THE SABBATH.
BY
CHARLES ELLIOTT,
PROFESSOR OF BIBLICAL LITERATURE AND EXEGESIS IN THE PRESBYTERIAN THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY OF THE
NORTH-WEST, CHICAGO, ILL.
PHILADELPHIA:
PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION,
No. 821 CHESTNUT STREET.




Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1867, by
THE TRUSTEES OF THE
PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION,
In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the
Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
WESTCOTT & THOMSON,
STEREOTYPERS, PHILADA,




PREFACE.
THE only apology for the publication of this little volume
is the importance of the subject that it discusses. The
Sabbath is an institution intimately connected with the
highest interests of religion, and consequently with all that
is most precious to humanity. It also contributes to man's
physical comfort and secular prosperity. Every attempt,
therefore, to weaken its obligation should be resisted; and
every false view promulgated respecting it should be refuted.
If this little treatise shall, in any way, contribute to that end,
to Him be the praise, whose voice proclaimed from the top
of Sinai: " Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy."
THE AUTHOR.
3








CONTENTS.
PAGE
P R E   A CE.........................................................................................  3
PART I.
THE LAW OF THE SABBATH HAS ITS FOUNDATION IN OUR NATURE.
CHAPTER I.
SECTION I.
Meaning of the term-The Law of the Sabbath founded in our constitution, physical, intellectual, and  moral................................................  9
SECTION II.
The Physical or Physiological Advantages of the Sabbath........................ 13
SECTION III.
The Intellectual Advantages of the Sabbath......................................... 19
SECTION IV.
The Moral and Spiritual Advantages of the Sabbath............................... 23
CHAPTER II.
THE SOCIAL ADVANTAGES OF THE SABBATH.
SECTION I.
The  Fam ily........................................................................................  27
1                                                     5




6                           CONTENTS.
SECTION II.
PAGE
The Community................................................................................. 3
SECTION III.
Summary   of the  preceding  sections......................................................  38
PART II.
SECTION I.
Institution of the Sabbath.................................................................. 41
SECTION     II.
The  Sabbath  a  Moral Institution.........................................................  49
SECTION III.
Change of the Sabbath from the Seventh day of the week to the First..... 59
SECTION IV.
The  Perpetuity  of the  Sabbath............................................................  66
SECTION V.
Sum m ary...........................................................................................  74
PART III.
THE SANCTIFICATION OF THE SABBATH.
SECTION     I.
Preliminary  Observations..................................................................  76
SECTION     II.
The Sabbath is to be kept in such a way as to perpetuate the Knowledge
and  W orship  of Jehovah...................................................................  79




CONTENTS.                                  7
SECTION III.
PAGE
The Sabbath is to be Sanctified by attending to the Private Exercises of
R eligion.........................................................................................  85
SECTION IV.
The Sabbath is to be Sanctified by Bodily Rest, and by intermitting such
Intellectual Employments as are not immediately connected with the
services  of  Religion..........................................................................  90
SECTION V.
The Duty of the state with reference to the Sanctification of the Sabbath. 94
SECTION VI.
Concluding  Remarks............................................................................  106








THE SABBATH.
PART I.
~THE LAW OF THE SABBATH HAS ITS FOUNDATION
IN OUR NATURE.
CHAPTER I.
SECTION I.
MEANING OF THE TERM-THE LAW OF THE SABBATH FOUNDED
IN OUR CONSTITUTION, PHYSICAL, INTELLECTUAL, AND
MORAL.
THE word Sabbath is of Hebrew origin, and signifies rest. It is not synonymous with Sunday.
The former designates that day of the seven, which
is set apart for rest and worship; the latter is the
name of the first day of the week. This distinction
is observed in the Homilies of the established
Church of England. " So, if we will be the children of our heavenly Father, we must be careful to
keep the Christian Sabbath day, which is the Sunday." The distinction seems to be that the term
Sabbath is applied to the institution of sacred rest,
and that Sunday is the name of the day. Notwith9




10              THE SABBATH.
standing this distinction, they are often used synonymously, both in the United States and in
England. It is better, however, to retain the use
of Sabbath, or to employ the designation, Lord's
Day, as it suggests the idea of holy time.
Our Lord said to the Pharisees when they asked
him why his disciples did that which was not lawful on the Sabbath day, by plucking the ears of
corn in the fields through which they were passing:
" The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for
the Sabbath."
These words teach that the Sabbath was designed
for man's advantage, and imply that its proper
observance is not detrimental to his best interests,
but highly productive of them; and this being the
case they further imply that there is an adaptation
of the Sabbatical institution to man's nature.
"The Sabbath was made for man." It was designed
to meet his physical, intellectual, and spiritual wants.
Its law is founded in his constitution. This we
will readily perceive if we consider the wants which
the institution of the Sabbath meets. All men
need rest for their bodies, and it would be a difficult matter to prove that a seventh portion of our
time is too much. Now, were there no day set
apart for cessation from labour, many would be
deprived of that periodical relaxation from their
regular routine of duty, the uninterrupted continuance of which exhausts the bodily powers, and thus
impairs health. The same thing might be affirmed




THE SABBATH.               11
of those lower animals that are used as beasts of
draught and burden, for they require rest as well as
man.
Analogies to this law obtain throughout inanimate nature. There are seasons of rest for the
soil and for trees. Winter locks the earth in its
embrace, but its frosts and snows prepare fresh
nutriment for the flowers of spring. The soil is
thus preserved from exhaustion by a period of annual repose.
Man is an intellectual being, and needs knowledge, especially, knowledge of God, of himself,
and of his relations to God. To acquire this
knowledge some portion of time is necessary; but
without a Sabbath many would be deprived of the
opportunity of acquiring it, and consequently would
remain in ignorance of their highest duty. By
affording this opportunity to every one, the Sabbath
meets man's highest intellectual wants, and thus
shows its adaptation to his intellectual nature.
Man is also possessed of conscience and will, and
is influenced by motives. He is an immortal being,
placed in this world to prepare for a higher and
better state of existence. To apply spiritual truths
to his conscience and make them motives to influence his will, he must have time to withdraw his
mind from secular employments, and fix it upon
these truths, and to place himself under the influence of things that are unseen and eternal. Nothing is so favourable to this as the quiet of a well



12              THE SABBATH.
spent Sabbath, when the serenity, peace, and solemnity of the heavenly world seem to invest all things
around us. The very air seems to breathe of
heaven. The eye seems to pierce deeper into the
blue expanse above us. The sun seems clothed in
fresh glory, and when the stars of evening rise,
they seem to shine with additional lustre. This
may be all imagination. It doubtless is; but it is
the imagination of one who has been conversing
with God. It is not the air, the heavens, the sun,
and the stars that are changed; but the change is
in the mind, and it sees all things beautiful. A
day that affords an opportunity for those elevated
contemplations which produce such a change in the
mind, must be admirably adapted to the culture of
man's spiritual nature.
We may conclude, from these observations, that
the law of the Sabbath has its foundation in man's
physical, intellectual, and moral constitution, and
consequently that its proper observance is productive of his highest benefit. When we keep the
Sabbath as it ought to be kept, we are merely acting in obedience to a law, the final end of which is
to promote our physical, intellectual, and moral
well-being; and the violation of which is a violation of that well-being.
We have merely indicated in what way the
Sabbath promotes our welfare, by showing that its
law is laid in our constitution. It may be well to
enter into detail on this point, and fortify ourselves




THE SABBATH.               13
by facts. These facts are abundant, and drawn from
a great variety of sources.
We will first consider its advantages to man as a
day of rest, for the purpose of invigorating the
body, preserving it in health, and prolonging life;
or, in other words, its physiological advantages.
On this point we have the concurrent testimony of
the highest authorities.
SECTION 11.
THE PHYSICAL, OR PHYSIOLOGICAL ADVANTAGES OF THE
SABBATH.
On this point the writer will make a free use of
some facts contained in the first number of the
Sabbath Manual.
In the year 1832 the British House of Commons
appointed a committee to investigate the effects of
labouring seven days in a week compared with those
of labouring six, and resting one. This committee,
composed of statesmen of the greatest eminence,
suchi as Sir Robert Peel, Lord Morpeth, Sir Robert
Inglis, Sir Andrew Agnew, and Sir Thomas Baring,
with many others,-examined a great number of
witnesses of various professions and employments.
Among these witnesses was an acute and experienced
physician, Dr. Farre of London. Dr. F., previous
to the time of giving his testimony, had practised
medicine between thirty and forty years; and during
2




14              THE SABBATH.
the early part of his life, as the physician of a
public medical institution, had had charge of one
of the most populous districts of London. He had
had occasion to observe the effects of the observance
and non-observance of the seventh as a day of rest
during this time. He had considered its uses from
a medical point of view, and observed its abuses as
manifested in labour and dissipation; and his testimony, as a physician, was, that medically viewed,
the Sabbath is a most beneficent institution.
"As a day of rest," said Dr. Farre, "I view it as a
day of compensation for the inadequate restorative
power of the body under continued labour and excitement. A physician always has respect to the
restorative power; because if once this be lost, his
healing office is at end. A physician is anxious to
preserve-the balance of circulation, as necessary to
the restorative power of the body. The ordinary
exertions of man run down the circulation every day
of his life; and the first general law of his nature,
by which God prevents man from destroying himself, is the alternating of day and night, that repose
may succeed action. But, although the night apparently equalizes the circulation, yet it does not
sufficiently restore its balance for the attainment of
a long life. Hence, one day in seven, by the bounty
of Providence, is thrown in as a day of compensation,
to perfect by its repose the animal system. You
may easily," continued the Doctor, " determine this
question, as a matter of fact, by trying it on beasts




THE SABBATH.              15
of burden. Take that fine animal, the horse, and
work him to the full extent of his powers every
day in the week, or give him rest one day in seven,
and you will soon perceive, by the superior vigour
with which he performs his functions on the other
six days, that his rest is necessary to his well-being.
Man possesses a superior nature, is borne along by
the very vigour of his mind; so that the injury of
continued diurnal exertion and excitement on the
animal system is not so immediately apparent as it
is in the brute; but in the long run he breaks down
more suddenly; it abridges the length of his life;
and that vigour of his old age, which (as to mere
animal power) ought to be the object of his preservation."  The same witness says that "researches
in physiology, by the analogy of the working of
Providence in nature, will show that the Divine
commandment is not to be considered an arbitrary
enactment, but as an appointment necessary to man."
The celebrated Wilberforce ascribed the continuance of his life, for so long a time, under such a
pressure of cares and labours, in no small degree,' to
his conscientious and habitual observance of the
Sabbath. He considered it a blessed day, which
"allows us a precious interval wherein to pause, to
come out from the thickets of worldly concerns,
and give ourselves up to heavenly and spiritual
objects. Observation and my own experience," said
Mr. W., " have convinced me that there is a special
blessing on a right employment of these intervals."




16              THE SABBATH.
During the life of this celebrated Christian and
statesman, Sir Samuel Romilly, Solicitor General
of England, and Lord Castlereagh, terminated their
lives each by his own hand. The impression on
Mr. W's. mind was that it was the effect of continued
wear of mind occasioned by the non-observance of
the Sabbath on the part of these two celebrated
men. When endeavours were made to prevail upon
the lawyers of London to give up Sabbath consultation, Sir S. Romilly would not concur; and Lord
Castlereagh was so engrossed with politics that he
allowed his mind no relaxation. The constant
recurring of the same reflections dethroned his
reason, and led to the commission of the fatal act,
which deprived him of his life. "He was the last
man in the world," remarked Mr. Wilberforce,
" who appeared likely to be carried away into the
commission of such an act; so cool, so selfpossessed."
In the same testimony concur such men as
Thomas Sewall, M. D., Professor of Pathology and
the Practice of Medicine in the Columbian College,
Washington, D. C.; Dr. Mussey, Professor of Surgery in the Ohio Medical College; Dr. Harrison of
the same institution; Dr. Alden, of Massachusetts;
and the New Haven Medical Association, composed
of twenty-five physicians, among whom were the
professors of the medical college.
The first of these remarks: "While I consider
it the more important design of the institution of




THE SABBATH.               17
the Sabbath, to assist in religious devotion and
advance man's spiritual welfare, I have long held
the opinion that one of its chief benefits has reference to his physical and intellectual constitution;
affording him, as it does, one day in seven for the
renovation of his exhausted energies of body and
mind; a proportion of time small enough, according
to the results of my observation, for the accomplishment of this object."
Dr. Mussey remarks: "The Sabbath should be
regarded as a most benevolent institution, adapted
alike to.the physical, mental, and moral wants of
man. The experiment has been made with animals,
and the value of one day's work in seven, for those
that labour, in recruiting their energies and prolonging their activity, has been established beyond a
doubt. In addition to constant bodily labour, the
corroding influence of incessant mental exertion and
solicitude cannot fail to induce premature decay, and
to shorten life. And there cannot be a reasonable
doubt, that under the due observance of the Sabbath, life would, on the average, be prolonged more
than one-seventh of its whole period; that is, more
than seven years in fifty."
The other eminent physicians, and the New
Haven Medical Association, express the same sentiments.
To these testimonies might be added those of
men of all professions and employments-merchants,
tradesmen, fishermen, men employed on steamboats
2 *




18              THE SABBATH.
and public works,-who all concur in the same
thing.
These testimonies are not unsupported by facts.
Interesting experiments have been made upon both
men and animals to test the salutary nature of the
law of the Sabbath, and they have always resulted
in the conclusion that both require the rest of the
sacred day.
One of these experiments was made in a large
flouring establishment. }For a number of years the
mills were worked seven days a week. The superintendent was then changed. He ordered the men
to stop the works at eleven o'clock on Saturday
night, and not to start them till one o'clock on
Monday morning, thus allowing a full Sabbath
every week. And the same men, during the year,
actually ground fifty thousand bushels more than
had ever been ground, in a single year, in that
establishment before. The men having been permitted to cleanse themselves, put on their best
apparel, rest from worldly business, go with their
families to the house of God, and devote the Sabbath to its appropriate duties,-were more healthy,
punctual, moral, and diligent. They lost less time
in drinking, dissipation and quarrels. They were
more clear-headed and whole-hearted; knew better
how to do things, and were more disposed to do
them in the right way.
Another experiment was tried on a hundred and
twenty horses. They were employed for years,




