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The Shorter Catechism,
Six days for labour are on thee bestow'd,
The seventh's the Sabbath of the Lord thy God;
In it no work whatever shall be done
By thee, thy servant, daughter, or thy son;
Or by thy cattle, or thy stranger guest;
All that's within thy gates from work shall rest.
For in six days the Lord to heav'n and earth,
To sea, and all that in them is, gave birth,
And ceas'd the seventh ; wherefore he saw meet
To bless the Sabbath-day, and hallow it.
Q. What doth the fourth command from us require?58
A. The keeping holy, at our God's desire,
Those days he hath appointed in his word,
And one in seven completely to the Lord a.
a Lev. xix. 30. Deut. v. 12.
Q. Which of the seven hath God expressly blest,59
And set apart to be a day of rest?
A. From earth's creation to that period when
Our Saviour from the grave arose again,
Jehovah did the seventh day record
To be the weekly Sabbath of the Lord a;
The first day since shall be, through every clime,
The Christian Sabbath to the end of time b.
a Gen, ii. 3. b Acts xx. 7. Rev. i. 10.
Q. How should mankind the Sabbath holy keep?60
A. By pray'r and praise, and meditation deep a;
And resting wholly ev'n from work or play,
That lawful is on any other day b;
Yet must we not refuse what from our hand
Necessity or mercy may demand c.
a Psal. xcii. 1, 2. b. Lev. xxiii. 3. c Matt. xii, 11, 12
Q. What doth the fourth forbid ? A. Or to omit,61
Or ill perf the duties shown in it a ;
Or to profane the consecrated day,
By idly squand'ring precious time away;
Or by bad actions b, or whatever brings
Us needless thoughts or words of worldly things c.
a. Matt. i. 13. b Ezek. xxiii. 38. c Isa. lviii. 13.
