Hebrew Festivals

Feast of Tabernacles/Booths September 28th, 2015 Through Oct 4th

The Origin of Sukkot or Sukkoth
Sukkot hearkens back to times in ancient Israel when Jews would build huts near the edges of their fields during the harvest season. It also symbolizes the 40 years in the desert living in tents.
The Bible reveals dual significance in the Feast of Tabernacles. Agriculturally, Sukkot is Israel’s “thanksgiving,” a joyous harvest festival to celebrate the ingathering of grain and wine. As an historical feast, it’s main characteristic is the requirement to dwell in temporary shelters or booths in remembrance of God’s protection, provision and care during their 40 years in the wilderness.

Jesus and Sukkot:
During Sukkot or Sukkoth, two important ceremonies took place. The Hebrew people carried torches around the temple, illuminating bright candelabrum along the walls of the temple to demonstrate that the Messiah would be a light to the Gentiles. Also, the priest would draw water from the pool of Siloam and carry it to the temple where it was poured into a silver basin beside the altar. The priest would call upon the Lord to provide heavenly water in the form of rain for their supply. During this ceremony the people looked forward to the pouring out of the Holy Spirit. Some records reference the day spoken of by the prophet Joel.

In the New Testament, Jesus attended the Feast of Tabernacles:
John 7:37-39 (NKJV)
37 On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.
38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”
39 But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

The next morning, while the torches were still burning Jesus declared;
John 8:12 (NKJV)
12 Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”

Here are the scriptures on the Feast of Tabernacles; Exodus 23:16, 34:22, Leviticus 23:34-43, Numbers 29:12-40, Deuteronomy 16:13-15, Ezra 3:4, and Nehemiah 8:13-18

The Four Species are four different kinds of plants that have symbolic significance during the Jewish holiday of Sukkot.
Leviticus 23:40 (NKJV)
40 And you shall take for yourselves on the first day the fruit of beautiful [hadar] trees, branches of palm trees, the boughs of leafy trees, and willows of the brook; and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God for seven days.
From this text emerged the Four Species: a citron, a palm branch, three myrtle twigs and two willow branches.
During Sukkot the four species are brought together in the form of an etrog and the lulav. The etrog is a kind of citron [like a lemon], while the lulav is composed of three myrtle twigs, two willow twigs and a palm frond. Because the palm frond is the largest of these plants, the myrtle and willow are wrapped around it.
The lulav and etrog are also part of the synagogue service. On each morning of Sukkot people will carry the lulav and etrog around the sanctuary while reciting prayers. On the seventh day of Sukkot, called Hoshana Rabba, the Torah is removed from the Ark and congregants march around the synagogue seven times while holding the lulav and etrog. [This symbolizes the march of Jericho too]
Joshua 6:3-4 (NKJV)
3 You shall march around the city, all you men of war; you shall go all around the city once. This you shall do six days.
4 And seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark. But the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets.

This was done after the Feast of Passover:
Joshua 5:10 (NKJV)
10 Now the children of Israel camped in Gilgal, and kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month at twilight on the plains of Jericho.

The eighth and last day of Sukkot is known as Shmeni Atzeret. On this day a prayer for rain is recited, demonstrating how the Jewish holidays are in tune with the seasons of Israel, which begins on this day.

What follows is another version of this holiday.
Adapted from Pagan Holidays or God’s Holy Days — Which?
by Herbert W. Armstrong [I modified it and corrected parts of it.]

