The 7 Biblical Feasts Part 2

Last week we followed the series of God’s Appointed Times developed in Leviticus and refined in Deuteronomy. And, what we saw was that there were several purposes and manifestations of those Biblical Feasts. While we will talk about Sukkot this week, in more detail, it is key to understand that all of the 7 Feasts work together; they are a 7 act play, so to speak. Understanding Sukkot is important; but without seeing where it fits as but one among the other 6 feasts…..even though it represents the Grand Finale….. then we’ll miss the point.

The 7 Biblical feasts were, at their most basic level, agricultural festivals. Each feast was timed to coincide with the seasons of the year, because each season…..spring, summer, fall, and winter…..had connected with it a certain agricultural activity such as planting or harvesting.

Therefore, we find that there are 3 Feasts in the spring, one in the early summer, and 3 more in the fall……for a total of 7.

The 3 spring Feasts are : Pesach, Passover. Followed immediately by Matza, the Feast of Unleavened Bread. And, that is immediately followed by Bikkurim, the Feast of Firstfruits. Bikkurim is when the first of the Barley harvest is brought in.

The 1 summer Feast was Shavuot; we know this one better as Pentecost (Pentecost is a Greek word which means “the 50”). Also called by Jews The Feast of Weeks, this feast is to begin precisely 7 weeks plus one day ( 7 weeks equals 49 days, add one more day and we get 50 days), after Bikkurim, Firstfruits. Shavuot is when the first of the WHEAT harvest is brought in (as opposed to Firstfruits, when it is BARLEY that is harvested).

The 3 Fall feasts are Rosh Hashanah, Jewish New Year. 10 days later is Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. And, then 5 days after that is the one we’re going to spend the rest of our time, today, looking at, Sukkot……the Feast of Tabernacles, or The Feast of Booths.

Please notice that the 3 spring feasts are intertwined and begin and end in a very compact period of time….. 8 days. Passover occurs in the Hebrew month of Nissan, and it always begins on the 14th day of Nissan. The next day, Nissan 15, is the first day of the 7 day long celebration of Matza, the Feast of Unleavened Bread. And, Nissan 16 is the day of Bikkurim……the Feast of Firstfruits. So, you see how these 3 feasts are not only connected, but they overlap with one another. In fact, it is kind of a traditional shortcut among the Jews to simply call the sum total of these 3 spring feasts Passover or Unleavened Bread.

Now, while Passover, Pesach is indeed a Spring Feast, the one day of Passover, on Nissan 14, is not really an agricultural festival so much as a day of remembrance. It is, for the Jews, to celebrate and remember the day that God forced Pharaoh to release Israel from their captivity in Egypt. More specifically, Passover recalls that great and terrible night that the Lord killed all firstborn of Egypt, including the firstborn or domestic
livestock. Those who followed the Lord’s command to paint the blood of a yearling ram on their doorposts were spared.

In the same way so is Matza not so much an agricultural festival as a remembrance. For this recalls that the people of Israel, in readying for their Exodus, were instructed to prepare bread without the use of yeast, leavening, for their journey. This was because it was going to happen very rapidly……a matter of hours in reality…..that they would be released to leave Egypt, and there would not be time to allow the bread to sit and rise as they normally would.

Firstfruits was indeed all about agricultural, as its immediate point was to give to God the first of the Barley Harvest; and this is part and parcel with the Biblical principle that all firstling….the first of everything……automatically belongs to God.

Shavuot, which celebrated the first of the WHEAT Harvest, was a purely agricultural festival.

Several months later, in the month of Tishri, begins the series of 3 Fall festivals. These are also tightly compacted in time….though not quite so tight or integrated as the Spring
Feasts. From the first feast, Rosh Hashanah, to the BEGINNING of the 3rd feast, Sukkot, is 15 days.

Now, where as the first two spring feasts were memorial days….days of remembrance of things that happened in Israel’s history……the first two fall feasts were religious rituals that exemplified God’s holiness and His justice. Rosh Hashanah, the first day of the religious event calendar year, celebrated new beginnings and repentance. Yom Kippur which followed 10 days later celebrated God’s presence among Israel, and the cleansing
of the Sanctuary of its sin, AND the cleansing of the people of Israel from their sin in the Scapegoat ceremony which was but a part of the Day of Atonement’s rituals.

Then, 5 days later, on Tishri 15, begins The Feast of Tabernacles. Interestingly, right from the beginning, it carried with it BOTH a meaning as a day of remembrance AND as a day of agricultural significance. It was remembering Israel’s 40 years of wandering in the Wilderness, part of their exodus from Egypt, while living in temporary shelter……tents, also referred to as booths or tabernacles….hence the name The Feast of
Tabernacles. Agriculturally, it was to celebrate the last of the harvests. This was the Fall season, so as winter approached, the last little bit of all the various grain and grape harvests was taken, before the growing season came to a close. Agriculturally, this was a time of transition; a transition from ONE growing year to the next. It marked the END of the agricultural year. And, following the end of the agricultural year would come an extended time when there would be neither planting nor harvesting. The plants would decay back into the soil, the ground would rest for a few months, and then would come
early spring and the cycle of planting and harvesting would start all over again.

By our current calendars, we are in the middle of Sukkot. It began on Tuesday, Oct. 18 (technically it began as the sun set on Monday evening Oct. 17, because biblically a day begins and ends at sunset, not by a mechanical clock as made by men). The last day, the 8th day, of Sukkot therefore is this coming Tuesday, and then the day after that is a day of Tradition called Simchat Torah, a day of celebrating the reading of the last section of the yearly reading cycle of the Torah).

