THE SABBATH AS SEEN IN PROPHECY.
By William Covert
A LARGE part of the Scriptures is prophetic. Through the prophetic gift the Lord has described to man much that has transpired in this world before it came to pass. In the study of these predictions it is seen that the Sabbath question bears an important relation to the great controversy between sin and righteousness. There is a gospel prophecy written by the evangelical prophet, and laid for its accomplishment within the present dispensation, which throws light upon the present agitation of the Sabbath question. It says:— "Thus saith the Lord, Keep ye judgment, and do justice; for my salvation is near to come, and my righteousness to be revealed. Blessed is the man that doeth this, and the son of man that layeth hold on it; that keepeth the Sabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his hand from doing any evil." Isa. 56: 1, 2. This scripture describes a time when there is a great controversy being waged over the Sabbath. It is when such violent opposition to the Sabbath of the Lord is being manifested that those who are observing it are represented as holding onto it with such determined tenacity that no opposition can disengage them. It is a forcible showing of how the Lord recommends a firmness of the grasp that lays hold of the truth. The original from which this expression is translated is the same as that found in Gen. 19:16, where it is said of the angels that they "laid hold upon" the hands of Lot and his family and hastened them out of Sodom. Blessed is the man that layeth hold upon the Sabbath with the same determination that the angels took hold of Lot. Or, in other words,516happy is the man that shall lay hold on the Sabbath in such a way that he does not pollute it, who also keeps his hand from doing any evil. It is the manner in which he has laid hold on the Sabbath that has had much to do in bringing about the blessing. It has been the careful study of the significance of the Sabbath as the Lord's memorial that has led many of the Sabbath-keeping people of the present generation to learn many of the wonders of redeeming love. As we have seen in former articles, Christ's presence is in the Sabbath, indicating what he is to his people both in creation and redemption. The prophet is telling in this text how the Lord has made himself known through the Sabbath to those who stood firm as a rock for the ordinances of judgment and justice as revealed in his law. The thought is that the man who lays hold of the Sabbath, and holds on, and prays and pleads with the Lord, gets the blessing that the Creator has placed in the Sabbath. This is especially true in the last days, when the righteousness of Christ is being so clearly taught and enjoyed by those who have sought the Lord and studied his word. It is the blessings that the Lord has placed in the Sabbath which has caused them to know the Lord that doth sanctify them. Ex. 31:13; Eze. 20:12, 20. Furthermore, the subject is continued in the following language:— "Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves to the Lord, to serve him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be his servants, everyone that keepeth the Sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant; even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called a house of prayer for all people." Isa. 56: 6, 7. Should any claim that because the text speaks of burnt offerings it therefore applies to the service of the Levitical priesthood and not to the present dispensation, then such an one has admitted that there should have been no difference made in the past dispensation between the Jews and the Gentiles, and that God designed the Sabbath alike for all. In whichever dispensation it applies, it shows that God requires the same obedience in reference to the Sabbath from the Gentile that he does from the Jew, and that both would be blessed alike in its observance. But the text speaks of a time when the strangers—meaning the Gentiles—are called, and take hold of the truth. It positively declares that every Gentile who will take hold of God's covenant and keep the Sabbath from polluting it, shall be especially blessed in doing so. Then let no one say that the Lord did not design that the Sabbath should be for the Gentiles—yes, the same Sabbath that he commanded the Jews to keep. It is here stated that the Lord's house is a house of prayer for all people, and the reader will please notice that the same people who pray to God and worship him, also keep the Sabbath. Whosoever claims that he is entitled by the gospel commission to a place in the house of the Lord, and to the privilege of petitioning the throne of grace, must come face to face with this proposition that requires him to keep holy the Sabbath day. There is absolutely no avoiding this conclusion. Then there is that peculiar promise in verses 4, 5 to those who are so spiritually barren that no one through their labors is begotten by the truth to a newness of life. They are dry trees, having no life nor generative energy in the Christian work. If they will in these times take hold of the Sabbath, they will get an everlasting name that shall never be cut off. The spiritual blessing will renew them, so that their labors will be fruitful in the Lord. A careful study of the chapter in which the scriptures quoted above are found shows that the Sabbath question is not a dry theory at the present time, void of spiritual life. But, on the other hand, it is seen to be full of the most precious blessings. It is so much so that it is especially singled out from among the ordinances of judgment and justice, as if it were a shining mark especially prominent and important. Indeed, it is presented as an especial sign of man's loyalty to his Creator. This is really so at the present time, because the adversary of the Sabbath of the Lord has a counterfeit sabbath in the field, which he is demanding to be forcibly passed upon the people as the Sabbath of the Lord. This question will become more and more the question of the times as we near the end of the age.