FEAST OF TABERNACLES AND LAST GREAT DAY

This page will give you an overview of the festival of Tabernacles — or Feast of Booths — listed in Leviticus chapter 23. Let us notice the instruction concerning this occasion:
Deuteronomy 16:13-17 (NKJV)
13 “You shall observe the Feast of Tabernacles seven days, when you have gathered from your threshing floor and from your winepress.
14 And you shall rejoice in your feast, you and your son and your daughter, your male servant and your female servant and the Levite, the stranger and the fatherless and the widow, who are within your gates.
15 Seven days you shall keep a sacred feast to the LORD your God in the place which the LORD chooses, because the LORD your God will bless you in all your produce and in all the work of your hands, so that you surely rejoice.
16 Three times a year all your males shall appear before the LORD your God in the place which He chooses: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Tabernacles; and they shall not appear before the LORD empty-handed.
17 Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD your God which He has given you.
Here is the Festival of Tabernacles, to be kept for seven days, beginning the 15th day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar. Notice Leviticus 23:33-35:
Leviticus 23:33-36 (NKJV)
33 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
34 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days to the LORD.
35 On the first day there shall be a holy convocation. You shall do no customary work on it.

On the first of these days is a holy convocation — that is, a set-apart commanded assembly. No work is to be done. “… And ye shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days …. It shall be a statute for ever in your generations: ye shall celebrate it in the seventh month” (Lev. 23:40-41).
Leviticus 23:40-41 (NKJV)
40 And you shall take for yourselves on the first day the fruit of beautiful trees, branches of palm trees, the boughs of leafy trees, and willows of the brook; and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God for seven days.
41 You shall keep it as a feast to the LORD for seven days in the year. It shall be a statute forever in your generations. You shall celebrate it in the seventh month.

Notice that it is commanded forever.
Here are pictured those final culminating events in God’s great plan. The earlier holy days show other parts of God’s plan: After Christ died for our sins to redeem mankind (commemorated in the spring by the Passover), after He has sent us the Holy Spirit and picked out a people for His Name to become kings and priests through the thousand years (observed at Pentecost), after His glorious Second Coming (shown by the Feast of Trumpets at the beginning of the seventh lunar month), after He has finally restored the redeemed by placing all the sins upon the head of Satan, their real author, and separating both him and the sins from the presence of God and His people (re-enacted at the Day of Atonement), thus finally perfecting the at-one-ment, making us finally joined in one — then we are ready for that final series of events, the commencement of the “Marriage of the Lamb,” the actual making of the New Covenant, the establishment of the Kingdom of God on earth and the reaping of the great harvest of souls for a thousand years. [This has problems and needs to be considered his opinion.]
To portray His plan, God took the yearly material harvest seasons in ancient Israel as the picture of the spiritual harvest of souls. In the Holy Land there are two annual harvest seasons. The first season is in the spring, when grains are harvested [Those who have died and gone on before us]. Later in the year comes the main harvest of fruit [Those who are alive an remain meeting Him in the air].
Notice that the Festival of Tabernacles is to be held “at the year’s end” (Ex. 34:22). In this verse the Festival of Tabernacles or Booths is specifically called the “feast of ingathering.” The harvest year ended at the beginning of Autumn. Just as Pentecost pictures the early harvest — this church age — so the Festival of Ingatherings or Tabernacles pictures the fall harvest — the great harvest of souls…
Notice that Christ kept the Feast of Tabernacles. The Apostle John devoted an entire chapter of his gospel — the seventh chapter — to describe what Jesus said and did during the Feast of Tabernacles in the last year of His ministry.

Why Called the Feast of Tabernacles

Remember that Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were merely heirs when they dwelled on earth (Heb. 11:9). While heirs they dwelled in tabernacles, or booths, sojourning in the land of promise. Booths or temporary dwellings pictured that they were not yet inheritors. Thus we read of the Feast of Tabernacles that “ye shall dwell in booths seven days … that your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt” (Lev. 23:42-43). Israel dwelled in booths in the wilderness before they entered the promised land.

Yet Another Festival!

Did you notice that the Feast of Tabernacles is only the sixth festival? There is yet another — the seventh!
The Feast of Tabernacles is, strictly speaking, seven days long… Seven is God’s number of completeness. Therefore, there must also be seven festivals. Let us notice where it is mentioned: “The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the feast of tabernacles for seven days unto the Lord … on the eighth day [the twenty-second day of the seventh month] shall be an holy convocation unto you … it is a [day of] solemn assembly; and ye shall do no servile work therein’ (Lev. 23:34, 36).

