all omissions of the duties required, all careless, negligent, and unprofitable performing of them, and being weary of them; all profaning the day by idleness, and doing that which is in itself sinfuli; and by all needless works, words, and thoughts, about our worldly employments and recreations *. your fathers served, that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. Neh. xiii. 15, 17. [See above in b.] Jer xvii. 20 And say unto them, Hear ye the word of the Lord, ye kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, that enter in by these gates. Ver 21, 22 [See above in b.] Exod. xxiii 12. Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thine ox and thine ass may rest, and the son of thy hand-maid and the stranger may be refreshed. 119. g Ezek. xxii 26. Her priests have violated my law, and have profaned mine holy things: they have put no difference between the holy and profane, neither have they showed difference between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from my sabbaths, and I am profaned among them. bActs xx. 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 Ver. 9. And there sat in a window a certain young man named Eutychus, being fallen into a deep sleep: and as Paul was long preaching, he sunk down with sleep, and fell down from the third loft, and was taken up dead. Ezek xxxiii. 30. Also, thou son of man, the children of thy people still are talking against thee by the walls, and in the doors of the hotses, and speak one to another, every one to his brother, saying, Come, I pray you, and hear what is the word that cometh forth from the Lord. Ver. 31. And they come unto thee as the people cometh, and they sit before thee as my people, and they hear thy words, but they will not do them; for with their mouth they shew much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness. Ver 32. And, lo, thou art unto them as a very lovely song of one that hath a pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument; for they hear thy words, but they do them not. Amos viii 5. Saying, When will the new moon be gone, that we may sell corn? and the sabbath, that we may set forth wheat, making the ephak small, and the shekel great, and falsifying the balances by deceit ? Mal. i. 13. Ye said also, Behold, what a weariness is it! and ye have snuffed at it, saith the Lord of hosts: and ye brought that which was torn, and the lame, and the sick; thus ye brought an offering: should I accept this of your hands? saith the Lord. Ezek. xxiii. 38. Moreover, this they have done unto me; they have defiled my sanctuary in the same day, and have profaned my sabbaths. Jer xvii. 24. 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 sabbathday, to do no work therein Ver 27. But if ye will not hearken unto me to hallow the sabbath-day, and not to bear a burden, even entering in at the gates of Jerusalem on the sabbath-day; then will I kindle a fire in the gates thereof, and it shall devour the pala Q. 120. What are the reasons annexed to the fourth commandment, the more to enforce it? A. The reasons annexed to the fourth commandment, the more to enforce it, are taken from the equity of it, God allowing us six days of seven for our own affairs, and reserving but one for himself, in these words, Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work': from God's challenging a special propriety in that day, The seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy Godm: from the example of God, who in six days made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: and from that blessing which God put upon that day, not only in sanctifying it to be a day for his service, but in ordaining it to be a means of blessing to us in our sanctifying it; Wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath-day, and hallowed it". Q. 121. Why is the word Remember set in the beginning of the fourth commandment? A. The word Remember is set in the beginning of the fourth commandment, partly, because of the great benefit of remembering it, we being thereby helped in our preparation to keep it P, and, in keeping it, better to keep all the rest of the commandments, and to continue a thankful ces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be n Exod. xx. 11. p Exod. xvi. 23. And he said unto them, This is that which the Lord hath said, To-morrow is the rest of the holy sabbath unto the Lord: bake that which ye will bake to-day, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over, lay up for you to be kept until the morning. Luke xxiii. 54. And that day was the preparation, and the sabbath drew on. Ver. 56. And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rest ed the sabbath-day, according to the commandment. Compared with Mark xv. 42. And now when the even was come, because it was the preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath. Neh. xiii. 19. And it came to pass, that, when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark before the sabbath, I commanded that the gates should be shut, and charged that they should not be opened til! after the sabbath : and some of my servants set I at the gates, that there should no burden be brought in on the sabbath day. song q Psal. xcii. [title, A psalm or for the sabbath-day.] Compared with Ver. 13. Those that be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God. And Ver. 14. They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing. Ezek. xx. 12. Moreover also, I gave them my sabbaths, to be a sign be. tween me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify Y remembrance of the two great benefits of creation and rédemption, which contain a short abridgment of religion; and partly, because we are very ready to forget it, for that there is less light of nature for it, and yet it restraineth our natural liberty in things at other times lawful"; that it cometh but once in seven days, and many worldly businesses come between, and too often take off our minds from thinking of it, either to prepare for it, or to sanctify it; and that Satan with his instruments much labour to blot out the glory, and even the memory of it, to bring in all irreligion and impiety *. them. Ver. 19. I am the Lord your God; walk in my statutes, and keep my judgments, and do them. Ver. 20. And hallow my sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between me and you, that ye may know that I am the Lord your God. r Gen. 2. 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. Ver. 3. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it; because that in it he had rested from all his work, which God created and made. Psal. cxviii. 22. The stone which the builders refused is become the headstone of the corner. Ver. 24. This is the day which the Lord hath made, we will rejoice and be glad in it. Gompared with Acts iv. 10. Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here beore you whole. Ver. 11. This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Rev. i. 10. I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet. s Ezek. xxii. 26. Her priests have violated my law, and have profaned mine holy things: they have put no difference between the holy and profane, neither have they shewed differ ence between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from my sabbaths, and I am profaned among them. t Neh. ix. 14. And madest known unto them thy holy sabbath, and commandest them precepts, statutes, and laws, by the hand of Moses thy ser vant. u Exod. xxxiv. 21. Six days thou shalt work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest; in earing-time and in harvest thou shalt rest. w Deut. v. 14. 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, nor thy man-servant, nor thy maid-servant, nor thine ox, nor thine ass, nor any of thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates; that thy man-servant and thy maid-servant may rest as well as thou. Ver. 15. And remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt, and that the Lord thy God brought thee out thence, through a mighty hand, and by a stretched-out arm: therefore the Lord thy God commanded thee to keep the sabbathday. Amos viii. 5. Saying, When will the new moon be gone, that we may sell corn? and the sabbath, that we may set forth wheat, making the ephah small, and the shekel great, and falsifying the balances by deceit ? x Lam. i. 7. Jerusalem remembered in the days of her affliction, and of her miseries, all her pleasant things that she had in the days of old, when sher people fell into the hand of the enemy, and none did help her; the ad |