Let me whet your appetite a little for learning about Sukkot with this reading taken from the prophetic book of Zechariah.

READ ZECHARIAH 14 all

This is speaking about those days of judgment just ahead and the coming of the Lord….the Day of the Lord. We spoke last week about my firm belief that this will occur during the Fall feasts, otherwise the pattern of the Messiah Yeshua performing His signal works precisely on the feast days would be broken. And, NONE of God’s patterns have EVER been broken. Remember: He was executed on Passover, He entered the tomb on Unleavened Break, He arose on Firstfruits.

Let me point out one other thing: notice the 3-1-3 pattern of the Biblical Feasts: 3 spring feasts clustered together…..then a pause…..then 1 summer feast……then a pause……then the 3 fall feasts clustered together.

The work of Messiah……1st His sacrifice, then His sinless body not decaying in the tomb, and lastly then His resurrection…..all happened in rapid succession, only about 72 hours! This direct work of Messiah all happened on those 3 Spring Feast days.

But, then, there was a pause. The resurrected Messiah, Yeshua, now departs. A little time passes and in His place, the Holy Spirit, the Ruach HaKodesh, is sent. It is a singular, stand alone, event. And, of course, as per the pattern, the Holy Spirit comes on the Feast day of Shavuot….Pentecost.

Now…..since Shavuot….. there is another pause. And, we are today living during the time of that pause. There has been a pause in the direct work of Messiah on earth, since the day of Pentecost. But, if I am right…..and I believe the Bible completely bears this out……when the prophesied return of Yeshua occurs, several things will again begin to happen in rapid succession. First, Messiah arrives on the Mt. of Olives. Next, He begins to judge mankind and separate those who love Him from those who have opposed Him. Part of that process is the Battle of Armageddon, where He fights for Israel. The outcome results in the final ingathering of His Believers and the entry into the 1000 year reign of Christ.

Many who, up until His feet touch down on the top of the Mt. of Olives……and then it dramatically splits……. Had NOT believed and trusted Him, suddenly will. Out of terror and awe, they will. But most of earth’s inhabitants, who are firmly committed to their faith in the Anti-Christ, will stubbornly deny Yeshua, and be lost for all eternity. Those brand new Believers along with those who had long trusted Him, are that FINAL ingathering. Why final? Because when the Day of the Lord, judgment, occurs, those who at that moment do not trust Him, have sealed their fate forever. There is no more 2nd chances to repent. No more do-overs. No more walking down the aisle to confess Christ.
There is coming a moment in the history of the world…..and it is oh, so near…… when we of the church will STOP beseeching the world to repent……because, it will be too late……and forgiveness and mercy are no longer available.

Rosh Hashanah, Tishri 1, Jewish New Year…….will be, in my opinion, that Day of the Lord, when He returns. Yom Kippur will be the day that Yeshua fights for Israel and saves them from the gentile nations and the Evil One. It is the day that all those who rebel against God, are destroyed. The Feast of Tabernacles is the day that the work of judgment is completed, and the only humans who remain on the face of the earth are in the camp of
the Lord; this is the first day of the Millennial Kingdom. All this is described here in Zechariah; but then we get to those important words of verses 16-18. That the Feast of Tabernacles, Sukkot, will remain a fixture into the Millennial Kingdom and beyond.
There is so much else we could talk about regarding this chapter of Zechariah, and the 1000 year reign and so on, but we need to stop and talk some more about Sukkot. But remember……you and I will be celebrating this Feast, forever. So, let’s understand it and learn HOW to celebrate it.

There are several symbols associated with Sukkot; but two are probably the most outstanding: the Lulav, and the Succah. I’m standing under a Succah as I speak. I hold in my hand a Lulav and etrog…..the etrog is this lemon-like citrus fruit you see. The Lulav consists of these palm branches that are bound together, plus two other types of bush or tree branches. Let’s talk about the Lulav and Etrog.

Now, it might surprise you to know that in the midst of the celebration of Sukkot, in which most elements of it are Tradition and not Biblically called out, the Lulav….which is also spelled L-u-l-a-b……IS commanded in Scripture.

READ LEV. 23:39-41

The Lulav is to consist of 4 parts: the Scripture says those 4 parts are something called 1) choice fruit, 2) palm frond, 3) something called thick branches, and 4) river-willows.

Now, the river-willow and palm frond are explanatory enough; but there was and remains some argument over what is meant by the “thick branches”. Way before Jesus, it was determined that myrtle would be used for the thick branches.

Now, exactly how this Lulav was to be put together is largely Tradition. And, the Tradition is that the palm frond is NOT to be allowed to spread out. Rather, it is to be folded, and held together with a twig and a piece of palm frond wrapped around it to keep it from unfolding. The Myrtle and the river willows are to be tied at the bottom of the unfolded palm frond……and voila! You have a Lulav.

The Etrog has been more of a subject of controversy……and in various Rabbis’ and Sages’ attempts to convince others to their viewpoints on just WHAT that “choice fruit” should be, quite a bit of questionable legend has been employed to win over followers of their beliefs. This yellow, oversized lemon-like fruit you see me holding has become the Traditional solution to the “choice fruit” called for in Lev. 23:40. The so-called Etrog is
of the citrus family, so we’ll see some Bibles call the fruit a “citron”, which is certainly not far off the mark. It is edible, and often IS eaten. Some Jews call the Etrog the “Adam’s apple”, or the “Paradise fruit”…….because some Rabbis have suggested that the Etrog is the forbidden fruit from the Garden of Eden. Your guess as to that speculation is as good as mine.

