Thread: Leviticus 23, Feast Days, and the Sabbath

A simple reading of Leviticus 23 in English seems to leave one with the impression that the weekly Sabbath is being listed among several commanded "feast days." Is this an accurate understanding of the text?

If so, does the feast day aspect apply to the New Covenant Sabbath?

If so, please explain with possible applications.

(To provide some context, I'm going to be teaching on the Sabbath and hospitality next Lord's Day for our Sabbath School and I fully affirm the WCF understanding of the 4th Commandment.)

I believe God is just reminding them of the 4th commandment and the whole of it's definition (what must and must not be done). Within the rest of the feasts there are sabbaths which are not the 4th commandment but have the same definition as the 4th. Knowing what the 4th demanded gave them instructions on how to behave during the feasts. I could be totally wrong on that one tho!

The day of atonement is one of those feast days, and you can't eat anything, so letting context interpret things, those days along with the weekly sabbath are perhaps in modern American English more properly days of assembly.

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Numbers 28

1And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

2Command the children of Israel, and say unto them, My offering, and my bread for my sacrifices made by fire, for a sweet savour unto me, shall ye observe to offer unto me in their due season.

3And thou shalt say unto them, This is the offering made by fire which ye shall offer unto the LORD; two lambs of the first year without spot day by day, for a continual burnt offering.

4The one lamb shalt thou offer in the morning, and the other lamb shalt thou offer at even;

5And a tenth part of an ephah of flour for a meat offering, mingled with the fourth part of an hin of beaten oil.

6It is a continual burnt offering, which was ordained in mount Sinai for a sweet savour, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD.

7And the drink offering thereof shall be the fourth part of an hin for the one lamb: in the holy place shalt thou cause the strong wine to be poured unto the LORD for a drink offering.

8And the other lamb shalt thou offer at even: as the meat offering of the morning, and as the drink offering thereof, thou shalt offer it, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.

9And on the sabbath day two lambs of the first year without spot, and two tenth deals of flour for a meat offering, mingled with oil, and the drink offering thereof:

10This is the burnt offering of every sabbath, beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering.

11And in the beginnings of your months ye shall offer a burnt offering unto the LORD; two young bullocks, and one ram, seven lambs of the first year without spot;

12And three tenth deals of flour for a meat offering, mingled with oil, for one bullock; and two tenth deals of flour for a meat offering, mingled with oil, for one ram;

13And a several tenth deal of flour mingled with oil for a meat offering unto one lamb; for a burnt offering of a sweet savour, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD.

14And their drink offerings shall be half an hin of wine unto a bullock, and the third part of an hin unto a ram, and a fourth part of an hin unto a lamb: this is the burnt offering of every month throughout the months of the year.

15And one kid of the goats for a sin offering unto the LORD shall be offered, beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering.

16And in the fourteenth day of the first month is the passover of the LORD.

17And in the fifteenth day of this month is the feast: seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten.

18In the first day shall be an holy convocation; ye shall do no manner of servile work therein:

19But ye shall offer a sacrifice made by fire for a burnt offering unto the LORD; two young bullocks, and one ram, and seven lambs of the first year: they shall be unto you without blemish:

20And their meat offering shall be of flour mingled with oil: three tenth deals shall ye offer for a bullock, and two tenth deals for a ram;

21A several tenth deal shalt thou offer for every lamb, throughout the seven lambs:

22And one goat for a sin offering, to make an atonement for you.

23Ye shall offer these beside the burnt offering in the morning, which is for a continual burnt offering.

24After this manner ye shall offer daily, throughout the seven days, the meat of the sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD: it shall be offered beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering.

25And on the seventh day ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work.

26Also in the day of the firstfruits, when ye bring a new meat offering unto the LORD, after your weeks be out, ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work:

27But ye shall offer the burnt offering for a sweet savour unto the LORD; two young bullocks, one ram, seven lambs of the first year;

28And their meat offering of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals unto one bullock, two tenth deals unto one ram,

29A several tenth deal unto one lamb, throughout the seven lambs;

30And one kid of the goats, to make an atonement for you.

31Ye shall offer them beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, (they shall be unto you without blemish) and their drink offerings.

I understand this to be some of the ceremonies that were connected with the sabbath under the Old Testament ceremonial law.

Colossians 2:16

16Let 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:

When the Holy Spirit, speaking through Paul, says not to judge he is speaking to an audience of early Christians, many coming out of the period where God was dealing mainly with Israel but was now expanding His plan to redemption, as He planned from the beginning, to everyone. There were attempts to entangle new believers, particularly those with some Jewish ancestry into the Old Testament system of ceremonial laws and civil law given to Israel as "a church under age."

Paul is not speaking to abrogating the fourth commandment (Remember the Sabbath Day, to Keep it Holy) but the ceremonies that went along with certain Sabbath days.