At Abydos (Migdal Oz)
After two months' imprisonment in Constantinople, Sabbatai was taken to the state prison at Abydos. Some of his friends were allowed to accompany him. As a result, the Sabbataians called the fortress Migdal Oz (Tower Strength). As Sabbatai had arrived at the day preceding Passover, he slew a paschal lamb for him and his followers. He ate it with its fat, a violation of Jewish Law. It is said that he pronounced over it the benediction: "Blessed be God who hath restored again that which was forbidden."
The immense sums sent to him by his rich adherents, the charms of the queenly Sarah and the admiration shown by the Turkish officials and inhabitants of the place enabled Sabbatai to display royal splendor in the castle of Abydos. Accounts of his life there were exaggerated and spread among Jews in Europe, Asia, and Africa. In some parts of Europe, Jews began to unroof their houses and prepare for a new "exodus". In almost every synagogue, Sabbatai's initials were posted, and prayers for him were inserted in the following form: "Bless our Lord and King, the holy and righteous Sabbatai Zevi, the Messiah of the God of Jacob." In Hamburg, the council introduced the custom of praying for Sabbatai not only on Saturday (the Jewish Sabbath), but also on Monday and Thursday. Unbelievers were compelled to remain in the synagogue and join in the prayer with a loud Amen. Sabbatai's picture was printed together with that of King David in most of the prayer-books, as well as his kabbalistic formulas and penances.
These and similar innovations caused great dissension in various communities. In Moravia the excitement reached such a pitch that the government had to interfere, while at Sale, Morocco, the emir ordered a persecution of the Jews. It was during this period that Sabbatai transformed the fasts of the Seventeenth of Tammuz and the Ninth of Av (his birthday) into feast-days. He contemplated converting the Day of Atonement to one of celebration.
Read more about this topic: Sabbatai Zevi