Statement
Some early Jews, including the Dead Sea Scrolls community, concluded that 'keep' the Sabbath in Deuteronomy 5 was a distinct commandment revealed at the same time: the duty was not only to observe the day but to safeguard it by stopping work beforehand so as not to miss its start. The biblical Sabbath began at sunset on Friday, yet by the first century CE many Jews were already laying down their work earlier, around 3 p.m., and what led them to do so was their reading of the command to 'guard' the Sabbath.
Ancient witnesses mentioned by the sourceManuscritos do Mar Morto
References
p. 59
supports · main text · ch. 2
Efron, Lehmann and Weitzman. The Jews: A History. 3rd edition. New York and Abingdon: Routledge, 2019.
Verification anchor recorded · checked against the page text
Scholarly debate
How should the two versions of the Sabbath commandment be understood?
3 positions · no single answer · take a seat →
- A
A doublet from different sources
Modern scholars
The two versions of the Ten Commandments would be one more doublet in the Torah, which combines material from different sources.
- B
Two messages spoken at once
Mekhilta of Rabbi Ishmael (rabbis)
'Remember' and 'keep' would have been said by God as one word, a feat impossible for mortals, showing that the Torah exceeds ordinary human speech.
- C
A separate command: safeguard the Sabbath
Members of the Dead Sea Scrolls community
'Keep' in Deuteronomy 5 would be another command revealed at the same time: stop working before the Sabbath so as not to risk missing its start.