The Gospel of the Kingdom is the ageless story of when the Kingdom of Heaven comes to earth. The event known as the Day of Yahuah (Day of the Lord) was a key component of Yeshua’s Gospel message from day one of his ministry. This unique day in history was written about by Enoch, prophesied by Isaiah, envisioned by John, and authored by our heavenly Father before the creation began.
At his first coming, Yeshua’s mission was to proclaim the eternal benefits of his Father’s Kingdom to come. He said it would be a place devoid of disease, poverty, hunger, thirst, fear, or sin. Peace would abound. Citizenship in this Kingdom will ultimately be granted to those who put their faith in him as their Redeemer.
The Gospel of the Kingdom unlocks the mysteries of heaven, speaks of Yeshua’s high priesthood, explains the ministry of angels, and speaks of the eternal destiny of the righteous.
Most of us have understood the Gospel to mean Yeshua’s death on the cross and his resurrection from the dead. But there is more to this amazing story. Much more.
The Feasts Proclaim the Gospel of the Kingdom
Our heavenly Father never intended for his children to be left stumbling in the dark, confused about their future. He left us evidence of his plan to redeem mankind within the pages of our Bibles. When you thumb through chapter 23 of Leviticus, you will discover how this Gospel of the Kingdom is proclaimed during appointed times and feast days. Read on.
Then Yahuah said to Moshe, speak to the Israelites and say to them, “These are My appointed feasts, the feasts of Yahuah that you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies.”
Leviticus 23:1,2
The twenty-third chapter of Leviticus gives us a detailed outline of the annual appointed times and holy convocation assemblies we are expected to honor as covenant keepers.
These are Yahuah’s appointed feasts, the sacred assemblies you are to proclaim at their appointed times.
Leviticus 23:4
This goes beyond ritual. These assemblies encourage spiritual discipline, obedience, and brotherly/sisterly love – integral components of Kingdom life.
Sabbath
For six days work may be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of complete rest, a day of sacred assembly. You must not do any work; wherever you live, it is a Sabbath to Yahuah.
Leviticus 23:3
Kingdom Key: The seventh day Sabbath rest is a hallmark of the Gospel of the Kingdom promises. The Sabbath represents the covenant promise of resurrection given to us by Yahuah.
The weekly Sabbath is a perpetual weekly reminder of what’s in store for those who endure until the end. Amongst other things, it teaches us how to rest in the promises of our heavenly Father as we walk in obedience to his commandments.
It is a holy convocation whereby we are told to assemble for worship and study of the scriptures.
Passover
The Passover to Yahuah begins at twilight on the fourteenth day of the first month.
Leviticus 23:5
The Hebrew word for passover is pesach or pesah (#H6453) which is derived from pasach or pasah (#H6452). Some have defined this word to mean to “pass over” or protectively cover the houses of the Israelites when the destroyer was sent out that fateful night in Egypt. (Exodus 12:23(b), Hebrews 11:28).
Pasach or pasah can imply the merciful passing over of a destructive power or outcome. This occurred in ancient history when the destroyer killed the firstborn of those without blood on the doorposts of their homes.
Take a cluster of hyssop, dip it into the blood in the basin, and brush the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe. None of you shall go out the door of his house until morning. When Yahuah passes through to strike down the Egyptians, He will see the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe and will pass over that doorway; so He will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses and strike you down.
Exodus 12: 22,23
That you will say, It is the sacrifice of Yahuah’s Pesach, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt when he smote the Egyptians and delivered our houses. And the people bowed their heads and worshiped.
Exodus 12:27
The etymology implies that when the Messiah returns to earth with his warrior angels, he will “pass over” first resurrection believers who are being taken up to New Jerusalem. This is the moment when saints are literally passed over while in the air until after the “indignation has passed.” (Isaiah 26:19-21)
For Yahuah will descend from heaven with a loud command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will be the first to rise. After that, we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will always be with the Lord.
