Matthew 12:1-8
At that time Jesus went through the cornfields on the Sabbath; his disciples were hungry, and they began to pluck heads of grain and to eat. When the Pharisees saw it, they said to him, “Look, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath.” He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He entered the house of God and ate the bread of the Presence, which it was not lawful for him or his companions to eat, but only for the priests. Or have you not read in the law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple break the Sabbath and yet are guiltless? I tell you, something greater than the temple is here. But if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless. For the Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.”
It helps to know just a little bit about the Sabbath in order to understand the next two scenes of this story.
Sabbath law commanded absolute rest, which meant that even menial or minor work was prohibited. Why? Because all people need and deserve rest. And because such laws stood against the laws of the oppressors (in Israel’s history, Egypt) who give no rest. And because if God doesn’t command it, too many will not take it or, more likely, deprive others of rest.
Sabbath law, that is, was ordained for the protection and flourishing of God’s people.
But as with all law, it is easy to define one’s obedience, and even one’s righteousness, by keeping the letter of the law rather than working to achieve its original intent and spirit. And that’s part of what Jesus suggests has happened in his day, a theme we will see more clearly in the next scene. Just now, Jesus is asserting something else, something quite remarkable. There are exceptions to the law, you see. Exceptions like the one made to King David – Israel’s greatest king – and to the priests – those set aside to minister in God’s holy temple. And right now, Jesus says, before your very eyes, something even greater is happening, something that deserves another exception to the law.
Wait a minute, I imagine Jesus’ audience of Pharisees saying, did Jesus just say that he is greater than the priests and even than King David?!? Yeah, that is exactly what Jesus is saying, as he goes on to announce that he, the Son of Man, is lord of the Sabbath.
Suddenly it’s easier to see some of the reasons for the growing antagonism between Jesus and the religious rulers of his time. But this scene is actually about more than an assertion of authority or growing tension. Because Jesus declares himself not just “lord” in general, but “lord of the Sabbath.” The one who not only has authority over the Sabbath but also the one who has authority for the Sabbath; the one, that is, who will achieve the purpose of the Sabbath and bring it to fulfillment. Recall, for a moment, Jesus’ words at the close of the previous scene: “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Jesus is the one and only place weary souls find actual rest – the rest of contentment and acceptance and forgiveness and grace. For this reason is he lord of the Sabbath, for he is the One who breaks it in order to keep it, who remembers its intent and fulfills it, who accomplishes its end more fully than all the laws of the Sabbath ever could.
“Come,” Jesus says to those hungry disciples. “Come,” he says to those forgetful Pharisees. “Come,” he says as well to all of us. “Come to me, all you who are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.”
Prayer: Dear God, you consistently call us to life, love, and wholeness. Help us hear your call to Sabbath rest…and respond. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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