Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“When it began to be dark at the gates of Jerusalem before the sabbath, I commanded that the doors should be shut and gave orders that they should not be opened until after the sabbath. And I set some of my servants over the gates, to prevent any burden from being brought in on the sabbath day.”
NL Daily Devotion for Saturday, September 9, 2023
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
This was to prevent merchants from coming and going on the sabbath. Before this action was taken, Nehemiah laments, “In those days I saw in Judah people treading wine presses on the sabbath, and bringing in heaps of grain and loading them on donkeys; and also wine, grapes, figs, and all kinds of burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on the sabbath day.” (Nehemiah 13:15) In order to combat this, and hold the sabbath sacred, the gates were shut tight and anyone who complained was told to go away and come back after the sabbath. It wasn’t long before the merchants gave up trying, and the sabbath was reclaimed.
We, too, can set boundaries in our lives in order to hold sabbath rest sacred. It takes work—it’s so easy to be caught up in our need to go go go, or our fears of losing out in some way because we stopped striving. We can make a concerted effort to shut the doors on our constant comings and goings, even setting guards on the gates—perhaps friends to hold us accountable?—so that we are not tempted to try to sneak through. When I do this, I find such reward in rest, and I am renewed to go forward after the sabbath and do whatever is needed for the rest of my life.
How do I set boundaries around rest to ensure I get what I need?