Now, the way the Lulav was used as part of the Sukkot ritual has varied a bit over time. The primary difference occurred as to WHERE the Lulav was employed. That is, whether at the Temple, in Jerusalem, or someplace else like a synagogue. Because Sukkot was one of the 3 Biblical Feasts that God instructed that a pilgrimage to Jerusalem and the Temple was to be made (the other 4 feasts did NOT have a requirement to be present in Jerusalem), then that’s where the Lulav was to be used. Obviously, when there has BEEN no Temple, or when the Jews were in exile, that changed.

During the eras when there was a Temple……and let me point out that the issue of going to Jerusalem on a pilgrimage was to be at the TEMPLE, not simply being in the city of Jerusalem….the Lulav and Etrog were to be held and waved. The Lulav would be held in the right hand, and the Etrog in the left. In the grounds of the Temple area, the worshipper would begin by facing east; he would then start reciting some prescribed prayers, and shake, or wave, the Lulav. He would shake it up and down, side to side, and then turn to the right, face south and do it all again; he’d make another turn to the right, face west, repeat, turn to the right once more, face north and complete the cycle. The symbolism was to announce and acknowledge God’s sovereignty over all of nature; after all, this was an agricultural festival.

Generally, the prayers they spoke were from the Hallel; the Hallel is composed of the Psalms 113 through 118. At least in the 2nd Temple era, the most common Psalm used in the ceremony of the Lulavs was from Psalms 118, verses 1-4. As you think about what we talked about earlier, that Sukkot will be practiced by all Believers, on into the Millennium and beyond…..and if you’ll contemplate that it certainly appears that the Feast of Tabernacles will be the entry into the Millennium……listen to the words of these verses as spoken by the ancient Hebrews, as they shook those Lulavs at the Temple:

NAS Psalm 118:1 Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; For His lovingkindness is everlasting. 2 Oh let Israel say, “His lovingkindness is everlasting.” 3 Oh let the house
of Aaron say, “His lovingkindness is everlasting.” 4 Oh let those who fear the LORD say, “His lovingkindness is everlasting.”

EVERLASTING lovingkindness is the theme. How much more appropriate it will be that day that we’re all in Jerusalem, facing our Lord and shaking our Lulavs, during His 1000 reign, saying adoringly to Him…… “your lovingkindness is everlasting”.

In addition, after some sacrifices were made, there would be a parade around the altar of the Temple, where the Lulavs would be carried. They would circle it once each day for the 1st six days, and circle it 7 times on the 7th day.

As for the Etrog, it was customary, at the end of Sukkot, to give the Etrogs to the children for them to eat.

All that I’ve just told you takes place in Jerusalem, at the Temple. But, since it was MEN who were required to make Pilgrimage……not children and not women, though at times
a man’s family would go as well……there were requirements and customs to be observed back on the home-front. And, the main one was the building and living in a Succah.

Now, I’m not going to get into all the various requirements for a Kosher Succah. For one reason, various Rabbis have differing requirements for the materials, the size, how the materials are applied, when the Succah must be used, etc. The Bible gives us very little requirements other than a person must build one and LIVE IN IT for the entire time of the Feast of Tabernacles. Now, that doesn’t mean a person had to STAY in the Succah and never leave it. If a person had to tend his flocks or cook a meal, or whatever, he could certainly go outside. The idea was, move out of your house and into a Succah for the Feast of Tabernacles.

Generally speaking, the use of the Succah has reduced to sleeping in it and dining in it. The most observant Jews go so far as to work in it. In fact, there is a whole industry of small, portable Succah makers, enabling folks to carry around and erect these very small Sukkahs at their workplace, so they can perform their jobs, particularly when it’s a deskjob.

Further, if there is one point of agreement, it is that the roof of the Succah must be of palm branches, but they must not be so thick such that one can not see the stars. In Israel, today, city dwellers in particular find building a Succah to be challenging
……particularly if you live in an apartment; because another general requirement is that they be outdoors. So, as one travels through cities in Israel during Sukkot, you’ll see these odd structures on tiny balconies of high-rise apartment buildings. Hotels will erectSukkahs on outside Patios for their patrons, as will cafes.

It is the RARE individual in Israel, however, that actually lives in a Succah during Sukkot. Rather, they either don’t have one at all, or they will take their meals in one. But, just as Lulavs and Etrogs are Biblically mandated, so are Sukkahs. So, we can kind of laugh and scoff at the idea of it all, but perhaps we should rethink it. After all, the vast majority of Christians today take all our supposed devotion to Jesus and the Holy Scriptures, and set it aside in the way we celebrate Easter and Christmas. I mean, we color chicken eggs and hide them for children to find? Just exactly what Scripture are we fulfilling when we do that? We buy our kids giant chocolate bars in the shape of Rabbits,
and then turn around and tell them that the Easter Bunny is coming? Could some one fill me in on the spiritual significance, or the God-principle we are remembering with that? How WEIRD are those practices in the first place? How about we top it all off with celebrating the resurrection of our Jewish Messiah with a meal often consisting of a nice big thick slab of pig…..ham? How much we like to say in our meal blessing, ‘Jesus, come and sit at our table with us’. Right, and our offer to Him is food He would never have touched. Every one of these things…..which, frankly are the main events and the focus of modern Church Easter celebrations……are, without question, following the practice of pagan fertility ritual, and anti-Semitism. I know we haven’t necessarily intended it that way; but that is the result. We’ve just pretty much merrily gone along without really examining the things we do….supposedly FOR God. If we’re going to do something that is pretty strange looking in honor of our Lord…..maybe we ought to put away the egg dye and cellophane fake grass in favor of an honest attempt at celebrating Festivals that God says HE WANTS US TO CELEBRATE, and even tells us when and to a small degree how.