THE SABBATH.               19
seven days in the week. But they became unhealthy, and finally died so fast that the owner
thought it too expensive, and put them on a six
days' arrangement. After this he was not obliged
to replenish them one-fourth part as often as before.
Instead of sinking continually, his horses came up
again, and lived longer than they could have done
on the other plan.
A manufacturing company, which had been accustomed to carry their goods to market with their
own teams, kept them employed seven days in a
week, as that was the tinie in which they could go
to the market and return. But by permitting the
teams to rest on the Sabbath, they found that they
could drive them the same distance in six days,
that they had formerly done in seven, and with the
same keeping preserve them in better order.
These testimonies and facts fully show the salutary influence of the Sabbath upon the physical
constitutions of both man and the lower animals.
As a day of rest it is "a day of compensation for
the inadequate restorative power of the body under
continued labour and excitement."
SECTION III.
THE INTELLECTUAL ADVANTAGES OF THE SABBATH.
The mind requires repose as well as the body,
and this repose a well-spent Sabbath affords. It is




20              THE SABBATH.
not necessary, in this connection, to discuss the
question whether the mind itself becomes fatigued,
or whether it is merely the bodily organs, through
which it operates, that become exhausted by labour,
and are invigorated by rest. Nor is it necessary
for the rest of the mind that it sink into a state of
inactivity, in which all its faculties become dormant,
or listless. The highest refreshment to the mind is
oftentimes furnished by directing it to something
new, something that will relieve it from its usual
routine of thought, and afford it an opportunity for
the exercise of the imagination and the emotions.
When worn out by labour, the sight of a beautiful
landscape, or of a lake embosomed among hills, or
of some work of art, will rouse it from its languor
and fatigue, and fill it with buoyant feelings and
exhilarating delight.
The opportunity of directing the mind to something new is furnished by nothing so well as by the
institution of the Sabbath. It interrupts the ordinary pursuits of man, and turns his mind to the
contemplation of the most glorious and soul-inspiring truths within the whole range of thought.
God, heaven, eternity, the soul and its immortal
destinies, all that is beautiful and holy on earth, are
thoughts strictly in unison with the sacred character
of the day, and in fact suggested by its very institution and end. On it God rested. It is to us a
type of the heavenly rest, which remains for the
people of God. And when, on this sacred day, we




THE SABBATH.                21
rise above the earth and see the visions of the
Almighty, what inspiration do we feel; what fresh
vigour in the divine life, what grandeur of thought,
what intensity of purpose do we acquire. And if
any are mourners amidst the decay of all things
earthly, what comfort does it inspire to have such a
blessed opportunity to look beyond this world of
change to that land
- "of pure delight,
Where saints immortal reign,
Where endless day excludes the night,
And pleasures banish pain."
Then such may feel, even here, the breath of its
everlasting spring, and inhale the odour of its never
withering flowers.
It is true these holy and elevating influences are
not confined to the Sabbath; but may be enjoyed
by the Christian on other days, for God is always
near to those that call upon him; and the consolations of his grace are vouchsafed, at all seasons, to
such as seek him with a contrite heart. Yet it
cannot be denied that there is something in the holy
quiet of the Sabbath, something in its associations,
something in the very fact of its institution, which
renders it eminently fitted to inspire and cherish
the holiest thoughts, and to make it a source of the
richest intellectual and spiritual blessings.
Now this is just such a rest as the mind needs, a
rest from weariness and care, a rest from worldly
occupations and pursuits, a rest from meditation




22              THE SABBATH.
upon things visible and temporal, in the calm and
elevated contemplation upon the unseen and eternal.
Meditation upon these lofty truths cannot fail to
cultivate man's intellectual as well as his spiritual
nature; and hence a Sabbath-keeping people are
always intelligent. Men, who in the course of
three-score years and ten, spend ten years, as they
may do, if they spend their Sabbaths as they ought,
in studying the sublimest truths that can occupy
the mind, if possessed of ordinary capacity, must
acquire a large amount of knowledge eminently
serviceable to them in every walk of life; for the
truths of religion are not mere speculations, but
practical principles to direct us in all the duties
arising out of our various relations.
Add to the meditation upon these truths the
reading of the Bible, of good books, and the listening to public instruction from men of learning and
intelligence, and it will be at once seen, that the
influence of the Sabbath-when devoted to its
legitimate ends-upon intellectual culture cannot
be overrated. It affords an opportunity for the
acquisition of that knowledge, without which the
will is deprived of its strongest motives, and law
of its highest sanctions.
This part of the subject is susceptible of ample
illustration by examples. -Let it suffice to refer to
the superior mental vigour and proficiency of those
young men at college, who exchange their ordinary
studies for the proper duties of the Sabbath, corn



THE SABBATH.               23
pared with those who pursue their studies on that
sacred day. Professors in colleges have doubtless
observed the fact.
SECTION IV.
THE MORAL AND SPIRITUAL ADVANTAGES OF THE SABBATH.
These have been alluded to in the preceding section; but they are sufficiently important to require
a separate discussion. Indeed, they are the most
important advantages secured by the day of holy
rest.
Moral, contradistinguished from spiritual, relates
to duty or obligation. It pertains to those motives
and actions of which right and wrong, virtue and
vice, may be affirmed or denied. It relates to the
practice, manners, or conduct of men, so far as those
are the subjects of law. Spiritual, as distinguished
from moral, pertains to the soul and its affections,
as influenced by the Holy Spirit. It includes the
moral; but the moral does not necessarily include
the spiritual.
The moral advantages of the Sabbath commend
themselves to the most superficial thinker. The
very observance of a day, out of respect to our own
well-being, is itself a great moral benefit, as it
habituates the mind to thoughts of self-preservation
and bodily comfort. Add to this the observance of
it out of regard to the authority of God, and the




24              THE SABBATH.
moral advantage is heightened, because the mind is
brought under the influence of the unseen and eternal. While under this influence, and freed from
worldly avocations, it is prepared and has opportunity, to consider questions of duty, to weigh motives,
to determine the quality of actions, and to form
plans and resolutions of doing good. No other day,
on account of the-various and necessary occupations
of life, can be so favourable for these things as the
holy Sabbath.
Its spiritual advantages are chiefly, though not
entirely, confined to the Christian. The impenitent
are often led, by its institution, by its sacred associations and holy duties, to think of "that rest which
remaineth to the people of God," to feel their need
of preparation for it, and to apply for salvation to
Him, who "taketh away the sin of the world."
The Sabbath is a constant memorial of the heavenly
rest, and a standing invitation to all that are weary
and heavy laden to seek it; and many have accepted
the invitation, and found the rest for which they
sighed.
To the Christian it is a foretaste of heaven.
During its sacred hours, he can draw off his mind
fiom those worldly thoughts and distracting cares
which grow out of his pursuits on other days, and
hold communion with the Father of his spirit. He
can meditate, without interruption, on the riches of
the inheritance of the saints in glory, on the love
of God, on the grace and condescension of Christ,




THE SABBATH.                 25
and on the consolation of the Holy Spirit. While
thus occupied, his soul is often wafted upward on
the wings of faith and hope, until he imagines himself mingling with the blissful throng in the presence of the ineffable glory.  And when the glorious
vision passes, and he feels himself still an inhabitant of the earth, how often does he breathe out his
soul, in the language of the poet:
"Who, who would live alway, away from his God;
Away from yon heaven, that blissful abode,
Where the rivers of pleasure flow o'er the bright plains,
And the noontide of glory eternally reigns:
" Where the saints of all ages in harmony meet,
Their Saviour and brethren transported to greet;
While the anthems of rapture unceasingly roll,
And the smile of the Lord is the feast of the soul?"
But the exercises of the Christian are not always
of a rapturous kind, even on the Sabbath. The
child of God often has his doubts and fears, his
troubles and sorrows. When thus affected, what a
blessed privilege it is for him to have the opportunity of self-examination, of communion with God
in the closet, of confessing his sins and supplicating
the Divine forgiveness, of reading the Bible, and
pondering its precious promises, of going to the
house of God and listening to the preaching of the
word, of conferring with other Christians, and
learning that his trials are not peculiar. If he has
been faithful in these things, peace has returned to
3




26              THE SABBATH.
his mind, and he has been enabled to say, with the
Psalmist: "Why art thou cast down, 0. my soul?
and why art thou disquieted within me? hope in
God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health
of my countenance, and my God."
The writer does not intend to convey the idea
that these holy exercises and sacred privileges are
confined to the Sabbath; but he does intend to convey the idea that there is something il the very
institution and associations of the Sabbath favourable
to them, and in fact suggestive of them. Were
there no Sabbath, some of them  could not be
enjoyed at all, and others would be in danger of
being neglected. If, with the inestimable privilege
of one day in seven for such holy and elevating
exercises, Christians are so feeble in the divine life,
what would they be without it? God only can tell.
We must conclude, then, that the Sabbath is the
source of incalculable moral and spiritual advantages, that without it morality and religion would
scarcely exist.




THE SABBATH.               27
CHAPTER II.
THE SOCIAL ADVANTAGES OF THE SABBATH.
SECTION 1.
THE FAMILY.
THE Sabbath is a beneficent family institution.
Without it the great end of the family could not
be accomplished. What is that end?  The mere
increase of the human species?  That might multiply only wickedness and woe. It is to raise up a
"godly seed."  "And did not he make one?  Yet
had he the residue of the Spirit. And wherefore
one? That he might seek a godly seed. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal
treacherously against the wife of his youth."
(Malachi ii. 15.) In a state of innocence, amidst
the delights of Paradise, God instituted marriage
and the Sabbath, the former to perpetuate the race,
the latter to preserve it in its highest state of earthly
blessedness.
How does the Sabbath minister to this end? To
answer this question, it will be necessary to consider
the reciprocal duties of parents and children, so
that tile connection between these duties and the
Sabbatical institution may be more clearly comprehended.
The duties that the parent owes to the child are




28              THE SABBATH.
maintenance, government, and education. The first
has no direct or necessary connection with the point
under discussion, and may, therefore, be dismissed.
The other two depend, for their faithful and fullest
discharge, very much upon the proper observance
of the Sabbath.
"The family is a little society, a miniature state;
and every society, every state, must have its laws,
its government." It is the duty of the divinely
constituted head, the father, or, in case of his absence or death, the mother, to administer that government, and to enforce these laws. The very first
law of the family is obedience to parental authority
in the Lord; to honour father and mother. Submission to this law is obligatory on the child, and
must be required by the parent. If insubordination
is allowed on the part of the parents, the consequences to the child may prove fatal to its interests,
both temporal and eternal. Hence it is a duty
which the parent owes to the state and to God, to
teach his child respect for rightful authority and
submission to it. It is in this way that children
are trained for useful service in the world, that the
family becomes "a nursery for higher and broader
spheres of action. In it the seeds are planted, and
the germs are nurtured, which are to have their full
development, and bear their fruit in future years,
and in other worlds." This is the end to be aimed
at in family government; and it is an end which,
as a general rule, will be accomplished, if that




TIHE SABBATH.               29
government is properly enforced. But if there is
any laxity, or unfaithfulness on the part of the parent, in this respect, the child goes forth from his
father's house, unfitted to assume those solemn
responsibilities which will devolve upon him as a
member of society, or as the head of a family,
should he ever become one.
The duty of a parent is not limited to the government of his children: he must also educate them.
This education must have reference to their training,
physical, intellectual, and moral. The importance
of possessing a good physical constitution is universally acknowledged; this the parent should
endeavour to secure for the child by the use of such
means as will best develop   the bodily powers.
Simultaneously with this, the intellect must be
trained to habits of thought and reflection; useful
knowledge must be imparted, so that the mind may
receive its proper aliment, and all its faculties find
their appropriate exercise.
But the most important branch of education is
the moral. The heart of the child must be educated. On this depends his eternal happiness. He
must be taught his relations to God and to his
fellow-men and the duties arising out of these relations; and these duties must be enforced by the
highest sanctions and by the most powerful motives.
The parent is, moreover, responsible, in a great
measure, for the religious faith of the child. It is
too much the custom of the present day to allow
3 




30              THE SABBATH.
children to grow up without any well-defined views
of divine truth. There seems to be a fear, on the
part of many parents, lest the minds of their children should become prejudiced, were they instructed
in the doctrines of the Bible, especially as held by
any one denomination of Christians. Hence they
are left to form their own religious opinions, as
inclination or circumstances may determine. Such
neglect, on the part of the parent, is downright dishonesty, in case he holds any decided religious
views. It is in effect saying that all beliefs are
equally good. The Bible gives no countenance to
such indifference. It enjoins upon parents to bring
up their "children in the nurture and admonition
of the Lord;" and upon children to "hear the instruction of a father and" to "attend to know
understanding." (Ephes. vi. 4; Prov. iv. 1, 2.)
And the Lord assigned as a reason, why he did not
hide what he was about to do from Abraham, "For
I know him, that he will command his children,
and his household after him, and they shall keep
the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment."
These duties, on the part of the parent, imply
reciprocal ones on the part of the child. If it is
the duty of the parent to govern, it is the duty of
the child to obey. If there is obligation resting
on the parent to educate, the child must yield himself to be trained and guided. There are also
duties arising out of the very relation of parent
and child, which the latter is bound, by the highest




THE SABBATH.               31
considerations, to fulfil. To enumerate them is not
necessary to the present purpose. They may be
summed up in obedience, docility, and love.
The way is now open to see the intimate connection between family government and education, and
the Sabbath institution.
It is an adage that example is more efficacious
than precept. When the parent, therefore, in obedience to God's commandment, remembers the Sabbath day to keep it holy, he is using the very best
means for securing wholesome family government.
He thus most effectually impresses upon the mind
of the child the ideas of law and obligation. He
might enjoin precept upon precept, but unless his
own example conformed to his teaching, the latter
would be without effect. When the child sees the
parent practically acknowledging the authority of
God by keeping his commandments, it cannot fail
to have awakened within it the feeling of reverence
and a sense of duty. The idea of a moral government will be associated with its earliest recollections,
with the dawn of reason, and will prove a salutary
restraint during its whole future life.
The Sabbath moreover, by bringing together all
the members of the family, under the eye and
immediate control of the father, the fountain of
household authority, affords a better opportunity for
exercising domestic government, than any other
portion of the week, when separation from one another much of the time interferes with the best




