In the Arabic language, “first day” of the week corresponds with Sunday. In Arabic, days of the week is numbered in order from one to five except for Friday and Saturday.
Sunday
In Arabic pronounce AL-AHAD means Day One from the Arabic ‘one’-wahid.
Monday
In Arabic pronounce AL-ITHNAYN means Day Two from the Arabic ‘two’-ithnayn.
Tuesday
In Arabic pronounce AL-THULATHA meaning Day Three from the Arabic ‘three’-thalatha.
Wednesday
In Arabic pronounce AL-ARBA’A meaning Day Four from the Arabic ‘four’-arba’aa.
Thursday
In Arabic pronounce AL-KHAMES meaning Day Five from the Arabic ‘five’-khamsah.
Friday
In Arabic pronounce AL-JUMU’AH meaning Day of Gathering from the Arabic ‘gather’-jum’ah.
Saturday
In Arabic pronounce AL-SABT meaning to Rest or Day of rest. ‘Sabt’ in Arabic means “to hibernate, to not do anything”.
The Qur’an speaks about keeping the Sabbath as a day of rest and a day of worship, even stress that the people who break it are cursed:
- O ye People of the Book! believe in what We have (now) revealed, confirming what was (already) with you, before We change the face and fame of some (of you) beyond all recognition, and turn them hindwards, or curse them as We cursed the Sabbath-breakers, for the decision of Allah Must be carried out.” (Al-Nisa 4: 47)
- “Ask them (O Muhammad) of the township that was by the sea, how they did breakthe sabbath, how their big fish came unto them visibly upon their sabbath day and on a day when they did not keep sabbath came they not unto them. Thus did We try them for that they were evil-livers.” (Al-Araf 7: 163)
- “The Sabbath was appointed only for those who differed concerning it, and lo! Thy Lord will judge between them on the Day of Resurrection concerning that wherein they used to differ.” (Al-Nahl 16: 124)
How serious it is for God to curse people for breaking a day, which means it is important to keep it holy. Many people today, claim that Sabbath observance is impossible. It has become impossible for them precisely because they have refused to keep it holy and as a day of worship.
The Holy Bible also stress on keeping the Sabbath day holy,
- “Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work.Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.” (Tawrat Genesis 2: 1-3)
- “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.” (Exodus 20: 8-11)
- “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the Lord’s holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, then you will find your joy in the Lord…” (Isaiah 58: 13-14)
- “As the new heavens and the new earth that I make will endure before me, declares the Lord, so will your name and descendants endure. From one New Moon to another and from one Sabbath to another, all mankind will come and bow down before me,” says the Lord.” (Isaiah 66: 22-23)
The Holy Bible and the Qur’an make it very clear that we are obligated to keep the Sabbath the Seventh day of the week to keep it holy, find delight in it, honor it, and refrain from doing our pleasure, go our ways, and speak our own words, which means we need to keep it in a very special way, doing what pleases God, for the God blessed the seventh day and made it holy. Here we need to make it clear that when the Bible says that God “rested from all the work of creating that he had done”, that does not mean that the God gets tired, but God created a day of rest for us, so we can have a special time to spent with Him. Let me extend a call for you to enter God’s rest, keep the Sabbath Holy.