So, let’s kind of pause and review where we stand; during Sukkot, the Feast of Booths or Tabernacles, every family is to construct and live in a Succah. Every male, 13 years of age and older, is to go to the Temple in Jerusalem, make a series of sacrifices, and personally participate in the waving of the Lulav. Much prayer is offered up during this serious but joyous time of remembrance of the 40 years God spent forming Israel into a
nation set-apart for Himself, during their exodus from exile in Egypt.

The Bible commands, in Leviticus, that the first day and the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles are to be Sabbaths. Not THE Sabbath, but other Sabbaths. By calling these other non-7th day Sabbaths, Sabbaths, I am using the common way of speaking as among Jews and Christians. Actually, however, this is both sloppy scholarship and a poor use of the word Sabbath; because the Torah does NOT designate these as Sabbath (Hebrew, Shabbat) days. Rather, the words are typically kodesh mikra……a holy convocation. In other words, these are to be days of assembling together. Because these designated days
of kodesh mikra have a requirement to cease from normal work…..which is necessary in order for God’s people to come together in assembly……over the centuries the word Sabbath has been used to connote these special days. This is a sad error that has led to much confusion.

Further, the day AFTER the end of the 7 days of the Feast of Tabernacles…..in the Torah it is referred to as the 8th day…….is also a kodesh mikra……one of those “other” Sabbaths.

But, other things went on as part of Sukkot ritual as well. The Levites had a choir that would play instruments and sing Psalms. These Levite musicians were not priests. Remember now, that while the Temple priests came from the tribe of Levi, it was from ONLY one particular family of Levites that a person could be a priest…..the family descended from Aaron. All other Levites could NOT be priests, but they did have Temple duties ranging from cleaning up the place, to being guardians of the Temple, to being musicians. It’s always well to remember that the Temple guard we read of in the New Testament did not consist of Romans (no gentile was allowed in the Temple
grounds)…..it wasn’t even ordinary Jews……it was made up entirely of Levites.

When there was a Temple, one of the highlights….perhaps the most mesmerizing and awesome part of the daily Sukkot ritual…….was the water libation ceremony. I spoke of this a couple of months ago, but I’d like to bring it up again, so great is its significance.

The libation ceremony is called in Hebrew necek. This libation offering usually consists of water or wine or both. The one for Sukkot is a water libation. And, without going into all the detail of the actual ritual, let me just say that water is put into a golden pitcher, and then it is poured out by a priest at the Temple, each day of Sukkot.

What is the meaning of this water libation? Simple, really. Recalling that all these feasts are agricultural-based, and that the Feast of Tabernacles, Succoth, occurs at the FINAL harvest of the season, before new crops are planted, the water libation is connected with the plea to Yahweh for rain.

As very little is said in the Torah of just HOW the water libation ritual was to be accomplished, traditions were developed on its proceedings; and, of course, these traditions changed over time.

In general, it operated like this: the High Priest would take that golden pitcher, go outside the city walls and down to the Pool of Siloam and fill it with about a liter of water. In the meantime, some other priests went to another pool of water where willows grew; they gathered the willows and laid these long willow branches against the sides of the Great Altar of Burnt Offering, such that they extended above the platform and formed kind of a canopy.

The High Priest would then walk in holy procession to a special gate in the thick walls that protected and surrounded the Holy City: the Watergate (it got its name because of this exact ceremony). He would wait there until some Levite musicians sounded 3 loud trumpet blasts, and then he would go to the Great Altar, and in front of large crowds pour the water out while saying in a loud voice: “Therefore with joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation” Isa. 12:3. As the High Priest was pouring the water out of his pitcher, another priest poured wine out of a similar pitcher; when that was done, music was played by the Levites and then the crowd would recite one of the Hallel portions, Psalm 118:25: “ Save now, I pray, O Lord; O Lord, I pray, send now prosperity”. This song was called the Hosanna (Hoshanah). During this song, scores of priests would
march around waving palm branches.

The last day of the Feast of Tabernacles is like the grand finale. Tradition even gave that last day a special name: Hoshana Rabbah. On that last day, all the rituals were even grander, and the people even more expectant. On all other days of the feast, the High Priest came through the Watergate with his golden vessel full of water, taken from the Pool of Siloam, and his signal to walk through the gate was the sound of 3 trumpet blasts.
But on the last day of Sukkot, the Levites blew 7 trumpet blasts, and then repeated it 3 times. The crowds waited in great anticipation of this moment, in which the feast was drawn to a close. The High Priest then solemnly proceeded up the several steps to the Altar and waited until the crowd quieted and gave him all their attention. Then, with great drama, he lifted the water libation vessel and poured out it’s contents for the last
time……not to be done again until next year.

The water libation ceremony was THE highlight of Sukkot. The FINAL day’s libation ceremony was like when the fireworks end the day at Disney…..the best was saved for last. It was during the moment of the final day’s water libation ceremony, that we read of Yeshua shouting this out to the thousands who were standing, smashed together in silence, staring in awe as the High Priest held that shiny gold vessel shoulder high and
away from his body, and then tipped it ever so slightly so as to allow the water to pour slowly and with great drama. And, in John 7 we are told that at that very moment Jesus turned and shouted this to the multitude: “ If any man is thirsty, let him come to ME and drink.”

It’s amazing they didn’t kill him right there on the spot. Just think about the words the High Priest had just spoken: “Therefore with joy you will draw water from the wells of
salvation”, to which Jesus responds, “if any man is thirsty, let him come to ME and drink.” He pronounced Himself to be that well of salvation, and the people and the priests knew that was exactly what He meant.

