Originally posted by Russ Kelly:
Mark 2:27 The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath.
Mark 2:27 (Greek) Ta sabaton dia ton anthropon egeneto, kai ouch ho anthropos dia ton sabbaton. (Literally) The sabbath for the man (singular) came to be, and not the man (singular) for the sabbath.
Very good -
The "making of mankind" and the "making of Sabbath" are both reference here.
That is obvious and admitted to by all Bible Scholars.
There is no doubt that the MAKING of mankind is a reference to the human species NOT to "the MAKING of a Jew".
NO Bible commentator tries to reduce "Making of MAN" referenced in Mark 2 to the "MAKING of a Jew"
So all agree on the context and therefore the content. Anthropos is "mankind" in Mark 2 just as the Bible commentaries quoted here have shown.
No other option is even possible.
First, when anthropos is generically translated as "man," "mankind" or "flesh," then no specific article "the" is required in Greek. With the article, one specific man is usually intended.
This is in error as all Bible commentaries and all scholars agree that "The Sabbath was MADE for MAN and not MANKIND (made) for the Sabbath" is an explicit reference to the MAKING of BOTH where the "making of MAN" is not simply "some Jew".
God gave the Sabbath to national Israel as a sign of their Old Covenant relationship, AIt is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever@ (Ex. 31:13, 17). At the same time God commanded Israel not to share their covenant and Sabbath with other nations (Ex. 23:32; Deut. 7:1-6).
That speculation is explicitly rejected in Isaiah 56
Is 56
4 For thus says the LORD, ""To the eunuchs who keep My sabbaths, And choose what pleases Me, And hold fast My covenant,
5 To them I will give in My house and within My walls a memorial, And a name better than that of sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name which will not be cut off.
6 ""Also the FOREIGNERS who join themselves to the LORD, To minister to Him, and to love the name of the LORD, To be His servants, every one who keeps from profaning THE Sabbath And holds fast My covenant;
Your view by contrast is "Another gospel" that denies the OT command to the Jews to go out and evangelize AND ignores the "God so Loved the World" fact of the Gospel in the OT.
But as we learn in Heb 4:1-2 this ONE gospel was "preached to US JUST as it was to THEM ALSO"
Since Athey@ were Jews, then, the question concerned only the Hebrew man who is under the Law!
This is totally bogus as the "making of man" NEVER equates to "the making of a JEW" in all of scripture!
What is worse - Christ also references the fact of Marriage from the SAME chapter in Gen 2 saying "FOR This reason shall a man leave his home" -- Spoken to a "Jewish audience" again.
Your attempt to recast all the Gospel statements of Christ as being "to Jews only" would make Marriage ITSELF apply to Jews ONLY!
These are merely straw man attempts to avoid the obvious in the MArk 2 text.
As I pointed out in the commentaries quoted - comments from non-Sabbath keeping Bible scholars - The FACT of the reference to Mankind is a fact that is accepted far beyond the realm of "Adventists".
The FACT of Anthropos as FIRST and FOREMOST a reference to MANKIND is also given here
http://www.searchgodsword.org/isb/bible.cgi?query=Mark+2%3A27§ion=0&it=nas&oq=Luke%25209%3A26&ot=bhs&nt=na&new=1&nb=lu&ng=9&ncc=9
(Another non-SDA reference eh?).
By claiming that "only SDAS would know that Anthropos" is a reference to mankind - to man as the species of mankind - you expose yourself to being easily debunked.
The Pharisees would not have asked Jesus this question if "they" were Gentiles who were not under the Law! If this is the correct logic, then the answer would be: "The sabbath was made for the Hebrew man [who is under the law], and the Hebrew man was not made for the Sabbath."
That "would have been" a great scripture. But NEVER is "Anthropos" translated "Just Hebrew men" or "HEbrew men only" or even "Hebrew men".
No translator makes that blunder and no Bible commentary would be expected to either.
In other words NOT ONLY is that mistake going to be missing from Adventist reviews of Mark 2 - it will also NOT be a mistake made by non-SDA Commentaries or respected Bible scholars in Mark 2!! (At least not in a number I can see out there today).
But the other obvious and even more devastating proof against that "Sabbath is never thought of for gentiles" idea posted here - is the fact of Acts 13 and GEntiles showing up for "SAbbath after Sabbath services" as well as the Acts 15 remark that these people are hearing Moses in church "every Sabbath".
Jesus was THE Second Adam (which means man), THE Messiah, and THE Representative Man. He was the One who first rested on the first Sabbath and all things were created by Him and FOR Him (Col. 1:16). This would make Mark 2:27 say "The Sabbath came into existence for THE MAN [Jesus Christ] and [Jesus Christ] THE MAN did not come into existence [as a man] for the Sabbath."
Again this is a twist - though at least more within the realm of reason.
The text does not simply say "Come into existence" the fact of "MADE" is a definite reference to a Creative act. As you seem to be willing to admit that Christ HIMSELF is the Creator then it is obvious that the MAKING is done BY Christ.
So it is Christ the Creator who MAKES MANKIND and it is Christ the Creator that MAKES His OWN creation memorial in Gen 2:3!
(Hence Creation week is SEVEN days not six).
On that day He not only rests - but He also SANCTIFIES, blesses and makes it Holy accord to the text of Gen 2:3 AND according to the RECOUNTING of that event that is given in Exodus 20:8-11.
The Greek word for "made" is egeneto, the passive form of "to be" and is better translated as "was being" or "came into being."
NO translator would do such a thing!
The Translations from KJV to NASB all agree that the term is more accurately "MADE" and can not be "a passive act where Christ is not involved".
Your own option 3 required us to view all of this as literally MADE by the Creator - Christ!
You can not have it "both ways".
What is interesting is that in your "conclusion" of the 4 possible ways you never give the one that all the Bible commentators quoted here are showing (non SDA commentators by the way) and you do not even seem to like the BIBLE translators themselves on this one - preferring your own rendering.
That is a lot of "rewriting" just to get out of the text sir.
In Christ,
Bob