The Jews Sabbath Antiquated and the Lords Day Instituted, Position 5
POSITION V. That the Lords day or firſt day of the week (commonly called Sunday) is the Chriſtian Sabbath, or day of holy reſt.
THis does naturally reſult from the premiſes. For the day being changed, and yet the law concerning the Sabbath continued and eſtabliſhed, the new day muſt needs be a day of reſt, as it reſts on the authority and morality of the fourth Commandment, and as it ſucceeds the old day in Sabbath-ſolemnity. Yet it is not ſo much the name as the thing that I contend for; For although I am fully convinced, that as our ſpirituall exerciſes are called Sacrifices, becauſe they ſucceed in the place of the Jewes Sacrifices, ſo, and much more ſignificantly, may our Lords day be termed Sabbath, becauſe it*Succeeds I mean not in any ceremonious reſpect, but in relation to the fourth Commandment. ſucceeds in the place of the Jewes Sabbath; yet I had rather inſiſt upon the thing than the name, becauſe the one being proved the other cannot well be denyed. No rational man will ſtick at nominal reſpect where there is a real right to it. A name of reſt will be eaſily granted due to a day of reſt, now that the Lords day is without diſpute a day of reſt, appears thus.Cum de re conſtat propier quam vorba dicuntur, de verbis non debore contendi, &c. Auguſt. cont. Acad. l. 3. c. 13.
Firſt, As it is the day of our Redeemers reſt from his painful work of Redemption, his riſing from the dead was his reſting from his work. By his Reſurrection this day he entred into his reſt; for hereby (as was ſaid before) he entred into his glory; which will further appear by comparing two texts together; viz. John 7.39. with John 20.22. The firſt tells us, That the ſpirit was not yet given becauſe Jeſus was not yet glorified; therefore when the Spirit was given ſurely then Chriſt was glorified. Now the other Text informs us, That upon the day of Chriſts Reſurrection the Spirit was given, For he breathed on them and ſaid, Receive the Holy Ghoſt. Now therefore undoubtedly the Lord of glory was crowned with glory; not that he entred into the place of reſt and glory upon the day of his Reſurrection, but into the ſtate of reſt and glory; the place is but accidental to the ſtate; that which I modeſtly propounded to further inquiry, page 128. Namely, Whether Chriſt did not locally aſcend into Heaven on the very day of his Reſurrection; has been ſince concluded, and reſolved in the Negative by a Reverend Brother from that Text of Scripture, Hebr. 9 12. by his own blood he entred once into the Holy place. Which ſeems to a gue ſtrongly, that our bleſſed High Prieſt entred once; and but once into Heaven. To which I do now freely ſubſcribe, Errare poſſum, Haereticus eſſe nolo.
Secondly, The Lords day is a day of Religious Aſſemblies for ſolemn weekly worſhip, therefore alſo a day of religious reſt from civil and ſecular imployments. Since 'tis impoſſible for men to meet together about ſolemn Worſhip, and at the ſame time to follow their worldly occaſions. obſerved as Sabbaths; as the Feaſt of unleavened bread.*Deut. 16.8. On the ſeventh day ſhall be a ſolemn Aſſembly to the Lord thy God: thou ſahlt do not work therein. And as the ſeventh or laſt, ſo alſo the firſt day of that Feaſt was to be a day of reſt, becauſe a day of Convocation; On the firſt day ſhall be a holy convocation, ye ſhall do no ſervile work therein, ſaith the Lord. Numb. 28.17, 18.Now that firſt day of unleavened bread (being a memorial of their Redemption from Egypt) was typical of our Chriſtian Sabbath, as was noted before. And beſides, there being a moral equity in Gods argument, that a day of holy Worſhip and holy Convocations muſt be a day of reſt, it is as applicable to the Lords day as ever it was to any day, for we have abundantly proved, that this is a holy Convocation-day, and 'tis a good note that of Mr. Ainſworth on Deut. 16.8. That the Hebrew word Gnat-ſereth, which we tranſlate, ſolemn Aſſemblies, does alſo ſignifie reſtraint from labour, whereby the Holy Ghoſt would teach us, that Holi days ſet apart for ſolemn aſſemblies muſt be days of holy reſt and reſtraint from work. Such is the Lords day to us Chriſtians, and no other day but that, a day of ſolemn Aſſembly it is, and has bin from the Apoſtles days till now, yea a day of ſolemn Worſhip, therfore a day of reſt or Sabbath day, yea a day of ſolemn weekly worſhip, therefore the undoubted Sabbath of the fourth Commandment, which is the ſtanding rule for a day of weekly worſhip, and but a day ordinarily; for the Commandment numbers out ſix days in the week for worldly buſineſs,As when a man makes two Wils, the laſt does ipſo facto make void the firſt, although there be no expreſs clauſe to ſignifie the repeal or revocation. and one for religious exerciſes, neither more nor leſſe. So that ſuppoſing there were no repeal of the laſt day of the week, yet the firſt day being inſtituted by Divine Authority, makes void the laſt, and takes poſſeſſion of its place by the warrant of the Divine Precept it ſelf.
