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[apologies, but we have not yet included the footnotes]  

Answer: The seventh-day Sabbath, which is referred to in the texts sited in the question, is for all people in the whole world. It was not given for the nation of Israel only. In support of this position we will consider four Bible texts as follows:

1. Genesis 2:2, 3.

2. Exodus 20:8-11.

3. Mark 2:27.

4. Matthew 24:15-20.

After considering these texts we will discuss the passages mentioned in Question 8, namely:

5. Exodus 16:29.

6. Exodus 31:13 and Ezekiel 20:12.
7. Exodus 12:49 and Numbers 15:16.

 

This passage introduces the seventh-day Sabbath as one of the two institutions given as a precious gift to mankind in Eden before the entrance of sin. The other institution was marriage (Genesis 2:21-24; Matthew 19:3-6). Marriage is a foundation for human relationships and relates to the horizontal dimension of social life. The Sabbath is foundational to our relationship with God and relates to the vertical dimension of social life. There is a close connection between marriage, "family" and the Sabbath, and true Sabbath-keeping is a powerful force towards healthy marriages and families. God has especially blessed these two vital institutions originating in Eden (Genesis 1:28; 2:3) and Satan has gone to a lot of trouble to undermine and attack them. Unfortunately the devil has been very successful, as a little thought about the current state of marriage and the Sabbath will reveal. We must resist him and do all we can to restore the sanctity and happiness of marriage and the Sabbath.

This is what Genesis 2:2, 3 says:

2 And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had made; and He rested [Hebrew shabath] on the seventh day from all His work which He had made.

3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested [shabath] from all His work which God created and made.

Why did God have a Sabbath-rest on this seventh day? He obviously wasn’t tired. The only logical reason is that He did it as part of His creative gift to mankind. A vital part of God’s purpose in creating the world, and so lovingly furnishing it, was in order to present a beautiful gift to Adam, Eve and all their children. On the seventh day God provided a vital part of this gift, the Sabbath. The Sabbath is a gift of time. It was to stand as a memorial to all coming generations, a weekly reminder of the love, power and wisdom of God in creating the world. It was to remind all future generations that He was the only true God and their source of happiness. It was to provide a regular opportunity for special fellowship with Him. Though man spoiled God’s gift by his sin, in Christ its sweetness is returned. Through Christ we can have close, meaningful fellowship with our Maker without fear of rejection. In Christ we can "come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need" (Hebrews 10:19) [16].

Genesis 2:2, 3 tells us that God set the seventh day apart by doing three important things:

a). Resting on the seventh day.

This is something unusual for One who never gets tired (Isaiah 40:28). As discussed above, it was clearly done for a special purpose. God was giving a gift and setting an example. God did not need to rest, but He chose to rest. Likewise, we are not forced by God to keep the Sabbath and any Sabbath observance done because "we have to" is not true Sabbath-keeping. We should choose to keep the day because we love God and want, of our own free will, to fellowship with Him and His people.

b). Blessing the seventh day.

What does it mean for God to bless something? Numbers 6:23-27 is helpful. It gives us the words that God told the priests to use when blessing the people. From this passage of scripture we can see what it means to receive God’s blessing. It reads as follows:

23 Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying, On this wise [in this way] ye shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them,
24 The LORD bless thee, and keep thee:

25 The LORD make His face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:

26 The LORD lift up His countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.

27 And they shall put My name upon the children of Israel; and I will bless them.

So the Sabbath is associated with God’s protection, light, grace, presence, peace and name.

Blessing is also commonly associated with growth and prosperity. For example Leviticus 25:21 says, "Then I will command My blessing upon you in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth fruit for three years" (See also Genesis 1:22, 28).

c). Sanctifying the seventh day.

What does it mean for God to sanctify something? The basic meaning of the Hebrew word is to set apart as sacred, to consecrate, to dedicate. Thus, to sanctify something means to set it apart as something that belongs to God in a special way. It means to dedicate it to a sacred use. An example of this would be Exodus 28:41: "And thou shalt put them [special clothes] upon Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him; and shalt anoint them, and consecrate them, and sanctify them, that they may minister unto Me in the priest's office." If something or somebody is going to be brought close to God they must first be sanctified. For example, 1 Chronicles 15:12 says "…sanctify yourselves, both ye and your brethren, that ye may bring up the ark of the LORD God of Israel unto the place that I have prepared for it." Though God’s people are admonished to sanctify themselves, it is actually only God Himself that can make it effectual: "And there I will meet with the children of Israel, and the tabernacle shall be sanctified by My glory. And I will sanctify the tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar: I will sanctify also both Aaron and his sons, to minister to Me in the priest's office" (Exodus 29:43, 44). The New Testament teaches that Christ’s blood, God’s word and the truth sanctify believers (Hebrews 13:12; John 17:17-19)[9].

