Shabbat & Appointed Times (Feast Days)

“It is a sign between Me and the children of Yisra’ĕl forever…” Exodus 31:17

Why We Keep the Shabbat

Genesis 2:2–3: “And on the seventh day Elohim ended his work… and blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it.” The Shabbat was established at Creation before the law was given at Sinai.

Exodus 20:8–11: “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy… the seventh day is the sabbath of Yahuah thy Eloah.” It’s a command, not a tradition, and it’s for all generations.

Isaiah 58:13–14: Shabbat is a delight and a path to deeper intimacy with Yahuah not a burden. It restores rest, holiness, and honor to His name.

Hebrews 4:9: “There remaineth therefore a rest (*sabbatismos*) to the people of Eloah.” The Shabbat is still in effect eternal rest with Yahusha is tied to covenant obedience.

The Appointed Times (Feast Days) of Yahuah

Leviticus 23:1–2: “These are the feasts of Yahuah… which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations…” These are **appointed times** (mo’edim) set by the Father not traditions of men or “Jewish holidays.”

Exodus 12, Leviticus 23, Deuteronomy 16: Each feast Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits, Shavuot, Yom Teruah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot is a prophetic appointment that teaches righteousness, deliverance, and the Kingdom to come.

Zechariah 14:16–19: All nations will keep the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) in the Kingdom. These are not abolished—they are eternal.

Oldest Manuscript Support

  • Dead Sea Scrolls: Found at Qumran—calendar scrolls confirm seventh day Shabbat and feast observance with no Sunday worship mentioned.
  • Septuagint (LXX): Ancient Greek Torah confirms the mo’edim unchanged; the Greek speaking Hebrews followed these feasts as written.
  • Paleo-Hebrew Fragments: Early Torah fragments (like those from Mount Ebal and the silver scrolls) never hint at the Shabbat being altered or voided.

Yahusha Upheld the Shabbat & Appointed Times

Luke 4:16: “As his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day…” Yahusha didn’t come to end the Shabbat He magnified it.

John 7:2–14: Yahusha went up to the Feast of Tabernacles. He did not ignore the feasts He fulfilled their meaning and still honored their timing.

Matthew 5:17–19: “Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law…” The law and its Appointed Times still stand.

Forever Means Forever

Isaiah 66:22–23: “From one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me.” In the Kingdom, the Shabbat and mo’edim remain.

We Keep Them Because:

  • They are eternal signs of the covenant (Exodus 31:13)
  • They are shadows of Yahusha and His Kingdom (Colossians 2:16–17)
  • They display obedience and love (John 14:15, 1 John 2:3)
  • They connect us to our identity and calling as Yisra’ĕl (Leviticus 23:1–2)

Final Word

“Also the sons of the stranger… that keep the sabbath from polluting it, and take hold of my covenant; Even them will I bring to my holy mountain…” Isaiah 56:6–7

The Shabbat and Appointed Times are the blueprint of Yahuah’s Kingdom.
They weren’t replaced. They weren’t removed.
They were written in eternity.