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In this short article, I'm going to suggest that the Creator and Designer of mankind deliberately designed the Shabbat (Sabbath) FOR mankind (Mark 2:27) ...in such a way that it would have much leeway for observance... so long as rest and set-apart gathering are BOTH accomplished. Rest and no gathering is probably not the original design and purpose. Gathering and no rest is also likely and equally not the original design and purpose. Indeed, even science and logic have concluded that both rest and fellowship are critical to our overall health.

I've grown to approach this subject the way many Karaites do (although I'm not a Karaite per se). I ask myself, what do the Holy Scriptures actually say... and are we guilty of adding commandments to the Torah (Deut 4:2,12:32)? Basically, Shabbat boils down to two things: rest (ceasing from work) and set-apart gathering. In ancient Hebrew agri-CULTURE, the only days farming families had to rest were Shabbat and Seasonal Festivals (Leviticus 23). The other days were designed for and consumed with laborious work and very little restful fellowship (modern farm-life is often consumed this way as well, especially during certain seasons).

Verses of Consideration:

Genesis 2:2-3
(2)  And on the seventh day Elohim completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had made.
(3)  And Elohim blessed the seventh day and set it apart, because on it He rested from all His work which Elohim in creating had made.

Leviticus 23:3 - ‘Six days work is done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, a set-apart gathering. You do no work, it is a Sabbath to יהוה in all your dwellings.

Exodus 20:8-11 (similar to Exodus 23:12 and Deuteronomy 5:14)
(8)  “Remember the Sabbath day, to set it apart.
(9)  “Six days you labour, and shall do all your work,
(10)  but the seventh day is a Sabbath of יהוה your Elohim. You do not do any work – you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. Footnote: 1There are other Sabbaths, but this is the weekly Sabbath.
(11)  “For in six days יהוה made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore יהוה blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart.

Exodus 16:29  “See, because יהוה has given you the Sabbath, therefore He is giving you bread for two days on the sixth day. Let each one stay in his place, do not let anyone go out of his place on the seventh day.”

Can I leave my home on Shabbat?

One should make a special note that the Hebrew word for House [Beit / H1004] is not actually used in the following passage, hence we shouldn't interpret or perceive the passage in regards to an individual "home".

Exodus 16:29 - See,^H7200 for^H3588 that יהוה ^H3068 hath given^H5414 you the sabbath,^H7676 therefore^{H5921 H3651} he^H1931 giveth^H5414 you on the sixth^H8345 day^H3117 the bread^H3899 of two days;^H3117 abide^H3427 ye every man^H376 in his place,^H8478 let no^H408 man^H376 go out^H3318 of his place^{H4480 H4725} on the seventh^H7637 day.^H3117

H8478
תּחת
tachath
takh'-ath
BDB Definition:
1) the under part, beneath, instead of, as, for, for the sake of, flat, unto, where, whereas
1a) the under part (noun masculine)
1b) beneath (adverbial accusative)
1c) under, beneath (preposition)
1c1) at the foot of (idiom)
1c2) sweetness, subjection, woman, being burdened or oppressed (figuratively)
1c3) of subjection or conquest
1d) what is under one, the place in which one stands (noun masculine)
1d1) in one’s place, the place in which one stands (idiom with reflexive pronoun)
1d2) in place of, instead of (in transferred sense)
1d3) in place of, in exchange or return for (of things mutually interchanged)
1e) instead of, instead of that (conjunction)
1f) in return for that, because that (conjunction)
1g) in, under, into the place of (after verbs of motion) (in compounds)
1h) from under, from beneath, from under the hand of, from his place, under, beneath
Part of Speech: see above in Definition
A Related Word by BDB/Strong’s Number: from the same as H8430
Same Word by TWOT Number: 2504

H4725
מקום  /  מקמה  /  מקומה  /  מקם
mâqôm  /  meqômâh
(1,2) maw-kome', (3,4) mek-o-mah'
BDB Definition:
1) standing place, place
1a) standing place, station, post, office
1b) place, place of human abode
1c) city, land, region
1d) place, locality, spot
1e) space, room, distance
1f) region, quarter, direction
1g) give place to, instead of
Part of Speech: noun masculine
A Related Word by BDB/Strong’s Number: from H6965
Same Word by TWOT Number: 1999h

For H4725, the Strong's Concordance says this: "From H6965; properly a standing, that is, a spot; but used widely of a locality (generally or specifically); also (figuratively) of a condition (of body or mind): - country, X home, X open, place, room, space, X whither [-soever]."

Could Exodus 16:29 be speaking of a Place of Restfulness in Body and Mind?

Melech ben Ya'aqov from Karaite Insights has this to say regarding the question: "Can I Leave My House on the Shabbat?"

