Editing Shabbat (section)

===Hebrew Bible===
{{Main|Biblical Sabbath}}

Sabbath is given special status as a holy day at the very beginning of the [[Torah]] in Genesis 2:1-3.<ref>{{Bibleverse||Genesis|2:1–3|HE}}</ref> It is first commanded after [[The Exodus]] from Egypt, in Exodus 16:26<ref>{{Bibleverse||Exodus|16:26|HE}}</ref> (relating to the cessation of [[manna]]) and in Exodus 16:29<ref>{{Bibleverse||Exodus|16:29|HE}}</ref> (relating to the distance one may [[Biblical mile|travel by foot]] on the Sabbath), as also in Exodus 20:8-11<ref>{{Bibleverse||Exodus|20:8–11|HE}}</ref> (as one of the [[Ten Commandments]]). Sabbath is commanded and commended many more times in the Torah and [[Tanakh]]; double the normal number of animal [[korban|sacrifices]] are to be offered on the day.<ref>''Every Person's Guide to Shabbat'', by Ronald H. Isaacs, Jason Aronson, 1998, p. 6</ref> Sabbath is also described by the prophets [[Isaiah]], [[Jeremiah]], [[Ezekiel]], [[Hosea]], [[Amos (prophet)|Amos]], and [[Nehemiah]].

[[File:Шабатна кибритна кутија - Shabbat matchbox holder.jpg|right|thumb|A silver matchbox holder for Shabbat from [[North Macedonia]] ]]
The longstanding Jewish position is that unbroken seventh-day Shabbat originated among the Jewish people, as their first and most sacred institution.<ref name=landau>{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/stream/sabbath00land/sabbath00land_djvu.txt|title=The Sabbath|author=Landau, Judah Leo|publisher=Ivri Publishing Society, Ltd |access-date= 2009-03-26|location=[[Johannesburg, South Africa]]|pages=2, 12}}</ref> The origins of Shabbat and a seven-day week are not clear to scholars; the [[Moses |Mosaic]] tradition claims an origin from the Genesis creation narrative.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pcea.org.au/articles/the_westminster_confession/the_origin_of_the_sabbath/|title=The Origin of the Sabbath|author=Graham, I. L.|publisher=[[Presbyterian Church of Eastern Australia]]|date=2009 |access-date= 2009-03-26 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081203162529/http://www.pcea.org.au/articles/the_westminster_confession/the_origin_of_the_sabbath/ |archive-date= December 3, 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |chapter-url= http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/303554/Jewish-religious-year/34908/The-Sabbath|title=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]|chapter=Jewish religious year: The Sabbath|date=2009 |access-date= 2009-03-26|publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica Online|quote=According to biblical tradition, it commemorates the original seventh day on which God rested after completing the creation. Scholars have not succeeded in tracing the origin of the seven-day week, nor can they account for the origin of the Sabbath.}}</ref>

The first non-Biblical reference to Sabbath is in an [[ostracon]] found in excavations at [[Mesad Hashavyahu]], which has been dated to approximately 630 BCE.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cojs.org/cojswiki/Mezad_Hashavyahu_Ostracon%2C_c._630_BCE|title=Mezad Hashavyahu Ostracon, c. 630 BCE |access-date=2012-09-12 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130130125324/http://www.cojs.org/cojswiki/Mezad_Hashavyahu_Ostracon%2C_c._630_BCE |archive-date= 2013-01-30}}</ref>