How many times is sabbath mentioned in the Bible?
The word sabbath appears 136 times in the King James Version, in 115 verses. Counting every form (sabbath, sabbaths), it appears 171 times in 146 verses across 20 of the 66 books. The World English Bible uses sabbath 135 times (168 with every form).
Sabbath in the King James Version and the World English Bible
Each form of sabbath counted in each translation.
| Form | KJV | WEB |
|---|---|---|
| sabbath | 136 | 135 |
| sabbaths | 35 | 33 |
| Total | 171 | 168 |
Which books mention sabbath most
Sabbath appears in 20 books of the 66 in the King James Version. Leviticus has the most (27), then Luke (18) and Exodus (15).
Also in: 1 Chronicles (2), Lamentations (2), Hosea (1), Amos (1), Colossians (1).
First and last mention of sabbath
And he said unto them, This is that which the LORD hath said, To morrow is the rest of the holy sabbath unto the LORD: bake that which ye will bake to day, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning.
Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:
The verse that uses it most is Nehemiah 13:19, 3 times:
And it came to pass, that when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark before the sabbath, I commanded that the gates should be shut, and charged that they should not be opened till after the sabbath: and some of my servants set I at the gates, that there should no burden be brought in on the sabbath day.
Where the two translations differ
3 verses match in the KJV but not in the World English Bible, and 1 verse matches only in the World English Bible, usually because the other translation chose a different word there.
Leviticus 23:24: counted in the KJV only
Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation.
“Speak to the children of Israel, saying, ‘In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, shall be a solemn rest to you, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, a holy convocation.
Leviticus 23:39: counted in the KJV only
Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye have gathered in the fruit of the land, ye shall keep a feast unto the LORD seven days: on the first day shall be a sabbath, and on the eighth day shall be a sabbath.
“‘So on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the fruits of the land, you shall keep the feast of Yahweh seven days: on the first day shall be a solemn rest, and on the eighth day shall be a solemn rest.
Hebrews 4:9: counted in the World English Bible only
There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.
There remains therefore a Sabbath rest for the people of God.
Verses with sabbath on our topic pages
6 verses that use sabbath in the World English Bible are in our topic collections.
“‘Each one of you shall respect his mother and his father. You shall keep my Sabbaths. I am Yahweh your God.
On: Mothers
“Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as Yahweh your God commanded you.
On: Rest
but the seventh day is a Sabbath to Yahweh your God, in which you shall not do any work, you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your ox, nor your donkey, nor any of your livestock, nor your stranger who is within your gates; that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you.
On: Rest
Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb.
On: Easter
He said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.
On: Rest
There remains therefore a Sabbath rest for the people of God.
On: Rest
Common questions
How many times is sabbath in the Old Testament and the New Testament?
In the King James Version, counting every form, 111 of the 171 uses are in the Old Testament and 60 in the New Testament. Sabbath appears in 20 books of the 66 in the King James Version. Leviticus has the most (27), then Luke (18) and Exodus (15).
Where is sabbath first mentioned in the Bible?
The first use in the King James Version is Exodus 16:23: "And he said unto them, This is that which the LORD hath said, To morrow is the rest of the holy sabbath unto the LORD: bake that which ye will bake to day, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning." The last is Colossians 2:16.
More word counts: tithe, marriage, divorce, healing, strength, courage, pride, humility, or all 107 words.
Counted by Bible Says About from the full public-domain text of the King James Version (1769 edition) and the World English Bible. Verse text only: headings and psalm titles are left out. A word is a run of letters: a hyphenated name like Beer-sheba counts as two, and an apostrophe stays inside its word (LORD'S is one). Matching ignores capital letters. Data compiled 2026-10-02.