Exodus 31:12-18

Exodus 31:12-18

[12] And the LORD  spake  unto Moses,  saying,  [13] 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  [14] Ye shall keep  the sabbath  therefore; for it is holy  unto you: every one that defileth  it shall surely  for whosoever doeth  any work  therein, that soul  shall be cut off  from among  his people.  [15] Six  days  may work  be done;  but in the seventh  is the sabbath  of rest,  holy  to the LORD:  whosoever doeth  any work  in the sabbath  day,  he shall surely  [16] Wherefore the children  of Israel  shall keep  the sabbath,  to observe  the sabbath  throughout their generations,  for a perpetual  covenant.  [17] It is a sign  between me and the children  of Israel  for ever:  for in six  days  the LORD  made  heaven  and earth,  and on the seventh  day  he rested,  and was refreshed.  [18] And he gave  unto Moses,  when he had made an end  of communing  with him upon mount  Sinai,  two  tables  of testimony,  tables  of stone,  written  with the finger  of God. 

What does Exodus 31:12-18 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

"As a sign of the Noahic covenant is the rainbow ( Genesis 9:13), and as the sign of the Abrahamic covenant is circumcision ( Genesis 17:11), the sign of the Mosaic covenant is the observance and celebration of the Sabbath day ( Exodus 31:13; Exodus 31:17)." [1]
God intended this sign to teach Israel and the other nations that as redeemed people the Israelites had already entered into a measure of rest. They were partakers of God"s rest.
Observance of the Sabbath was unique to Israel. It distinguished Israel from all other nations. So important was its observance that the Israelite who failed to observe it died ( Exodus 31:15). This sign was to continue throughout all succeeding generations ( Exodus 31:13) as long as God continued to work through Israel as His primary instrument (cf. Romans 10:4; Hebrews 9:10).
"The analogy between God"s work of Creation and Israel"s construction of the tabernacle is made explicit by the reference to the Sabbath at the close of the narrative." [2]
Whereas God did not command Christians to observe the Sabbath, the Scriptures do teach the importance of periodic physical rest regardless of the dispensation in which we may live (cf. Mark 6:31; Mark 14:41; Revelation 6:11).
"We don"t have to be servants twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week." [3]
This section concludes the record of what Moses received from God during the40 days and nights he was in the mountain that began in Exodus 25:1.
Moses wrote the instructions concerning the tabernacle so they parallel what he wrote about the Creation. Note some of the similarities in the narratives. [4]
Creation ( Genesis 1-2)Tabernacle ( Exodus 25-31)The subject of the narrative is the establishment of God"s good creation.The subject of the narrative is the Revelation -establishment of God"s good creation.The heavens and earth are the arena for the creation of divine-human fellowship.The tabernacle is the arena for the restoration of divine-human fellowship.God"s Spirit was the enabling power in creation ( Genesis 1:2 to Genesis 2:3).God"s Spirit was the enabling power in the construction of the tabernacle ( Exodus 31:3; Exodus 31:6).Structurally the creation account consists of seven acts each marked by divine speech ("And God said," Genesis 1:3; Genesis 1:6; Genesis 1:9; Genesis 1:14; Genesis 1:20; Genesis 1:24; Genesis 1:26).Structurally the tabernacle account consists of seven acts each introduced by divine speech ("And the LORD said," Exodus 25:1; Exodus 30:11; Exodus 30:17; Exodus 30:22; Exodus 30:34; Exodus 31:1; Exodus 31:12).God made Adam and Eve according to a specific pattern: the image of God ( Genesis 1:26-27).Moses made the tabernacle according to a specific pattern: a heavenly reality ( Exodus 25:9).The Garden of Eden contained gold and jewels, and cherubim guarded it ( Genesis 2:12-12 b; Genesis 3:24).The tabernacle contained gold and jewels, and cherubim guarded it ( Exodus 25:3; Exodus 25:7; Exodus 25:18).When creation was complete, God inspected and evaluated all that He had done ( Genesis 1:31) and uttered a blessing ( Genesis 1:28).When the tabernacle was complete, Moses inspected and evaluated all that was done ( Exodus 39:43 a) and uttered a blessing ( Exodus 39:43 b).God rested on the seventh day at the end of the creation narrative ( Genesis 2:1-3).God told the Israelites to rest on the seventh day at the end of the tabernacle narrative ( Exodus 31:12-18).A fall followed the creation narrative ( Genesis 3).A fall followed the tabernacle narrative ( Exodus 32).This fall resulted in the breaking of the Adamic Covenant ( Genesis 3:14-19).This fall resulted in the breaking of the Mosaic Covenant ( Exodus 33:1-5).God covered Adam and Eve"s nakedness ( Genesis 3:21).God ordered the covering of the priests" nakedness ( Exodus 28:42).