I Thessalonians 4:16,17
Come, my people, enter your chambers and shut your doors behind you. Hide yourselves a little while until the wrath has passed. For behold, Yahuah is coming out of his dwelling place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity. The earth will disclose her bloodshed and will no longer conceal her slain.
Isaiah 26:20,21
The New Testament Greek word pascha (#G3957) can either refer to the actual paschal lamb that was slain at twilight on the fourteenth day of the first month, or the Passover itself.
Kingdom Key: Passover represents the moment Yeshua returns and resurrects us. His wrath passes over us as he descends to battle the wicked.
Passover and Unleavened Bread point to Messiah’s death. His death was necessary so this Lamb without spot or blemish could be resurrected and enter into his High Priesthood. As our High Priest, he is now able to mediate with the Father on our behalf and ultimately resurrect us from Sheol.
Feast of Unleavened Bread
On the fifteenth day of the same (first) month begins the Feast of Unleavened Bread to Yahuah. For seven days you must eat unleavened bread. On the first day, you are to hold a sacred assembly; you are not to do any regular work. For seven days you are to present an offering made by fire to Yahuah. On the seventh day, there will be a sacred assembly; you must not do any regular work.
Leviticus 23:4-8
Kingdom Key: The feast of Unleavened Bread represents the glorified, sinless bodies we will receive and the clearing out of the wicked from the geographical Promised Land.
First Fruits
And Yahuah said to Moshe, speak to the Israelites and say, “When you enter the land that I am giving you and you reap its harvest, you are to bring to the priest a sheaf of first fruits of your harvest. And he shall wave the sheaf before Yahuah so that it may be accepted on your behalf; the priest is to wave it on the day after the Sabbath.
Leviticus 23:9-11
This is a special offering but is not to be placed in the category of a “holy convocation” feast assembly. (The greater harvest comes 50 days later during the wheat harvest.)
A way to understand this dichotomy is to look at the timing of spring harvest seasons. Deuteronomy 8:7-8 tells us that Israel’s major crops were olives, figs, grapes, pomegranates, honey, wheat, and barley.
During the Spring the most important crops harvested were barley and wheat, which were planted during Autumn. Since the barley harvest came first, a sheaf of this first fruit would be waved by the priest on the “day after the Sabbath” following the feast of Unleavened Bread.
Kingdom Key: Yeshua is a type of the early yield of first fruits. Our wonderful Redeemer is symbolic of the first fruits of the harvest of righteous souls to come.
But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ, all will be made alive. But each in his own turn: Christ the firstfruits; then at His coming, those who belong to Him.
1 Corinthians 15:20-23
Shavuot/Feast of Weeks/Feast of First Fruits
From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, you are to count off seven full weeks. You shall count off fifty days until the day after the seventh Sabbath, and then present an offering of new grain to the LORD.
Leviticus 23:15,16
Kingdom Key: This is a dual feast. It represents us fully receiving the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit) upon resurrection during the “wheat” harvest of righteous souls, which takes place when the Day of Yahuah commences. This is the first resurrection event. It is during this holy convocation that the covenant with Yahuah is renewed each year.
And He gave Noah and his sons a sign that there should not again be a flood on the earth. He set His bow in the cloud for a sign of the eternal covenant that there should not again be a flood on the earth to destroy it all the days of the earth. For this reason, it is ordained and written on the heavenly tablets, that they should celebrate the feast of weeks in this month once a year, to renew the covenant every year.
Jubilees 6:15-17
And this whole festival was celebrated in heaven from the day of creation till the days of Noah – twenty-six jubilees and five weeks of years [1309-1659 A.M.]: and Noah and his sons observed it for seven jubilees and one week of years, till the day of Noah’s death, and from the day of Noah’s death his sons did away with (it) until the days of Abraham, and they eat blood. But Abraham observed it, and Isaac and Jacob and his children observed it up to thy days, and in thy days the children of Israel forgot it until ye celebrated it anew on this mountain.
Jubilees 6:18-19
Shavuot did not begin with Moses. It has been celebrated since creation.
