Application for Confessionalists

The application of this issue for confessionalists emerges in the debate over positive and negative obligations on the Lord's Day. All agree on the positive obligation to rest and worship. The question is whether that obligation of rest includes a corresponding negative obligation to refrain from all other works and recreations. The Westminster Divines and the Synod of Dort permitted activities of "necessity and mercy" only.

Historical Context of Looser Views

The contemporary decline in consideration for the Lord's Day may derive from a general shift to a post-Christian culture in wealthy Western countries. However, the particular articulations of a "looser" view among sincere Reformed Christians are not new, but fall into well-established camps from historical debates.

For instance, the Augsburg Confession comments in passing that the Sabbath is abrogated. Philip Melanchthon's primary objective in that article (Article 28), however, was to assert the priority of Scripture over the church. He argued against the claim that the church had the authority to change the Sabbath to Sunday, thereby proving its authority was equal to Scripture. Melanchthon's point was that the specific day was ceremonial and abolished, and the church's choice of Sunday was for good order, not a divinely mandated transfer of Mosaic obligation. Martin Luther, in his Large Catechism, similarly treats the strict resting aspect as ceremonial but upholds the moral core: the necessity of setting aside time to hear God's Word preached, allowing God to work in us.

In the Netherlands, the Cocceians represented a reformed view reaching a similar conclusion—loose in the extent of application, not in piety or earnestness. As Willem J. van Asselt notes, "Cocceius regarded the prohibition of work on the Sabbath day as a ceremonial law that was no longer binding for Christians of the New Testament" (Mid-America Journal of Theology, 2003). These historical views demonstrate a long-standing stream of thought that sees the specific regulations of the Sabbath as fulfilled in Christ, even while affirming the need for worship.

Edwards on Perpetuity

In response to such views, a persuasive argument from Jonathan Edwards offers a clear path forward. His reasoning on the nature of the command clarifies that its foundation is moral, not merely arbitrary or ceremonial (The Perpetuity and Change of the Sabbath). He gives three reasons for its perpetuity:

• Even if the command were merely a positive institution, it does not follow that it is not perpetual, as other positive commands like the sacraments continue under the gospel.

• The general duty to set apart fixed time for religious exercise is founded in the nature of things and is therefore a universal moral duty that requires a command to define it.

• The specific proportion of one day in seven is also founded in the nature of things, a fitness which God revealed because human reason could not precisely determine it on its own.

Edwards then grounds this reasoning directly in Scripture, demonstrating that the Sabbath is a creation ordinance that continues into the New Covenant.

• Pre-Sinaitic Observance: Edwards argues the Sabbath was not an invention of the Mosaic covenant. In Genesis 2:2-3, God’s act of resting on and sanctifying the seventh day establishes a pattern for humanity before the fall. Furthermore, he points to Exodus 16, where God gives explicit Sabbath commands regarding the gathering of manna before the formal giving of the Decalogue at Sinai. When some disobeyed, God’s question—"How long do you refuse to keep my commandments and my laws?" (Ex. 16:28)—proves the Sabbath law was already in effect.

• New Testament Continuance: As a "further argument for the perpetuity of the Sabbath," Edwards cites Matthew 24:20: "Pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath-day." He argues this warning from Jesus to his disciples presupposes that they would still be observing the Sabbath after his resurrection, thus implying its validity for the New Covenant church.

Conclusion: Rest

Grounded in creation and affirmed for the New Covenant, the Fourth Commandment's Sabbath rest therefore continues in the Lord's Day as a perpetual, moral obligation. As a creation ordinance, this obligation applies even to those outside the church, forbidding our needless employment of anyone on the day of rest. Therefore, there is for the Christian no Jewish "shabbos goy."

A question necessarily follows: "rest from what?" The command simply says "work," Isaiah 58 elaborates on this to include "pleasure/work" and "talking idly," and the Westminster Assembly interpreted this to include "worldy recreations." Mr. Travis Fentiman for Reformed Books Online has prepared a great article on the meaning and overstatement of that phrase "worldly recreations" based on the meaning of the original writers themselves.