32              THE SABBATH.
plans of instruction and discipline, and secular
affairs elgross the attention. Occasional precept
and example, without the presence of power to enforce them, might soon be forgotten. Hence the
importance that the pupil should be under the eye
and immediate direction of the teacher. This privilege in the case of the family the Sabbath secures.
If the Sabbath, when properly observed, tends
to sustain domestic government, it no less tends to
promote domestic education.
Let us view it in connection with the physical
education of children. It affords them a day of
rest from manual labour, or from school; an opportunity of cleansing themselves and putting on their
best apparel; of attending Sabbath-school and
church. All these things have a tendency to produce cheerfhlness and equanimity of mind, to promote order and health. The effect can be no other
than salutary to have a respite from their childish
cares and sorrows, from their weekly tasks and toils,
as they may have if their parents exact from them
a proper observance of the Lord's day. These
hours of holy time they will regard as the most
pleasant of their lives, and they will learn to hail
their return with delight.
To effect this the Sabbath must not be made to
them, as it too often is by well-meaning but mistaken parents, a day of gloom, but a day of cheerfulness. They must be taught that it was designed
to promote their physical comfort and well-being,




THE SABBATH.               33
and that they should use it in such a way as to
accomplish that end.
But the Sabbath has higher aims than man's
physical benefit. The'culture of the soul is its
chief design. How kind is God to give us a day
for this purpose-a day without which many families would be deprived of the most ennobling influences that cal be experienced in this world, and
without which none would enjoy them in all their
richness and power!
That the Lord's day is eminently fitted for this
highest of all culture no candid man can doubt.
The intellect is awakened by the associations and
teachings of the day-teachings on subjects that
require the most profound and patient thought-the,power of conscience is increased by a constant sense
of the obligations of divine law, the purest earthly
affections are strengthened by the sweet and hallowed
influences of the domestic hearth. In none but a
Sabbath-keeping country could such a scene as that
portrayed in the "Cotter's Saturday night" be laid.
The father, mother, and children, some of whom
are out at service, meet on the eve of the Sabbath,
for the purpose of spending that holy day together
as a family. After their frugal repast has been
finished, and they have formed a circle round their
cottage fire,
"The sire turns o'er wi' patriarchal grace,
The big ha' Bible, once his father's pride:
His bonnet rev'rently is laid aside,




34                 THlE SABBATII.
His lyart haffets wearin' thin and bare;
Those strains that once did sweet in Zion glide,
He wales a portion with judicious care;
And,'Let us worship God!' he says with solemn air.
"They chant their artless notes in simple guise;
They tune their hearts, by far the noblest aim;
Perhaps Dundee's wild warbling measures rise,
Or, plaintive Martyrs, worthy of the name;
Or noble Elgin beats the heavenward flame,
The sweetest far of Scotia's holy lays:
Compared with these, Italian trills are tame;
The tickled ears no heartfelt raptures raise;
Nae unison hae they with our Creator's praise."
After he has read a lesson from the sacred page,
"Then kneeling down, to heaven's Eternal King,
The saint, thlefather, and the husband prays:
Hope,'springs exulting on triumphant wing,'
That thus they all shall meet in future days:
There, ever bask in uncreated rays,
No more to sigh, or shed the bitter tear,
Together hymning their Creator's praise,
In such society, yet still more dear;
While circling time moves round in an eternal sphere."
SECTION II.
THE COMMUNITY.
From the advantages of the Sabbath upon the individual and the family, it is easy and natural to
pass to those upon the community.       Communities
are composed of individuals and families, consequently   whatever benefits the     latter must also




THE SABBATIT.             85
l)enefit the former. The aggregate contains the
sum of/the several particulars; hence particular
benefits make up the sum of the aggregate benefits.
The chief blessings of a community are intelligence, religion, morality, and good laws. The first
three of these the institution of the Sabbath promotes directly, and indirectly secures the enactment
of the last, with obedience to them.
It requires no wide induction of facts, no extended argument, to prove that the Sabbath, when
properly observed, pronrotes intelligence. All the
exercises, both public and private, peculiar to the
day, tend to quicken the intellect and enlarge the
views. The reading of the Bible and good books,
the attendance upon public worship, and listening
to discourses from able and learned men, and meditation upon the sublimest truths within the range
of human thought,; and that periodically, during
the seventh portion of each man's lifetime, must,
from the very nature of things, diffuse a degree of
intelligence, which could never be attained, without
the Sabbatical rest.
The connection between knowledge and religion
is inseparable. Our Saviour said, "This is life
eternal, that they might know thee, the only true
God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." Indeed, all true religion is based upon religious
knowledge-a knowledge of the true God. To
conserve and propagate this knowledge, the church
has been organized, and ordinances of worship have




36               THE SABBATH.
been established. Her mission is to disciple all
nations. In the fulfilment of this mission, God
hlas been with her, and crowned her efforts with
success. I-e has sent his Holy Spirit to render the
preaching of his word effectual, to edify his people,
to comfort their hearts, and to convert sinners.
Much of the success of this high and holy work
hlas been in connection with the observance of the
Sabbath. Where there is no such observance, it is
a rare thing to find vital godliness. Dead formality
exists, and open, gross immorality pervades every
grade of society. And this state of things is just
in proportion to the extent of the desecration of the
Sabbath.
If any are skeptical on this point, let them compare Roman Catholic countries with Protestant,
and those Protestant countries where the Sabbath
is generally and properly observed, with other
Protestant countries, where it is not, and their
skepticism will soon vanish.
True religion is the basis of sound morality; for
morality consists in the performance of those duties
that are enjoined by the divine law. But the fulfilment of this law is love, which is the very essence
of religion. If religion, therefore, is lacking, the
very ground element of all morality is wanting.
The relation between religion and morality being
so intimate, whatever promotes the interests of the
one must promote the interests of the other. If
the observance of the Sabbath, therefore, is essential




THE SABBATH.               37
to the prosperity of religion, it is no less so to that
of morality.
This deduction is conformable to facts. Those
communities in which the purest morality is found,
are the religious, Sabbath-keeping communities.
For proof of this, it is necessary only to refer to
Scotland, the north of Ireland, England, and our
own country. That the superior morality of these
countries is the fruit of their evangelical religion,
scarcely any one will have the hardihood to deny;
that the vitality of their religion is preserved by
keeping holy the Sabbath day will be almost as
readily admitted, if the nature and object of the
Sabbath are considered, together with the fact that
its sanctification and true piety are seldom ever
found separated.
It is not necessary to do more than merely to
allude to the influence of all this upon legislation
and good order. The laws of a country-especially
of a free country-are a very good index of its
moral theories and sentiments. If these are wrong,
the laws will be of the same character, unless practical difficulties intervene to prevent the application
of them in legislation. Hence the necessity of
sound moral principles in order to secure the enactment of good laws. The practice of morality,
consisting in cheerful and constant obedience to
law, is no less necessary to good order. Such being
the case, the connection between the sanctification
4




38              THE SABBATII.
of the Sabbath and the highest civil and political
interests of a community is apparent.
What has been said in this section might be
abundantly illustrated by an appeal to the facts of
history, many of which will suggest themselves to
the mind of the intelligent reader. To adduce
them would cause the writer to transcend the limits
which he has imposed upon himself. His chief
aim is to state principles and illustrate them only
far enough to draw attention to a much neglected,
but very important, subject.
SECTION I11.
SUMMARY OF THE PRECEDING SECTIONS.
In a field, whose limits are not visible, the labourer finds satisfaction in frequently looking behind
him, to see how much of it he has brought under
his cultivating hand. So it is with the student and
writer. They experience both benefit and pleasure
in reviewing the ground that they have passed over,
and in determining clearly the precise point at
which they have arrived. Let us take a brief review, that we may see more clearly the point that
we have reached.
We have endeavoured to show that the law of the
Sabbath is founded in the constitution of man, by
the fact that it is necessary to his physical, intellectual, moral, and spiritual well-being. Its physical
advantages are, that as a day of rest, it affords




THE SABBATH.              39
compensation for the inadequate restorative power
of the body under continued labour and excitement;
it gives repose, and promotes cleanliness and health.
To the intellect it affords an opportunity for
agreeable change, for thought and reflection upon
the loftiest truths that can occupy the mind, for
availing itself of the instructions of able and
learned men, and of good books; and for subjecting
itself to all those quickening influences which the
exercises of the Sabbath are fitted to produce.
It supplies man's spiritual need by affording him
an opportunity of applying spiritual truths to his
conscience, of making them motives to influence
his will, and of placing himself more unreservedly
than he can do while engaged in secular pursuits,
under the influence of the unseen and eternal.
To the family, the Sabbatical institution is a
blessing by promoting domestic order and education,
family religion and affection.
It blesses the community by directly advancing
intelligence, religion, and morality; and by indirectly
securing the results of these-good legislation and
social order.
Each of the topics treated in the preceding sections might have been indefinitely extended; and
other topics might have been added; but as the
main object throughout has been to show that the
law of the Sabbath is founded in the constitution of
man, it was deemed unnecessary to introduce any
subject which did not directly contribute to this end.




40              THE SABBATH.
This plan may seem to some to exclude the family
and the state, or community, which have both received notice, in connection with the sacred day;
but it really does not, for these institutions are
natural and coeval with the human race. They are
essential to the perpetuation and well-being of
mankind, founded in the very necessities of our
being, in a way that cannot be affirmed of other
things that might have been introduced.