The 7 Biblical Feasts Part 1

We are in the midst of the Biblical Fall Festival season…..a very joyous season, yet one that should be approached soberly. The Sunday Torah Class has studied most of these Festivals to small degree already, as they are contained in Leviticus…… and I’m sure there are many here that already observe, or at least acknowledge, the Biblical Festivals.

I had planned only to talk about Sukkot today……the most obvious symbol of Sukkot being the Succah…..the booth or tabernacle…I’m standing in. But, I realized that I’m talking to people who like myself have NOT spent a lifetime celebrating these feasts as our Jewish members have, and are still somewhat fuzzy about what they are about, what is involved, and what they should mean to us. These Feasts are all connected; they are a series of Feasts, each one playing its role in an overall picture. So, this week, I’m going to briefly discuss the meaning of the Feasts in general, review the Spring and Summer Feasts, and then talk about the first 2 of the 3 Fall Feasts, which have just concluded. Next week, towards the end of the week of Sukkot, I’ll talk exclusively about the Feast of
Tabernacles.

Although a decade ago I would not have thought so, I can now see the immeasurable value for gentile Christians to join our Messianic Jewish brothers and sisters, as well as the Jewish community in general, in celebration of these Festivals, each of which are God ordained. To begin to celebrate these Feasts is not easy. It is something that we must approach slowly and carefully and thoughtfully. We should not treat them as the next
new thing, or a trend or fad. We must do it for the right reasons, and we must NOT disrupt our families in the doing.

Following the many well-established Jewish Traditions is generally a good place to start, because these traditions have been so well thought out and ordered for centuries. That
said, you are perfectly free to adopt some of these traditions and not others…..or to modify some or even add your own. The key is to add the proper meaning to God’s intended purpose for each of His appointed Feasts. And, we can’t do that, can we, until we UNDERSTAND His purpose?

So, as we begin to look at some of these Festivals……also called Appointed Times in Holy Scripture….let me point out that while we might reasonably question the multitude of Rabbinical laws and traditions that have evolved surrounding each Feast….laws often that include minutely detailed requirements of the proceedings…… we cannot question the legitimacy of the Festivals themselves; for they are called out, by name, in the Bible. And, not just in the Old Testament are they ordained….which should be reason enough for us to consider them. Even the New Testament talks about these Festivals; and every time we find Jesus either in, or on his way to, Jerusalem, (remember, He lived in Nazareth, quite a distance to the north of Jerusalem) it was for the purpose of His PERSONAL participation in these Appointed Times. That’s right; the observance of every one of these Biblical Festivals was validated by our Messiah in the NT.

Each of these Festivals is given Scripturally specified days and months for the observances to occur. Yet, in reality, precious little Biblical information is given about exactly HOW each of the celebrations are to be observed. So, over the centuries the Jews have come up with Traditions to fill that void.

Let me be clear: while the methods of observance of these Festivals as accomplished 2000 years ago and right on up until today, consist mostly of Hebrew Tradition, the command to celebrate them is fully Biblical. Contrast this with Christmas and Easter…..the highest gentile Christian Holy Days…… that are NOT Biblically commanded days of celebration (either Old or New Testament). The reality is that every single aspect of our celebration of these two days is but our traditions. Now, I know it seems almost like sacrilege to point this out, but it is the truth. We of the Church love to pat ourselves on the back for being so Scripturally oriented, but upon examination, it seems that most
of what occupies our time and activities amounts to traditions….things we prefer to call doctrines…..that have little or no Biblical basis.

For instance, that Jesus was born in Beit-Lechem of Judah we can know. We know many facts leading up to and surrounding the birth of the Messiah. Exactly when it happened, we do not know….not the year, not even the month, let alone the day. But, we can also know that there is absolutely NO Biblical command or day set aside in Scripture to celebrate His birthday; Christmas, as a day to celebrate His birth, was ordained by
men….Christmas is simply a manmade day, chosen to coincide with the already universally celebrated Winter Solstice.

Easter is similar; that He was crucified on Passover and then 3 days later arose on a Sunday (the 1st day of the week), we are certain because the Gospels plainly say so. What year, we’re not exactly sure (but it is in a very narrow range of about a 3 or 4 year time span). We’re also sure that Easter is NOT a God-ordained Holy Day……it is manordained…..and even the name we give this awesome day is after the pagan fertility goddess Ishtar (this is why the standard pagan fertility symbols of eggs and rabbits have become the outstanding features of this Christian celebration).

Now, is it wrong for us to commemorate and celebrate Jesus’ birth and His resurrection, as a Christian tradition? Heavens NO! But, for the Church to declare these two days as HOLY….. is to do something for which it has no authority. Now, if you are Catholic, you might argue with that because it is Catholic doctrine that the Pope indeed DOES have the authority of Heaven to do so; that the Pope CAN declare days, people, religious sites, events, and so on, holy. But, if you are a Protestant, and do not hold to Papal authority, then you’re in an even worse bind! Because the Protestant denominations say that man cannot declare things holy; things which God has explicitly not. God declares that which is holy……and these two highest Christian Holy Days are NOT declared to be holy days
of observance by our Creator, per se, anywhere that is recorded. So, it is important that we separate those things which are God-ordained from those things which are man’s
attempt to do something good.

I tell you this not as a challenge to the traditional Christian celebration of Christmas and Easter, but rather as the point of an important question that we cannot avoid if we want to
mature as Believers: if we Disciples of Jesus find it unthinkable not to acknowledge and observe Christmas and Easter…. Man made observances, traditions, that admittedly celebrate two critical events of Messiah……then how is it that we so easily dismiss the God-made, God ordained Biblical Feasts? Feasts that are NOT traditions but are written down in the Scriptures. Not as simply things mentioned in Scripture, but as
COMMANDED Feasts that the Lord God says are perpetual. This is the fallacy and just plain error on the part of the church in general when it demands that the Bible begins with the book of Matthew, and that everything before it (such as Sabbath keeping, Bible Feasts, and more) is dead and gone; obsolete and worthless.

