Isaiah: Our Sabbath Rest

Isaiah 56:1-8

In his book called Pensées, the seventeenth century French mathematician and theologian, Blaise Pascal writes, “All men seek happiness. There are no exceptions.”[1] But where does this desire for happiness come from? Pascal answers the question like this:

What else does this craving, and this helplessness, proclaim but that there was once in man a true happiness, of which all that now remains is the empty print and trace? This he tries in vain to fill with everything around him, seeking in things that are not there, the help he cannot find in those that are, though none can help since this infinite abyss can be filled only with an infinite and immutable object; in other words by God himself.[2]

Last time we focused on Isaiah 55 and learned that the God we seek, the only One who can fill the God-shaped void in our hearts, invites us to come to him and find the happiness and meaning that we have been yearning for. It is free; available “without money and without price” (Isa. 55:1; Rev. 22:17). Our relationship with God has been paid in full by Jesus. We find our rest in him.

Before Jesus came, God emphasized this rest by instituting laws for worshiping and resting on the seventh day, the Sabbath. The laws regarding the Sabbath are summarized in Exodus 20:8-11:

Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates.  For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

The Sabbath was a day to worship God and depend on him. It was also a special time for God’s people to meet corporately and be reminded of his promises (Ex. 31:12-18; Neh. 9:13-14). Sometimes the Jews were careless about keeping the Sabbath (e.g., Neh. 13:15-22; Jer. 17:19-27). In today’s passage God reminds his people the importance of properly observing the Sabbath.

Isaiah 56:1-2
Thus says the Lord: “Keep justice, and do righteousness, for soon my salvation will come, and my righteousness be revealed. Blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who holds it fast, who keeps the Sabbath, not profaning it, and keeps his hand from doing any evil.” 

This reminder was for those who follow God, who “do righteousness.” Isaiah is writing to a people in captivity in a land where the Sabbath was not observed. But even if they were working, they could still have their hearts set on resting in God’s love and depending on his coming salvation. Even in captivity they should honor God by keeping their “hand from doing any evil.”

Sometimes Israel became proud and pompous because of their relationship with the Creator. He chose them to be his people and gave them instructions on how to serve him. However, why did God specifically choose Israel? Here are two reasons:

First, Israel showed the world who God was and what it was like to have him on your side every day in every situation. Second, he chose Israel to be the nation through which he would send the promised Savior (Gen. 3:15; Isa. 53). The covenant God made with Abraham was clear that Israel—through the Messiah—would bless all the nations of the world (Gen. 12:1-3, et. al.).

 God instructs the Jews that worship to the Lord is open for everyone.

Isaiah 56:3-5
Let not the foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord say, “The Lord will surely separate me from his people”; and let not the eunuch say, “Behold, I am a dry tree.” For thus says the Lord: “To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, who choose the things that please me and hold fast my covenant, I will give in my house and within my walls a monument and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off. 

When God invites people to come to him, no one is turned away. The foreigner is welcome. The broken are welcome. There is no distinction between Jew and Gentile. “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Rom. 10:13; Acts 2:21).  God will give all who come to him “an everlasting name that shall not be cut off.”

All who love the Lord, Jew or Gentile, are welcome. God’s “house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples” (Isa. 56:7).

Isaiah 56:6-8 [Anchor Point]
And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord, to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord, and to be his servants, everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it, and holds fast my covenant— these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.” The Lord God, who gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares, “I will gather yet others to him besides those already gathered.”

One final question before we wrap up. Why do Christians today worship on the first day of the week instead of the seventh day, which is Saturday?

The purpose of the Sabbath rest was for God’s people to worship him and realize their dependency on him. While all the nations around them were buying and selling, God’s people took the day to focus on God and trust him for everything they needed.

Today, we rest from our works (that can’t save us) and accept the gift that God has provided through Jesus. Jesus is the believer’s Sabbath rest (Heb. 4:9-11).[3] We depend on him fully and completely as the One who died for our sins. Instead of worshiping on a Saturday, we worship on Sunday to celebrate Jesus’ resurrection. Every Sunday is Resurrection Sunday!

PERSONAL TIME WITH GOD
Time in the Word: Read and reflect on Isaiah 56:1-8, focusing on our Anchor Point—Isaiah 55:6-8. Reflect on God’s offer of salvation to everyone who will come.  

Talking to God:  Thank God for Jesus, our Sabbath rest. 

Have Questions?
Be sure to send your questions to our team. We are happy to assist you as we study God's Word together. Submit your question below, and we'll reply soon. Let us know if you’d like to learn more about a relationship with Jesus or desire spiritual counsel. 

Every day is a day of spiritual renewal as we follow hard after Jesus.