It is interesting and important to know that the seventh-day Sabbath, sanctified by God, is the only thing mentioned in the Bible as a sign that God is the One who sanctifies us:

Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily My Sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the LORD that doth sanctify you (Exodus 31:13).

Moreover also I gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between Me and them, that they might know that I am the LORD that sanctify them (Ezekiel 20:12).

Genesis 2:2, 3 describes God resting upon, blessing and setting apart the seventh day of the week as a gift for all mankind before the nation of Israel was in existence. It was established for Adam and Eve and all of their descendants.

The seventh-day Sabbath is one of the Ten Commandments and the Ten Commandments are not for ancient Israel only, but for all of mankind.

How do we know that the Ten Commandments are applicable for everyone and not just for the Jews? In answering this question we will consider the following six areas:

a). The Ten Commandments as a foundation of morality.

b). The Ten Commandments as a definer of sin.

c). The Ten Commandments as a definer of love.

d). Jesus’ "Sermon on the Mount" in Matthew chapters 5 to 7.

e). The original Ten Commandments in Heaven.

f). Jesus’ use of the Ten Commandments in Matthew 19:16-19.

a). The Ten Commandments as a foundation of morality.

If the Ten Commandments have been abolished then, not only has the Sabbath been done away with, but also all decency, honesty and integrity. Why? Because it would then be okay to worship any God or idol we wanted, use God’s name in vain, dishonor our parents, murder, sleep with our neighbor’s wife, steal and lie. The Sabbath of the Fourth Commandment is singled out by many as something to forget. Yet they will admit that the other nine are still relevant. If the other nine are relevant, then why do they not accept the fourth? Why do they tell us to forget the only commandment that God has specifically told us to "remember" (Exodus 20:8)? The Ten Commandments are a single entity and to break one is to be guilty of all:

For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. For He that said, Do not commit adultery [Seventh Commandment], said also, Do not kill [Sixth Commandment]. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law (James 2:10, 11).

b). The Ten Commandments as a definer of sin.

Is sin an issue for all mankind, or for Israel only? If sin is relevant for all humanity then so are the Ten Commandments. Please consider the following about the role of the Ten Commandments in the Old Testament Sanctuary service:

The sanctuary was a tent-like structure set up at the time of Moses when the Jewish nation made their escape (exodus) from Egypt. It is described in the book of Exodus in the Old Testament. The sanctuary was designed by God to explain how people are reconciled to Him. Why did people need reconciling to God? Because they had broken God's holy law, namely, the Ten Commandments. These Ten Commandments were kept in a sacred chest, called the "Ark of the Testimony", in the Most Holy Place of the sanctuary.

The sanctuary was based around the truth that a sacrifice (substitute) and a priest (mediator) were needed for reconciliation to take place. Every part of the symbolic furniture and service in some way pointed to the Person or ministry of Jesus Christ. Figure One illustrates the general layout of the sanctuary used at the time of the exodus (see Exodus chapters 36-40). The temple that was eventually built in Jerusalem followed a similar design.

Basically, the way that the sanctuary worked was as follows: The Israelite who had sinned by breaking the law of God contained in the Ark of the Testimony brought an animal such as a lamb into the courtyard. The lamb was to be sacrificed as his substitute. He confessed his sin over the lamb and then killed it with his knife -- a requirement that would help most people realize the ugliness and seriousness of sin. Killing the lamb also taught that sin leads to death. The priest then took the blood of the lamb and put some of it on the altar of burnt offering in the courtyard. The remainder of the blood was poured out at the base of this altar. After removing fat from the animal the rest of it was burnt on the courtyard altar except for a portion that was to be eaten by the priest. If a priest or the whole congregation of Israelites had sinned the blood was taken and put on the altar of incense in the Holy Place instead. This procedure, and similar ones, continued daily throughout the year.

Once a year the Most Holy Place was entered by the high priest. This was on the solemn Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16:1-34; 23:26-32; Hebrews 9:1-7). It was in the Most Holy Place that God appeared to Moses above the Ark and spoke to him from a cloud of glory (Exodus 25:22; 34:29, 30).

