For the
Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath. (Matthew 12:8)
Christians
love using this statement to show Jesus was Somewhat superior then everyone
else. Now what prompted the author to call him the lord of Sabbath? Well, when
you read the context of verse 8 you get to realise why Jesus was called the
Lord of Sabbath.
At that time Jesus went
through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to
pick some heads of grain and eat them. When the Pharisees saw
this, they said to him, “Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the
Sabbath.”
He answered, “Haven’t you read what David did when he and his companions were
hungry? He entered the house of God, and he and his companions ate the
consecrated bread—which was not lawful for them to do, but only for the priests. Or haven’t you read in the Law that the priests on Sabbath duty in
the temple desecrate the Sabbath and yet are innocent? I tell you that something greater than the temple is here. 7 If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not
sacrifice,’you would not have condemned the innocent.
For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”
(Matthew 12:1-8)
They
also say, he healed on Sabbath which wasn't allowed according to the Old
Testament.
The LORD then gave these further instructions
to Moses: ‘Tell the people of Israel to keep my Sabbath day, for the Sabbath is
a sign of the covenant between me and you forever. It helps you to remember
that I am the LORD, who makes you holy. Yes, keep the Sabbath day, for it
is holy. Anyone who desecrates it must die; anyone who works on that day
will be cut off from the community. Work six days only, but the seventh
day must be a day of total rest. I repeat: Because the LORD considers it
a holy day, anyone who works on the Sabbath must be put to death.’
(Exodus 31:12-15)
Working
on the sabbath was considered as a capital offence yet Jesus healed doesn’t
this show was Lord. Interestingly we read from the Talmud, that it is permissible to heal on sabbath. Again only if the Christians took
more notice of the oral law (explanation) of the Old Testament they wouldn't
brag on such a pathetic saying LORD OF SABBATH
Talmud
The Sages frequently use the verse from Hosea 6:6, that helping people
was of greater importance than observing the rituals and customs (Sukkah 49b,
Deuteronomy Rabbah on 16:18, etc.), just as jesus did. In fact, they
used the same examples As jesus presented, David’s eating the Tabernacle
bread and the Temple offerings made on the Sabbath, to demonstrate the same
general principle, that the needs of life override the Sabbath restrictions (Y’lomm’denu,
Yalkut II, par. 130, Tosefta Shabbat 15b).
There you have
it, the oral law is clear one is allowed to work during Sabbath, however
conditions apply providing it’s for a greater good. We can conclude Jesus of the Bible wasn’t the
Lord of the Sabbath after all.
It (the Sabbath) is committed to your hands, not you
to its hands.—R. Jonathan ben Joseph, Yoma 85a