Trumpets
Yahuah also said to Moses, “Speak to the Israelites and say, ‘On the first day of the seventh month you are to have a day of rest, a sacred assembly announced by trumpet blasts. You must not do any regular work, but you are to present an offering made by fire to Yahuah.’ ”
Leviticus 23:23-25
Kingdom Key: At the sound of the last trumpet, believers in Yeshua will be resurrected and/or translated if still alive on earth at this time. The “wheat” of the second harvest will be escorted by angels into barns while the “tares” will be burned.
His winnowing fork is in His hand to clear His threshing floor and to gather His wheat into the barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
Matthew 3:12
And He will send out His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.
Matthew 24:31
Day of Atonement
Again the LORD said to Moses, “The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. You shall hold a sacred assembly and humble yourselves,f and present an offering made by fire to the LORD. On this day you are not to do any work, for it is the Day of Atonement when atonement is made for you before the LORD your God. If anyone does not humble himself on this day, he must be cut off from his people. I will destroy from among his people anyone who does any work on this day. You are not to do any work at all. This is a permanent statute for the generations to come, wherever you live.
Leviticus 23: 26-31
At last! This day marks the final and complete forgiveness of all our sins. We are given resurrection bodies made of water and spirit that will be incapable of ever sinning again.
Yeshua answered, “Truly, truly, I tell you, no one can enter the Kingdom of Yahuah unless he is born of water and the Spirit.
John 3:5
Kingdom Key: With our redemption complete we will be able to fully participate in Yeshua’s Melchizedek priesthood. In our resurrected state we will be ordained as priests with the law written on our hearts.
Sukkot/Feast of Tabernacles
And Yahuah said to Moses, “Speak to the Israelites and say, ‘On the fifteenth day of the seventh month the Feast of Tabernacles to Yahuah begins, and it continues for seven days. On the first day, there shall be a sacred assembly. You must not do any regular work.
Leviticus 23:33-35
Kingdom Key: Sukkot points to the time when Father and Son will tabernacle with us in the Kingdom of Heaven on earth – The New Jerusalem. We will be joined by those righteous angels who remained faithful to the Most High and their mission to minister to those of us who were destined to inherit eternal life. We will also serve those who survive the Great Tribulation and who will learn Torah during the Millennial reign of Messiah.
Feast of the In-Gathering/Addition/The 8th Day
For seven days you are to present an offering made by fire to Yahuah. On the eighth day, you are to hold a sacred assembly and present an offering made by fire to Yahuah. It is a solemn assembly; you must not do any regular work.
Leviticus 23:36
Kingdom Key: This 8th Day is symbolic of the second resurrection event and the time when death and Sheol will no longer exist. It is a time of great joy which comes at the end of the Millennium as we enter the eternal age. These will be days of rest that will be never-ending.
In the Book of Jubilees, Jacob is credited with adding this extra day to Sukkot.
And he celebrated there yet another day, and he sacrificed thereon according to all that he sacrificed on the former days, and called its name ‘Addition,’ for this day was added. And the former days he called ‘The Feast.’ And thus it was manifested that it should be, and it is written on the heavenly tablets: wherefore it was revealed to him that he should celebrate it, and add it to the seven days of the feast. And its name was called ‘Addition,’ because it was recorded amongst the days of the feast days, according to the number of the days of the year.
Jubilees 32:27-30
Although covenant promises will not be made real until the resurrection, how we behave now matters.
Our behavior is evidence of our faith in Yeshua’s ability to redeem us from the penalty of sin. It is also a sign that we truly belong to him.
The Torah of Yahuah is eternal and has not been “done away with.” When we obey the commandments to honor feast days and appointed times, we are living the Kingdom life now.
As you prepare to welcome a new biblical year, we pray you will appreciate the Gospel of the Kingdom signposts that have been embedded in Yahuah’s calendar.
To fast or not to fast on Yom Kippur is a question new Torah observant believers in Yeshua wrestle with each year. If you are just beginning to get acquainted with Yah’s appointed times, trying to figure out how to honor these special days can be a bit daunting. I believe this because we are not following the customs and traditions of Judaism and there no longer exists an active Levitical priesthood requiring animal sacrifices.