Let me remind you yet again of those critically important words of Yeshua as He was speaking His famous sermon to vast crowds of Jews and gentiles; the one we call The Sermon on the Mount. Jesus said this DURING that teaching just so people would NOT do exactly what the church HAS done; think that because He was explaining the spiritual significance of all the Torah commands and all the words of the great prophets, that now that He has come, we can just wad up those great works…..that we call the Old Testament…..and throw them in the trash bin of history. Listen to Jesus:

NAS Matthew 5:17-19: “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. 18 For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth
pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass away from the Law, until all is accomplished. 19 Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and so
teaches others, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”

Don’t think the Biblical Feasts were for us……the followers of Christ? He just said they were. And, He just said woe be to man who teaches that ANYTHING has passed away from the Law (the Torah) and the Prophets. So, you’ll certainly not be hearing that, here! When might these commands and prophecies become of no further bearing to us? Not until heaven and earth pass away. Well, we’re still here, standing on Terra Firma, so not one jot or stroke of the Torah has been ruled invalid. And, this is coming from the mouth of the one who both CREATED the Torah, and redeemed us under its covenants.

Now, let me state without equivocation that our personal Salvation is in no way dependent on our observation of these Feasts. So….a typical gentile Christian might ask….. then why should we observe them? Because, as Jesus equates, Salvation is being born again. Being born is but the beginning of new life……the first word of the first chapter of our lives. But, we’re not to stay newborns, though many of us do. We are to grow, and learn, and put into practice…..to work…..that which results FROM our birth…..or in the case of Salvation, our RE-birth. Because these Feasts are commanded by God; because it is a matter both of our obedience and of our WANTING, as redeemed people, to please our Lord, we should begin to include them in our lives. Further, they remind us of foundational Biblical principles and they demonstrate the work of Messiah
and the plan of God, and they are great teachers of our children.

The 7 Biblical Feasts lay out the plan of God for Mankind; they completely model the mission, the sequence, and the significance of Yeshua’s redemptive work. In other words,
these Feasts, in addition to being literal commands of God that are fully intended to be practiced, also outline a prophetic pattern that will be carried out by the Savior.

The 7 Feasts are timed to be in tune with the agricultural seasons; so when the Bible speaks of seasons, remember that for the Hebrews, a season was all about when to plant and when to harvest, and these are organically connected to when to observe God’s appointed times. There are 3 Spring Feasts, one Summer Feast, and 3 Fall Feasts, for a total of 7. Now, these are NOT the total of ALL of God’s appointed times, only the appointed so-called Festivals.

Because these feasts (or Festivals) are based on the ancient Hebrew calendar which was based primarily on lunar cycles, by our modern solar calendars, the days…..even the months….that these Holy Festivals occur vary a bit from year to year. However, by the Hebrew calendar, they remain the same; the first feasts being in the month of Nissan, the final feasts in Tishri.

Briefly, each Biblical feast is significant and prophetic as follows: 1) Pesach, The Feast of Passover, speaks of redemption…..that the Messiah, our Passover Lamb, was slain for us and his blood atones for our sins. 2) Matza, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, is about sanctification. The ordinance against the use of leavening is Biblically symbolic of a) absence of sin, and b) absence of decay and corruption. Christ’s sinless body was put into the tomb and it did NOT decay. 3) Bikkurim, the Feast of Firstfruits, speaks of firstlings……the first of things which always belongs to God. In the work of Messiah, it is about resurrection; Messiah is called the firstfruits of the resurrection from the dead; Yeshua was the first man to be resurrected from the dead….but, far into the future, other men….you and me….will also be resurrected. These are the 3 Spring Feasts.

Next, we have a Summer Feast: Shavuot, called The Feast of Weeks. We know this one better as Pentecost. While Bikkurim, the final Spring Feast, represented the firstfruits of the first grain harvest of the year, which was Barley……..Shavuot represents the celebration of the SECOND grain harvest of the year, which was wheat. Shavuot was timed to occur exactly 50 days from Bikkurim, the Feast of Firstfruits. The Greeks gave
this Holy Day the name “Pentecost” meaning 50. This is the awesome day that the Holy Spirit came to indwell men. And, by the way, just so we’re clear: a holy day was NOT created by Christians to celebrate the New Testament happening of the coming of the Holy Spirit; rather, the Holy Spirit CAME on the long established (over 1300 years established), day of Pentecost, Bikkurim. And, in fact, we’ll find that Jesus died on
Pesach, went into the tomb on Matza, arose on Bikkurim, and the Holy Spirit descended on men on Shavuot. Now, that is 4 very interesting “coincidences”, are they not?

Well, naturally, I say “coincidences” tongue-in-cheek….for this was not coincidence, this was the whole point of the Festivals in the first place. Now, am I allegorizing each of these important works of the Messiah so that they equate with a Festival? Nope. The New Testament TELLS us that’s what occurred.