PART II.
SECTION I.
INSTITUTION OF THE SABBATH.
IF the law of the Sabbath is founded in the constitution of man, it seems to be a very obvious
inference that it should be coeval with the human
race. Being an institution of universal and permanent benefit, it must have had its origin among the
first necessities of mankind.
But we are not left to d priori deduction on this
point. After "the heavens and earth were finished,
and all the host of them," God "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." (Gen. ii. 2, 3.)
These verses clearly teach the paradisaical origin
of the Sabbath as a day of holy rest and worship.
What else can be inferred from God's blessing and
sanctifying the seventh day, it is difficult to conceive.
The Hebrew word, rendered in the English version,
"sanctified," signifies in the Piel species, (the species used in Gen. ii. 3,) to make holy, to hallow,
to regard and treat as holy, to consecrate. The
~~~4 *-~ ~41




42              THE SABBATH.
language of the sacred writer, therefore, evidently
means that the seventh day was consecrated, set
apart to be a day of peculiar blessing to man. It
was given to our first parents, at that time the whole
human race; and the reason assigned for its institution is general, viz.: "God rested."  As this reason
is unlimited by locality or time, the institution cannot have reference to any particular people or to
any particular age, but to every people and to every
age.
The supposition that Moses had, in the passage
quoted, anticipative reference to the fourth commandment, is unnatural, if the Sabbath is such an
institution as we have eodeavoured to show in the
former part of this treatise. Being alike useful and
important for mankind in general, in all ages, it
would most naturally have its beginning when
man commenced his existence. This view of its
origin explains those intimations which sometimes
appear in the book of Genesis, of the use of the
number seven in designating periods of time.
1. A certain period of time is referred to in Gen.
iv. 3, which is not said to have been the hebdomadal; but on the hypothesis that the Sabbath was
previously instituted, scarcely a doubt can be entertained that the reference is to a weekly division.
2. Whatever uncertainty may exist in regard to
the division of time alluded to above, there are
passages which are sufficiently explicit. Noah observed the hebdomadal division of time. The




THE SABBATH.              43
command was given to enter into the ark seven days
before the flood came. (Gen. vii. 4, 10.) Seven
days elapsed between the times of sending forth the
dove. (Gen. viii. 10-12.) Jacob fulfilled a week
(literally hebdomad,) for Rachel, (Gen. xxix. 27,
28;) and Joseph made a mourning for his father
seven days. (Gen. 1. 10.)
The next mention of the Sabbath is in Exodus
xvi. 22-30. This was on the occasion of giving
the manna, before the promulgation of the law from
Mount Sinai. "And it came to pass," says the
sacred historian, "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 unto them, This is that
which the Lord hath said, To-morrow is the rest of
the holy Sabbath unto the Lord: bake that which
ye shall bake to-day, and seethe that ye will seethe;
and that which remaineth over, lay up for you to
be kept until the morning.' And they laid it up
till the morning as Moses bade; and it did not stink,
neither was there any worm therein. And Moses
said, Eat that to-day; for to-day is a Sabbath unto
the Lord: to-day ye shall not find it in the field.
Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day,
which is the Sabbath, there shall be none. And it
came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found
none. And the Lord said unto Moses, How long
refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws?




44              THE SABBATH.
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."
This passage speaks of the Sabbath as a thing
known. Without naming it, or referring to it,
God informed Moses that the Israelites should
gather, on the sixth day, twice as much manna as
on any other day. From this it would seem that
the division of time, by weeks, was known when
the Israelites went out of Egypt. This was before
the giving of the law: therefore the obligation to
observe the Sabbath is clearly enforced, irrespective
of the Mosaic law.
The opening words of the fourth commandment
— Remember the Sabbath day" —imply that the
institution was not a new one, though it had probably fallen into desuetude; and the reason assigned
for its observance is a general one, and not connected
with the deliverance of the Israelites from bondage.
The fact that some heathen nations, at a very
early period, and some of a later date, observed a
hebdomadal division of time, is an argument for
the paradisaical origin of the Sabbath. We find
traces of it, and of the Sabbatic principle, among
the Phoenicians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Slavonians, the natives of Pegu, the Chinese, the inhabitants of Guinea, and Mexicans. It is not probable
that these nations derived it from the Jews, who




THE SABBATH.               45
were unknown to many of them, and hated by
those to whom they were known. How, then,
came they by it?  Either the Sabbatic institution
commended itself to their reason, or it was transmitted from one generation to another, from the
very beginning of our race. If we accept the
former hypothesis, it is in perfect harmony with the
doctrine that the Sabbath is a natural institution,
founded in our constitution; if the latter, it is in
perfect harmony with the Bible account of its paradisaical origin.
An objection against the paradisaical origin of
the Sabbath has been drawn from the silence of the
Scriptures respecting its observance, until after the
departure of the children of Israel from Egypt.
It might as well be argued that it was not observed
during the time of the judges, since there is no
mention of the fact. But no one could be induced to
believe, from the mere silence of the Scriptures on
the subject, that an institution, which was re-enacted
with so much solemnity at Sinai, and which was
the key-note to a scale of Sabbatical observances
among the Jews, had fallen into desuetude shortly
after the death of Joshua. With as little probability, considering the frequent intimations of a
hebdomadal division of time in the book of Genesis, can any one infer that it was not observed prior
to the giving of the law. The silence of the Scriptures on the subject is not conclusive.
The duty of observing the Sabbath is sometimes




46              THE SABBATH
put upon a ground different from that given in the
fourth commandment. "And the Lord spake unto
Moses, saying, Speak thou also unto the children of
Israel, saying, Verily my Sabbaths ye shall keep:
for it is a sign between me and you throughout your
generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord
that doth sanctify you. Ye shall keep the Sabbath
therefore; for it is holy unto you. Every one that
defileth it shall surely be put to death: for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut
off from among his people. Six days may work be
done; but in the seventh is the Sabbath of rest,
holy to the Lord: whosoever doeth any work in the
Sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death.
Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the
Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their
generations, for a perpetual covenant. It is a sign
between me and the children of Israel for ever: for
in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and
on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed."
(Exodus xxxi. 12-17.) "And remember that thou
wast a servant in the land of Egypt, and that the
Lord thy God brought thee out thence through a
mighty hand and by a stretched out arm; therefore
the Lord thy God commanded thee to keep the
Sabbath day." (Deut. v. 15.)
From these passages it may be clearly inferred
that besides the re-enactment of the Sabbatical
institution, at Sinai, there were special additions
made to its observance, which belonged to the Jews




THE SABBATH.              47
only, and which were a part of their civil or ceremonial law. These additions were made for the
reasons specified in the two passages that have been
quoted:
1. As a sign of their covenant relation to the
Lord. "Verily my Sabbath ye shall keep: for it
is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord
that doth sanctify you."
2. As a memorial of their deliverance from
Egypt. "Remember that thou wast a servant in
the land of Egypt, and that the Lord thy God
brought thee out thence through a mighty hand and
a stretched out arm: therefore the Lord thy God
hath commanded thee to keep the Sabbath day."
With these ends in view the Sabbatical principle
was extended to years, every seventh year being a
year of rest. Moreover the violation of the Sabbath, among the Jews, was punished with death by
the civil magistrate.
Since these things were for the Jews, as a nation,
and hence designed for a particular purpose, and
local in their nature, they ceased whenever that
purpose was accomplished. They have passed away
with the Jewish polity; while that which is moral
and universal, that which "was made for man,"
and not for the Jews specially, remains, and will
remain.
From this brief and imperfect discussion of the
institution of the Sabbath we unhesitatingly con



48              THE SABBATH.
elude that its origin is coeval with that of man, for
the following reasons:
1. The Sabbath being of universal and permanent benefit, and its law being founded in the
constitution of man, must, one would suppose, be
as old as the necessities which it is designed to
supply. These necessities had their origin with
our race.
2. The testimony of Scripture:
(a) The express mention of its institution, Gen.
ii. 2, 3.
(b) Intimations, that appear in the book of
Genesis, of the use. of the number seven in designating periods of time, Gen. vii. 6-10; viii. 10-12;
xxix. 27, 28; 1. 10.
(c) The sacred narrative, Exodus xvi. 22-30.
(d) The opening words of the fourth commandment, and the fact that the reason assigned in that
commandment for its observance is a general one.
3. The fact that some heathen nations, at a very
early period, observed a hebdomadal division of
time.
4. The fact that special reasons were given to the
Jews for its observance leads us to infer that the
general reason assigned in the fourth commandment
was intended for all mankind; that it existed before
the Jews were a nation, just as the rainbow may
have existed before it was made the sign of the
covenant with Noah.
5. We may add the fact that the fourth command



THE SABBATH.               49
ment is incorporated into a series of moral laws,
which are universally binding, in all ages. These
laws were not enacted, for the first time, at Sinai.
From their very nature they must have existed
from the origin of mankind. But the moral character of the Sabbath will form the subject of the
next chapter.
SECTION II.
THE SABBATH A MORAL INSTITUTION.
Some take the ground that the Sabbath is a
positive institution. Even Dr. Wayland, in his
excellent work entitled "The Elements of Moral
Science," says: "Although the Sabbath is a positive
institution, and, therefore, the proof of its obligation
is to be sought for entirely from revelation, yet there
are indications in the present constitution, that
periods of rest are necessary both for man and for
last."  It is to be regretted that so eminent a man
should have given his authority to such a doctrine.
It is due to him, however, to say that his arguments
on the subject agree better with the opposite doctrine, that the Sabbath is a moral institution.
But for the purpose of contributing to a clearer
understanding of the matter, let us consider the
distinction between positive and moral.
In the words of Bishop Butler, "Moral precepts
are precepts the reasons of which we see; positive
precepts are precepts the reasons of which we do




50               TIIE SABBATH.
not see. Moral duties arise out of the nature of
the case itself, prior to external command. Positive
duties do not arise out of the nature of the case,
but from external command; nor would they be
duties at all, were it not for such command received
from Him whose creatures and subjects we are."
(Analogy, part ii. chapter i.)
To place the subject in a still clearer light, a few
illustrations may be useful.
The love of God, obedience to him, and obedience
to parents are moral duties, because they arise from
our relations to God and our parents. The reasons
of them are seen. Hence the laws enjoining these
duties are moral laws, binding upon the whole human race, at every period of its existence. The
command to the Israelites to keep the Passover
was positive, and the duty to observe it was positive,
because prior to external command no reason could
be seen for such an observance. Moral duties are
commanded because they are right: positive duties
are right because they are commanded.
We are now prepared to discuss the question
whether the Sabbath is a positive or a moral institution.
1. The reason for the observance of the Sabbath
existing in our constitution is deducible from the
light of nature; and hence can be seen and felt prior
to external command. This fact clearly shows the
Sabbath to be a moral institution. The duties enjoined by it are such as are necessary to our well



THE SABBATH.              51
being as physical, intellectual, and moral creatures;
and are not limited to any particular age, or nation,
but are as enduring and universal as the human
race. Experience confirms this statement. "Where
the true religion has been unknown, it has always
been found necessary to appoint, by some constituted
authority, a certain number of holidays, which have
often, even in heathen countries, exceeded, rarely
anywhere have fallen short of, the number of God's
instituted Sabbaths. The animal and mental, the
bodily and spiritual natures of man alike demand
them. Even Plato deemed the appointment of
such days of so benign and gracious a tendency,
that he ascribed them to that pity which the gods
have for mankind born to painful labour, that they
might have an ease and cessation from their toils.
And what is this but an experimental testimony to
the truth of God's having ordered his work of
creation with a view to the appointment of such an
institution in providence? and to his wisdom and
goodness in having done so?"  (Fairbairn's Typology, vol. ii. p. 116.)
2. The law enjoining the observance of the Sabbath is placed in the decalogue, which is acknowledged to be a summary of moral precepts. This
is a testimony of the Divine Author of the decalogue to its moral character. Why did he place it
among moral laws, written by his own hand, if it
is merely positive? Why was the longest peal of
the trumpet that which proclaimed the obligation




52              THE SABBATH.
to "remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy," if
it was a positive institution, designed to be merely
temporary and local?
Observe, too, its position in the decalogue. It
occupies a place intermediate to the commands of
the first table and to those of the second, uniting
the two tables, and securing, by its proper observance, the duties of both. In fact the duties of the
Sabbath belong to both tables of the law, for they
relate to the worship of God and to our own physical and moral culture.
The doctrine that the law of the Sabbath is moral,
is in direct conflict with the opinion that it is a
Jewish and temporary institution. The absurdity
of such an opinion is, moreover, obvious from the
very face of the fourth commandment. There is
nothing in that commandment connected with individual interests, or national history. The great
fact, on which it is based, is of equal significance to
the world: it is universal in its bearing. "Thou
shalt remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy, for
in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the
sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh
day."  What is there here in the reason assigned
for observing the seventh day, which is applicable
to the Jews more than to any other people? Nothing. But abundant reason is given for its being
kept sacred by all the creatures of God.
The conclusion at which we arrive from the fact
that the law of the Sabbath is founded in the nature




THE SABBATH.              53
of man,-the reason for its observance being thus
deducible fronm the light of nature-and from its
position in a series of moral precepts, is that it is
moral and not positive.
Notwithstanding this obvious conclusion, "it is
argued by some, that whatever may have been the
reason for admitting the law of the Sabbath into
the ten commandments, and engraving it on tables
of stone, it still is in its own nature different from
all the rest. They are moral, and because moral,
of universal force and obligation, while this is ceremonial, owing its existence to positive enactment,
and, therefore, binding only so far as the enactment
itself might be extended. The duties enjoined in
the former are founded in the nature of things, and
the essential relations in which men stand to God,
or to their fellow-men; hence they do not depend
on any positive enactment, but are co-extensive in
their obligation with reason and conscience. But
the law of the Sabbath, prescribing one day in
seven to be a day of sacred rest, has its foundation
simply in the authoritative appointment of God, and
hence, unlike the rest, is not fixed and universal,
but special and mutable."
The reasoning here cannot be admitted, for it has
been shown that the Sabbatical institution is founded
in the nature of things. It is founded in our constitution, and in the relations in which we stand to
God. We require rest for both soul and body, and
God must be worshipped; consequently some stated
5 -




54              THE SABBATH.
time should be set apart for these purposes. This
the light of nature teaches.
But does it teach what proportion of time we
should observe? whether a third, fourth, fifth, sixth,
or seventh part of our weekly time? Or does it
teach that we should observe the first day of the
week in preference to the seventh? the fifth in preference to the sixth? The light of nature does not
instruct us in regard to these things. Are not,
then, the proportion of time and the day to be
observed positive? It would seem so, if reason
cannot determine them. What part, then, of the