However, even if we are not sure how to do the Feasts properly, I believe our Heavenly Father wants us to at least try. This is the spirit of the law in action. We have to do what we can — in faith — while relying on the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit) to give us wisdom in the matter.
Yom Kippur – The Day of Atonement
Again Yahuah said to Moses, “The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. You shall hold a sacred assembly and humble yourselves, and present an offering made by fire to Yahuah. On this day you are not to do any work, for it is the Day of Atonement, when atonement is made for you before Yahuah your Elohim. If anyone does not humble himself on this day, he must be cut off from his people. I will destroy from among his people anyone who does any work on this day. You are not to do any work at all. This is a permanent statute for the generations to come, wherever you live. It will be a Sabbath of complete rest for you, and you shall humble yourselves. From the evening of the ninth day of the month until the following evening you are to keep your Sabbath.”
Leviticus 23: 26-30
Yom Kippur is to be commemorated each year on the tenth day of the seventh month on the Hebrew calendar. It is considered a High Sabbath observance that spans a 24 hour period. In addition to refraining from work, we are instructed to “humble” ourselves. (Some translations substitute the phrase “afflict your souls” for the words “humble yourselves.” ) What is being said here?
Why Fast?
Historically, fasting has been an outward expression of inward remorse, repentance, sorrow, grief, distress, or petition.1
And there by the Ahava Canal I proclaimed a fast, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask Him for a safe journey for us and our children, with all our possessions
Ezra 8:21
And this shall be a statute for ever unto you: that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, ye shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether it be one of your own country, or a stranger that sojourneth among you:
Leviticus 16:29
However, on some occasions the people would be called out for their hypocrisy in doing so.
“Why have we fasted, and You have not seen? Why have we humbled ourselves, and You have not noticed?” “Behold, on the day of your fast, you do as you please, and you oppress all your workers. You fast with contention and strife to strike viciously with your fist. You cannot fast as you do today and have your voice be heard on high.
Isaiah 58:3,4
“Ask all the people of the land and the priests, ‘When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months for these seventy years, was it really for Me that you fasted?
Zechariah 7:5
Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.
Matthew 6:16-18
What Type of Fast?
When you research Yom Kippur, you will no doubt get several different instructions on how this important feast day is to be memorialized. Not everybody observes Yom Kippur the same way. However, the prevailing opinion seems to be focused on fasting.
As I was wrestling with this myself, I was prompted to re-read Isaiah 59. This was an eye opener which spoke to me in a very profound way as I was asking for guidance in what to do on Yom Kippur this year. I believe fasting is appropriate during this solemn occasion. However, this fast involves much more than abstaining from food.
I sensed that the Father is asking us to fast from being so “self” focused. We are all feeling the pressures of these last days. However, we must deny ourselves and focus on ways we can be more of a servant to those who are less fortunate.
Instead of focusing on the “politics” of hunger and homelessness, we must concern ourselves with how we can demonstrate the message of Yah’s lovingkindness and the hope of the Kingdom. If we have been prepping for a coming famine, have we done it out of a selfish heart or are we setting aside provisions for those who may not have the resources to do likewise? Are we making ourselves into instruments of peace with our family? Are we fasting from backbiting, gossip, character assassination, or even revenge?
I believe Yah was showing me that when it comes to afflicting myself, I need to do it His way. Re-read Isaiah 59:6-12 and determine for yourself if this is indeed the fast Yah is asking us to do as we focus on Yom Kippur.
Isn’t this the fast that I have chosen: to break the chains of wickedness, to untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and tear off every yoke? Isn’t it to share your bread with the hungry, to bring the poor and homeless into your home, to clothe the naked when you see him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will come quickly. Your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of Yahuah will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and Yahuah will answer; you will cry out, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you remove the yoke (of oppression) from your midst, the pointing of the finger and malicious talk, and if you give yourself to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted (depressed) soul, then your light will go forth in the darkness and your night will be like noonday. And Yahuah will always guide you; He will satisfy you in a sun-scorched land and strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins; you will restore the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of the Breach, Restorer of the Streets of Dwelling.