By considering the sanctuary service, as described above, we can see how the Ten Commandments have a special role in defining what sin is. Every phase of human behavior is covered by one of these ten all-encompassing precepts. Romans 7:7 says: "What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet." "Thou shalt not covet" is, of course, the Tenth Commandment. James 2:10, 11 has been previously mentioned in relation to the unity of the moral law. It also reveals the use of the Ten Commandments in understanding sin and guilt:

For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. For He that said, Do not commit adultery [Seventh Commandment], said also, Do not kill [Sixth Commandment]. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law [i.e. a sinner, 1 John 3:4].

The need for, and promise of, a Savior to provide reconciliation because of transgression of the Ten Commandments was the essence of the sanctuary service [25]. It was because there was no other way; it was because the moral law could not be changed, that Christ died on the cross for us paying the penalty of the broken law [21].

Sin is an issue that effects all mankind. The word "sin" is vague and uncertain unless we have something that defines what we are talking about. This is where the Ten Commandments come to our help. When we consider these commandments then we can understand what sin is. Thus, the Ten Commandments, including the fourth Sabbath commandment, are for all mankind.

c). The Ten Commandments as a definer of love.

Is love an issue for all mankind, or for Israel only? If love is relevant for all humanity then so are the Ten Commandments. The word "love" is also vague and uncertain unless we have something that defines what we are talking about. Here again the Ten Commandments come to our help. Consider what Romans 13:9 says:

For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

Paul is here making the point that "love is the fulfilling of the law" (vs. 10). But how could Paul tell us what love is fulfilling if he did not have the Ten Commandments (he quotes five of them)? The Ten Commandments enable us to know what love is. Jesus kept the Ten Commandments perfectly in His life [23] and so, of course, we can know what love is by looking to Him and His sacrifice [18]. Jesus Himself said, "If ye love Me, keep My commandments" and "If ye keep My commandments, ye shall abide in My love; even as I have kept My Father's commandments, and abide in His love" (John 14:15; 15:10) [24]. Without Jesus’ life and without the Ten Commandments we cannot clearly appreciate what love is.

Jesus said, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself" (Matthew 22:37-39). What does loving God and our neighbor mean? The first four of the Ten Commandments focus on love to God and the last six emphasize love to others. "By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep His commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments: and His commandments are not grievous"(1 John 5:2, 3).

Some one will probably object here saying, "The Ten Commandments are negative. They don’t include the positive side of loving, like doing good and giving to others; they just say, ‘Thou shalt not.’ " In answer to this we would say that the Fourth and Fifth Commandments are not given in the "negative" manner. Also Jesus showed, in the Sermon on the Mount, how even the "Thou shalt not" commandments include the positive side. He explained that the commandment "Thou shalt not kill" included going to an offended person and making things right (Matthew 5:21-24).

So the Ten Commandments are relevant for all people because we all need to appreciate and understand what love is.

d). Jesus’ "Sermon on the Mount" in Matthew chapters 5 to 7.

To appreciate the relationship that the Sermon on the Mount has to the Ten Commandments we need to understand how Jesus’ life paralleled the Israelite exodus experience. He went, as it were, over the same ground and, where they failed, He conquered. This parallel experience is recorded in the first several chapters of Matthew as follows:

i). The evil king’s attempt to kill the infant Christ parallels the king of Egypt’s evil plan to kill the baby Israelite boys (Matthew 2:16; Exodus chapter 1).

ii). Christ’s journey out of Egypt parallels Israel's exodus from Egypt (Matthew 2:19-21; Exodus chapters 13, 14).

iii). Christ’s baptism parallels Israel’s baptism in the Red Sea (Matthew 3:13-16; Exodus chapter 14; 1 Corinthians 10:1, 2)

iv). Christ’s temptation in the wilderness for 40 days parallels Israel’s 40 years of wandering and temptation in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11; Deuteronomy 8:1-16).

v). Christ’s sermon on a mountain (Matthew 5:1) recorded in Matthew 5-7 parallels His delivery of the Ten Commandments on Mt. Sinai described in Exodus chapters 19 and 20.

Since Jesus' Sermon on the Mount parallels the giving of the Ten Commandments, any necessary changes would naturally be addressed here. In other words, if Jesus wanted to replace or abolish the Ten Commandments this is when it would have been done. Does He do this? Let us listen to His own words from the Sermon on the Mount:

17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.

18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.

19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

(Matthew 5:17-19).