Sabbath is moral?  Evidently the substance of it,
or what may be called the Sabbatical institution.
The form of it, that is, the proportion of time
and the day, is positive. This conclusion is supported by the words of the fourth commandment,
which does not say, remember the seventh day,
(namely in order from the creation,) but "remember
the Sabbath day, to keep it holy." So, in the end
of the commandment, the words are not, the Lord
blessed the seventh day; but "the Lord blessed the
Sabbath day," (the Sabbatical institution,) "and
hallowed it."
The Sabbath, therefore, considered as to its substance, is moral; and considered as to the proportion
of time and the day of the week to be observed, it
is positive. Uniting the substance and form, and
characterizing the institution according to their




THE SABBATH.               55
respective natures, we may denominate it moralpositive.
Dr. Fairbairn, in his excellent work entitled,
"The Ty'pology of Scripture," (book iii. chap. ii.
sec. 3,) makes some remarks on this subject, which
seem neither clear nor satisfactory.
"It is true," says Dr. Fairbairn, "that the Sabbath is a positive institution, though intimately
connected with God's work in creation; and apart
from his high command, it could not have been
ascertained by the light of reason, that one entire
day should at regular intervals be consecrated for
bodily and spiritual rest, and especially that one in
seven was the proper period to be fixed upon. In
this respect we can easily recognize a distinction
between the law of the Sabbath, and the laws which
prohibit such crimes as lying, theft, or murder.
But it does not, therefore, follow, that the Sabbath
is in such a sense a positive, as to be a merely partial, temporary, ceremonial institution, and like
others of this description done away in Christ.
For a law may be positive in its origin, and yet
neither local nor transitory in its destination; it
may be positive in its origin, and yet equally needed
and designed for all nations and ages of the world.
"For of what nature, we ask, is the institution
of marriage?  The seventh commandment bears
respect to that institution, and is thrown as a sacred
fence around its sanctity. But is not marriage in
its origin a positive institution?  Has it any other




56              THE SABBATH.
foundation than the original act of God in making
one man and one woman, and positively ordaining
that the man should cleave to the woman, and the
two be one flesh?"
Perhaps Dr. Fairbairn did not mean what these
words seem to express. His error consists in not
distinguishing between the substance of the Sabbath
and its form. According to the principles on which
he argues, every command of the decalogue, in its
ultimate analysis, might be reduced to a positive
precept. What "other foundation than the original
act of God in making one man and one woman,
and positively ordaining" that they should love
and serve him, has the first, second, or third commandment? Is it said that its foundation is in our
relation of creatures to God? That is true. But
that relationship was constituted by the act of creation, which act depended upon the will of God.
What foundation has the eighth commandment
except the right of property? a right which has no
existence prior to possession.
It is not necessary that the reasons of a moral
precept should be absolute, or unconditioned, like
the axioms of mathematics, but that they should
grow out of the relations that God has constituted
-relations that exist everywhere and through all
time among those for whose direction and benefit
the law is intended. That the reasons for the
observance of the Sabbath grow out of such relations cannot be denied, if we consider its connection




THE SABBATH.               57
with our own physical and spiritual well-being and
with the discharge of our duties to the Author of
our being. In view of these, the light of reason
teaches us the necessity of such an institution. It
is, therefore, according to our definition, a moral
institution.  Observing the distinction  between
moral and positive already given, we cannot understand how "a law may be positive in its origin, and
yet neither local nor transitory in its destination;"
how "it may be positive in its origin, and yet
equally needed and designed for all nations and
ages of the world."  If a positive law may be such,
what is the distinction between positive and moral?
Might not a positive law, according to Dr. Fairbairn, be discovered by the light of reason as well
as a moral? The fact that a law is "equally needed
and designed for all nations and ages of the world"
is a clear proof that it is moral, inasmuch as it is
founded on relations everywhere existing and perceived. Such a law is the Sabbath.
Dr. Fairbairn himself, in another paragraph of
the same section, from which the quotation above is
made, speaks as strongly and clearly on this point
as any one would desire; with what consistency it
is not easy to perceive.
"It deserves more notice, however," says Dr.
Fairbairn, " than it usually receives in this point of
view, and should alone be almost held conclusive,
that the ground on which the obligation to keep
the Sabbath is based in the command, is the most




58              THE SABBATH.
universal in its bearing that could possibly be conceived.'Thou shalt remember the Sabbath-day to
keep it holy, for in six days the Lord made heaven
and earth, the sea and all that is in them, and rested
on the seventh day.' There is manifestly nothing
Jewish here; nothing connected with individual
interests or national history; the grand fact, out of
which the precept is made to grow, is of equal significance to the whole world; and why should not
the precept be the same, of which it forms the basis?
God's method of procedure in creating the visible
heavens and earth, produced as a formal reason for
instituting a distinctive, temporary Jewish ordinance.
Could it be possible to conceive a more'lame and
impotent conclusion?' And this, too, in the most
compact piece of legislation in existence! It seems,
indeed, as if God, in the appointment of this law,
had taken special precautions against the attempts
which he foresaw would be made to get rid of the
institution, and that on this account he laid its
foundations first in the original framework and
constitution of nature. The law, as a whole, and
certain, also, of its precepts, he was pleased to enforce by considerations drawn from his dealings
toward Israel, and the peculiar relations which he
now holds to them. But when he comes to impose
the obligation of the Sabbath, he rises far beyond
any consideration of a special kind, or any passing
event of history. He ascends to primeval time,
and, standing as on the platform of the newly




THE SABBATH.               59
created world, dates from thence the commencement
and the ordination of a perpetually recurring day
of rest. Since the Lord has thus honoured the
fourth commandment above the others, by laying
for it a foundation so singularly broad and deep, is
it yet to be held in its obligation and import the
narrowest of them all? Shall this, strange to think,
be the only one which did not utter a voice for all
times and all generations?" (Typology of Scripture,
book iii. chap. ii. sec. iii. pp. 111, 112, vol. ii.)
After using this language, how could Dr. Fairbairn say that the "Sabbath is a positive institution?"  Can any words assert its moral character
more strongly than the following?  "The Lord has
honoured the fourth commandment above the others,
by laying for it a foundation singularly broad and
deep."
SECTION 111.
CHANGE OF THE SABBATH FROM THE SEVENTH DAY OF THE
WEEK TO THE FIRST.
The morality of the Sabbath does not lie in
observing the seventh day in order from the creation, or in observing any particular day of the
week; but in observing such a seventh day, or such
a proportion of time as God may determine and
appoint. Hence the day, for important reasons,
may be changed; and a great majority of Christians
say that it has.been changed from the seventh day
of the week to the first.




60               THE SABBATH.
"The seventh was an important day under the
Mosaic economy, but various instances occur in
which the eighth was honoured. Circumcision, a
seal of the righteousness of the faith which Abraham had, yet being uncircumcised, was to be
administered on the eighth day. On the eighth day
were the first-born of the cattle to be offered to the
Lord, and the sheaf of the first-fruits to be presented and accepted. On that day the consecration
of Aaron and his sons, and the sanctification of the
temple, were completed. These and similar transactions were shadows of things to come, but the
body is of Christ. And where shall we find an
eighth day signalized by any doings or blessings of
Christ correspondent with the types except the day
on which he rose from the dead?   There is one
typical representation in particular that calls for
remark. It occurs in Ezekiel's vision of the temple. That this vision was not realized in the second
temple appears from, besides other facts, the differences in its worship from that prescribed by the
law of Moses; and that there will be no literal
fulfilment of it at a future day, is obvious from
several considerations, one of which is sufficient,
and is, that sacrifice is for ever abolished by Christ,
so that to attempt its revival would be to deny his
sacrifice. The only supposable accomplishment of
the vision is in the condition of the Christian
church. And what is there that fulfils the following prediction, if not the first day of the week and




THE SABBATH.               61
its Christian worship? And when these days have
expired, it shall be, that upon the eighth day and
so forward, the priest shall make your burnt-offerings upon the altar, and your peace-offerings; and
I will accept you, saith the Lord."-Ezekiel xliii.
27.-(Gilfillan on tlhe Sabbatlh, p. 302.)
As the Sabbath, under the old economy, was the
seventh day in order from the creation, the day
specified by the prophet, in the passage quoted,
must be the eighth in the same order, that is, the
first day of the week.
We have then, in the Old Testament, an intimation that a change of day would be effected. Was
the change made?  We affirm that it was, on the
ground of the following evidence:
1. After his resurrection from the dead, our Lord,
who rose on the first day of the week, appeared to
the eleven, who were gathered together in Jerusalem,
on the same day. (Luke xxiv. 33-36.) On two
other occasions, when the disciples were assembled,
on the first day of the week, he appeared to them.
(John xx. 19-26.)
2. The Holy Spirit was poured out on the day
of Pentecost, which was the first day of the week.
(Compare Num. xxviii. 26, with Levit. xxiii. 16.)
3. The Apostles and early Christians were
accustomed to meet together for worship on the
first day of the week. (Acts xx. 7; 1 Corinthians
xvi. 2.)
From the first of these passages (Acts xx. 7,) it
6




62              THTE SABBATH.
is evident that the disciples met ordinarily upon
the first day of the week for hearing the word and
celebrating the sacrament of the Lord's supper; for
it is not said that the apostle called them, but that
they came together to break bread; and Paul, on
this occasion, preached to them. Paul, moreover,
abode with them seven days, as is evident from
verse 6; and yet upon none of the seven days did
they meet for the breaking of bread, except on the
first day of the week; which is a clear proof that
they held it for the Christian Sabbath.
The argument from I Cor. xvi. 2, is: That if
collections for the poor are expressly commanded to
be made on the first day of the week, it plainly
follows that Christians must meet together on that
day for this and other Sabbath services. That it
was not a mere temporary precept, binding upon
the church of Corinth only, is obvious from the
context and from the introduction to the epistle, in
which it is expressly affirmed that it was binding
also upon the churches of Galatia; and that the
epistle was not addressed to the church of Corinth
only, but to "all that in every place call upon the
name of Jesus Christ our Lord." (1 Cor. xvi. 1;
1 Cor. i. 2.)
4. In Rev. i. 10, the first day of the week is
dignified with the title of the "Lord's Day."
That this was the first day of the week cannot
be doubted, when we consider that no other day
but the first can properly be called the Lord's Day,




THE SABBATH.               63
and that it was afterwards so styled by the early
Clhritians.*
5. The first day of the week was observed by
the primitive church as the Christian Sabbath.
Pliny remarks, in his letter to Trajan, that the
Christians were accustomed, on a stated day, to
meet before daylight, and repeat almong themselves
a hymn to Christ as to God, and to bind themselves,
by a sacred obligation, not to commit any wickedness. That this stated day was the first day of the
week, or the Lord's day, is evident from other
testimony. Indeed, so well known was the custom
of the early Christians on the subject, that the ordinary question put by their persecutors to the Christian martyrs, was, "Hast thou kept the Lord's day,
Dominicuin servasti?"  To which the usual reply
was, I am a Christian.  I cannot omit it."  Christianuts sum; intermittere non possum.
The Rev. Dr. Coleman says: "The principal
season of public worship among the primitive
Christians was the first day of the week. From
the time of the apostles, it was customary for the
disciples of Christ, both in town and country, to
meet in some common accessible place on the return
of that day. *   *  The high and holy character
the Christians of the primitive ages attached to it,
is sufficiently indicated by their styling it the Lord's
day; and from the glorious event of which it was
* The Westminster Assembly's Shorter Catechism, explained by way of Question and Answer.




64              THE SABBATH.
the stated memorial, they hailed it as a weekly festival, on which no other sentiment was becoming
or lawful but that of unbounded spiritual joy."
(Christian Antiquities, p. 269.)
These statements are confirmed by the earliest
ecclesiastical authorities. The author of the Epistle of Barnabas represents the Lord as speaking in
this wise:
"The Sabbaths which you now keep are not
acceptable to me; but those which I have made;
when resting from all things I shall begin the
eighth day, that is, the beginning of the other
world." "Wherefore," the writer of the epistle
adds, "we observe the eighth day with gladness, in
which Jesus rose from the dead, and having been
manifested, he ascended into heaven." (Barnabce
Epistola xv. p. 40, Hefele's Patrum Apostolicorum
Opera.)
In the same testimony agree Justin Martyr,
Ignatius, Athanasius, and Eusebius.
Abundant proof has been exhibited to show that
by the example and authority of Christ and his
apostles the Sabbath was changed from the seventh
to the first day of the week.
The efficient cause of this change is the sovereign
will of him, who is Lord of the Sabbath, and this
will was intimated by his own example and by that
of his inspired apostles. The moving cause was
his resurrection from  the dead.  That glorious
event was demonstrative evidence that he had fin



THE SABBATH.               65
ished the work of redemption, and therefore, the
day of his resurrection was his resting day.
In view of the resurrection of Christ on the first
day of the week, we see a propriety in making it
the Christian Sabbath ever afterward; for God's
rest in the work of creation was marred and spoiled
by man's sin; but his rest in the work of redemption, entered into at the resurrection of Christ, is a
rest in which he will have eternal and unchangeable
pleasure. Besides, redemption being a far greater
and more excellent work than creation-being a
new creation-should be embalmed in our memories
by the observance of that day which commemorates
its completion. Our moral nature requires some
such standing memorial. Does not this account for
the fact that the Scriptures are so explicit in regard
to the day of his resurrection, while they are silent
as to the day of his birth? The latter was the
beginning of his days of labour and sorrow; the
former, of his victory and exaltation.
The change of the Sabbath from the seventh to
the first day of the week is a return to the primeval
day. The first complete day that Adam spent on
earth was the Sabbath, which must have been to
him the beginning of the week; and, on the supposition that the first six days were indefinite
periods of time, as some geologists affirm, the computation of time by weeks must have commenced
with it. But whether these days were indefinite
periods, or twenty-four hours each, man's first day
6t



66              THE SABBATH.
in the world was a Sabbath. Was there not a
propriety, then, in commencing the new world-the
world redeemed by Christ-with the Sabbath? Is
it not a part of his "restitution of all things?"
SECTION IV.
THE PERPETUITY OF THE SABBATH.
The perpetuity of the Sabbath results from its
moral character. Moral laws, as well as physical,
which have their foundation in human nature, must,
by reason of their very relation to that nature, continue as long as it continues. That nature, in all
that is essential to its identity and personality, will
exist for ever. Hence these laws, in their essential
features, must have an equal duration. Given the
relations out of which they arise, their existence
will run parallel with that of the relations.
It is not necessary to recapitulate the proof that
the law of the Sabbath is moral, occupying a place
in a series of laws universally acknowledged to be
such. But as it has been asserted by some men of
high standing in the church, and of merited reputation, (Dr. McLeod and others of the established
Church of Scotland,) that not only the fourth commandment, but the whole decalogue is abrogated,
we trust a brief consideration of this point will not
be considered irrelevant to our main design.
The reason assigned for the opinion that the
Sabbath is abrogated is the preface of the decalogue,




THE SABBATH.              67
"I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee
out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of
bondage."  This preface, say the abettors of that
opinion, makes the decalogue a Jewish law, binding
upon the Jews only. It was doubtless a special
reason why they should obey the law of God; but
it does not follow that other nations were thereby
