Nine texts that use the term "sabbath days"

If all agree that the first eight texts refer to the weekly Sabbath, why should they interpret the ninth instance differently?

1. Or have ye not read in the law, how that on the sabbath days the priests in the temple profane the sabbath, and are blameless? Matthew 12:5
2. And, behold, there was a man which had his hand withered. And they asked him, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath days? that they might accuse him. Matthew 12:10
3. How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days. Matthew 12:12
4. And he saith unto them, Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath days, or to do evil? to save life, or to kill? But they held their peace. Mark 3:4
5. And came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath days. Luke 4:31
6. And certain of the Pharisees said unto them, Why do ye that which is not lawful to do on the sabbath days? Luke 6:2
7. Then said Jesus unto them, I will ask you one thing; Is it lawful on the sabbath days to do good, or to do evil? to save life, or to destroy it? Luke 6:9
8. And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures, Acts 17:2
9. Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Colossians 2:16

What are the Sabbath days?

The whole purpose of these Colossians 2 posts has been for myself, to understand what is being said, and to clear up the inconsistencies of the various explanations that have not made sense to me. I've come to see that the common interpretations stem from 1) The desire of Sunday keepers to nail the Sabbath commandment to the cross, and 2) The desire of seventh-day Sabbath keepers to nail the "Ceremonial Law," including the Holy Days, to the cross.

My studies have shown me that none of God's law was nailed to the cross. When our Saviour died for our sins, what was nailed to the cross was the handwriting of the ordinances that were against us, the declaration that we are guilty. Understanding this point is basic, and once understood really leaves no need for the believer to defend the rest of the text. However, because the rest of the text has been influenced by the belief that the Ten Commandments or the Ceremonial Law has been nailed to the cross, the interpretation of the remainder of the text is skewed toward bolstering that incorrect understanding, so we are left to deal with it. It is certainly an interesting study.

I'm addressing interpretations that have come about due to a certain mindset brought to these few verses. Each phrase has deep importance, and each phrase has been interpreted at least two ways, sometimes more. I've put each section in a different post as I work through them. I'm not addressing the topics exhaustively (compared to others who have written entire books on the topic), but I suppose that once I get as near to finishing as I can get, I should summarize. I'll work on that.

The explanation given to me as a questioning pre-teen was that the phrase, "the Sabbath" always refers to the weekly Sabbath, and "sabbath days" refers to annual sabbaths, feasts, or holy days.

One interesting point is that the word days in Colossians 2:16 has been italicized in the KJV, indicating that the word days has been supplied, or added to the original translation. This is also the case in verse 17, where the word is has been supplied, changing the meaning of the verse. I will look at is another day.

I grew up with the incorrect understanding that "sabbath days" referred to the holy days, not only because of the claimed chiastic structure, discussed on a previous post, Colossians and Chiasmus, and because of the phrase that follows, "which are a shadow of things to come," but because of the phrase, "sabbath days." I'll address shadow later, as well.

Because it is clear that Colossians 2:16 is not a chiasmus, that it parallels other scriptures that speak of the holy days, new moons, and Sabbaths, there is no question as to the meaning of "sabbath days" in this verse. It is referring to the weekly Sabbath.

None of God's law was nailed to the cross, and understanding that, the rest of the text makes sense. Phrase-by-phrase explanation may not be necessary in order to defend the Law of God, but I do like to know what is really being said.



For further study:

I have been told the following: "The phrase“sabbath days” is found nine times in the King James Bible, and it always refer to weekly Sabbaths." Since being told something is not proof, I will be checking on this for myself. If it is true, Colossians 2:16 should be interpreted the same way.
Later: I looked up the texts and have shared them on this page (it's short).

I have also been told, "The Greek word for “sabbath” appears 53 times in the New Testament. There is agreement that 52 of these refer to the weekly Sabbath, and many say only one (Col. 2:16) refers to yearly sabbaths." I will need to research for myself, because sometimes people make blanket statements that are no accurate.My first step has been to go to the Blue Letter Bible and search for all verses that contain the word sabbaton, the Greek word used in Colossians. The Blue Letter Bible link in the line above contains that search result. I will look at them more carefully