Well, we’ve reviewed the first 4 Festivals….now we come to the last 3….the Fall Festivals…..the season we’ve just entered. What is important for us to grasp is that Messiah fulfilled the first 4 Festivals on the exact appointed day of each of the Festivals.
By doing this He has shown us something I believe we can count on: the pattern of the great works of Salvation occurring on the Feast days will continue. Why would we think that the acts and works of the Messiah that are perfectly typified in the first 4 Biblical Festivals, would suddenly STOP being so in the final 3? Therefore, it is my Belief that ALL of the final works of Christ will occur on the last 3 Biblical Feasts. And, these last 3 feasts occur in a very narrow scope of time……15 days. Indeed, as the Bible tells, we don’t know the year of His coming, but we CAN know the season; and that season is the Fall. Let’s look at these Fall Feasts now.

The Feasts always begin on the 7th month of the year by the civil calendar, which is the same thing as the 1st month of the religious event year; Tishri. On Tishri 1 is Rosh Hashanah, Tishri 10 is Yom Kippur, and Tishri 15 begins the week-long celebration of Sukkot. This year, those dates correspond to October 4th, October 13th (obviously they’ve already been celebrated), and Sukkot begins on October 18th, this coming Tuesday.

The first Fall feast is Rosh Hashanah….what is usually called Jewish New Year. Now, we won’t detour, but be aware that there are number of different Jewish calendar years;
one is the civil calendar year, another is the tithing calendar year, and still another is the religious event year. By the civil calendar year, Rosh Hashanah occurs on the 1st day of the 7th month, called Tishri. But, on the religious event calendar, Rosh Hashanah occurs on the 1st day of the 1st month….on the religious event calendar, Tishri is the 1st month. Don’t let that confuse you…..it doesn’t mean they change the names of the months around. It’s like the idea we have in our society where we have a civil calendar year (the one we’re all familiar with), but we also have in business a Fiscal Year which can begin
and end on any number of months, a school year, and so on. For instance, in Florida a school year is typically August through May. August is the FIRST month of the school year, right? Or in the Hebrew way of speaking, the school year is from the 8th month to the 5th month. That the 8th month of the year, August, is the FIRST month of the school year is exactly synonymous to the idea that Tishri is the 7th month of the regular calendar year, but it is the 1st month of the religious event year. That is how it can be related that the New Year is on the 1st day of the 7th month…..because although it is the 7th month of the regular calendar year, it is the FIRST day of the FIRST month of the religious event year. It’s just that for us, New Year is a secular civil event…..for the Hebrews, New Year
is a religious event.

Rosh Hashanah was first established in the book of Leviticus chapter 23, and more information was given in Numbers chapter 29. Together with the next Feast we’ll discuss, Yom Kippur, these two Feasts and the intervening days are called the High Holy Days, and also known as the Days of Awe by the Jews.

Rosh Hashanah is also called the Feast of Trumpets. Because on that day, the Shofar….the Ram’s horn…..is to be blown. (show the Ram’s horn). During the 10 days that connect Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, every person is supposed to carefully consider their lives and repent…..but, note, THAT is a Tradition. Biblically what is ordered by God, is that on that day it is to be a holy day of convocation……meeting together….. and a day of Sabbath rest. Those who have studied with me for a while know that in addition to the weekly 7th Day Sabbath that we are all familiar with, God appointed other ‘sabbaths’, usually associated with the various feasts. Rosh Hashanah is one of those OTHER Sabbaths. On that day special sacrifices,
centering around the ‘Olah, what we usually call the Burnt Offering, was to be presented to the Lord. And, finally, a Shofar…..what many Bibles mistakenly call a ‘trumpet” was to be blown. Indeed on certain occasions a trumpet…specifically a silver trumpet…..was to be blown. But in this case the word teruah, which not only indicates that the instrument is to be a Ram’s horn….NOT a silver trumpet…..but that teruah is a very specific series of blasts on the horn.

Like a military Bugler, or a Drummer, used to do in times of war……that is, they would play certain notes, or drum a certain cadence as signals to the troops to advance, or retreat, or form-up, or rest, or whatever…..the Shofar was played using different calls to tell the troops what to do. The Teruah is such a signal; it consists of 9 or more short blasts in rapid succession and it is an alarm, a warning; it was the “the ready to go to war”signal; a kind of battle cry.

Now, what I’ve just told you is the sum total of what the Bible instructs for Rosh Hashanah……all other celebration associated with Rosh Hashanah is Tradition. That said, we should pay close attention to these traditions; because the Rabbis knew well that these Holy Days had a significance much greater than just days of celebration and the rather simple instructions that come with them.

Rosh Hashanah, by tradition, is the day God sits in Judgment on the Universe. This is NOT an eternal judgment, but rather it is when He hands out merits for those who have been obedient and discipline on those who have not; it applies to individuals and to nations. He decides on Rosh Hosanna who will be blessed in the following year, and who will be cursed. Does one have plenty, or famine? Does one have a time of peace, or war?
Is it to be a year of sickness, or of health? Rosh Hashanah, more than any other day, exemplifies Yahweh’s judging attribute. So, while there is celebration, there is soberness
of mind and heart.

Today, preparation for Rosh Hashanah usually begins by a week of prayer BEFORE Trisha 1, asking for forgiveness of sins. An interesting ritual is also performed, called Tashlikh. It means “casting off”, and on the day of Rosh Hashanah Jews will either
gather in a group, or as individuals, near a body of water; they’ll pray a specific prayer of Tashlikh, and then typically cast breads crumbs into the water symbolizing the casting away of their sins.

Now, the spiritual significance for this day, according to the great Hebrew sages is quite interesting. And before I tell you about it, let me point out something of interest: Rosh
Hashanah is the ONLY Biblical Feast that occurs on the day of the new moon. Now, unlike what you might think, the new moon is NOT that huge, bright FULL moon….rather, the new moon is when the moon doesn’t shine at all…..it is when the moon is just a dark disk hanging in the sky. It is the darkest night of the month.

