But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thine ox, nor thine ass, nor any of thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates; that thy manservant and thy maidservant may rest as well as thou.
But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD your God. On that day you must not do any work—not you, your son, your daughter, your male or female servants, your ox, your donkey, any of your livestock, or the foreigner living in your town. This way your servants can rest just like you do.
God is commanding that everyone—including servants, animals, and foreigners—gets to rest on the Sabbath day, showing His care for all people regardless of their social status.
📚 Historical Context
Moses was reminding the Israelites of the Ten Commandments as they prepared to enter the Promised Land. This command about the Sabbath was revolutionary for its time because it required masters to give their servants the same rest they enjoyed. In ancient Near Eastern cultures, slaves and servants typically worked every day without rest.
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