THE SABBATH. "And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, "Speak thou unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sab: for it is a "And Moses gathered all the congregation of the children of Israel together, and said unto them, These are the words which the Lord, hath, commanded, that baths, ye shall end you through ye should do theim, me sign "Six days shall work be done, on do you an enth day there shall Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore for it is holy unto you: every one that one that defileth surely be put to death: fot shall soever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people,di mort "Six days may work be done but in the seventh is the sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord whoso to an holy day, a sabbath of rest to the Lord whosoever doeth work therein shall be put to death. fire "Ye shall kindle no throughout your habitations upon the sabbath day?"-Exod. xxxv. inny of Lig ever doeth any work in the sable art ca botosiana · bath day, he shall surely be put t to "Wherefore the children of a to notemuni Israel shall keep the sabbath, too brow eidt 979. observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetuald Foobni End Lod covenant. Les son 66 "It is a sign between me and ever: the children It will be seen that the Lord closed. His directions concerning the tabernacle with the commandment respecting the sabbath day. (Exod. xxxi. 12-17.) Moses commenced his recapitulation of these directions to the people, with the same commandment about the sabbath. (Exod. xxxv. 1-3.) There is therefore evidently an intimate connection between the truths foreshadowed in the tabernacle, and the rest typified by the sabbath. We read in Genesis ii." thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 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. 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." Everything had been pronounced by the Creator Himself to be good. No sin, no death, had as yet entered to mar the works of God's hands. He could rest, and be refreshed in the contemplation of His own work of creation; crowned as it was with man, the perfection and head of it all. Quickly however was this beautiful scene changed. By the "one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin." "The whole creation was made subject to vanity;" and from that time to this, 'ceases not to "groan and travail in pain together, having been ruined by the entrance of death, and thereby subjected to the slavery of corruption. From that time we read no more of God resting. The first intimation of a sabbath for man is in Exodus xvi. where this word occurs for the first time in the Bible. God had indeed hallowed the seventh day, having Himself rested on it: but it is not called the sabbath, which means the rest, until the manna was given to Israel in the wilderness. And this is in keeping with the truth. The manna (bread from heaven) was rained down in profusion for a people stiff-necked and murmuring : beautiful shadow of "the true bread from heaven," "the bread of God," "the bread of life," given in the riches of God's love to a ruined world; "of which if a man eat, he shall live for ever." 66 In close connection with the manna, came the sabbath. It shall come to pass, that on the sixth day they shall prepare that which they bring in; and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily. 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. And he said G unto them, this is that which the Lord hath said, Tomorrow is the rest of the holy sabbath unto the Lord. Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the sabbath, in it there shall be none. 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. So the people rested on the seventh day." Exod. xvi. 5, 22, 23, 26, 29, 30. God had so provided for Israel in giving them this strange new bread from heaven, that there was no necessity for their working in any way on the seventh day. Their wants were fully met; so that they could cease or rest from any labour or toil. And here we have for the first time, man able to crest: "the people rested on the seventh day." The first occurrence of the expression in Scripture since Genesis, chap. ii., where it is said, "and he (God) rested on the seventh day." Is not this a very significant type of the blessed truth that God has provided in Christ, the first and only rest that man can know. A perfect and eternal sabbath? Another peculiar word is employed here for the first time; "the rest of the holy sabbath;" and is subsequently used in Scripture in connection with the sabbath day. "A sabbath of rest." Exod. xxxi. 15; xxxv. 2. "The day of atonement." Lev. xvi. 31; xxiii. 32. "The day of blowing of trumpets;" xxiii. 24; where it is translated sabbath. "The feast of tabernacles," xxiii. 39; where it occurs twice, and is translated "sabbath." And "the sabbatical year," xxv. 4, 5; “a sabbath of rest”- 66 a year of rest." The word in the Hebrew is, shabbah-thohn; it may mean a resting, a time or continued act of resting. It is not unlikely that the word, Hebrews iv. 9, "there remaineth therefore a rest, (margin, keeping of a sabbath, a sabbatism,) to the people of God," is a Greek translation of this Hebrew word, although it does not occur in the Septuagint. Israel kept their first, and perhaps their only sab batism, in the wilderness of Sin, when the manna was fresh and pleasant to their taste. Who does not know the delight, the peace and joy of the first fresh taste of "the bread of life?" The rest of soul which Christ gives to those who labour and are heavy laden? But, alas! how soon is that rest spoiled by the inroads of Satan and the world; and by the restlessness of selfwill, pride, and the flesh. If we would retain the rest, yea, deepen and increase it, we must listen to the Lord's words, "Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart and ye shall find rest unto your souls." Matt. xi. 28, 29. There is a rest that Christ gives, There is a rest we have to find. i In Exod. xvi. 29, it is written, the Lord hath given you the sabbath, therefore he giveth you the bread." We first, by faith, receive Christ; the true bread from heaven, given by God, His Father. We eat His flesh, the bread which the Son of Man giveth, and rest from doubt and fear; from works of our own, and from the heavy burden of our sins. We experience the joy and peace of conversion. We cease from our own works, as God did from His on the seventh day. But soon the struggle comes, the conflict between flesh and spirit. Having received rest from Christ as His gift, we have next to take His yoke upon us. His yoke of love, and obedience to the Father; another kind of yoke, an easy yoke; another burden, a light burden; in the place of the grievous bondage under sin and Satan, and the heavy load of guilt and misery. And we have to learn of Him, the meek and lowly one in heart, in order that we may find rest to our souls in the midst of temptation and trial, and difficulties and perplexities in our path. The meekness and lowliness of Christ were evidenced in His constant dependence upon God. Never doing His own will, or pleasing Himself. Never putting forth His own power, but humbly trusting in, and waiting on His Father. And His soul was kept in a perfect sab bath of rest. Circumstances, however sudden or unexpected, never disturbed the serenity of His soul's confidence in God; neither did they cause Him to act independently of God. He trusted not in any resources of His own. He was never surprised into an act of independence, though having almighty power. However adverse therefore the circumstances, the rest and quiet assurance of His soul were unbroken. The tempter might seek to insinuate doubts of His Father's love and care, but such thoughts found no place in His heart. He was deaf to such whispers of the enemy. He was blind as to the circumstances around Him, if those circumstances seemed to militate against the faithful love of God. Such was His rest all through His pilgrimage below, till on the cross the billows and waves of judgment, and the noise of the waterspouts of wrath overwhelmed Him. And yet even then He trusted, and was delivered. When the sabbath was connected with the gift of manna, there was no commandment, but the sabbath was given; and there was no penalty for the breach of the rest. When the sabbath was subsequently connected with God's work of creation, as in Exod. xx. 8—11; xxxi. 14-17, there was a distinct commandment, and the penalty of death was appended to any breach of it. This affords a striking contrast, between being under grace, and under law, Israel before they reached Mount Sinai were dealt with altogether in the way of grace: they had come out from Egypt under the shelter of the passover blood. The power of the almighty hand of God had been made manifest in their favour, in opening the depths of the Red Sea, and giving them a passage through on dry land; whilst their enemies had been engulphed in its mighty waters. They had murmured at Marah, and the bitter waters were made sweet. They had found palm trees and wells ready for them at Elim. They had murmured in the wilderness of Sin, and the |