Listen to the Rabbincal sage’s view of Rosh Hashanah from the Talmud, in chapter Rosh Hashanah 11a: “…..in the month of Nissan (Passover) our ancestors were redeemed, but in Tishri (Rosh Hashanah) they will be redeemed in the time to come….”

Prophetically, Rosh Hashanah signal the Day of the Lord; or as we Christians often call it, the Day of Judgment. It is the day Messiah returns and begins to execute God’s judgment on a wicked and unrepentant world. And, all of the prophets refer to it as a “day of darkness”…..Amos says in chapter 5, “Is not the Day of the Lord darkness, and not light? Is it not VERY dark, with no brightness in it”. Zephaniah said in chapter 1, “…the
great day of the Lord is near……a day of wrath…..a day of darkness AND a day of trumpets…”. In the NT John, in Revelation, says the sun became black and the moon red
as blood…..for the great day of His wrath has come.

Rosh Hashanah is the Biblical Feast that typifies the return of Christ, and the beginning of judgment by God. A day of both literal AND spiritual darkness for most, a day of wonder and awe for those who trust Him. I have no doubt, that whether it is next year, or in some year after that, it is the Biblical Feast of Rosh Hashanah on which the Messiah will come; otherwise, it would break the pattern of the Feasts that up to now signaled
precisely every signal event of Messiah. A pretty good reason to celebrate, and look forward, to Rosh Hashanah each year, I think.

10 days following Rosh Hashanah, on Tishri 10, is THE holiest day of the year: Yom Kippur, which means “Day of Atonement”. What this day means to the Hebrew people is probably best summed up by means of a prayer usually recited by most observant Jews either in private, in Synagogue, or both, on Yom Kippur. It is a most profound prayer and it affects me deeply every time I read it or hear it…..so please quiet your minds, and
hearken to the Lord, and listen carefully:

“For the sin which we have committed before Thee by unclean lips, and for the sin which we have committed before Thee by impure speech; for the sin which we have
committed before Thee by our evil inclination, and for the sin which we have committed before Thee wittingly OR unwittingly; for all these, O God of Forgiveness, forgive us, pardon us, grant us atonement. In the book of Life, blessing, peace and good sustenance, may we be remembered and inscribed before thee.”

Wow. What that says in a few words is enough food for a lifetime. But, also notice a certain element of that prayer that is quite different from what I think is a far too narrow
Christian view: it constantly uses the word “we”, instead of “I”. This is a prayer for the body of Israel as a whole. This is a prayer of confession and repentance on a national basis. Naturally, by definition, a nation is made up of individuals. But, the emphasis is the corporate body…..ALL Israel…..its not about ME. It is about the fact that we are seen by God as individuals AND as the nation we belong to. We cannot escape it. When a nation is judged, ALL who belong to that nation are affected. When Israel was judged, the great prophets who sent the warnings and were persecuted for their efforts were NOT
protected. ALL suffered. We need to keep this in mind for the times we’re in and the days of wrath ahead of us.

The observant Jews believe that Yom Kippur is the day that a person’s fate for the coming year….the New Year that began just 10 days earlier, on Rosh Hashanah….is decided by God. The Day of Atonement is a Biblical command, and first established in
the Torah in the book of Leviticus chapter 16. It’s purpose was to cleanse the sanctuary…..the Wilderness Tabernacle….the earthly dwelling place of God… and to atone for the sins of the people of Israel.

The Tradition surrounding this awesome day is that it is the day that a person’s fate is sealed before God, for the coming year. As with Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur is a Sabbath (not the 7th day weekly Sabbath, but another day of ceasing from work).
Historically, and Biblically, Yom Kippur was the one day per year a man…..the High Priest…..was allowed to stand before the Ark of the Covenant in the Holy of Holies inside the Sanctuary. There, he would sprinkle blood on the Ark, and then eventually on other furnishings, to make them clean from the human contamination of sin and uncleanness from the previous year. Later in that day, the Scapegoat ceremony occurred in which a specially selected he-goat, the Scapegoat, was loaded up with the sins of Israel, by the High Priest, and sent out into the wilderness, away from God’s people, never to return.

Yom Kippur, Biblically, is a very solemn day. It is a day for people to put themselves in proper perspective before the Lord God; to recognize our complete dependence on God not just for our physical lives but our spiritual standing before Him.

Prophetically, Yom Kippur symbolizes the day all Israel will be saved. After the Messiah’s return on Rosh Hashanah, Israel will be cleansed and saved from the hand of the gentile world that has come against it by the Anointed One. Yeshua came 2000 years ago as our Passover. He came meekly to be slaughtered as the Lamb of God. But, when He returns, He comes as the greatest warrior of all time. He comes as the Kinsman
Redeemer who will take blood vengeance on a world that has persecuted His set-apart people, Israel, and all those joined to Israel under the ancient covenants by means of
faith…..Believers.

Involved within all this is the end of the rule of the Anti-Christ, the end of the rule of Satan over the world, and the end of people and nations who go against Israel. So, what we term the Battle of Armageddon also likely falls within this period of the Fall Feasts. Another pretty good reason for ALL Believers……gentile or Jew…… to pay attention to these Biblical Feasts.

Now, 5 days after Yom Kippur comes the FINAL Biblical Feast……Sukkot, the Feast of Tabernacles. I have in my hand what is called a Lulav……a Biblically ordained part of the celebration…..that has great symbolism. So, with all this as a background, we’ll spend all of our next week’s time together going over the MANY significant aspects of the Grande Finale of all the Feasts….the one that the Holy Scriptures say we’ll be
celebrating even upon the new earth of the future, in God’s very presence….the Feast of Tabernacles.