Exodus 31:14

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Exodus 31:12-18

Here is, I. A strict command for the sanctification of the sabbath day, Exod. 31:13-17. The law of the sabbath had been given them before any other law, by was of preparation (Exod. 16:23); it had been inserted in the body of the moral law, in the fourth commandment; it had been annexed to the judicial law (Exod. 23:12); and here it is added to the first part of the ceremonial law, because the observance of the sabbath is indeed the hem and hedge of the whole law; where no conscience is made... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Exodus 31:14

Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore ,.... Strictly observe it, according to the rules given concerning it: for it is holy unto you ; a day that was set apart of God for holy exercises, peculiarly on their account: everyone that defileth it ; by doing any servile work upon it, or not observing it in a religious way: shall surely be put to death ; by the hand of the civil magistrate; if the law of the Jewish sabbath is now in force, the sanction continues, and the violation of it... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Exodus 31:14

Every one that defileth it - By any kind of idolatrous or profane worship. Shall surely be put to death - The magistrates shall examine into the business, and if the accused be found guilty, he shall be stoned to death. Shall be cut off - Because that person who could so far contemn the Sabbath, which was a sign to them of the rest which remained for the people of God, was of course an infidel, and should be cut off from all the privileges and expectations of an Israelite. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Exodus 31:12-18

The Sabbath. If this prohibition to work upon the Sabbath is introduced, as probably it is, lest the people, in their zeal for the service of the sanctuary, should be tempted to infringe upon the holy day, it has certain obvious sides of instruction turned towards ourselves. We cannot but see in it the high honour which God puts upon his Sabbath . 1. It is the one command of the Decalogue to which reference is made in the conclusion of this series of instructions. This implies its... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Exodus 31:13-17

1. That the sabbath was to be a sign between God and Israel, a "distinguishing badge," a "sacramental bond" (Cook); and 2. That its desecration was to be punished with death ( Exodus 31:15 ). These were supplementary points of so much importance as to furnish ample reason against their announcement being delayed. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Exodus 31:13-17

Covenant signs. To each covenant which he has made with man, God has attached some special sign or signs. And each sign has been significant, has set before the mind of those to whom it was given some great religious truth. I. THE FIRST COVENANT SIGN WAS THE RAINBOW . God had destroyed by a deluge the whole human race, except eight persons. It pleased him, after this, to enter into a covenant with Noah and his sons ( Genesis 9:8 , Genesis 9:9 ), and through them with... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Exodus 31:14

Every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death . To defile the sabbath was to do any unnecessary servile work upon it. Works of mercy, works of necessity, and works connected with religious observance were not prohibited. (See Matthew 12:1-7 ; 10-12.) The penalty of death for breaking the sabbath seems to moderns over-severe; but the erection of sabbath-observance into the special sacramental sign that Israel was in covenant with God made non-observance an offence of the gravest... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Exodus 31:12-17

The penal law of the Sabbath. Exodus 35:2-3. In the fourth commandment the injunction to observe the seventh day is addressed to the conscience of the people (see Exodus 20:8 note): in this place, the object is to declare an infraction of the commandment to be a capital offence. The two passages stand in a relation to each other similar to that between Leviticus 18:0, Leviticus 19:0, and Leviticus 20:0. It seems likely that the penal edict was especially introduced as a caution in reference to... read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Exodus 31:14-16

Exodus 31:14-16. It is holy unto you That is, it is designed for your benefit as well as for God’s honour; it shall be accounted holy by you. It is the sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord It is separated from common use to the service of God; and by the observance of it we are taught to rest from worldly pursuits, and devote ourselves, and all we are, have, and can do, to God’s glory. It was to be observed throughout their generations, in every age, for a perpetual covenant This was to be... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Exodus 31:12-18

The weekly day of rest (31:12-18)People might have thought that, because the tabernacle was a sacred structure, they could work on it on the Sabbath day. God reminded them to keep the weekly Sabbath as a holy day of rest. This rest was part of God’s plan for preserving the holiness of his people (12-17).God then gave Moses the ten basic commandments of the covenant engraved on stone as he had promised (see 24:12; cf. Deuteronomy 10:4). Having received God’s instructions for his people, Moses... read more

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