The Festivals
[1. Passover – Pesach – a spring feast
2. Feast of Unleavened Bread – Hag HaMatzah – a spring feast
3. First Fruits (grain and wine) – Bikkurim – a spring feast
4. Feast of Weeks (Pentecost) – Shavuot – also known as First Fruits and Feast of Harvest – a spring feast
5. Feast of Trumpets – Rosh Hashanah sunset Sept 13 to nightfall Sept 15 – a fall feast
6. Day of Atonement – Yom Kippur sunset Sept 22 to nightfall Sept 23 – a fall feast
7. Feast of Tabernacles/Booths – Sukkot or Sukkoth sunset Sept 27 to nightfall Oct 4 also known as Feast of Ingathering – a fall feast
7a. Last Great Day – Shamini Atzeret & Simchat Torah sunset Oct 4 to nightfall Oct 6 – the end]
“Convocations” means “Dress Rehearsals”
This eighth day, technically a separate feast, is called “the last day, that great day of the feast” (John 7:37). We often refer to it as “The Last Great Day.”
What does this final holy day represent?
Notice what Jesus preached about on that day: “If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink … out of his belly [innermost being] shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive … )” (John 7:37-39).
This was Jesus’ sermon giving the meaning of the last great day!
And finally, notice in Leviticus 23:37-38. After describing these annual holy days, it says: “These are the feasts of the Lord, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations … beside the sabbaths of the Lord.” We are, then, to keep these besides the Sabbath of the Lord.

5. Feast of Trumpets – Rosh Hashanah also known as Yom Teruah

This feast represents the “coming of the Lord”. It represents the first and second resurrection, rapture. The shofar is blown 100 times. The last blow is called “the Last Trumpet” and is the “last trumpet” blast of the year. 1 Cor 15:51-55, Matt 24:29-31

This Feast has another nickname; “no one knows the day (n)or the hour”. Why? During the time of the writing of the New Testament, they did not have our modern technology. This feast starts on a new moon. They did not know which day would be the new moon. To figure it out two people were chosen to “witness” when the new moon arrived. When it did, the witnesses would tell the Sanhedrin which day it was and thus the festival of 10 days of Awe began. If the two witnesses came in and said that it was not the 30th day of the month, that day, then the start would be the next day which would be the first day of the next month and the new year.
Thus we have “no one knows the day (n)or hour that it starts, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” Until the Sanhedrin sanctifies the New Moon of the seventh month, no one knew when Yom Teruah would begin”. Since they knew it had to be one of the two days, the Hebrew/Jews would not sleep for all 49 hours of the Feast of Trumpets. Mtt 24:42 For us there is a caveat, 1 Thes 5:4. Being brothers we will not be taken by surprise like a thief would. Also, if Yeshua did not return on this day, you would know you have another year before He returns. a quote of John Minten

Consider Mark 13:32-37, notice verse 35 “Watch therefore, for you do not know when the master of the house is coming–in the evening, at midnight, at the crowing of the rooster, or in the morning–” The specificity is clear and quite like the new moons arrival. Consider another, Luke 12:35-40, notice verse 38, And if (H)he should come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants. [that are watching and waiting prepared for the return] We need to heed this admonishment. Consider the parable of the virgins, five were prepared and went into the marriage feast the other five were rejected and not allowed to enter. Matt 25:1-13

In Hebrew, Rosh Hashanah means, literally, “Head of the Year,” and as its name indicates, it is the beginning of the Jewish year. The anniversary of the creation of Adam and Eve, it is the birthday of mankind, highlighting the special relationship between Yahweh and humanity.

