The Sabbath Is For Man

Having one day a week where one cannot work in the standard sense of the word might be easy for someone immersed in or obsessed with superfluous, meaningless labor and productivity to regard as intrusive.  Perhaps the basic concept of a weekly Sabbath, one day of rest for every six days of work, strikes such a person as restrictive or dangerous, but the more foundational issue is not about professional work at all.  It is about whether the Sabbath would interfere with mental health or physical safety.  Just what is permissible on the Sabbath?  Can one take a step?  Can one enjoy food?  What Jesus claims about the Sabbath is contrary to the notion of a day of deprivation meant to gratuitously test our patience and willingness to forgo matters like fulfillment, healing, or pleasure.  He outright declares, in accordance with the Old Testament as will be demonstrated, that the Sabbath is for people and their flourishing, not the other way around:

Mark 2:27--"Then he said to them, 'The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.'"

Moreover, the scope of the Sabbath's rest encompasses all people and their animals.  No earthly creature is to be excluded, and the benefit of those resting is acknowledged as vital, as stated in verses like the following:

Exodus 23:12--"'Six days do your work, but on the seventh day do not work, so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and so that the slave born in your household and the foreigner living among you may be refreshed.'"

Deuteronomy 5:12-15--"'Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the Lord your God has commanded you.  Six days shall you 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 ox, your donkey or any of your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns, so that your male and female servants may rest, as you do.  Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the Lord your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm.  Therefore the Lord your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day.'"

Obviously (to someone looking to reason while avoiding assumptions), it cannot be to our benefit to disregard the likes of our physical health one day a week, which could already sabotage our mental health despite mental rejuvenation being one of the literally stated goals behind a weekly Sabbath.  Yahweh's Mosaic Law does not in any way prescribe that we undermine our own actual wellbeing for the sake of rest that is supposedly for our wellbeing!  When Jesus says that the Sabbath is for mankind (which on its own contradicts the idea that keeping the Sabbath is an obligation only for the Israelites), not mankind for the Sabbath, he articulates nothing that is not logically and textually evident from the Torah's primary prescriptions for one day of rest for every seven days of work.

From Exodus 23:12 and Deuteronomy 5:12-15 alone, it can be seen that the Bible emphasizes the mental and physical health of those resting on the Sabbath.  Part of the basis for the obligation is that as creatures God brought into existence and sustains, and especially so for humans due to having the divine image (Genesis 1:26-27, 5:1-2), animals--including people--have value and deserve to not to be unnecessarily overwhelmed by unhealthy expenditure of effort.  The point of the Sabbath is not to physically rest just enough to not prematurely destroy one's bodily functioning before more labor is done the next day, but to regularly refresh the minds and bodies of those who rest.

Jesus heals bodily deformities and conditions on the Sabbath (as in Matthew 12); as if mere walking on the Sabbath is anywhere condemned by God in the Torah, Jeremiah 17 and Acts 1 plainly permit it in various ways--for instance, Jeremiah 17 only condemns carrying loads for business through the gates of a city on the Sabbath, not walking through them.  Walking for health (mental and physical) or for leisure is not contrary to Biblical obligations.  Unrelated to health in particular but still allowing certain acts of physical labor on the Sabbath, Leviticus 6, 24, and Numbers 28 require that the priests engage in specific activities necessitating physical exertion.  On all levels, physical movement itself is not prohibited!

The properly executed Sabbath is liberating rather than confining, in fact.  Eating, drinking, bathing, walking, and so on are not sinful on this day.  A regular day of rest defies those who reductionistically regard people (more specifically, often people other than themselves) as a means of professionally generating profit, promotes human flourishing, and provides a day overtly dedicated to introspective and recreational pursuits.  The Sabbath is indeed for humanity, not humanity for the Sabbath.  Whoever thinks of the Sabbath as a geographically or historically limited obligation according to the Bible is delusional, as is whoever thinks it is an oppressive thing in concept, intention, or practice.