Again, as the Miniſtry and the Sacraments appointed by Chriſt are uſed by virtue of the ſecond Commandment; ſo the day appointed by Chriſt muſt be obſerved by virtue of the fourth Commandment: becauſe this is the general ſcope both of the ſecond and fourth Commandment, that we muſt obſerve all the Inſtitutions of God from time to time.
I might argue further from that prophetical ſpeech of our Saviour, Matth. 24.20. where he preſignifies to his Diſciples, that there ſhould be a Sabbath in force long after his death, at ſuch time as the old ſeventh-day-Sabbath was either quite out of doors, or out of date at leaſt: therefore he ſpake of the Chriſtian Sabbath which we are obliged both by Law and Goſpel to obſerve.
The Ancients indeed do ſeldom apply the title of Sabbath to the Lords day, yet ſometimes they do.They were but too jealous of Judaizing in this particular. Orat. in Chriſti Reſurrect. Ex illo Sabbato praeſens hoc Sabbatum agnoſce, &c. Sic qu… que ritè ſanctificamus Sabbatum Domini Dicente Domino omne …pus &c. Tract. de tempore, 152. Gregory Nyſſen is expreſs, for having ſpoken of the old Sabbath, he preſently adds, from that Sabbath acknowledge thou this preſent Sabbath (the Lords day) this day of reſt, which God hath bleſſed above other days: For in this the only begotten Son of God did truly reſt from all his works. So alſo Austin (or he that writ the Book De tempore) having pleaded the due celebration of the Lords day, he concludes (with reſpect to the fourth Commandment concerning the Sabbath) ſo do we rightly ſanctifie the Sabbath of the Lord, as the Lord hath ſaid, In it thou ſhalt do no work. Hence that Royal Edict of Charles the Great publiſhed in the year 789. We ordain (ſays he) according as it is commanded in the Law of God, that no man do ſervile work on the Lords day; To which may be added the decree of King Edgar, expreſly ſtiling the Lords day the Sabbath day;Diem Sabbati ab ipſa Die Saturni hora pomeridiara tertia uſque in Lunaris diei dilaculum. feſtum agitari. taking order that the Sabbath ſhould be celebrated from Saturday three a clock in the afternoon till Munday morning at break of day; and this was in the year of Chriſt 959. ſeven hundred years ago, better Antiquity than any can be produced, or ſo much as pretended againſt this appellation: If it be objected, That this was in times of Popery: I anſwer, That even ſince the Reformation, the Lords day hath been frequently called by the name Sabbath: Thoſe precious but perſecuted Saints,To all theſe might be added the Church of England, Can. 70. So Hom. of time and place of prayer. the Waldenſes in a Catechiſm of theirs teach their children to call it by this name: And the holy Martyr Bp Hooper in his treatiſe on the ten Commandements uſes the ſame Dialect, ſome ſcores more might be reckoned, if need were. But leaving theſe Authors, I return to the Objector, who ſets all his wits a work to prove the Lords day a working day, moſt ſinfully and ſhamefully abuſing the Scriptures to this purpoſe. I am loth to ſtain my Paper with his profane Sophiſms, yet leſt his ignorant and erroneous Proſelites ſhould take them for unanſwerable Arguments. I ſhall briefly ſum up all into one Objection and return ſeveral anſwers to it.