The primary theme of the day is our (Jews) acceptance[?] of Yahweh as our King. The primary theme of the day is our acceptance of Yahweh as our King. The Kabbalists teach that the renewal of Yahweh’s desire for the world, and thus the continued existence of the universe, is dependent upon this. We accept Yahweh as our King, and Yahweh is aroused, once again, with the desire to continue creating the world for one more year. [ouch!] Much of the day is spent in synagogue. Yahweh not only desires to have a world with people, Yahweh wants an intimate relationship with each one of us. In addition to the collective aspects of Rosh Hashanah worship, each man and woman personally asks Yahweh to accept the coronation, thus creating the bond of “We are Your people and You are our King.”
The central observance of Rosh Hashanah is the sounding of the shofar, the ram’s horn. The shofar is sounded on both days of Rosh Hashanah (unless the first day of the holiday falls on Shabbat, in which case we only sound the shofar on the second day). The sounding of the shofar represents, among other things, the trumpet blast of a people’s coronation of their king. The cry of the shofar is also a call to repentance; for Rosh Hashanah is also the anniversary of man’s first sin and his repentance thereof, and serves as the first of the “Ten Days of Repentance” which will culminate in Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. Altogether, we listen to 100 shofar blasts over the course of the Rosh Hashanah service.
Additional Rosh Hashanah observances include:

We eat a piece of apple dipped in honey to symbolize our desire for a sweet year, as well as many other special foods. All have special significance and symbolize sweetness, blessings, and abundance.
We bless one another with the words Leshanah tovah tikateiv veteichateim, “May you be inscribed and sealed for a good year.”
We leave our old shortcomings behind us, thus starting the new year with a clean slate. We go to a lake, river or to the sea and recite the Tashlich prayers, where we symbolically cast our sins into the water, in evocation of the verse, “And You shall cast their sins into the depths of the sea.” We leave our old shortcomings behind us, thus starting the new year with a clean slate. [a picture of baptism]
And as with every major Jewish holiday, women and girls light candles on each evening of Rosh Hashanah and recite the appropriate blessings. After the prayers each night and morning, we recite Kiddush on wine, make a blessing over the challah, and enjoy a festive repast.

There are 10 days between the Feast of Trumpets and the Day of Atonement. These days are also referred to as “the 10 days of Awe”. Some think this is the time for the Wrath of God to be poured out.

6. Yom Kippur – Day of Atonement

This feast represents “the Day of the Lord”, “the Day of Armageddon” and “the Winepress of God’s Wrath”.
On this day in the future, we ride back to earth on horses with the King of Kings, because all His Saints are with Him when He returns (Rev19:14). We come back to earth with Yeshua after being comforted in Heaven for 10 days. No more hunger or thirst. a quote of John Minten

How Is Yom Kippur Observed?

Yom Kippur commemorates the day when Yahweh forgave the Jewish people for the sin of the Golden Calf. Forty days after hearing Yahweh say at Mount Sinai, “You shall not have the gods of others in My presence; you shall not make for yourself a graven image,” the Jews committed the cardinal sin of idolatry. Moses spent nearly three months on top of the mountain pleading with Yahweh for forgiveness, and on the tenth of Tishrei it was finally granted: “I have pardoned, as you have requested.” [not sure of this]
From that moment on, this date, henceforth known as the Day of Atonement, is annually observed as a commemoration of our special relationship with Yahweh, a relationship that is strong enough to survive any rocky bumps it might encounter. This is a day when we connect with the very essence of our being, which remains faithful to Yahweh regardless of our outward behavior. [this is wishful thinking as history tells us differently]
And while it is the most solemn day of the year, we are also joyful, confident that Yahweh will forgive our sins and seal our verdict for a year of life, health and happiness. [but He didn’t, but He will yet]
For nearly twenty-six hours—from several minutes before sunset on 9 Tishrei until after nightfall on 10 Tishrei—we “afflict our souls”: we abstain from food and drink, do not wash or anoint our bodies, do not wear leather footwear, and abstain from spousal intimacy. We are likened to the angels, who have no physical needs. Instead of focusing on the physical, we spend much of our day in the synagogue, engaged in repentance and prayer.

