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Exodus 31:13

King James Version (KJV)

“In our prayers we talk to God, in our Bible study God talks to us, and we had better let God do most of the talking.”
— D.L. Moody

Exodus 31:13

Verse 13 of 18

Scripture focus

Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it [is] a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that [ye] may know that I [am] the LORD that doth sanctify you.

Exodus 31:13 — KJV

Commentary

Commentary on Exodus 31:13

Theological / Devotional

My sabbaths. One of the striking features of the closing chapters of Exodus is the recurring admonition to sacred observance of the seventh-day Sabbath (see chs. 16:22-30; 20:8-11; 23:12; 34:21; 35:2, 3). This attests the great importance of the Sabbath, for no other commandment of the Decalogue is so mentioned. The reference here made to its observance is not merely a repetition of similar notices; it introduces the Sabbath as a “sign” between God and His people, and it warns that the penalty for Sabbath violation is “death.”

A sign. God had already given the Israelites circumcision as a “sign” in their flesh of His “covenant” relation with them (Gen. 17:9-14; Acts 7:8). Now the Sabbath was to be an additional “sign” of this covenant relationship, not in the flesh but in the heart (Ex. 31:12, 13, 16, 17; Jer. 31:31-33; Eze. 20:12, 20; 2 Cor. 3:3).

By SdaBc