In Exodus 16 the children of Israel begin, for the first time, to receive man (manna) from heaven. Though they are told to collect a double portion on Friday and then rest from collecting on the Shabbat, certain Israelites (stubborn as we traditionally are) decide to go out to collect manna even on the Shabbat, but do not find any. Moshe, in response to this incident, reiterates to the children of Israel, "Look, because Yehowah has given you the Shabbat, on Friday he gives you a portion for two days. So let each person stay near his home, and nobody should go out from his place on the seventh day." [Exodus 16:29]

From this verse, the Rabbis have developed the idea of תחום שבת (Shabbat area), a region of approximately 3,000 feet from one's home, beyond which a person is not allowed to walk on the Shabbat. Certain Karaites (fortunately, a very small minority) have taken this idea a step farther and will not even go out of their houses on the Shabbat. (I once even met a man who calls himself a Karaite who would not get out of his bed for the entire Shabbat!)

Both the Rabbanites at large and the few Karaites who give these verses extreme interpretations have forgotten a basic principle of scriptural interpretation: all verses must be evaluated within their textual context. If we look at the context of Exodus 16:29, we see that Moshe is not admonishing the children of Israel, in general terms, to remain near their homes on the Shabbat. Rather, it is in the context of the very specific situation of the Israelites wandering off to gather the mannah on the Shabbat.

To see Melech's full article in context, go here: What is the Shabbat?

In a very real sense, the Israelites left their "place of restfulness" in Exodus 16 and it was for this they were corrected, not for leaving their house as we assume. The context is very clear. They went outside to pickup Manna on the 7th day when they were not suppose to be working and they were specifically told to pick up enough for two days on the morning of the 6th day.

I personally like to stay home, rest, and study the Scriptures in peace and quite during Shabbat (at least for most of the day), but there are occasions where very dear friends gather to fellowship on Shabbat at another families home and I feel compelled with joy to spend time with them (and feel no guilt in leaving my home). Largely, this freedom is derived from the many times Yeshua (Jesus) is depicted being at the synagogue on Shabbat with His disciples (Mark 1:21, Mark 6:2, Luke 4:16, and Luke 6:6) or outside of his house during Shabbat (Matthew 12:1, Luke 13:14, John 5:16, and John 9:14). He was often accused of working on Shabbat based upon the definition of work by the Rabbinic system, but He would answer with things like: "Is it lawful on the sabbath days to do good, or to do evil? to save life, or to destroy it?" So apparently, Yeshua did not see His actions as transgressing the instructions of Exodus 16:29. 

Rest from Work and Set-Apart Gathering - the 2 Keys of Shabbat

From all that has been discussed so far, we can certainly determine that REST and GATHERING are the two primary instructions of Shabbat. We see that Yeshua attended Shabbat gatherings outside of his home, hence it was okay to leave one's house on Shabbat. For further proof of this, we've seen that Leviticus 23:3 even says Shabbat is a day of set-apart gathering... so... there must be some issue of BALANCE to consider on this subject. It can be assumed that the synagogues that Yeshua visited on Shabbat were very likely local gathering places that did not take a great deal of effort to reach.

There is actually a Jewish "oral instruction" to not walk more than 2,000 cubits (3,049.5 feet, 0.596 miles, 960 meters) from the edge of a town on Shabbat.

Erubin 42a - Said R. Na'hman in the name of Samuel: "If one went out and did not know the legal distance he could traverse, he may walk on for a distance of two thousand medium steps. This will constitute the lawful limit of the Sabbath."

This was of course a Rabbinic innovation... one in which we have no real evidence of Yeshua's conformity or divergence. However, we can more than safely assume Yeshua both rested AND took part in set-apart gatherings on Shabbat... likely within some local norm of a Sabbath day's journey (Acts 1:12)... which may or may not have been as specific as R. Na'hman (seen above) or other detailed innovations (see The Shabbat Limit on Travel).

Ultimately, the Father is the One who knows our heart, intentions, and motives... and it is He Who will judge us each on how we observe His Shabbat instructions. Ultimately, we should seek His Ruakh's wisdom and understanding for application in our individual lives (which are all made up of varying complexity and difficulty).

What if I live in a "Place" where no one celebrates Shabbat?

In the future, the Remnant of Israel and Judah will be regathered to the Land of Israel and we will certainly ALL have a place to gather in restful fellowship, but many within the current scattered Remnant are without like-minded community of any kind. What are they to do? I've also been in this situation and it is more difficult for some families and some personalities within families to cope with than with others. Some may find online fellowship as a means to gather in a virtual way. Some may find the gathering of just a small family (e.g., husband and wife) within their own home to be sufficient. There are definitely some individuals out there who are completely alone. That person should seek the Father's help and provision in finding like-minded family and/or friends... which is ultimately what we all must and should do regardless. We should also remember that what we are currently experiencing is not an eternal state. Eventually, we will be gathered to the Land of Promise... and we will re-make the Garden together... and will rest and fellowship there in Safety! We indeed have much to look forward to, but until then, we must endure this time of transition, loneliness, misunderstandings, and persecutions.

Shalom mishpacha,
Hanok ben-Isaak

Related Links:

• What is the meaning of "Shabbat Shalom"?
• Etymology of the word "Torah"