than those of other numbers, which have as good a claim: at least they would never have influenced even the speculative part, much less the bulk of mankind, to any such purpose as this. And even supposing they could have known farther, (which without revelation they could not) that God had ceased on the seventh day from his work of creation, that alone had been no evidence, that man ought to cease every seventh day from his ordinary labour, and spend it in religious exercises. A divine direction therefore must be extremely serviceable: both to prevent all doubts how much time would be enough; and to secure a general agreement in the particular time. For if several sorts of persons observed perhaps all the several days of the week, this diversity, were it to obtain only in different nations, would be inconvenient; but in the same, would obstruct business to a degree almost insupportable. Now such a direction from above seems to have been vouchsafed in the very beginning of the world. For when we read in the text, and the verse preceding it, that on the seventh day God ended his work, and therefore blessed the day and sanctified it; that is, assigned to it the honourable distinction of preserving the memory of his having created all things: the obvious interpretation is, that this appointment took place from the time that the reason for it took place, from the time at which it is introduced in the sacred history; and not from that of the Jewish deliverance from Egypt, two thousand five hundred years after. For it is quite improbable, that Moses would both mention the institution of the sabbath so very long before he needed, and mention it in terms, that naturally imply its being instituted at the creation, if it was not. Nor is the contrary opinion of some an 6 cient fathers of any weight in this case; and much less that of modern rabbins. For neither of them had better opportunities of knowing the truth, than we have now. And both of them had prejudices to bias their judgment. The former, in disputing against the Jews of that time, were tempted to defend their own practice of not observing the Jewish sabbath, by alleging, that the patriarchs before the law did not observe it. Yet some of them appear to have been of a different opinion *. As to the rabbins, (though Philo the Jew†, far ancienter than any of them, and some of their own number †, thought the observance of the sabbath as old as the world, yet in general) they magnified themselves in after ages, by pretending that this excellent ordinance was first established in the Hebrew nation. And it is very true, we find no instance of keeping the sabbath before the days of Moses. But then, on the other hand, we find not even the name of the sabbath for almost five hundred years after Moses, that is till David's reign; and then only once§; and but once again for above one hundred years more. Yet no one doubts of its being appointed, and in the main observed through that time: and therefore why not in the preceding times also; since there is the same reason to be given for omitting the mention of it in both cases; that the history is short, and comprehends no particulars, that made speaking of it necessary? But still, between the creation and Moses, we find * Novatian de Cibis Judaicis, c. 3. saith, Decem Sermones illi in Tabulis nihil novum docent, sed quod obliteratum fuerat admo nent. + De vit. Mos. 1. 3. p. 175. § 1 Chron. xxiii. 31. Seld. de In. et G. 1. 3. c. 13. || 2 Kings iv. 23. not only seven-fold vengeance threatened in the case of Cain, and Noah taking seven pairs of every clean beast into the ark †, and Jacob bowing before Esau seven times, but both years § and days || counted by sevens; and a very particular notice taken of the interval of seven days in the history of the deluge ¶. Nay, we find the very name of weeks used **: which could not well have any other original, than from the institution of keeping the seventh day holy. For there is no obvious foundation in nature for dividing time into weeks, as there is into months and years from the course of the sun and moon: nor any manner of probability, than in those early ages the period of seven days was introduced from regard to the seven planets; a number which doth not appear to have been known then. For the patriarch Joseph reckons eleven principal stars ††; and seven are not once named throughout the Old Testament. Indeed the prophet Amos in our translation speaks of the seven stars ‡‡; but the Hebrew word expresses no number, and certainly doth not mean the planets, and what it doth mean is doubtful; and besides, Amos lived seven hundred years after Moses. Now supposing the appointment of observing this day to be made at the creation, it would bind all men, to whose knowledge it came, till it was either in form repealed, or tacitly superseded by substituting another in its room. Accordingly we find Job, who is plainly not represented as a Jew, and is by many thought as early as Moses, offering sacrifices constantly at Gen. iv. 15. Gen. 1. 10. Gen. xxix. 27, 28. + Gen. vii. 2, 3. Gen. xxix. 18. 27. xli. 27.29. I Gen. vii. 4. 10. viii. 10. 12. tt Gen. xxxvii. 9. ‡‡ Amos v. 8. the end of every seven days *. And perhaps the seventh was that day, on which the sons of God (who, we read, sang together and shouted for joy at the foundation of the earth †) are said in his history to present themselves before the Lordt. For it seems plainly to have been a stated day, and we know of no other. Farther still, we find Balaam appointing seven altars to be built, and offering on them seven bullocks and seven rams §, three times over which looks like a memorial of the original seventh day. Very probably indeed the generality of mankind in process of time forgot the celebration of the sabbath, as they did the rest of their duty: yet not so entirely, but that a few scattered and obscure footsteps of this, as well as other articles of the primitive religion, remained long afterwards amongst the Heathen. For though a considerable part of the notice, which they took of the seventh day, and the period of seven days, might proceed from other causes, one cannot so well think the whole did, as it began so early, and extended so wide ||. Possibly the Jews too had in a great measure lost the remembrance of the institution, during their bondage in Egypt at least: where indeed their attempting to observe it, by not working upon it, would only have exposed them to a larger share of ill treatment: on which account Providence might rather permit it to fall for a time into oblivion. Yet when God is said, in Nehemiah, to have made known • Job i. 2. 4, 5. + Job xxxviii. 7. ↑ Job i. 6. ii. 1. § Numb. xxiii. 1. 14. 29. Yet the seventh day, regarded by many of the Heathen, and which Philo mentions as being so universally regarded by them, was the seventh day of the month. Vid. Carpzovii Philoniana. The observation of the seventh day of the week perhaps degenerated into this. to them his holy sabbath by the hand of Moses *, this doth not, according to the use of like phrases elsewhere, prove, that they were totally ignorant of it before: much less, that their forefathers were. And when Moses in Exodus, before the delivery of the law, tells them, to-morrow is the rest of the holy sabbath unto the Lordt, it appears both from the words themselves, and the time of speaking them, that they are an admonition concerning the revival of an intermitted observance, not an institution of a new one. For why should a commandment be first given in this manner separately then, which was in a month after to be promulgated with so much greater solemnity among the rest of the ten, upon mount Sinai? But if on the contrary it was from the beginning, it might be very proper to remind the people of that, before they heard it joined with the rest by the mouth of God himself. And indeed the other nine being as old as the creation, and obligatory on all men, it seems extremely probable from thence alone, that this, the fourth in number, was so too. However, the nature of the appointment is more explicitly set forth in Exodus, than in Genesis. Not only sanctification of the day in general, but rest in particular is enjoined; and the injunction is extended not only to servants, but the very cattle. Several reasons for it are also there assigned. The first is the original one, because God rested on the seventh day: that is, he ceased from his work, it being accomplished. For the Creator of the ends of the earth, as the prophet Isaiah justly teaches, fainteth not, neither is weary. And as worshipping no other deity, than the Maker of all things, was the great article, that distinguished the religion of the Jews from the pagan; |