The Biblical Chaldee word for Sabbath comes from the word “shavat,” which means “ceased”. We are to cease from our work (occupational / gainful working) on weekly Sabbaths and annual Holy Days.
Do these texts suggest we can’t cook on the Sabbath?
There are no explicit statements in Scripture that say we cannot cook on the Sabbath. If you are a cook and your job is cooking then, no cooking FOR PAY. But, what we are ceasing from is gainful work; Cooking your own food is not your occupation through which you earn a living or any money.
And Moses said to them, Is not this the word which the Lord spoke? To-morrow is the sabbath, a holy rest to the Lord: bake that ye will bake, and seethe that ye will seethe, and all that is over leave to be laid by for the morrow.
Exodus 16:23 Brenton LXX
Notice it doesn’t say bake ALL of it so you do not have to bake tomorrow. It says bake what you will and boil (seethe) what you will, and what is left (what you have not cooked) keep for tomorrow. They were being allowed to keep extra for tomorrow, whereas on other days of the week they were not to do that or it would spoil.
Also, notice it doesn’t say “cook all the food” and the rest keep for tomorrow. The Israelites would get up on Friday morning and gather breakfast, lunch, and dinner for TWO days. They probably prepared each meal before meal time like we do today, and all over the world for thousands of years…
So, it also doesn’t say, ‘take the cooked food you didn’t eat’ and keep for tomorrow’.
I would like to share with you a very important biblical principal, it basically says: Where there is no Law, then No Laws apply.
“Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression.”~Romans 4:15 KJV
“Manna” means “what is it”
The argument here is, if all the food is not cooked then it will turn to worms and stink.
And Moses said to them, Let no man leave of it till the morning. But they did not hearken to Moses, but some left of it till the morning; and it bred worms and stank: and Moses was irritated with them.
Exodus 16:19-20 Brenton LXX
First of all, nobody knows what “WHAT IS IT” is…not even the people who ate it. Secondly, Manna is a miracle in itself. The fact that it fell from heaven and would evaporate when it got hot…and for some UNKNOWN reason it, miraculously, did not turn to worms and stink on the Sabbath day! If it didn’t stink and turn to worms because they cooked it. Otherwise, they could just cook it on ANY day. No, Sabbath was and is different from other days.
To make a claim, like you know, without any shadow of a doubt, ALL the food was cooked on Friday night, has got to be the most eisegetical eisegesis that ever was to be eisegeted.
Lets compare with the next verse:
And the first day shall be called holy, and the seventh day shall be a holy convocation to you: ye shall do no servile work on them, only as many things as will necessarily be done by every soul, this only shall be done by you.
Exodus 12:16 Brenton LXX
Verse 16 confirms that no one goes to work on a high day, but of course you have to eat and for that you may do the preparation of your food (without paid cooks or paid servers, of course).
I do not think that Yahuwah made arbitrary rules for us; we must be careful how we evaluate all related scriptures on a subject. Adding rules just to be safe is not acceptable, thats what the wicked Pharisees did. Scripture says do NOT to add or take away from Torah (Yahuwahs’ guidance, direction, and teaching); see Deuteronomy 4:2.