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I imagine if I asked you which is the sixth commandment, unless you happen to have learned a catechism, you might have to go back to the beginning and count them out on your fingers. But there are one or two commandments many of us know just by their number. And the fourth commandment is one of them. It's the commandment about the Sabbath day. And maybe of all the commandments, it's the one that gets some Christians hot under the collar. No stealing, no adultery, no bearing false witness, no coveting. We get these. We never dream of openly ignoring them. But keeping the Sabbath. We certainly could take the whole week on this commandment, couldn't we? Explaining it, discussing it, trying to clarify what it says and also what it doesn't say. And I don't plan to do that. But let me say just a couple of things that I hope might be helpful. The first is it's a mistake to think that the Sabbath commandment is either only about one day in the week or all about one day in the week. If you think about it, the truth is it's really about every day of the week, six days you shall labour and do all your work and one day rest from that labor. I sometimes think that what this law means is that God is giving us a kind of time and motion tool for balancing our lives. So if you were to ask me, is it okay to do this on Sunday unless it's clearly unbiblical, I would respond, well, tell me, why are you thinking of doing that on Sunday? And often the question is answered, I don't have time in the rest of the week. And that's the problem. Because what the commandment is teaching us is if that's our answer, then it's not just that we may be misusing the Sabbath, it's that we're misusing the whole week. So the Sabbath commandment is not just about keeping or guarding the Sabbath. It's about living a healthy, balanced life all week long. And here's a second thing to remember. The commandment implies that we've been given the 6:1 pattern because we've been created as the image of God. The Sabbath commandment reminds us of this because it's grounded in the pattern by which God created the world. Six days of divine activity and one day to rest, admire and enjoy it. And when we follow that pattern, we're really just being what we were made to be. The children of God, made as his image and likeness, patterning our our lives after his activity. So this is a commandment that reminds us of our dignity and destiny as men and women. We've been created as the miniature image and likeness of the Creator. And so we live after his pattern. And here's something else I think is quite interesting. The first Sabbath day was not Adam's seventh day, it was God's seventh day, but it was Adam's first full day. It was as though God were saying to him, I want your existence to begin with, a time to admire everything I have made. And then you can go on from there and imitate me. What a gift the Sabbath is and what a marvellous safeguard of our lives. I hope you feel it really is a gift to you, and I hope you find it really does safeguard the way you live the whole week.
Podcast: Things Unseen with Sinclair B. Ferguson
Host: Ligonier Ministries
Date: March 12, 2026
In this reflective episode, Sinclair B. Ferguson explores the meaning and broader purpose of the Fourth Commandment — the command to keep the Sabbath day holy. Rather than diving into debates about Sabbath observance, Ferguson focuses on what this commandment reveals about God’s intention for our pattern of life, its connection to the creation order, and how it stands as a gift and safeguard for Christian living.
Ferguson opens with the observation that while some commandments are easily remembered by number, the Sabbath commandment (the fourth) often generates debate among Christians.
He challenges the notion that the Sabbath commandment is “only about one day in the week or all about one day in the week.”
Insight:
"Six days you shall labour and do all your work and one day rest from that labor. I sometimes think that what this law means is that God is giving us a kind of time and motion tool for balancing our lives." (01:31)
Sinclair notes that often, questions about what is permissible on Sunday stem from poor time stewardship throughout the week.
If Sunday is used to catch up on things left undone, he suggests the issue is a misuse of the whole week, not just the Sabbath.
“If that's our answer, then it's not just that we may be misusing the Sabbath, it's that we're misusing the whole week.” (02:41)
The 6:1 rhythm (six days of work, one of rest) mirrors God’s creative activity.
Observing the Sabbath is living in the image of God, emphasizing both human dignity and destiny.
“The commandment implies that we've been given the 6:1 pattern because we've been created as the image of God... Six days of divine activity and one day to rest, admire and enjoy it. And when we follow that pattern, we're really just being what we were made to be.” (03:09)
Ferguson points out a detail often overlooked: The first Sabbath was God's seventh day, but it was Adam's first full day.
Adam’s experience begins with rest and appreciation of God’s completed work, not immediately with toil.
"The first Sabbath day was not Adam's seventh day, it was God's seventh day, but it was Adam's first full day. It was as though God were saying to him, I want your existence to begin with, a time to admire everything I have made. And then you can go on from there and imitate me.” (04:09)
"If you were to ask me, is it okay to do this on Sunday unless it's clearly unbiblical, I would respond, well, tell me, why are you thinking of doing that on Sunday? And often the question is answered, I don't have time in the rest of the week. And that's the problem." (02:12)
"We've been created as the miniature image and likeness of the Creator. And so we live after his pattern." (03:47)
"What a gift the Sabbath is and what a marvellous safeguard of our lives. I hope you feel it really is a gift to you, and I hope you find it really does safeguard the way you live the whole week." (05:03)
Sinclair B. Ferguson reframes the Sabbath not as a point of legalistic debate but as a God-given pattern for all of life, rooted in creation itself. The commandment invites believers to embrace both work and rest in their rightful proportions, reflecting the image of God and partaking in His wisdom. The Sabbath, Ferguson says, is a precious gift—a safeguard and a signpost pointing to spiritual balance, dignity, and the joy of belonging to the Creator.