Meaning of the Word “Shabbat”

Question

Please answer for me the meaning of the word Sabbath (Shabbat) in Hebrew.

I have read that “Sha” means “The Eternal One,” “Ab” is the root word for “Abba” or Father, and “bath” or “beth” means “house of” or “sign of,” which would give the meaning of the word Sabbath as = “Sign of the Eternal Father.”

Is this right? And if not, please correct where it is wrong. For instance, could it be “bat” or “bet” instead of “bath”/”beth”?

Thank you!

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Answers

  1. The Just Ask! - AskTheRabbi.org Team

    What you write sounds absolutely intriguing but I have never heard of such an idea before. The classic interpretation of the word Shabbat is that it is comes from the word “Lishbot,” which means “to cease work.”

    In Modern Hebrew, the word “Lishbot” means “to strike”! It is also closely related to the word “Lashevet,” which means “to sit.”

    However, there is a deeper connotation to the word Shabbat: It is rooted in the Hebrew word “LaShuv,” which means “to return.” Shabbat is the day when we down tools and return to a more spiritual existence. In effect, during the week we include God in our more mundane activities, but on Shabbat we return to a more spiritual state of being and join together with God in the His Realms.

    Best wishes from the AskTheRabbi.org Team