He then goes on to specifically name two of the Ten Commandments and instead of changing or revoking them, He magnifies and deepens them (Matthew 5:21-28). In addition to this Christ indicates His total disapproval of those who promote lawlessness by His words in Matthew 7:21-23:

21 Not every one that saith unto Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven.

22 Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name? and in Thy name have cast out devils? and in Thy name done many wonderful works?

23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from Me, ye that work iniquity [Greek anomia, transgression of the law or lawlessness].

Thus the Sermon on the Mount proves that the Ten Commandments are still fully applicable for all mankind.

e). The original Ten Commandments in Heaven.

We are told in Exodus 25:40 that the sanctuary and all its parts were to be made according to a pattern provided by God. In Hebrews 8:1-5 it says that Christ ministers for us in "the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man." We know that this true tabernacle is in Heaven and is the one that Moses copied from. How? Because the work of the earthly priests was to "serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith He, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount" (Hebrews 8:5. See also 9:11, 24).

Does the true tabernacle in Heaven, where Jesus ministers, have the Ten Commandments in it? Hebrews chapter 9 certainly implies that it does since it describes the earthly sanctuary, including the Ark with the Ten Commandments (Hebrews 9:1-4), and then it says that these things were copies of the true heavenly realities (Hebrews 9:24). This is impressive evidence but it would be nice to have more. Well, in the book of Revelation we find that John actually saw the Ark of the Testimony in the temple of God in Heaven. Revelation 11:19 says, "And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in His temple the ark of His testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail."

Probably someone will object at this point saying, "What John saw was not real, just symbolic." It is true that what is written in Revelation is to be generally taken as symbolic because Revelation 1:1 says that the book was sent and "signified" (Greek semaino from sema, a mark). But this does not mean that everything in Revelation is to be taken as symbolic. For example, the "One like the Son of Man" in Revelation 1:13 is not symbolic of Jesus, but was actually Jesus. Also the throne seen in Revelation 4:2 is not symbolic because we know that there is a real throne in Heaven (Matthew 23:22; Acts 2:30; Hebrews 8:1). Likewise, the heavenly angels in Revelation 5:11, 7:11 and 12:7 are obviously to be understood as real angels.

The rule for Revelation is that things in it are to be taken as symbolic unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The temple of God and Ark in Revelation 11:19 should be taken literally because, firstly, we are not told anywhere that the "temple of God... in heaven" or "the ark of His testament" are symbolic of anything. Secondly, we have a literal earthly copy of the heavenly temple and Ark described elsewhere in the Bible (Hebrews 9:1-4; Exodus chapters 25-27). Thirdly, Revelation 11:19 introduces a section in Revelation where the Ten Commandments are very prominent. It would thus be most appropriate for the Ark containing them to be seen.

So Revelation 11:19 describes a real temple and Ark of the Covenant (Testament) in Heaven. If then, there is a real Ark of the Testament in Heaven, it is obvious that there must be a "Testament" in it, that is, there must be the Ten Commandments in it. If the Ten Commandments are in Heaven today before the altar at which our High Priest Jesus Christ ministers the merits of His blood, then surely those commandments are still relevant to all on the Earth.

f). Jesus use of the Ten Commandments in Matthew 19:16-19.

These verses read as follows:

16 And, behold, one came and said unto Him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?

17 And He said unto him, Why callest thou Me good? there is none good but One, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.

18 He saith unto Him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness,

19 Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

If the Ten Commandments were not relevant for all mankind then Jesus would not have quoted from them when answering the question "what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?"

This is the third Bible passage that we are considering as support for the seventh-day Sabbath’s relevance for all mankind. In this verse Jesus plainly says, "the Sabbath was made for man [Greek anthropos]". He did not say that the Sabbath was made for Israel only.

This passage is part of Jesus’ message to His disciples about what would happen in the future. It reads as follows:

15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)

16 Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:

17 Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:

18 Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.

19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!

20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the Sabbath day:

Matthew chapter 24 mingles the description of the coming destruction of Jerusalem (which occurred in AD 70) and the second coming of Christ. These were the two events that the disciples asked about (vs. 2, 3). Why would Jesus have said, "pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the Sabbath day" if the Sabbath was not still an important day for Christians to observe in AD 70? Jesus plainly indicates here that "the Sabbath day" in AD 70 was going to be the same day as it was when He gave this address to His disciples. This was the seventh day of the week that was recognized by Jesus as the Sabbath throughout the Gospel accounts. Thus, Jesus’ words in Matthew chapter 24 reveal that the Sabbath was not just something for Old Testament Jews.