Preparations

On the day before Yom Kippur, the primary mitzvah is to eat and drink in abundance. Two festive meals are eaten, one earlier in the day, and one just prior to the onset of Yom Kippur. Some of the day’s other observances include requesting and receiving honey cake, in acknowledgement that we are all recipients in Yahweh’s world and in prayerful hope for a sweet year; begging forgiveness from anyone whom we may have wronged during the past year; giving extra charity; and the ceremonial blessing of the children.
Before sunset, women and girls light holiday candles, and everyone makes their way to the synagogue for the Kol Nidrei services.

On Yom Kippur

In the course of Yom Kippur we will hold five prayer services: 1) Maariv, with its solemn Kol Nidrei service, on the eve of Yom Kippur; 2) Shacharit—the morning prayer; 3) Musaf, which includes a detailed account of the Yom Kippur Temple service; 4) Minchah, which includes the reading of the Book of Jonah.
Finally, in the waning hours of the day, we reach the climax of the day: the fifth prayer, the Neilah (“locking”) prayer. The gates of heaven, which were open all day, will now be closed—with us on the inside. During this prayer we have the ability to access the most essential level of our soul. The Holy Ark remains open throughout. The closing Neilah service climaxes in the resounding cries of “Hear O Israel . . . Yahweh is one.” Then joy erupts in song and dance (a Chabad custom is to sing the lively “Napoleon’s March”), followed by a single blast of the shofar, and the proclamation, “Next year in Jerusalem.”
After the fast we partake of a festive after-fast meal, making the evening after Yom Kippur a yom tov (festival) in its own right. We immediately begin to look forward to the next holiday and its special mitzvah: the construction of the sukkah.

Yom Kippur is the holiest day of the year—the day on which we are closest to Yahweh and to the quintessence of our own souls. It is the Day of Atonement—“For on this day He will forgive you, to purify you, that you be cleansed from all your sins before Yahweh” (Leviticus 16:30).

7 & 7a. Sukkot or Sukkoth – Feast of Tabernacles

On the fifteenth of this [seventh] month shall be the festival of Sukkot to Yahweh for seven days. On the first day is a holy convocation. …The eighth day is a sacred holiday to you….(Lev. 23:34-36)
… Yahweh will rejoice when all of mankind proves that it was worthy of having been created. [a dream]
Just as the sukkah symbolizes a temporary abode, so life on earth represents only a transient part of man’s existence. It is divided into seven decades. The first decade is sin-free, hence “the first day is a holy convocation” [dress rehearsal]. During the seven days we offer sacrifices also on behalf of the rest of mankind (the seventy nations) since Yahweh will rejoice when all of mankind proves that it was worthy of having been created.
The eighth day, representing the eighth decade of our lives, i.e. life after the evil urge has lost its power over us, the holy convocation will be “for you”, i.e. for us rather than “for Yahweh”, since it will be Israel who will be entitled to celebrate its own achievements then. [another dream that will never come true]
from Torat Moshe by Rabbi Moshe Alshich of Tzfat-Safed

The seventh day of Sukkot is called Hoshanah Rabbah (“Great Salvation”). According to tradition, the verdict for the new year – which is written on Rosh Hashanah and sealed on Yom Kippur – is not handed down by the Heavenly Court until Hoshanah Rabbah. On this day we encircle the bimah (synagogue reading table) seven times while holding the Four Kinds and offering special prayers for prosperity during the upcoming year.
This is reportedly Jesus’ birthday, not conception. A real birthday is on conception. Reportedly Jesus was conceived on the Feast of Channukah. To some, this is also the Wedding Feast of the Lamb. To me the Lord set up His Tabernacle in Heaven on this day.

