What does Luke 6:5 mean?
The Pharisees have called out Jesus' disciples for plucking and eating grain heads on the Sabbath. To do so violates the Pharisees' manmade oral law. Jesus has pointed out that according to that line of reasoning, David didn't merely break the law, he obliterated it (Luke 6:1–4).Keeping the Sabbath is one of the Ten Commandments:
"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy" (Exodus 20:8–11).Jesus is saying the Pharisees have abused the law of the Sabbath. They are subjecting God's will to their made-up regulations; He is taking His rightful authority over it. It isn't clear if Jesus is clarifying the "spirit" of the law versus the "letter" of the law, or establishing a new law. It is interesting to note that no church leader in the New Testament, including Jesus, enforces the law of the Sabbath for the church. Jesus is not merely Lord of the Sabbath; He is our Sabbath (Hebrews 4). Taking a day of rest is a good thing, but it is not required for Jesus-followers.
Mark records a comment that Luke does not include. Jesus says, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath" (Mark 2:27). This is a restatement of a Jewish commentary on Exodus 31:13: "The Sabbath is given over to you and not you to the Sabbath." The Sabbath was meant to be a time of rest, not a burden. This directly segues into the next conflict Jesus has with the Pharisees. Is it okay to heal a man on the Sabbath, or is it unjustified work? Jesus' view is clear (Luke 6:6–11).
