[H]e said to them, “This is what the LORD has commanded: ‘Tomorrow is a day of solemn rest (H7677), a holy Sabbath (H7676) to the LORD; bake what you will bake and boil what you will boil, and all that is left over lay aside to be kept till the morning.'” So they laid it aside till the morning, as Moses commanded them, and it did not stink, and there were no worms in it. Moses said, “Eat it today, for today is a Sabbath (H7676) to the LORD; today you will not find it in the field. Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, which is a Sabbath (H7676), there will be none.” …So the people rested (H7673) on the seventh day. (Exo 16:23-26, 30 ESV)
This passage introduces the Sabbath (H7676), a day of solemn rest (H7677), to the readers of the books of Moses. It is laid out in a pattern of gathering manna for six days, and on the seventh day, no gathering is to take place because there is no manna given on that day.
In the beginning of this chapter we read that this 7th day is *7 days after* the 15th day of the 2nd chodesh.
They set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the people of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had departed from the land of Egypt.
And the whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, and the people of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”
Then the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in my law or not. On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily.”
So Moses and Aaron said to all the people of Israel, “At evening you shall know that it was the LORD who brought you out of the land of Egypt, and in the morning you shall see the glory of the LORD, because he has heard your grumbling against the LORD. For what are we, that you grumble against us?” And Moses said, “When the LORD gives you in the evening meat to eat and in the morning bread to the full, because the LORD has heard your grumbling that you grumble against him–what are we? Your grumbling is not against us but against the LORD.”
Then Moses said to Aaron, “Say to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, ‘Come near before the LORD, for he has heard your grumbling.'” And as soon as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud. And the LORD said to Moses, “I have heard the grumbling of the people of Israel. Say to them, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread. Then you shall know that I am the LORD your God.'”
In the evening quail came up and covered the camp, and in the morning dew lay around the camp. And when the dew had gone up, there was on the face of the wilderness a fine, flake-like thing, fine as frost on the ground. When the people of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “It is the bread that the LORD has given you to eat. (Exo 16:1-15 ESV)
Given this, the Sabbath (H7676), a day of solemn rest (H7677) is clearly identified to be the 22nd day of the 2nd chodesh.
The next time we hear of the Sabbath (H7676) is when YHVH speaks at Mt Sinai:
“Remember the Sabbath (H7676) day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath (H7676) to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested (H7673) on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath (H7676) day and made it holy. (Exo 20:8-11 ESV)
The terms being used here (and in the account of the manna) that I would like to focus on are:
H7677 שׁבּתון shabbâthôn
BDB Definition: 1) Sabbath observance, sabbatism
Part of Speech: noun masculine A Related Word by BDB/Strong’s Number: from H7676
H7676 שׁבּת shabbâth
BDB Definition: 1) Sabbath
Part of Speech: noun feminine or masculine A Related Word by BDB/Strong’s Number: intensive from H7673
H7673 שׁבת shâbath
BDB Definition: 1) to cease, desist, rest 2) (Qal) to keep or observe the sabbath
Part of Speech: verb A Related Word by BDB/Strong’s Number: a primitive root
Notice the commandment given at Mt Sinai (in Exodus 20) is specifically regarding the Sabbath (Shabbath H7676) day (the second term listed above). This is clearly identified as “the seventh day” and we are commanded to “keep it holy/set apart”.
In the Manna account (in Exodus 16), we are told that the day the manna was withheld was also called “a day of solemn rest (Shabbathon H7677)”.
There are 89 verses that use the word “Shabbath” (H7676) in the Tanakh. There are 10 verses that use the word “Shabbathon” (H7677), but there are only 7 verses that use both words “Shabbathon” (H7677) and “Shabbath” (H7676).
The word “Shabbath” (H7676) is clearly referred to as the 7th day, which is to be kept set apart. This is what we commonly refer to as the “Sabbath” day. But the “Shabbathon” (H7677) is not necessarily the 7th day. Let me demonstrate…
Two out of the three verses that only use “Shabbathon” (H7677) and not “Shabbath” (H7676) are:
(Lev 23:24 ESV) “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall observe a day of solemn rest (H7677), a memorial proclaimed with blast of trumpets, a holy convocation.
(Lev 23:39 ESV) “On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the produce of the land, you shall celebrate the feast of the LORD seven days. On the first day shall be a solemn rest (H7677), and on the eighth day shall be a solemn rest (H7677).
(The third verse that only uses “Shabbathon” is Lev 25:5 and refers to the land Sabbath, however the preceding verse does indicate the land Sabbath is indeed a “Shabbath” (H7676) as I’ll demonstrate later.)