Object.T.T. p. 14. of his Pamphlet. In ſtead of that honour put upon the firſt day of the week: Firſt, The Father wrought upon it, Gen. 1. and therefore we ſhould be his followers as dear children, Epheſ. 5.1.
Secondly, The ſon travelled upon it, Luke 24.13, 15. And he hath given us an example that we ſhould do as he hath done, John 13.15.
Thirdly, The Saints caſt their accounts upon it, 1 Cor. 16.2. And ſo may we.
Thus he quotes Scripture to as good purpoſe as that Arch Sophiſter did, Matth. 4 But we ſhall anſwer him ſoberly though he deſerve it not.
Anſw. 1. That which was the Fathers working-day at the Worlds Creation, was the Sons Reſt day from the work of Redemption, and we muſt not be ſollowers of God in contradiction to Chriſt; or oppoſe the works of God againſt the Word of God, leſt in ſtead of followers, as dear children, we be found fighters againſt him, as deſperate enemies; the firſt day of the week was a common day when it was made at firſt (Gen. 1.) but ſince it is made again, and made a ſolemn day, a day of holy worſhip (Pſal. 118.24) therefore no working day now, but to ſuch as have no God to worſhip, or no hearts to worſhip him. God the Father wrought upon the firſt day of the week, yet Iſrael muſt not work on this day, once a year at leaſt; Viz. on the day of unleavened bread, as often as it fell on this day, Numb. 23.18. why? becauſe it was a day of holy Convocation, and ſo is every firſt day of the week to us; which (as ſome conceive) the Holy Ghoſt foretold long ſince by the Prophet Ezekiel ſaying,Ezek. 43.27. It ſhall be that upon the eight day and ſo forward, the Prieſts ſhall make your burnt offerings upon the altar, and your peace-offerings, or thank offerings; and I will accept you, ſaith the Lord; 'tis a clear prophecy of Goſpel-times, if not the ſpecial time of Goſpelworſhip, upon the eighth day, i.e. the firſt day of the week.
Anſw. 2. Touching our Saviours travelling this day, I have anſwered before: That it was without labour (ſuch as is the motion of immortal and glorified bodies) and therefore no Preſident for us, who dwell in theſe corruptible houſes of clay: And I add moreover, That Chriſts walking with his Diſciples that day was no more an impeachment to the holy reſt of the firſt day, than the Fathers working every day to the Sabbatical reſt of the ſeventh day: 'Tis our Saviours own Argument, (in anſwer to a like objection) My Father worketh hitherto and I work: John 5.17.That I termed this journey to Emmaus [a Sabbath-days journey] was in reference to the diſcourſe by the way, not the length of the way: To which upon ſecond thoughts I add this further anſwer, That 'tis very uncertain, whether Chriſt travelled all the way on foot to Emmaus, and back again: The Scripture is ſilent, and therefore we may not ſpeak. The Objector indeed has it often up, That Chriſt travelled fifteen miles on his Reſurrection-day: but he ſpeaks without Book, and can never prove it by Scripture, for he might overtake the two Diſciples near Emmaus, and how he came there we read not, neither can we tell how he conveyed himſelf back again to Jeruſalem. Gueſſes and conjectures are no arguments.
Anſw. 3. That the Saints caſt their accounts on this day, I utterly deny, we have nothing but the bold and bare word of the Objector to prove it, and let him not blame us, if we look not upon him, as ſuch a Pythagoras, that his Ipſe dixit ſhould carry it.
More might be added in purſuance and proſecution of this Theſis (that the Lords day is the Chriſtian Sabbath) but Mr. Cawdrey, Mr. Bernard, Mr. Ley, and ſundry others have ſpared me this labour.