Romans 14:5 Esteem One Day Above Another
Often Romans 14 is used to justify observing the Sabbath day on Sunday as opposed to Saturday. Specifically, Romans 14:5
5One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.
What many Christians will state based on Romans 14:5, Paul allows either day based on preference. It is true that at the end of Romans 14:5:
5BLet every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.
However, that is only part of what Paul wrote in Romans 14:5.
In Romans 14:5, Paul does give two possible options. Unfortunately for many, the text does not differentiate between Saturday or Sunday. Again Romans 14:5:
5One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.
Paul is comparing an individual that reveres one day to an individual that reveres all days. This not one day over another. It is one or all days. So what ever was a persons preference, they would still be observing the 7th day Sabbath.
But how can one be sure that Paul is referring to Saturday as the one day as opposed to Sunday that so many call the Lord’s Day?
One can know for certain that it is the 7th day Sabbath. And they do not even need the church fathers to tell them, or to search church history. The Bible is clear what day was observed by the early believers. The proof is in the Bible that believers observed the 4th Commandment by congregating on the 7th day Sabbath. Furthermore, there is no proof whatsoever in the Bible that 1st Century believers ever meet on Sunday.
In Acts 15, after discussing an issue related to non-Jewish born believers, James makes the following statement, Acts 15:21:
21For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day.
James made this statement after the discussion as to what Non-Jewish Born Believers should observe. James said it because they met on the Sabbath Day.
Additionally, although Acts 20:7 is translated as follows:
7And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight.
It is an inaccurate translation. Note that the word Day is in italics. It means that it was not in the original manuscript, it was added by the translators. Further, the Greek words for the phrase First Of The Week is MIA {mee’-ah}(G3391) SABBATON {sab’-bat-on}(G4521).
SABBATON is in the Bible 68 times. It is translated Sabbath 59 times and Week 9 times. The Greek word Sabbaton is derived from the Hebrew Word SHABBATH {shab-bawth’}(H7676). Shabbath is never translated week. As a matter of fact the Hebrew word for Sabbath and Week are very different words. As such, MIA {mee’-ah}(G3391) SABBATON {sab’-bat-on}(G4521) should have been translated first of the Sabbath. Acts 20:7 should have been translated:
7And upon the first of the Sabbath, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight.
The truth is, there is very little justification for the Sunday tradition beyond, it is a tradition. So Paul was not giving an option to not observe a 7th day Sabbath. As for Paul, it was written in Acts 12:2:
2 And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures,
It was Paul’s manner as it was Yeshua’s, Luke 4:16:
16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
In the 1st Century, they were all meeting on the 7th Day Sabbath.