Notice the dates of these three days: the 1st, 15th, and 22nd days of the 7th month. They all can conceivably be on the 7th day given they all land on the same day of a 7-day pattern. Many folks who keep a Lunar Sabbath (counting the 7th day from the start of a lunar month) contend they are, using the 22nd day of the 2nd month from the manna account as evidence to support this notion. But watch this…
The verses that contain both “Shabbath” (H7676), which we know to be the Sabbath day that is on the 7th day, and “Shabbathon” (H7677) are as follows:
(Exo 16:23 ESV) he said to them, “This is what the LORD has commanded: ‘Tomorrow is a day of solemn rest (H7677), a holy Sabbath (H7676) to the LORD; bake what you will bake and boil what you will boil, and all that is left over lay aside to be kept till the morning.'” ß 7th Day Sabbath (Manna Account)
(Exo 31:15 ESV) Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath (H7676) of solemn rest (H7677), holy to the LORD. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath (H7676) day shall be put to death. ß 7th Day Sabbath
(Exo 35:2 ESV) Six days work shall be done, but on the seventh day you shall have a Sabbath (H7676) of solemn rest (H7677), holy to the LORD. Whoever does any work on it shall be put to death. ß 7th Day Sabbath
(Lev 16:31 ESV) It is a Sabbath (H7676) of solemn rest (H7677) to you, and you shall afflict yourselves; it is a statute forever. ß DAY OF ATONEMENT
(Lev 23:3 ESV) “Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day is a Sabbath (H7676) of solemn rest (H7677), a holy convocation. You shall do no work. It is a Sabbath (H7676) to the LORD in all your dwelling places. ß 7th Day Sabbath
(Lev 23:32 ESV) It shall be to you a Sabbath (H7676) of solemn rest (H7677), and you shall afflict yourselves. On the ninth day of the month beginning at evening, from evening to evening shall you keep your Sabbath (H7676).” ß DAY OF ATONEMENT
(Lev 25:4 ESV) but in the seventh year there shall be a Sabbath (H7676) of solemn rest (H7677) for the land, a Sabbath (H7676) to the LORD. You shall not sow your field or prune your vineyard. ß 7th Year Land Sabbath
Did you notice these verses pertained to the 7th Day Sabbath, the 7th Year Land Sabbath and… the Day of Atonement.
“And it shall be a statute to you forever that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict yourselves and shall do no work, either the native or the stranger who sojourns among you. For on this day shall atonement be made for you to cleanse you. You shall be clean before the LORD from all your sins. It is a Sabbath (H7676) of solemn rest (H7677) to you, and you shall afflict yourselves; it is a statute forever. (Lev 16:29-31 ESV)
“Now on the tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. It shall be for you a time of holy convocation, and you shall afflict yourselves and present a food offering to the LORD. And you shall not do any work on that very day, for it is a Day of Atonement, to make atonement for you before the LORD your God. For whoever is not afflicted on that very day shall be cut off from his people. And whoever does any work on that very day, that person I will destroy from among his people. You shall not do any work. It is a statute forever throughout your generations in all your dwelling places. It shall be to you a Sabbath (H7676) of solemn rest (H7677), and you shall afflict yourselves. On the ninth day of the month beginning at evening, from evening to evening shall you keep your Sabbath.” (Lev 23:27-32 ESV)
These two passages are clearly indicating the 10th day of the 7th month is a Shabbath (H7676) of solemn rest (H7677), which is on the 7th day of a 7-day pattern, and is commanded to be kept set apart.
If the 10th day of the 7th month is a 7th day Sabbath, then the 1st, 15th and 22nd days of that same month cannot be a 7th day Sabbath. And I am confident that they are not. I will explain why in a future note.
I recognize this is a lot to digest. It is a common belief that the Day of Atonement is a “special” Sabbath in that it falls on a different day of the week each year. In fact, many believe that to be true about all of the annual “holy convocations”, but that is because most folks who seek to observe Torah have inherited a fraudulent calendar system.
The so-called “Hebrew calendar” suggests its months are determined by the moon (which would dictate the yearly appointed times), and insists the Sabbath day is a particular day on the Gregorian calendar week, not knowing “from what” the 7th day is counted. I have come to find, however, these notions are erroneous.
Scripture clearly indicates there are only 12 chodesh in a year, alludes to 30 days per chodesh and I believe supports a 364 day year. When we plug these two clearly defined 7th day Sabbaths (the 22nd day of the 2nd chodesh and the 10th day of the 7th chodesh) in to a calendar model consisting of twelve 30-day chodesh with a “marker day” dividing each season (spring, summer, fall and winter), the dates in Torah come alive! Praise Yah!
