Are You “Rising Up to Play” on the Weekly Shabbat?

Exodus 32:4–5, Your gods…a feast to YHVH. This is the first example in the Scriptures of YHVH’s peoplemixing pagan practices (i.e. evil) with the truth of Elohim (i.e. good). We see that Satan the deceiving serpent was the first entity to defile good with evil when he questioned Elohim and tempted the first humans (Gen 2:9 cp. 3:1–6). The Hebrew word babel or Babylon means “confusion or mixture.” It is the mixing of evil with good, error with truth, darkness with light, death with life. In the end times, the saints must first recognize such mixture by knowing the difference between the holy and the profane and then be able to separate the two, and then come away from that which is evil or part of Babylon (Exek 22:26; 44:23; Rev 18:4; 2 Cor 6:14–17.) Though mainstream Christianity and Judaism are biblically-based religious systems, both have allowed pagan traditions, celebrations belief systems to insinuate themselves into their religious practices. In these end times, YHVH is calling his people away from everything that is unholy and unbiblical (Rev 18:4).

Exodus 32:5, A feast. Hebrew chag meaning “festival, feast, festival-gathering, pilgrim-feast or a festival sacrifice.” In the Torah (e.g. Lev 23; Deut 16:16), only three of the seven biblical holidays are referred to as a chag. They are the pilgrimage festivals (e.g. Ps 42:4) called the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks or Harvest of First Fruits, and the Feast of Tabernacles or Ingathering. Chag can also refer to a pagan festival as is the case in Exod 32:5 at the golden calf, or to the feast instituted by Jeroboam I to replace the Feast of Tabernacles (1 Kgs 12:32–33; The TWOT).

The verb chaggag, the root of chag, means “to hold a feast, hold a festival, make pilgrimage, keep a pilgrim-feast, celebrate, dance, stagger, to keep a pilgrim-feast, to reel.” Chagag primarily refers to celebrating the three biblical pilgrimage feasts, but can also refer to a pagan festival (1 Sam 30:16), or to sailers reeling to and fro on a ship as if drunk (Ps 107:27; ibid.).

Now let’s discuss the feast or chag that the Israelites made in honor of the gold calf. There is a strong likelihood that the day the Israelites dedicated to the worship of the golden calf was on the weekly Sabbath. The reasons to believe it was the Shabbat are as follows. Let us first assume that the Israelites received the ten commandments on Shavuot, which many of us believe was on a Sunday (i.e. 50 days after the morrow or day of the weekly Shabbat; see Lev 23:15–16). The next day—a Monday—(Exod 24:4), Moses built an altar and ratified the covenant with the Israelites (vv. 4–8). After that, Moses celebrated with the elders at the base of Mount Sinai (vv. 9–11). Next, Moses went up onto Mount Sinai to receive the tablets of stone (vv. 12–15). It had been six days since the glory of YHVH had been resting on the mountain (from Sunday to Saturday). On the seventh day or the weekly Shabbat, YHVH called Moses to enter the glory cloud where he remained with YHVH until his descent from Sinai. Moses was on the mountain from sometime Monday until Shabbat, when he entered the glory cloud. All total, Moses was on the mountain for forty days (vv. 16–18). At the end of 40 days, YHVH informed Moses of the people’s sin (Exod 32:7). If Moses ascended the mountain sometime on Monday, then the same time on Tuesday would have been day one. Forty days later was the weekly Shabbat. Moses descended the mountain after YHVH informed him of the people’s sin, and after forty days. This means that Moses descended on a Sunday. This also means that the people made a pagan feast to the golden calf on the Shabbat. Although the Bible never calls the Shabbat a chag, nevertheless, as we have seen above, the Bible refers to pagan celebrations as a chag. This is because pagan festivals were not solemn, but were often raucous, lewd, bacchanalian events—hence the term chag to indicate the festive nature of the event, though in a pejorative way.

Exodus 32:6, Play. Heb. tsachaq means “to laugh, mock, play, to laugh, to jest, to sport, make sport, toy with, make a toy of.” In this verse, the verb tsachaq is in its piel (intensive active form) and means “to jest, to sport, play, make sport, toy with, make a toy of” (The TWOT). If the Israelite’s festival dedicated to worship of the golden calf was on the weekly Shabbat (see notes above on v. 5), then YHVH’s displeasure against the Israelites was not only for their idolatry, but for their profaning his holy Sabbath by using it as a time for partying and for carnal sporting activities. They were mocking, making light of, toying with YHVH’s Shabbat, and were seeking their own sensual and carnal, if not, illicit pleasures on his day! This something that Scripture forbids (see Isa 58:13; 56:6).

Some reading this will justify themselves for their profaning the Sabbath by doing “their own pleasure” on that day as having nothing to do with golden calf worship. In reality, the golden calf was a form of or metaphor for Baal or self-worship—i.e., doing our own will or pleasure over that of Elohim’s. Make no mistake about it folks, this is the biblical definition of idolatry!