exempted from obedience. The argument stated
logically would stand thus:
The Israelites were bound to obey the decalogue
because God brought them out of Egypt. No other
nation was brought by God out of Egypt. Therefore no other nation was bound to obey the decalogue.
The fallacy of the argument, to one acquainted
with the structure of the syllogism, is obvious at
the first glance. It is of the same nature with the
following, the fallacy of which is evident to every
one:
Such and such garden trees should produce fruit,
on account of their careful culture. Such and such
trees are not garden trees having careful culture.
Therefore such and such trees should produce no
fruit.
As well might one argue, because Paul says of
Christians, " Ye are not your own, for ye are bought
with a price; therefore, glorify God in your body
and in your spirit, which are God's," therefore sinners are under no obligation to glorify God in the
body and in the spirit.




68              THE SABBATH.
The decalogue, as to its principles, and probably
as to its form, is older than the Jewish nation. It
was promulgated before the Lord descended upon
Mount Sinai. The violation of it had been punished in the case of the first murderer. Moses
himself was obliged to flee from Egypt because he
had killed an Egyptian. The unconscious violation
of the seventh commandment, on the part of
Abimelech, king of Gerar, was punished by God
long before he proclaimed from the top of the
burning mountain, "Thou shalt not commit adultery."
This view is confirmed by the Jews themselves,
who, it seems, had not vanity enough to claim the
exclusive possession of the moral law. Their
ancient commentators refer to what they called
"the statutes of Adam," and at other times, "the
precepts of the sons of Noah," which, according to
the account of Maimonides, were substantially the
same with the ten commandments. These commandments were republished from Mount Sinai,
and a reason, adapted to the peculiar circumstances
of the Israelites, assigned for their observance.
Hitherto it has been argued from the nature of
moral laws, that they are permanent. Let us now
adduce the testimony of their Author, and that of
men whom he inspired to complete his revelation
as to their perpetuity.
Christ says, in his sermon on the mount, "Think
not that I am come to destroy the law, or the




THE SABBATH.               69
prophets. I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil."
-Matt. v. 17.
It is not necessary for our purpose that we understand the word "law" in the passage as referring
exclusively to the decalogue. We may include in
it the.moral, ceremonial, and civil law of the J'ews,
not the least part of which was destroyed, in its
ultimate idea, by our Saviour, but carried out to its
full ideal. He came to occupy "the throne of his
father David," according to its ideal, to " reign over
the house of Jacob"-the true Israel of God-" for
ever." The ceremonial laws being typical of him
and of his work, terminated in him, and of course
could have no binding force after his expiation for
sin and ascension to heaven. He fulfilled the ceremonial law by presenting himself as the reality,
which it prefigured. But the moral law having
nothing typical, or ceremonial, could not be thus
fulfilled. It must have its fulfilment in a different
way. Our Saviour came not to destroy, but to
fulfil it. How, then, did he fulfil it?  Hear his
own explanation: "Ye have heard that it was said
by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill, and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment;
but I say unto you, that whosoever is angry with
his brother without a cause shall be in danger of
the judgment, and whosoever shall say to his
brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council;
but whosoever shall say, thou fool, shall be in
danger of hell fire. * * * Ye have heard that




70               TIE SABBATII.
it has been said by them of old time, Thou shalt
not commit adultery, but I say unto you, that whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath
committed adultery with her already in his heart."
Can aly exposition be clearer? He gave, in his
teaching, to the moral law a breadth, a depth, and a
comprehensiveness far exceeding the partial, superficial, and distorted views of the formalists of that
age. Our Saviour taught that the law is spiritual,
and that its meaning cannot be tied down to the
mere letter of its prohibition. It extends to the
thoughts and feelings. The man who is angry with
his brother without a cause, is guilty; he who looks
on a woman to lust after her has committed adultery
in his heart. The righteousness of the followers of
Christ must exceed that of the Scribes and Pharisees, which consisted in externals, if they would
enter into the kingdom of heaven. If any of them
"break one of these least commandments, and teach
men so," they " shall be called the least in the
kingdom of heaven, for till heaven and earth pass,
one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the
law till all be fulfilled."
We might refer, in this connection, to our
Saviour's answer to the inquiry of the rich young
man, in which he makes no allusion to the ceremnonial laws, but specifies several of the decalogue. It
is clearly intimated in this reply that life would
result from perfect obedience to the moral law, and
that such was the original condition of life. Of




THE SABBATH.               71
course, then, the moral law was not Jewish in its
origin, but it existed from the very first. It was
the rule of man's obedience in the garden of Eden.
When he fell, it was abrogated as a condition of life
by means of the covenant of grace, but its claims
still rested upon him until they were met by our
Substitute upon the cross, when he "magnified the
law and made it honourable." By his expiation
our guilt was removed, by the gift of his Holy
Spirit we are sanctified, brought into harmony with
the law, and are enabled to " delight in it after the
inward man."   We do not make void the law
through faith; yea, we establish the law.
In conformity with the teaching of our Saviour
on this point, is that of his apostles.
Paul says: "Owe no man anything, but to love
one another, for he that loveth another hath fulfilled
the law. For this, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt
not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou
shalt not covet, and if there be another commandment it is briefly comprehended in this saying:
Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. Love
worketh no ill to his neighbour; therefore love is
the fulfilling of the law." There is no doubt here
as to the law Paul had in his mind, for he quotes
some of its precepts, which he generalizes into one
more comprehensive-" Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." This is a law which shall never
end; but it includes in it every precept of the second table, which must therefore remain. In the




72              THE SABBATH.
same way does the Apostle James speak of the
moral law as being still in force: "If ye fulfil the
royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt
love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well; but if ye
have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors. For whosoever
shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one
point, he is guilty of all. For he that said, Do not
commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if
thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art
become a transgressor of the law."
We may now, withoht hesitation, conclude, upon
the authority of Christ and his apostles, that the
decalogue was not abrogated with the ceremonial
law. It is still in force. The teaching of Christ
has given it a breadth, which was unknown, except,
perhaps, to his inspired servants, before his incarnation. In this decalogue the law of the Sabbath
is found. It is, therefore, still in force. "IRemember the Sabbath day to keep it holy," still remains
the hinge of the two tables of the moral law.
But does not Paul say: "One man esteemeth
one day above another; another esteemeth every
day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in
his own mind. He that regardeth the day regardeth
it unto the Lord, and he that regardeth not the day,
to the Lord he doth not regard it."-Rom. xiv. 5, 6.
And, "Ye observe days, and months, and times,
and years. I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed
upon you labour in vain."-Gal. iv. 10, 11.




THE SABBATH.               73
And "Let no man, therefore, judge you in meat
or in drink, or of the Sabbath days." —Coloss. ii. 16.
An exegesis of these passages is not necessary to
our purpose. It can easily be obtained in exegetical
works (such as'Hodge's and Ellicott's) on Paul's
epistles. That there is no reference to the Christian
Sabbath is evident for the following reasons:
1. Paul is speaking of Jewish festivals. His
argument and the context are not consistent with
any other exposition.
2. Paul himself observed the Christian Sabbath,
(Acts xx. 7,) and enjoined upon Christians to perform a certain duty on that day, which duty, we
have seen, was neither temporary nor local. See
page 61.
3. The early Christians observed the Christian
Sabbath, (pp. 61, 62,) and between them and Paul,
so far as negative testimony is worth anything, there
existed no difference of opinion.
4. Paul acknowledges the binding authority of
the moral law, in which the law of the.Sabbath is
included.
5. The ten commandments were written by the
hand of God on tables of stone, to indicate their
durability, and no intimation was ever given that
the fourth would be erased.
6. It is distinctly stated, in Deut. x. 4, that there
are ten commandments, which would not be true if
the fourth is abrogated.
7. Isaiah, referring to the present dispensation,
7




74              THE SABBATH.
(lvi. 2,) says: "Blessed is the man that keepeth the
Sabbath from polluting it."
But, it may be asked, if the law of the Sabbath
is not abrogated, why is there not more explicit
mention in the New Testament of the duty of
observing it?  For the reason that there was no
necessity for such mention. Its law was found in
a moral code which is of perpetual obligation.
SECTION V.
SUMMARY.
We have endeavoured to show-with what success we will leave others to judge-that the Sabbath
was instituted in Paradise; that it is, as to its substance, a moral institution, and as to its substance
and form a moral-positive institution; that it has
been changed from the seventh day of the week to
the first; and that it is perpetual.
These positions, if they have been successfully
maintained,*are directly antagonistic to and subversive of the following errors, viz: That the Sabbath
is a Jewish institution, having no existence before
the promulgation of the law from Mount Sinai;
that it has passed away with the Mosaic economy;
that its law is positive and not moral; and that the
seventh day of the week is the divinely authorized,
immutable Sabbath.
The facts of its institution and perpetuity are
also subversive of the opinion of those who hold




THE SABBATH.               75
all days to be alike common, or alike sacred. If
the Lord has "blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed
it," and allowed us six days for our own employmients, then all days are not alike common, or alike
sacred. One day in seven is more sacred than the
other six, because it is the Lord's day consecrated
to his service and to the benefit of man. This
doctrine, that one day in seven is holy to the
Lord, by his own appointment, is utterly at variance
with the opinion that the claims of the Sabbath are
satisfied by the observance of certain canonical
hours. The whole day must be kept sacred. God
blessed the Sabbath day, not a few hours.




PART III.
THE SANCTIFICATION OF THE SABBATH.
SECTION I.
PRELIMINARY OBSERVATIONS.
IN the record of the original institution of the
Sabbath we read that " God blessed the seventh day
and sanctified it," and in the fourth commandment
it is said, "the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and
hallowed it."
God's blessing the seventh day-the Sabbath day
in the fourth commandment-means that he made
a distinction between it and other days. He made
it a source of peculiar blessings to man. His sanctifying it signifies that he set it apart from a common
to a religious use.
That which is set apart for such a use, is the day,
not a few canonical hours. "God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it." Like other days the
Sabbath is measured by one revolution of the earth
on its axis.
The reasons assigned in the fourth commandment
for our remembering the Sabbath day to keep it
holy, are:
76




THE SABBATH.              77
1. God's challenging a special property in the
Sabbath day. "The seventh day is the Sabbath of
the Lord thy God."
2. His example. "In six days the Lord made
heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is,
and rested the seventh day."
3. His blessing the Sabbath day and hallowing
it.  Wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day,
and hallowed it."
4. In addition to these expressed reasons there is
an implied reason, viz. That having six days of
the week for our own employment, we would be
both unreasonable and ungrateful, if we refused to
devote a seventh part of our time to the more
immediate service and worship of God.
No other commandment of the decalogue has so
many reasons expressed and implied for its observance, as the fourth. This is itself a proof of the
great importance that God attaches to the sanctification of the Sabbath. It is also an implication of
the proneness of men to desecrate the holy day,
and it renders the violation of it the more inexcusable.
The reasons for keeping holy the Sabbath day
being so numerous and so cogent, the question
arises, "How is the Sabbath to be sanctified?"
The answer contained in our Shorter Catechism is
full and explicit: "The Sabbath is to be sanctified
by a holy resting all that day, even from such
worldly employments and recreations as are lawful
7 




78              THE SABBATII.
on other days, and spending the whole time in the
public and private exercises of God's worship,
except so much as is to be taken up in the works
of necessity and mercy."
We are here taught:
1. That the Sabbath is to be sanctified by a holy
resting all that day. Exod. xx. 10-" In it thou
shalt not do any work." See, also, Exod. xxxi.
15; Deut. v. 14; Lev. xxiii. 3.
2. That we are to abstain from all worldly
employments on the Sabbath. Jer. xvii. 21"Thus saith the Lord, Take heed to yourselves, and
bear no burden on the Sabbath day." See, also,
Neh. xiii. 15, 16-22; Luke xxiii. 56.
3. That we are to abstain from recreations and
pastimes on the Sabbath, although lawful on other
days. Is. lviii. 13 —"If thou turn away thy foot
from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my
holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy
of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour him,
not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own
pleasure, nor speaking thine own words."
4. That the Sabbath is to be employed in the
public exercises of God's worship. Isa. lxvi. 23" From one Sabbath to another shall all flesh come
to worship before me, saith the Lord."
5. That the Sabbath is to be employed in private
acts of secret and social worship. Lev. xxiii. 3" It is the Sabbath of the Lord in all your dwellings." See, also, Ps. xcii. title.




THE SABBATH.              79
6. That works of necessity are lawful on the
Sabbath day. Matt. xii. 1-" Jesus went on the
Sabbath day through the corn; and his disciples
were an hungered and began to pluck the ears of
corn and to eat." See, also, ver. 2-8.
7. That works of mercy are lawful on the Sabbath day. Luke xiii. 16-" Ought not this woman,
being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath
bound, lo, these eighteen years, to be loosed from
this bond on the Sabbath day?" See, also, Matt.
xii. 9-13.-Peterson on the Shorter Catechism, pp.
204, 205.
These directions are plain, and supported by
Scriptural authority. But in order to answer the
question, How is the Sabbath to be sanctified?
rightly, we must keep distinctly before us the
objects of the Sabbath. These are to perpetuate
the knowledge and worship of Jehovah, to promote
the spiritual, moral, and physical welfare of men.
How must the day be kept, in order most fully to
promote these objects? The answer to this question
now claims our attention.
SECTION II.
THE SABBATH IS TO BE KEPT IN SUCH A WAY AS TO PERPETUATE THE KNOWLEDGE AND WORSHIP OF JEHOVAH.
The intimate connection between the sanctification
of the Sabbath and the preservation of the knowledge of God is plainly intimated in Exodus xxxi.




80              THE SABBATH.
13: "Speak thou also unto the children of Israel,
saying, Verily my Sabbaths ye shall keep, for it is
a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that ye may know that I am the Lord that
doth sanctify you."
This knowledge is the most important that we
can possess. "This is life eternal, that they might
know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ
whom thou hast sent."-John xvii. 3. "For this is
the covenant that I will make with the house of
Israel after those days, saith the Lord, I will put
my laws into their minds, and write them in their
hearts; and I will be to them a God, and. they shall
be to me a people. And they shall not teach every
man his neighbour, and every man his brother,
saying, Know the Lord; for all shall know me from
the least to the greatest."-Heb. viii. 10, 11.
To reveal this knowledge clearly and fully, the
Eternal Word became incarnate. "No man hath
seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which
is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared
him."-John i. 18. "In him was life, and the life
was the light of men."-John i. 4.
To preserve and propagate this knowledge is the
duty of the church. "Go ye into all the world and
preach the gospel to every creature."-Mark xvi.
15. "Ye are the light of the world. * * * Let
your light so shine before men, that they may see
your good works and glorify your Father which is
in heaven."-Matt. v. 14, 16. "Among whom ye




THE SABBATH.              81
shine as lights in the world; holding forth the word
of life."-Phil. ii. 15, 16.
To receive this knowledge and to be guided by it
is the duty of all men. "How long, ye simple
ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners
delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge?
Turn ye at my reproof; behold, I will pour out
my Spirit unto you, I will make known my words
unto you."-Prov. i. 22, 23. "Get wisdom, get
understanding; forget it not, neither decline from
the words of my mouth."-Prov. iv. 5.
For instruction in this knowledge the Sabbath
has been graciously given to us. It is called "the
Sabbath of the Lord thy God;" his day in a special
sense, set apart for his worship and the preservation
of the true religion. For this end it ought to be
observed. How must we observe it to secure this
end?
1. By the diligent and prayerful reading and
study of God's holy word, the only infallible
source of divine knowledge.
Amidst the multiplicity of religious books, papers,
and periodicals, the Bible is sadly neglected by
Christians of the present day. For this reason they
have defective views of divine truth, possessing no
clear conception of the doctrines that they profess
to believe, and in too many instances but a feeble
conviction of their importance, consequently they
are weak and stunted in spiritual frame and stature,
and do not attain to the thew and vigour of the




82                THE SABBATH.
Bible-reading Christians of the seventeenth century.
How applicable to the great majority of Christians
of this generation are the words of Paul to the
Hebrews: "For when for the time ye ought to be
teachers, ye have need that one teach you again
which be the first principles of the oracles of God,
and are become such as have need of milk, and not
of strong meat." —Heb. v. 12.    In this state of
spiritual infancy they must continue as long as they
neglect the careful reading and diligent study of
the Scripture, which "is profitable for doctrine, for
reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly
furnished unto all good works."-2 Tim. iii. 16.
Let such, then, as desire to grow in divine knowledge and grace, peruse daily the pages of God's
holy word, let them make it especially their Sabbath book, searching in its inexhaustible mines for
those riches that endure for ever, seeking from  its
spiritual storehouses the aliment of the soul. Oh
that men would prize more this
"Most wondrous book! bright candle of the Lord!
Star of eternity! the only star
By which the bark of man could navigate
The sea of life, and gain the coast of bliss
Securely; only star which rose on Time,
And on its dark and troubled billows still,
As generation, drifting swiftly by,
Succeeded generation, threw a ray
Of heaven's own light, and to the hills of God,
The everlasting hills, pointed the sinner's eye."




THE SABBATI.              83
2. We must observe the Sabbath by a punctual,
serious, and prayerful attendance upon the institutions and ordinances of Christ's appointment.
The great institution which Christ has appointed
for the instruction of mankind in religion and
morals, is the church, and the divinely ordained
ordinances which she employs for this purpose are
the preaching of the word, the sacraments and
prayer.
Of these ordinances Protestants are accustomed
to assign the first place to preaching. It is certainly
the most important, but the others are by no means
to be neglected. "The preacher goes forth as a
messenger of the King of kings to announce to a
lost world the tidings of salvation through a risen
Saviour. He proclaims the one only name given
under heaven, or among men, whereby they must be
saved. He cries aloud and spares not. He urgently
entreats and fervently beseeches men, as in Christ's
stead, to be reconciled to God. And to leave them
without excuse, he reasons of temperance, righteousness, and a judgment to come."
Differing from every other system of human
teaching, and rising in its objects superior to any
unaided conceptions of the human mind, preaching
aims at the eternal salvation of the souls of men.
This aim embraces two important elements:
The conversion of men from error and sin.
Their instruction and edification in Christian
truth.




84              THE SABBATH.
"Here are objects involving everything of most
importance to the welfare of the life that now is,
and of that which is to come; objects, moreover, of
universal necessity. There is no condition of humanity that does not demand the preaching of the
gospel. There is no nation it may not exalt.
There is no soul that does not crave the blessing it
proposes to confer. Yet no other agency is so
adapted to secure that blessing. Philosophy fails,
learning falls short, and human power is insufficient.
But the preaching of the Cross proves to be the
power of God unto salvation, to the Jews first, and
also to the Gentiles."-Kidder's Homiletics, pp.
30, 31.
The sacraments represent to our senses what the
word represents to our faith. They exhibit to us,
by means of symbols, the great facts of redemption,
and are admirably fitted to keep alive a knowledge
of these facts in the world.
By social prayer we acknowledge, as it is meet
that we should, all our social and civil blessings to
be the gift of God. This is one of the most
important duties of the Sabbath day, and ought to
be duly observed.
3. To these public and social exercises of religion
may be added the instruction of the young in Sabbath schools and in the family, the importance of
which to the highest interests of the church cannot
be overestimated. Indeed, the religious training
of the young forms an important part of the duty




THE SABBATH.               85
of every pastor and of every Christian parent. It
cannot be omitted without great injury to the church.
The children of believers are the hope of the church.
It is to them chiefly that it must look for increase.
Hence it ought to feel the greatest solicitude that
they be brought " up in the nurture and admonition
of the Lord."
By the observance of these ordinances the knowledge of God and the true religion are preserved in
the world. But without the Sabbath it would be
impossible to preserve these ordinances themselves;
hence the necessity of devoting part of it to the
public exercises of God's worship and to the teaching of religion. This is the principal end of the
Sabbath; consequently those who do not consecrate
part of it to this, use their influence to banish the
knowledge of God and religion from the earth.
SECTION III.
THE SABBATH IS TO BE SANCTIFIED BY ATTENDING TO THE
PRIVATE EXERCISES OF RELIGION.
Under the private exercises of religion are
comprehended secret and family religious duties.
Secret duties are secret prayer, reading the Scriptures
by one's self, and other religious books of a devotional and practical character; meditation upon
divine things and self-examination. The religious
duties of the family are family worship, family
catechizing and conference.
8




86              THE SABBATH.
Without these private and family exercises of
religion the public ordinances of the sanctuary
would be of little avail. The mind and heart of
the hearer would be in a condition unfavourable to
the reception of the preached word and out of
harmony with the solemn duties of the house of
God. He could not adopt the language of the
Psalmist: "As the hart panteth after the water
brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.
My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God:
when shall I come and appear before God?" Ps.
xlii. 1, 2. "How amiable are thy tabernacles, O
Lord of hosts! My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth
for the courts of the Lord: my heart and my flesh
crieth out for the living God." Ps. lxxxiv. 1, 2. It
is in the hours of private devotion, when the joys
of salvation fill his heart, that the Christian can
say: "One thing have I desired of the Lord, that
will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of
the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the
beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple."
Ps. xxvii. 4.
On the other hand, the services of the sanctuary
fit the Christian for the duties of the closet, just as
conversation fits a man for solitude. If he has
been a diligent and devout hearer, he carries home
with him food for the soul. Subjects for meditation
and prayer have been suggested to him; and motives for increased activity and zeal have been presented to his mind. Thus the public and private




THE SABBATH.               87
exercises of religion act and react upon one another,
the one forming a preparation for the other.
The cause of the dwarfish spiritual stature of so
many Christians may be found in their neglect of
private, personal religion on the holy Sabbath.
They may plead some excuse for such neglect on
other days, when they are engaged in secular affairs;
but they cannot find any excuse on the Lord's day.
One of its main objects is to promote the spiritual
interests of man; and if we do not employ it for
that purpose, we do not use it in conformity with
its design. Were it more faithfully spent in reading God's holy word, in self-examination; in prayer
for deeper repentance, for stronger faith, for a
brighter hope, for growth in all the graces of the
Spirit, for strength to discharge our duty, for a
blessing upon the public ordinances of the sanctuary,
for the triumph of Christ's kingdom, we would not
find so many that are weak and sickly among us,
so many that sleep. We would not hear so frequently the mournful complaint:
"What peaceful hours I once enjoyed!
How sweet their memory still!
But they have left an aching void,
The world can never fill."
But Christians would be strengthened with might
by the Spirit in the inner man; Christ would dwell
in their hearts by faith; they would be rooted and
grounded in love, "able to comprehend with all




88                THE SABBATH.
saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth,
and height, and to know the love of Christ, which
passeth  knowledge."   Eph. iii. 16-19.     Their
song would be:
"The men of grace have found
Glory begun below;
Celestial fruits on earthly ground,
From faith and hope may grow.
"The hill of Zion yields
A thousand sacred sweets,
Before we reach the heavenly fields,
Or walk the golden streets.
"Then let our songs abound,
And every tear be dry;
We're marching through Immanuel's ground,
To fairer worlds on high."
Not less important than the private exercises of
religion are the religious duties of the family on
the Sabbath. These, we have already stated, are
family worship and catechizing, together with religious conference. It is certainly eminently fit and
becoming for all that are united in the domestic
relation, or who are dwelling in the same house and
family, to join in singing God's praise, in reading
his word, in studying its doctrines, in applying
them, and in praying to their Father in heaven.
Besides the propriety of such exercises, there is express warrant for them in the word of God.   The
commandments, the statutes, and the judgments




THE SABBATH.              89
which the Lord commanded the Israelites, they
were commanded to teach diligently unto their
children, to talk of them when sitting in their
houses, when walking by the way, when lying
down, and when rising up. Deut. vi. 7. Men
are exhorted to pray everywhere with all prayer
and supplication; surely then and by necessary consequence in the family. Eph. vi. 18; 1 Tim. ii. 8.
And the prophet prays to Jehovah to pour his fury
upon the heathen that do not know him and upon
the families that call not on his name. Jer. x. 25.
We have, moreover, examples of family religion
recorded in Scripture for our imitation. Abraham
commanded his children and his household after
him, that they should keep the way of the Lord,
to do justice and judgment. Gen. xviii. 19.
Joshua resolved for himself and his house to serve
the Lord. Josh. xxiv. 15. David blessed his
household. 2 Sam. vi. 20. Cornelius feared God
with all his house. Acts x. 2.
In view of these precepts and examples are not
Christian families, who neglect family religion,
greatly remiss in duty? How can they expect the
blessing of Him who has enjoined upon parents to
teach diligently unto their children his commandments, his statutes, and his judgments?  This duty
cannot be delegated to Sabbath-schools. They
were never designed to supersede family instruction,
though, in many instances they have done so.
They should be used merely as auxiliaries: the
8*



90              THE SABBATH.
parents should be the teachers and guides of their
household, and for the performance of this duty
God will hold them responsible.
The discharge of this duty is a constant thing.
Children are to be trained up, brought up from
childhood, in the nurture and admonition of the
Lord. Eph. vi. 4. This does not hinder, but
rather falls in with their special training on special
occasions. No occasion can be so favourable to
special religious instruction and training as the
Sabbath, which we are commanded to observe in
all our dwellings. Levit. xxiii. 3.
SECTION IV.
THE SABBATH IS TO BE SANCTIFIED BY BODILY REST, AND
BY INTERMITTING SUCH INTELLECTUAL EMPLOYMENTS AS
ARE NOT IMMEDIATELY CONNECTED WITH THE SERVICES
OF RELIGION.
The advantages of the Sabbath as a day of rest
have been already considered. In confirmation of
these advantages we quoted the testimony of the
late John Richard Farre, M. D., of London, before
the British House of Commons, with reference to
the effects of labouring seven days in the week,
compared with those of labouring only six and
resting one. We will repeat part of that testimony
and make an additional quotation:
" As a day of rest," says the Doctor, "I view it
[the Sabbath] as a day of compensation for the




THE SABBATH.              91
inadequate restorative power of the body under
continued labour and excitement.!       *
*          *          *          *          *
I consider, therefore, that in the bountiful provision
of Providence for the preservation of human life,
the Sabbatical appointment is not, as it has been
sometimes theologically viewed, simply a precept
partaking of a political institution, but that it is to
be numbered among the natural duties, if the preservation of life be admitted to be a duty, and the
premature destruction of it to be a suicidal act."
-Sabbath Manual, pp. 35, 36.
Admitting the preservation of life to be a duty
and its premature destruction to be a suicidal act,
the Sabbath ought to be observed in such a way as
to preserve life and prevent premature destruction,
by making it a day of compensation for the "inadequate restorative power of the body under continued
labour and excitement."  For this end we must
abstain from all bodily labour, except such as works
of necessity, mercy, and piety require, and seek
such a measure of physical rest as is consistent with
the faithful discharge of the private and public
duties of religion. Of that measure, each man's
conscience, enlightened by the word of God, must
be the judge.
In strict conformity with the physiological reasons for resting on the Sabbath is the Divine commandment, which requires us to cease from labour




92               THE SABBATH.
on that holy day, even in earing-time and in harvest
-seasons when labour is most urgent.
The command applies to the mind as well as to
the body. Those who are engaged in intellectual
pursuits require periodical relaxation as well as
those who are employed in manual labour. If they
do not avail themselves of it, their minds soon lose
their vigour and elasticity, and sink into premature
decay. Besides, the duties of religion render it
necessary to interrupt the regular routine of thought
for the contemplation of spiritual things. These
refresh the wearied mind as the waters of the fountain refresh the thirsty traveller in the desert.
The effects of both bodily and mental labour on
the Sabbath may be seen in some ministers of
religion, whose arduous duties do not allow them,
as they think, any relaxation to recover their exhausted energies. Engrossed, during the week, in
parochial duties and in preparation for the pulpit,
obliged, sick or well, to preach twice every Sabbath,
failure of health and temporary retirement from the
active duties of the ministry, if not complete exhaustion and premature death, must be the necessary
result. To prevent this it is necessary for them to
enjoy, during the week, an equivalent for the Sabbath, on which the duties of their vocation call
them to labour. With this periodical rest their
health will be preserved, their term of life prolonged,
and their usefulness increased.
Some advocate for those who have been confined




THE SABBATH.               93
at hard labour during the week, especially in factories, the opening of art-galleries, the frequenting of
beer-gardens, and pleasure excursions on the Sabbath. It is argued that such things, and the fresh
air and scenery of the country, contribute to cheerfulness and health. Others, perceiving the incongruity between the sanctity of the Sabbath and such
amusements, apologize for them, on the ground that
if the labouring masses do not indulge in them they
will indulge in something worse. It is merely a
choice between two evils-a greater and a less.
The former ignore the religious obligation to observe the Sabbath; the latter, admitting it, and
assuming that it must be violated in one way or
other, think that it is better to violate it decently
than indecently.
No man, who has a right understanding of the
ends for which the Sabbath was instituted, can, for
a moment, countenance such views. The spiritual
ends of the Sabbath are the first and most important;
its physiological and.sanitary ends are secondary
and subordinate. The first transcend the second as
far as the soul transcends the body. Being an
institution principally designed for preserving the
knowledge of God and the true religion in the
world, and for the special culture of man's spiritual
nature, it ought to be observed in such a way as
best to secure these objects. That this can be best
done by pleasure excursions, picture-galleries, public
amusements and beer-gardens, would require a con



94              THE SABBATH.
siderable degree of audacity to assert. Moreover,
cheerfulness is best promoted by obedience to the
laws of our spiritual and moral nature; and as the
laws of the body never conflict with these laws, the
pursuit of health is always consistent with the
highest interests of our being.
The instances of best health and longevity, other
things being equal, are among those who walk in
the path of the Divine commandments, in the keeping of which there is great reward. The wicked
do not live out half their days; for, as a general
