16
Thereforeª let no one judge you in eating¹ and in drinking²: either³ whenª partakingº
of a feastⁿ or new moon¹ or Sabbaths²
(MISB: Col. 2:16):
http://www.torahtimes.org/NewTranslation/BasicBooks/colossians.html#2:16
http://www.torahtimes.org/NewTranslation/bibleframe.html
a. The first task of any scripture explanation is to make sure the translation is correct. That is done here in the MISB. The notes explain why this literal translation supports Torah observers, why it is correct, and why it does not get Sunday Churchgoers (i.e. Sabbath breakers) a get out of jail free card from divine displeasure.
1. The word means “as an action eating” (Friberg). The translation “food” or “meat” tends to mislead Christians into thinking that it was the kind of food that was meant. This is not so. It was the act of eating itself, as opposed to fasting, or eating minimal meals. Verse 21 shows this to be the case, and later Church history proves that the heresy Paul countered was fasting on the Sabbath, and the ordering of the faithful to desecrate the Sabbath by fasting on it, which was the first step in causing the Sabbath to become a day of gloom. The Sabbath is a day of redemption, redemption of the body, and of the resurrection of Messiah
2. “The action of drinking” (Friberg, BDAG). It is not what is drunk, but the idea of enjoyable drinks along with good eating that they were objecting to.
3. either BDAG whither LSJ whether BDAG
a. in; while; during; The preposition εν introduces the sphere or times frames in which the judging of eating and drinking was taking place. The judging was not a direct judging of feast days, new moon, or sabbaths: it was a judging of eating and drinking during these times. The judgers were abstaining while the faithful were eating and drinking in joyful observance of the holy days.
ο. part BDAG; share BDAG; portion LSJ; have a share in TDNT The non literal translation “respect of” or “regard to” adopted by translators prejudiced in favor of Sunday serves only to reinforce their opinion that the heretics were judging non-sabbath observance. Staying true to the literal sense of “part”, “share” shows that nothing is further from the truth. The heretics were only judging eating and drinking itself, which was the sharing and partaking of food and drink on holy days observed by the faithful.
n. feast: Passover, Shavuot, Yom Teruah, and Sukkot were scripturally legislated times of feasting and rejoicing. It was Gnostics that believed they should deprive the body who imposed asceticism on the faithful, which concept was later adopted by Rome when it imposed fasting on the Sabbath.
1. A minor scriptural holy day, typically observed by having a special meal. One reason for the feast was to keep one conscious of the biblical calendar as the new moon occured when the new sliver of the moon first became visible.
2. These would be the regular seventh day Sabbaths of the year. Some Sabbath observers have suggested that these are festival sabbaths because they do not observe them and wish to explain this verse with some resemblance to the anti-Sabbath Sunday heretics. But they were deceived and did not investigate the lies of their prejudiced translations enough. It is quite evident that festival sabbaths are included under the term “feast” several words back in this sentence.