The Synopsis on the Sabbath

Synopsis Purioris Theologiae (Synopsis of a Purer Theology), is a significant work of Reformed scholastic theology from 1625, penned by Leiden University professors Johannes Polyander, Andreas Rivetus, Antonius Walaeus, and Antonius Thysius. Disputation 21, specifically titled "On the Sabbath and the Lord's Day," addresses the observance of sacred days and engages with contemporary theological debates, including those with Catholic and Anabaptist groups.

The Lord's Day Sabbath Rest: A New Ordination

The Synopsis Purioris Theologiae elucidates that the Hebrew word "Sabbath" (Shabbat) means 'to cease,' 'to be at rest,' or 'to stop,' reflecting God's rest on the seventh day of creation and, subsequently, humanity's weekly cessation from labor. While the weekly Sabbath was foundational for other sacred times, it was primarily established by divine institution (positive law), not natural necessity.

The purposes of the Sabbath were several:

• Universal Goal: To commemorate God as Creator and foster faith among all humanity.

• Civic Goal: To provide "reinvigoration and refreshment of the body after its labours" for people (including servants) and animals, an act of love subordinated to divine worship.

• Special Goal (for Jews): To commemorate the Exodus and symbolize rest in Canaan, serving as a ceremonial, sacramental, and typical sign foreshadowing spiritual rest in Christ.

The Old Testament Sabbath, with its specific ceremonial obligations, was "abolished at the coming of Christ the Lord". Christ, being "Lord of the Sabbath," had the authority to do so, as supported by Pauline epistles (Romans 14:5, Galatians 4:10, Colossians 2:16) which describe these Sabbath-days as "shadows of things to come, of which their substance is Christ".

However, the moral principle of the Fourth Commandment was not abolished. The general directive to set aside time for divine worship remains "unaltered and unchangeable," although it was re-specified under a "new ordination". This new ordination is the Lord's Day (Sunday), chosen by the apostles to solemnly celebrate Christ's resurrection and the new creation. The Lord's Day, unlike the Jewish Sabbath, is "not inherently holy as a sacred mystery or symbol" but was "wisely fixed upon and ordained by the apostles, for the sake of discipline, order, and polity," intended to promote piety and holiness through "Christian liberty".

Observance of the Lord's Day includes:

• Public and solemn assembly for worship, encompassing the reading and preaching of Scriptures, prayers, apostolic teaching, sharing with the poor, and administering the Lord's Supper.

• Private devotional practices, such as reading and contemplating Scripture at home, engaging in sacred conversations, and performing acts of charity.

Recreation on the Lord's Day

The Synopsis addresses recreation distinctly for both Old and New Testament observances:

Recreation on the Old Testament Sabbath: While extensive "servile, mechanical, laborious, profitable, daily, and ordinary work" was forbidden, "moderate bodily invigoration and relaxation are not prohibited," provided they did not hinder divine worship. Permissible activities included "going to a dinner" or "going for a walk," described as "similar activities" aimed at invigoration and relaxation. The sources acknowledge that Jews "make merry" on Sabbaths and feast-days, but lament that this practice was sometimes "abused, leading to 'wild dances and clapping'". Superstitious Pharisaical prohibitions (e.g., against roasting apples or killing fleas) are dismissed as "mere human perversions".

Recreation on the New Testament Lord's Day: Under the principle of Christian liberty, "not all bodily recreation is entirely prohibited" on the Lord's Day. The crucial stipulations are that such activities:

1. Must not hinder the worship of God.

2. Should be performed "honorably, decently, and moderately".

3. Must "cause no offense or scandal".

The Synopsis explicitly condemns activities that profane the Lord's Day, identifying them as "unnecessary or irrelevant activities". These include:

• "Entertainments, games, and plays".

• "Licentiousness, extravagance, and every sort of disgrace".

These are considered problematic because they lead to "irreparable scandals to those who are weak, and horrendous infamy to the Christian reputation". The discussion implies a polemical context, addressing groups like the Anabaptists, who overturned Lord's Day under the guise of Christian liberty, thus paving the way for licentiousness.

In essence, the Synopsis Purioris Theologiae advocates for a Lord's Day observance that permits moderate recreation so long as it supports, or at least does not impede, religious duties and is conducted in a manner that maintains Christian piety and avoids scandal.