The Fourth Commandment

4. Commaund.

Hitherto these precepts, which commaund duties in the worship of the Lord, which we owe every day to him.

Now followeth that duty, which one day in seven must be given to the Lord, in the sanctification of his Sabbath. Remember, So he seemeth to speak, because, when as this commandement was before given, they had neglected the same. The Sabbath day to sanctify, that is, to separate it from a common use, and dedicate it to a peculiar and holy use to the Lord. So the gold, the vessels, &c. were said to be holy, and dedicated for the holy use of the temple, and might not be given or put to any other use: to sanctify a Sabbath therefore, is to call ourselves, not from our own sinful ways, which we must do every day, but from our honest and lawful callings, that giving ourselves to godly and Christianly exercises of our faith, we may be strengthened in the ways of God, and so in thought, word and deed, consecrate a glorious Sabbath to the Lord. Therefore it is called the Sabbath of God (Exodus 20:10 and Leviticus 23:3), he calls it a holy convocation; that is, dedicated to holy meetings. So Isaiah 58:13. Hereby is confuted their opinion, that take it a Sabbath kept, if they rest from their labours, so in the mean time they labor in plays, dancings, vain songs, and enterludes, &c. as though the Lord had called us from our profitable labor commanded, to displease him in these vanities. Again, others also, who if they be better than the former, abstaining from those things, have notwithstanding their heads, hearts, and mouths, so full of worldly things, as they do not indeed perform the truth of the Sabbath, when as it should be kept as the rest of the Law, not only in action, but also in the thoughts of the heart, and words of the mouth (Isaiah 58; Amos 8:5). But before we come to the proper and peculiar exercises, we will set down reasons, that prove it perpetual for the Church in this world, to have one such day in seven to be dedicated to the Lord, that so we may have the use of it in our conscience, and of the ceremony ceased I will speak in the end. First, because of the covenant of the Law, which bids us do, and so live thereby, driving us to Christ (Romans 10:5); there are ten parts, called ten words or sentences, of which, if we take away this, there will be but nine (Exodus 34:18). Secondly, if Adam being in his soundness, because his mind not being infinite, could not do his work, and praise God, pray to him, meditate in his creatures, of his wisdom, mercy, &c. had need for that purpose, wholly to give himself over more fully, than he did by times in other days once in seven days; how much more, having in us so much ignorance, hardness of heart, &c. that we might help our weakness, and grow forward? Thirdly, when this was a piece of the image of God in him, that he did not only those daily duties, after mentioned together, with tilling and keeping the garden (Genesis 2:15) every day, but was further able, one whole day, in soul and body to give over himself to the former Sabbath, exercise of praying, praising, &c. Either we must not know, and not be born again to this piece of excellency, or else we must have this peculiar commandement to humble us, and in this point to drive us to Christ, afterward also, be a rule and square to us of the same. Fourthly, the Apostles in taking this day, and giving it the name of the Lord's day (Revelation 1:10), as before that was called the Lord's Sabbath and ordaining public exercises (Acts 10:7) and private (1 Corinthians 4:2), as they did show, that in the particular seventh day, it was ceremonial: so in the common necessity it was perpetual, according to the foresaid equity. Last of all, as Calvin says to the Papists, of the second commandement, who also said, that was ceremonial and abolished. As long as we feel the grossness of our nature to invent false worship, framing images of God, so long that must remain to humble us: even so, as long as we do feel our corruption, in accounting the Sabbath impossible, and so omitting and profaning it, so long we will hold it to be perpetual. Now, the Lord to help our infirmities, has given us variety of profitable exercises to be occupied in, and to recreate us as it were in another, being weary of one. They are either public, private (Nehemiah 8:5, 13).

Public, is to join with the Church from the beginning to the ending, in the hearing of the word preached, in praying, and administering of the Sacraments (Ezekiel 46:1, 2, 3, 10; Nehemiah 9; Ezra 3; Acts 15:20, 21 and 17:2 and 18:4; Luke 4:2; 2 Kings 4:23). Private exercises are for ourselves to increase godliness, or others their comfort (Nehemiah 8:13).

Of the first sort are, rejoicing in the word received, and profiting by that. Also meditations, conference, &c. on the works of God, that so we might not only by doctrine, but by experience be taught, and so be brought to greater feeling, as is commanded (Deuteronomy 5:20). For others, we are commanded duties of love, in relieving, and comforting the needy, as well bodily by our help, as spiritually by comfort and conference out of the word, edifying one another in our most holy faith (1 Corinthians 14:2; Matthew 12). In these things our contempt and neglect, both of the mercy of the Lord, who has ordained so many good means to increase our knowledge, our feeling in the faith and good works: his wisdom, who having regard to our weakness, has given us such great variety, that always being weary of the one, we may breathe ourselves in the other. In this as in the rest, and the commandement going before, we must have the sins forgiven in the Son of God his obedience; here (Luke 13:10 to the 18th verse; Luke 13:4, 5). In him also, we must receive power with this former grace, to die to this sin, and rise to this part of obedience.

Now followeth the reason, whereby he does both make plain the obedience, and allure us to it. He allureth, because he gives this equity perpetual, that seeing in six days, we may do all our work, which is necessary for the maintenance of this life, and provision of our families, which is declared by these oppositions in the 9th and 10th verses. Six days you shall work, but the seventh day is the rest, or Sabbath of the Lord your God. In six days do all your work, in the seventh do no work, but of the Sabbath (Matthew 12:5). The Sabbath to the Lord. Here, as in that afore, are the Papists confuted, who ordained Sabbaths to Saints and Angels, a worship due to the Lord only, who also took away this liberty of six days wholly, and too often. No manner of work, except for frugal necessity, of putting on of apparel, of meat, drink, etc., which must be as means to help and succour the weakness of tender and old age, the strength of strong men in this exercise; who if they should ordinarily abstain on that day from these things, it would make them much unable to accomplish that work of the Lord, and so it is expounded (Luke 13:15). Therefore that of Exodus 35:3 was a rudiment ceremonial, whereby they were instructed to the reverence of the same, when as otherwise they might do great things. This is further declared by a distribution of the efficient causes. You, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your servant. By which we see, we do not rightly observe the Sabbath, except all within our gates, that is, our authority, (so called, because they bound the proper place of every man, where he exercises any authority) do likewise sanctify the same. The second reason is drawn from the example of the Lord himself, the more to allure us and move us, who contend to come near the excellent. So Christ gave an example for us to follow. For the Lord made heaven and earth in six days, but the seventh he rested. By that seventh day, he points out the Jews' Sabbath, the seventh from the creation, to the which day they were never precisely tied, because being the seventh, it carried a note of perfection, and so did shadow out the excellency of our rest under Christ (Hebrews 4:20). And therefore, because that was ceremonial, that proper day was pointed out to Adam (Genesis 2). Whereas if this had not been ceremonial, he had not needed, because the moral equity of one in seven, was written in his heart, as above has been noted. And thus, as it was a figure of our sanctification and adoption, it was not a piece of the first Table, but rather general to the whole Law, and therefore in that respect is abolished (Colossians 2:16).