The Word of Elohim must be the final determiner of what we do or don’t do when it comes to our walk of righteousness—not our own carnal feelings and desires, which are heavily influenced by our fallen, carnal natures as well as the influence of the world and the devil and are thus antithetical to and rebellious against the will and Word of Elohim. It is the Word of Elohim that will judge us. Personal excuses and self-justifications will not pass muster before the throne of the Almighty and Righteous Judge of the universe on judgment day!

 

7 thoughts on “Are You “Rising Up to Play” on the Weekly Shabbat?

  1. Hi Natan. Shabbat shalom.

    Thanks for bringing this up. I fully agree.

    First of all, I wonder if all His 10 commandments were broken by those, or maybe a majority, who worshiped the golden calf. But, secondly, I think those commandments toward Elohim (the greatest commandment – loving Him – including the first 4 of the 10) may be progressive. If one has another elohim before Him, the next worst thing is idolatry, then taking His name in vain, and then breaking Shabbat. ,So if one breaks those, they will likely progress toward breaking the others, those toward man (the 2nd great commandment, which is like the 1st but not equal to it – loving others – including the last 6 of the 10). If one doesn’t honor their parents, who are to teach torah to their children, the next worse thing is murder, and then so on down the line. I also think that we can’t rightly and fully keep the 2nd set of commandments if we don’t rightly and fully keep the 1st set.

    Now regarding keeping Shabbat and doing one’s own pleasure. As Sabbat was made for man and not man for Shabbat, that can be quite challenging to know what pleases Him and it does require knowing the Word of Elohim, including a lot of help from the Ruach HaKodesh to give discernment and wisdom. It is a very worthy and rewarding duty to search that out. So, we do well to consider that on the one end of the spectrum we have activities that can become “work”, and so we do well to rightly understand what “work” is, and on the other end of the spectrum we have activities that can become “play”, and so we do well to rightly understand what “play” is.

    Maybe, in addition to responding to the above comments, you can help with this one regarding the tithe, keeping of the Feast of Sukkot, which includes Shabbats, and “seeking your own pleasures”. It speaks of buying “wine or strong drink”, and “whatever your being desires”.

    “And you shall use the silver for whatever your being desires: for cattle or sheep, for wine or strong drink, for whatever your being desires. And you shall eat there before יהוה your Elohim, and you shall rejoice, you and your household.” [Deu 14:26]

    I understand that “whatever your being desires” probably doesn’t really mean “whatever”, in the literal sense. However, “strong drink” is an intoxicant, an intensely alcoholic liquor. It’s easy enough for many to get carried away with wine, so what about strong drink? Is all of this permitted but with some undefined measure of restraint? Even if so, isn’t that seeking one’s own, even sensual, pleasure? Or is the matter, as you say, about that which is illicit (“not permitted or allowed; prohibited; unlawful”)?

    Lastly, for now, is even the matter of the study of the scriptures on Shabbat, which I personally love doing and find rest and His good pleasure. There is this word of wisdom: “Be warned my son of anything in addition to them: There is no end to the making of many books, and excessive study wearies the flesh.” [Ecc 12:12] So, it all takes being teachable by the Word of Elohim and the Ruach for discernment and wisdom to grow in the righteous keeping of Shabbat, doesn’t it?

    • Excellent comment containing a lot of food for thought. You brought up some points that I hadn’t even thought of before. Yah be praised! That’s one of the the beauties of this blog format—like a potluck, everyone bringing sumptuous dish to the spiritual dinner table for all to enjoy. Welcome aboard!

      • Thanks. Actually, I’ve been aboard for about 4 years and I appreciate the privilege.

  2. It would seem that the reference to doing your own pleasure which is found in Isaiah 58 is talking about as specific Sabbath or the Day of Atonement. Note the many references to fasting. Just a thought.

    • Yes. I wondered about that too. Is there a difference about weekly Shabbat and that Day of Atonement instruction as regards doing our own pleasure?

    • Correct, but it doesn’t seem to be limited to just Yom Kippur to my reading. The first part of Isa 58 is definitely talking about Atonement, then between verse 13 it is talking about the Sabbath, which in Hebraic thought always refers to the seventh day Sabbath. True, the biblical holidays are high holy day Sabbaths, but usually when you see the term, “the Sabbath” it’s not referring to them. Do a Bible word search on the term “the Sabbath” and you’ll see what I mean. The feasts are referred to as sabbaths. The weekly Sabbath is a moedim (Lev 23:2-3) or a divine appointment when YHVH meets with his people. It’s the time we are to focus on him, not on ourselves and our own carnal pursuits. The same can also be said for Yom Kippur and all the other biblical holidays.

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