1. Passover – Pesach
The death of the firstborn finally breaks Pharaoh’s resistance and he literally begs the Children of Israel to leave his land. Following G-d’s command, they hastily depart; so hastily that there is no time for their dough to rise, and the only provisions they take along are unleavened. Before they go, they ask their Egyptian neighbors for gold, silver and garments, emerging from Egypt a wealthy nation.
The Children of Israel are commanded to observe the anniversary of the Exodus each year by removing all leaven from their possession for seven days, eating matzah, and telling the story of their redemption to their children.
Soon after allowing the Children of Israel to depart from Egypt, Pharaoh chases after them to force their return, and the Israelites find themselves trapped between Pharaoh’s armies and the sea. G-d tells Moses to raise his staff over the water; the sea splits to allow the Israelites to pass through, and then closes over the pursuing Egyptians. Moses and the Children of Israel sing a song of praise and gratitude to G-d.
The Lord was slain on this day so this feast represents our salvation from the Destroying Angel – Satan. Jesus died on Passover at 3:00 PM just after the lambs had been slaughtered in the Temple. Jesus was the last Lamb slain and, as Jewish custom was, He cried out “it is finished”.
2. Feast of Unleavened Bread – Hag HaMatzah

When leaving Egypt, the Israelites left in haste and did not have time for the yeast to rise. Yeast being a symbol of sin. They are to purge their house of all yeast, sin, and only eat unleavened bread. Bread without yeast, sin, is a picture of Jesus who is the Bread of Life. Jesus was placed in the tomb on this day.

3. First Fruits (grain and wine) – Bikkurim

This feast was for acknowledging the fertility of the land that God had given to His people. They were to make wave offerings to the Lord for a First Fruits harvest. This celebration was for the replanting of the earth in the spring. On this day the Lord was raised from the dead an He presented Himself before the Father as First Fruits! Yeshua was the Seed that died, was planted into the earth, and then burst forth from the ground, and produced a tremendous harvest of souls. Yeshua was truly the First Born from the dead over all creation! He also took to heaven with Him a First Fruits Harvest of Saints who had been resurrected. Their graves cracked open when Yeshua died on the cross and then they came to life after He was raised from the dead and they appeared to many people in Jerusalem as a First Fruits Harvest, being witness to the Resurrection.
John Minten in “Final Countdown to the Second Comings”

The “grain” and “wine” was harvested at this time. Thus we see Jesus, the grain seed, being harvested and bringing the “new wine” with Him, the Holy Spirit, the “new covenant.

4. Feast of Weeks (Pentecost) – Shavuot
The Torah was given by Yahweh to the Jewish people on Mount Sinai more than 3300 years ago. Every year on the holiday of Shavuot we renew our acceptance of Yahweh’s gift, and Yahweh “re-gives” the Torah.
The word Shavuot means “weeks.” It marks the completion of the seven-week counting period between Passover and Shavuot.
The giving of the Torah was a far-reaching spiritual event—one that touched the essence of the Jewish soul for all times. Our sages have compared it to a wedding between Yahweh and the Jewish people. Shavuot also means “oaths,” for on this day Yahweh swore eternal devotion to us, and we in turn pledged everlasting loyalty to Him.
In ancient times, two wheat loaves would be offered in Holy Temple. It was also at this time that people would begin to bring bikkurim, their first and choicest fruits, to thank Yahweh for Israel’s bounty.
On this day Yahweh swore eternal devotion to us, and we pledged everlasting loyalty to Him.
Pledged and broken but will be renewed.
The holiday of Shavuot is a two-day holiday, beginning at sundown of the 5th of Sivan and lasting until nightfall of the 7th of Sivan. (In Israel it is a one-day holiday, ending at nightfall of the 6th of Sivan.)
• Women and girls light holiday candles to usher in the holiday, on both the first and second evenings of the holidays.
• It is customary to stay up all night learning Torah on the first night of Shavuot.
• All men, women and children should go to the synagogue on the first day of Shavuot to hear the reading of the Ten Commandments.
• As on other holidays, special meals are eaten, and no “work” may be performed.
• It is customary to eat dairy foods on Shavuot. Among other reasons, this commemorates the fact that upon receiving the Torah, including the kosher laws, the Jewish people could not cook meat in their pots, which had yet to be rendered kosher.
• On the second day of Shavuot, the Yizkor memorial service is recited.
• Some communities read the Book of Ruth publicly, as King David—whose passing occurred on this day—was a descendant of Ruth the Moabite
This is the day in Acts 2 when 3,000 were saved. A “dress rehearsal”. This day was also 50 days after the first Sabbath after Passover.