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By using the preparation day properly we will be able to enter the Sabbath in a spirit of re-
joicing and worship toward YEHOVAH.

Now let us briefly discuss some specific questions which arise in regard to the Sabbath.

Fire on the Sabbath

Many wonder about Exodus 35:3. Should a fire be kindled on the Sabbath day? If not, how
can one prepare a simple meal? What about people in very cold climates? Can't they build a fire to
keep warm?

Let's notice Exodus 35:3 and its context. This scripture says: "Ye shall kindle no fire
throughout your habitations on the Sabbath day." The original Hebrew word for "kindle" means to
prepare a consuming flame, a flame that would devour -- that is, a fire! The question is, why men-
tion such a fire in connection with the Sabbath?

Read the context of chapter 35 and you will see. The Israelites were building the taberna-
cle and needed a fire large enough to work metal. The Israelites were so zealous for building the
tabernacle, that Moses had to tell them to stop bringing unneeded materials for its construction.
And YEHOVAH knew that if He did not stop them, the Israelites would work right through the
Sabbath on the tabernacle.

This was not a cooking or household heating fire. This had nothing to do with personal
cooking -- with turning on your kitchen stove. It was an industrial fire.

On the other hand, fires of the proper type were commanded by YEHOVAH to be kept
burning. Notice Leviticus 6:13: "The fire shall ever be burning upon the altar; it shall never go
out." Here is a sacrificial fire (from which the priests in the wilderness cooked their meat) re-
mained burning on the Sabbath.

In Exodus 35:3 YEHOVAH God was not referring to a cooking, sacrificial or personal
heating fire -- but rather, a fire which is used for work that should be done only on the other six
days of the week. It is certainly permissible to light a fire for heat in wintry weather or to warm up
food.

Sabbath Travel

What about traveling on the Sabbath? Some people are confused about the meaning of "a
Sabbath day's journey" found in Acts 1:12. This was a custom and tradition of the Jews. It is not a
Biblical command of any sort. The rabbis tried to legislate exactly how far a person could legally
walk on the Sabbath. The distance they arrived at was 2,000 cubits -- which is about three quarters
of a mile. Anyone who traveled more than this distance on the Sabbath became guilty of breaking
the Sabbath in their eyes.

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