There Remains a Sabbath Rest for the People of God

Summary

This book contains a defense of the idea that God’s rest on Day 7 of the creation week is instructive for people today. More technically, this book argues for the propriety of weekly Sabbath rest. This means that the normal pattern to be followed by humanity is a week, consisting of seven 24-hour days, six of which are spent in work while the other day is devoted to rest. Theologians would use the language of God’s rest being a “creation ordinance,” which is a term that many theologians use, but none have defined.

To aid the discussion, this book defines a creation ordinance as a normative, but not uniformly observed, general pattern the exceptions to which must fulfill and contribute to the pattern’s fulfillment; moreover, the pattern must beconfirmed, not negated or abrogated, by later biblical revelation.

After discussing methodological and hermeneutical presuppositions, the heart of the book begins in chapter 3 with biblical-theological analysis of Genesis 2, noting that God’s rest is the consummation of God’s creative work, God’s enthronement in his cosmic temple, and his consecration of the creation unto him. God’s rest ought to be imitated by mankind for several reasons: God’s intention behind the pattern, Mosaic authorship of Genesis, and the fourth commandment in the decalogue explicitly cites God’s rest in Genesis 2. Later, a detailed analysis is provided of the sabbath commandment in the old covenant. The sabbath ordinance takes on supplemental ceremonial importance under the Mosaic law.