When Does a Day Begin?

Some contend that while the Jewish Sabbath is the seventh day of the week, the Christian Sabbath is the first day, or Sunday. Others believe that the Sabbath is on the seventh day for everyone. To further complicate things, some claim that, biblically, days don’t begin in the evening but instead begin in the morning—thus, even the Sabbath should start on Saturday morning instead of Friday evening at sundown. What day is the Christian Sabbath? Do biblical days begin in the evening or the morning? And why does any of this matter?

Notice how, in Genesis, God repeatedly defines days as having two parts: the evening, the dark portion of the day, comes first, and then the morning, the light portion, follows (Genesis 1:8, 13, 19, et al.). Thus, we see that a full “day,” according to the Bible, begins at sunset and ends at the next sunset. This is important because it helps us understand when Sabbaths begin. Continuing in the account, Genesis 2 explains that after the sixth day had ended with the start of the evening, beginning the seventh day, God rested and “blessed the seventh day and made it holy” (Genesis 2:2–3, English Standard Version).

The Sabbath remains holy time. The Fourth Commandment begins, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8–11). On the Sabbath, followers of God also rest from their regular work and assemble to worship Him (Leviticus 23:2–3; Hebrews 10:25). As Exodus 31:13, Ezekiel 20:12, and other passages state, God’s Sabbaths are signs between Him and His people.

In many of those passages, it is instructive that God uses the plural word Sabbaths, because the weekly seventh-day Sabbath is not the only such day that serves as a sign. Leviticus 23 lists several annual Holy Days, which are also Sabbaths—each one a “holy convocation” and a sign between God and His people. Since God defines a day as beginning in the evening, the Holy Days also run “evening to evening,” as is noted regarding the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 23:32).

Of course, ancient Israel continually profaned God’s Sabbaths, and so He punished them (Ezekiel 20:16–24). Instructively, when Ezra and Nehemiah were restoring proper temple worship in Jerusalem, Nehemiah specifically commanded the people to be careful to observe the weekly Sabbath, and he specifically reminded them that the Sabbath begins in the evening (Nehemiah 13:19).

The Bible’s clear testimony is that God defines the day as beginning in the evening, that the seventh-day Sabbath is from sunset on Friday evening to sunset on Saturday evening, and that the annual Holy Day Sabbaths also begin in the evening. Furthermore, Scripture reveals that God’s Sabbaths are “signs” for all “who join themselves to the Lord, to serve Him” (Isaiah 56:6–8). It is also clear that Jesus Christ kept the Sabbath holy, as did His Apostles (Mark 6:2; Luke 4:16; Acts 13:42–44; 17:2).

God has the same laws for the Israelite and for the non-Israelite (Exodus 12:49), and in the New Covenant, there is no distinction between the two (Romans 10:12; Galatians 3:26–29; Colossians 3:11). So, whatever nationality we are, those who accept Christ as Lord will strive to “walk just as He walked” (1 John 2:6). All true Christians today strive to imitate Christ in observing God’s Sabbaths, just as they strive to imitate Christ in all other aspects of their lives (1 Corinthians 11:1).

For a much deeper study about the Christian Sabbath, please read or request our free booklet Which Day Is the Christian Sabbath? It explains how the Sabbath should be observed, reviews the fascinating history of how the ancient Catholic church attempted to “change” the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday, and demonstrates how the seventh-day Sabbath—from Friday evening to Saturday evening—remains in effect for God’s people today.