thing, the violation of the laws of our moral being
carries along with it the violation of the laws of
our physical being. In perfect obedience to moral
law, therefore, do we find perfect safety and perfect
harmony. All the elements of our highest development, both physical and spiritual, meet in doing
the will of God.
SECTION V.
THE DUTY OF THE STATE WITH REFERENCE TO THE SANCTIFICATION OF THE SABBATH.
"How far any government has a right to interfere in matters touching religion has been a subject
much discussed by writers upon public and political
law. The right and the duty of the interference
of government in matters of religion have been
maintained by many distinguished authors, as well
by those who were the warmest advocates of free




THE SABBATH.               95
governments as by those who were attached to
governments of a more arbitrary character. Indeed,
the right of a society or government to interfere in
matters of religion will hardly be contested by any
person who believes that piety, religion, and morality are intimately connected with the well-being
of the state, and indispensable to the administration
of civil justice. The promulgation of the great
doctrines of religion, the being, and attributes, and
providence of one Almighty God; the responsibility
to him for all our actions, founded upon moral
accountability; a future state of rewards and punishments; the cultivation of all the personal, social,
and benevolent virtues;-these never can be a matter of indifference in any well-ordered community.
It is, indeed, difficult to conceive how any civilized
society can well exist without them. And, at all
events, it is impossible for those who believe in the
truth of Christianity, as a Divine revelation, to
doubt that it is the especial duty'of government to
foster and encourage it among all the citizens and
subjects. This is a point wholly distinct from that
of the right of private judgment in matters of
religion, and of the freedom of public worship
according to the dictates of conscience.
"The real difficulty lies in ascertaining the limits
to which government may rightfilly go in fostering
and encouraging religion. Three cases may easily
be supposed: One where a government affords aid
to a particular religion, leaving all persons free to




96               THE SABBATH.
adopt any other; another, where it creates an ecclesiastical establishment for the propagation of the
doctrines of a particular sect of that religion, leaving a like freedom to all others; and a third, where
it creates such an establishment, and excludes all
persons not belonging to it, either wholly or in
part, from any participation in the public honours,
trusts, emoluments, privileges, and immunities of
the state. For instance, a government may simply
declare that the Christian religion shall be the
religion of the state, and shall be aided and
encouraged in all the varieties of sects belonging to
it; or, it may declare that the Roman. Catholic or
Protestant religion shall be the religion of the
state, leaving every man to the free enjoyment of
his own religious opinions; or, it may establish the
doctrines of a particular sect, as exclusively the
religion of the state, tolerating others to a limited
extent, or excluding all not belonging to it from all
public honours, trusts, emoluments, privileges, and
immunities.
"Probably, at the adoption of the Constitution,
and of the amendment to it now under consideration, the general, if not the universal, sentiment in
America was, that Christianity ought to receive
encouragement from the state, so far as such encouragement was not incompatible with the private
rights of conscience and the freedom of religious
worship. An attempt to level all religions, and to
make it a matter of state policy to hold all in utter




THE SABBATH.              97
indifference, would have created universal disapprobation, if not universal indignation." (Familiar
Exposition of the Constitution of the United States,
by Joseph Story, LL.D., pp. 260, 261.)
" Chancellor Kent declares that the Constitution
of the State of New York never meant to withdraw religion in general, and with it the best
sanctions of moral and social obligation, from all
consideration and notice of the law."
" When Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, he
used this language:'No government among any
of the polished nations of antiquity, and none of
the institutions of modern Europe, (a single and
monitory case excepted,) ever hazarded such a bold
experiment upon the solidity of the public morals,
as to permit with impunity, and under the sanction
of their tribunals, the general religion of the community to be openly insulted and defamed. The
very idea of jurisprudence with the ancient lawgivers and philosophers embraced the religion of
the country.' So, he argues, it can be no less with
us, for we are a Christian people, and the morality
of the country is deeply engrafted upon Christianity."  (The Hebrew Lawgiver, by Rev. J. M.
Lowrie, D. D., vol. ii., pp. 56, 57.)
To the same purport might be quoted the opinions of many other celebrated jurists.
These views are sound and judicious. Religion
can never be a matter of indifference in any wellordered community. It is essential to the well9




98              THE SABBATH.
being of a state, and, consequently, its institutions
should be honoured and protected by civil authority.
The Divine justice being the ground of human law,
all legislation should proceed upon the belief of
the "being, attributes, and providence of one Almighty God; of our responsibility to him for all
our actions;" and of "a future state of rewards and
punishments;" and whatever tends to weaken this
belief should be reprobated. "The fairest and
most excellent preamble to all laws," says Plato,
"is, that the gods not only are, but that they are
also good, and that, moreover, they have an esteem
for justice beyond anything that is felt among men."
"That such views," says Cicero, "are useful and
necessary, who will deny, when he reflects how
many things must be confirmed by an oath, how
much safety there is in those religious rites that
pertain to the solemnization of contracts, how many
the fear of Divine punishment keeps back from
crime; in short, how sacred and holy a thing society
becomes when the immortal gods are constantly
presented (in the law) both as judges and witnesses."
(Plato against the Atheists, Tayler Lewis's edition,
pp. 110, 111.)
Obedience to moral law, whether on the part of
the state or of the individual, is the only condition
of safety. Every violation brings a recoil, which
is prophetic of final destruction. The process of
destruction, at first, may be slow and scarcely perceptible; but every step will prepare for another




THE SABBATH.               99
with accelerated speed, until ruin will come upon
the wings of the whirlwind. Then repentance will
be in vain: the transgressor will reap a harvest of
woe. That this is the doom of both individuals
and nations that continue in the transgression of
God's law, both his word and providence give
ample confirmation. It should, then, be esteemed
a matter of the highest moment, in every wellordered community, to protect, by every proper
means, the Divine law from infraction, and to foster
the institutions of religion as the only sure and
effectual means of promoting social prosperity and
happiness. The state, of course, cannot enforce
religious duties, which, if acceptably performed,
must be voluntary; but it can remove all hinderances
to the performance of them, and afford that encouragement to the discharge of them which their permanent importance and beneficent influence deserve.
Not only has the state power to do this, but it is
its duty to do it-a duty which fidelity to its trust
requires it to discharge. But would not the state,
in this case, intrude on the province of religion?
Would it not practically unite the ecclesiastical
and the civil?  We may ask, in turn, is the state
absolved'from all religious obligation? Is the state
atheistic? or is it, at best, deistic? Very few, except
atheists and infidels would answer in the affirmative.
But the true ground on which to base Sabbath
legislation, on the part of the state, is, in my opinio', that'be Sabbath is not only a religious, but




100             THE SABBATH.
also a natural institution. Its law has its foundation in our physical, intellectual, and moral constitution; and consequently the observance of that
law is necessary to bodily health, good order, and
public morals. Obedience to it is obedience to the
law of our nature. As such-as a natural institution-the state has a perfect right to enjoin the
observance of the Sabbath, and to punish the violation of it as dangerous to the best interests of
society. Omitting this, it fails in duty.
It is acknowledged by all that the state has the
power, and that it is its duty to enact and enforce
sanitary measures; to found educational establishments; to foster and protect every thing that has for
its object the moral, intellectual, and social elevation of the people. It is not enough for the state
to punish crime: it ought to devise and put in
operation means and agencies to prevent it. What
better preventive can be devised than a sober and
decent observance of the Sabbath? What institution tends so much to promote all that is beautiful
and orderly in domestic and social life? What
tends more to preserve health, to prolong life, to
encourage industry, and cultivate every moral
virtue? Statistics have already been quoted to
show that men who observe the Sabbath as a day
of rest are more healthy, more moral, more orderly,
and perform more work, than those who spend it
in labour. Still greater is the contrast between
those who "rest according to the commandment,"




TIE SABBATH.                 101
and those who make it a day of amusement and
dissipation. By the latter, released from their usual
employments, it is made an occasion of debauchery
and drunkenness.   It would be better for the public and for themselves if they were compelled to
work during the whole week. This assertion is
fully sustained by the operation of the "Sunday
Clause in the Excise Law" of New York.        This
clause reads as follows:
"All persons as herein provided shall keep the
places at which they are so licensed to keep, sell,
give, and dispose of strong and spirituous liquors,
wines, ale, and beer, orderly and quiet, and between
the hours of twelve o'clock at night and sunrise,
and on Sundays, comnpletely and effectually closed.
Nothing herein contained shall be construed to
prevent hotels from receiving and otherwise entertaining the travelling public upon Sundays, subject
to the restrictions contained in this section."
Under the operation of this clause, the following
results have been obtained.
Number of arrests for intoxication and disorderly conduct:
On three Sundays in January 1866, under the old system.................................................................. 266
On three Sundays in January 1867, under the new law. 130
Net reduction......................................... 136
On four Sundays in February 1866, under the old system.............................................................  402
On four Sundays in February 1867, under the new law. 320
Net reduction............................................  82
9 *




102              THE SABBATH.
On four Sundays in March 1866, under the old system.. 474
On four Sundays in March 1867, under the new law...... 258
N et  reduction...............................................  216
On four.Sundays in April 1866, under the old system.... 584
On four Sundays in April 1867, under the new system... 300
N et reduction...............................................  284
Total reduction on 15 Sundays in 1867.................... 718
"The Metropolitan Police authorities declare
that, during the same period, their work on Sunday
has been diminished one half. Nor is this all.
The decrease of drunkenness and crime implies also
a decrease of pauperism and taxation. An effective
check upon rowdyism and vice on Sundays makes
its influence felt through the whole week, saves to
the labouring man his hard earnings, and adds to
the comfort and happiness of his family.
" Many have already been converted to the Excise
Law by these practical arguments. A German
working-man, who used to spend his Sundays in
the beer saloons, on being asked recently, on a
Monday, how he felt, replied:'Very well; I have
no headache to-day, and no black eyes. I have
my pocket full of money, and can comfortably
support my fanily during the week.' A       large
German manufacturer says, that since the enforcement of the Excise Law, his employes come to the
shop early on Monday morning, in good health and
spirits, while before they came late, half drunk and
unfit for work. At first, they abused the law, but
now they feel the benefit and are contented with it.




THE SABBATH.              1-o
All the churches are gainers by such a state of
things. The superintendent of the New York City
Mission and Tract Society states that'this law is
sending men by the score to our mission stations
who never came before."'*
Legislation so beneficial in its results cannot fail
to commend itself to every unprejudiced person.
It is strange how any one, with the facts before
him and with the opportunity of observation, can
oppose legislation requiring the orderly and decent
observance of the Sabbath.
But it is said all men do not observe the same
day as the Sabbath. The Jews and a few professing Christians observe Saturday. Mohammedans
keep Friday. Hence, if the state enjoin the observance of any particular day, it does not respect the
rights of conscience; and if it visit with penalty
the infraction of its ordinance, it violates these
rights.
The objection, if admitted, would lead to this
absurd conclusion, that the state must not legislate
with reference to any moral or religious institution
concerning the moral and religious character of
which men differ in opinion. Some consider polygamy to be right: must the state, then, decline to
legislate concerning marriage? The Thugs of
India believe murder to be right: should any of
* The Tenth Year of the New York Sabbath Committee,
with a sketch of its History from 1857 to 1867, pp. 22, 23.
Document No. XXXIV.




104             THE SABBATH.
them emigrate to our shores, ought our government,
out of respect to their opinion, to repeal the law
against murder?  The Hindoo mother considers it
a religious act to cast her child into the Ganges:
should a Christian government frame laws in
accordance with her perverted religious sentiment,
and suffer infanticide to go unpunished?
We are a Christian nation, and our legislation
should be in harmony with the principles of Christianity. These principles, so far as they relate
directly to legislation, are contained in the Decalogue, every law of which is of binding authority
and cannot be set aside.
But does not the Fourth Commandment of the
Decalogue enjoin the observance of the seventh day
as a Sabbath-the very (lay observed as such by the
Jews and some Christians? It does. But nearly
all Christendom believes, for sufficient reasons, that
the Sabbath, after the resurrection of Christ, was
changed from the seventh day of the week to the
first; and that this change is to continue until the
end of the world. Those who keep the seventh
day do not violate any positive command, but they
do not conform to the example of the Apostles and
of the primitive church. That example nearly
all Christians consider binding: hence they feel it
to be a duty to abstain from all secular employments
on the first day of the week, and to spend it as a
day of holy rest. Consequently they are excluded
from all public works and service that require a




THE SABBATH.               105
violation of the Christian Sabbath, and denied an
equality of rights with Jews and infidels. Should
such a thing exist in a Christian land?
But it may be asked, would not the Jew be
denied equality of rights by legislation protecting
the Christian Sabbath and ignoring the Jewish?
The answer is: We are not a Jewish, but a Christian nation; therefore, our legislation must be conformed to the institutions and spirit of Christianity.
This is absolutely necessary from the nature of the
case. A Christian nation cannot, without the
greatest wrong to itself, ignore Christianity, or
place it on a level with Judaism, Mohammedanism,
and infidelity.  Christianity is the salt of the earth
-the great conservative principle of all that is
good and holy in the world; and the Sabbath is
the great conservator of Christianity.
Let us, then, preserve the Sabbath. Our highest
interests require it. Our duty to ourselves as a
Christian people, and to the many foreigners, who
seek a home among us, demands it. Unless we are
faithful in maintaining the institutions of Christianity our glory will depart; "for the nation and
kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea,
those nations shall be utterly wasted." Is. lx. 12.
"What true heart loves not the Sabbath?
That dear pledge of home;
That trysting-place of God and man;
That link between a near eternity and time;
That almost lonely rivulet, which flows
From Eden through the world's wide wastes of sand




106              THE SABBATH.
Unchecked, and, though not unalloyed with earth,
Its healing waters all impregned with life,
The life of their first blessing, to pure lips
The memory of a by-gone paradise,
The earnest of a paradise to come."
SECTION VI.
CONCLUDING REMARKS.
The subject of Sabbath sanctification is one of
great practical importance, and affords of itself a
theme for an extended treatise. The discussion of
it in this little volume is necessarily limited: its
main objects and points have only been Iindicated.
The general heads, under which the special duties
may be ranged, have been given. The devout
mind, with the Bible for his guide and the Holy
Spirit for his teacher, can determine for himself the
details of duty appropriate to himself in his peculiar circumstances. The obligation of moral law is
universal and permanent, but the mode of discharging that obligation is often affected by the
condition and relations of the individual. Hence
the application of general principles to specific
cases would lead to much tedious detail. For this
reason the author has confined himself to the discussion of general topics, which, however meagre
the discussion may be, are sufficiently comprehensive.