Let us now consider the Bible texts used in Question 8. The question states "Sabbaths were for Israel only" and then lists Exodus 16:29, Exodus 31:13 and Ezekiel 20:12. What are these verses about?

This verse reads as follows, "See, for that the LORD hath given you the Sabbath, therefore He giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day." This instruction is part of the narrative of Exodus 16:11-36 that records how God gave the manna in the wilderness and how He connected with this the lesson about the Sabbath day. The people of Israel needed to be reintroduced to the Sabbath because as slaves in Egypt they had largely lost this truth. The fact that the Sabbath truth had been lost while the Israelites were in Egypt is supported by Exodus 5:4, 5 which says:

4 And the king of Egypt said unto them, Wherefore do ye, Moses and Aaron, let the people from their works? get you unto your burdens.

5 And Pharaoh said, Behold, the people of the land now are many, and ye make them rest [Hebrew shabath] from their burdens.

This implies that because of their slavery the Israelites had not been keeping the Sabbath rest (shabath) and that Moses and Aaron had been responsible for telling them to keep it. Thus Pharaoh accused these leaders as he did.

So Exodus 16:29 does not say that the Sabbath was for the nation of Israel only, just that it was reintroduced to them by God at this time. And it needed reintroducing because it had been neglected while they were in Egypt.

To understand Exodus 31:13 we need to get the context of verses 12-17. These verses say:

12 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

13 Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily My Sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the LORD that doth sanctify you.

14 Ye shall keep the Sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you: every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death: for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people.

15 Six days may work be done; but in the seventh is the Sabbath of rest, holy to the LORD: whosoever doeth any work in the Sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death.

16 Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant.

17 It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day He rested, and was refreshed.

Ezekiel 20:12 is very similar to Exodus 31:13 and says,

Moreover also I gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between Me and them, that they might know that I am the LORD that sanctify them.

These passages do not say that the Sabbath was only for the children of Israel or that it was not for all mankind. They simply tell us that the Sabbath is a sign between God and the children of Israel forever. And who are the children of Israel today? They are Christians. "For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter..." "if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise" (Romans 2:28, 29; Galatians 3:29). Since "Jew" and "Abraham’s seed" are both synonymous with the phrase "children of Israel", it is clearly evident from the above passages that Christians are the spiritual children of Israel (or Jacob, as he was earlier called). Luke 1:33 says of Christ, "He shall reign over the house of Jacob [i.e. Israel] for ever; and of His kingdom there shall be no end." Christians are part of this house of Jacob that our Lord will reign over forever. Just as God wants all people to become Christians and be a part of spiritual Israel, so He wants all to enjoy His Sabbath.

There is only one thing in the entire Bible that is described as:

• A "sign between Me [God] and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the LORD that doth sanctify you" (Exodus 31:13) and,
• "a perpetual covenant" (vs. 16) and,
• "a sign between Me and the children of Israel for ever" (vs.17).

And that thing is the Sabbath. It is still a sign for the true children of Israel today who are not Jews outwardly but inwardly through faith in Christ. The Sabbath is therefore relevant, significant and vitally important for all of mankind today.

Some may think that Exodus 31:12-17 cannot be relevant for today because it says that whoever profanes the Sabbath shall "surely be put to death". But we must remember that the death sentence is a civil matter, while the Sabbath is a moral one. The death sentence is no longer applicable for Sabbath-breaking because the Christian church, which took over from the nation of Israel (Matthew 21:43), is not a civil power. For this reason the civil laws applicable to the nation of Israel are no longer in practice. In contrast, the moral law is a perpetual and universal requirement.

Getting back to Question 8, the final sentence says, "Is it true that the Sabbath laws applied only to Gentiles who had met the necessary requirements and joined the nation of Israel?" It then gives the texts of Exodus 12:49 and Numbers 15:16. Exodus 12:49 says, "One law shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among you." Numbers 15:16 says the same thing, but with slightly different words.

These two passages are simply saying that when a foreigner joins the nation he is not to worship God in a manner different from native Israelites. This makes good sense and is not implying that the Sabbath was not for all mankind. Indeed, God's plan was for the nation of Israel to rule the world so that ideally all would eventually know the one true God, get ready for His Messiah and keep His commandments including the Sabbath (see, for example, 1Kings 8:41-43).