Isaiah 59:6-12
FOOTNOTES:
1Deuteronomy 9:9-18, 2 Samuel 12:1-23, 1 Kings 19:4-8:1, Ezra 10:6-17, Daniel 6:18-23, Acts 9:1-9
The role the fall feasts play in helping us fully comprehend the person and mission of our Messiah can not be understated. These autumnal festivals — Yom Teruah (Trumpets), Yom Kippur (Atonement), and Sukkot (Tabernacles) — point to Yeshua’s Second Coming. They are also unique in that they follow a certain Gospel of the Kingdom thematic progression.
The spring feasts — Passover, Unleavened Bread, and Shavuot — outline the first phase of Yahuah‘s redemptive plan for humanity. Passover anticipates the moment Yeshua, our sinless Redeemer and High Priest, returns and resurrects us. His wrath “passes over” us as he and his righteous angelic hosts descend to battle the wicked on earth during the event known as the “Day of the Lord.” Unleavened Bread points to the glorified sinless bodies we will receive upon resurrection. Shavuot is a dual feast memorial, symbolic of when we fully receive the Holy Spirit upon resurrection and have Yah’s laws written on our hearts. This is the moment we are finally born-again into sinless bodies that will be incapable of ever sinning again.1
What’s more, taken altogether, the spring and fall feasts vividly illustrate the plan of redemption made possible by the blood of Yeshua.
Feasts and Appointed Times
The word for feast in Hebrew is mishteh ( משתה). It refers, in a general sense, to a banquet where food and drink is offered in abundance. Feasts are held for a variety of reasons: to commemorate an important event, honor a monarch, or celebrate a marriage. Abraham made a great mishteh when Isaac was weaned (Genesis 21:8), Pharaoh arranged a birthday mishteh for his servants (Genesis 40:20), Abigail held a mishteh “like a king” for her husband Nabal (1 Samuel 25:36), and Laban prepared a wedding mishteh for Leah and Rachel (Genesis 29:21,22)
The other word often translated as feast is the Hebrew word moed (מוער). It can mean appointed place or time, an appointment, meeting, fixed time, season or assembly. Technically it means congregation or, by extension, a place of meeting.
In a nutshell, a moed is the worshipping assembly of Yahuah’s people. The plural form of this noun is moedim (מועדים). They are annual gatherings or appointed times that the Most High has mandated by royal decree for all believers.2 These are not non-biblical, secular “holidays” like Christmas or Easter.3 Leviticus 23:2 tells us that Yahuah has proclaimed these particular feasts as His own. They are His feasts (not the “Jews”) and serve as a mark of identity for His people.
Speak to the children of Israel, and thou shalt say unto them, The feasts of the Lord which ye shall call holy assemblies, these are my feasts.
Brenton Septuagint (LXX)
Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, The set feasts of Jehovah, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, even these are my set feasts.
American Standard Version
Speak unto the sons of Israel, and thou hast said unto them, Appointed seasons of Jehovah, which ye proclaim, holy convocations, are these: they are My appointed seasons:
Young’s Literal Translation
Once you wean yourself from following secular holidays on the Gregorian calendar, you will begin to experience the new depth of understanding that Yah’s feasts bring to your spiritual walk. When the Most High called them His appointed times He wanted His people to understand that He was the Master of the calendar and the author of creation. On the seventh day He rested and expects us to rest each week on the seventh day Sabbath, which is also an appointed time.
And Yahuah spoke unto Mosheh, saying, Speak unto the children of Yashar’el4 and say to them, ‘Concerning the feasts of Yahuah, which ye shall proclaim to be holy assemblies, even these are my feasts. Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the Shabbath of rest, a holy assembly; ye shall do no work therein: it is the Shabbath of Yahuah in all your dwellings.
Leviticus 23:1-3 The Cepher
And on the seventh day, Elohim completed His work that He made, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work, which He had made. And Elohim blessed the seventh day and sanctified it (set it apart for a holy purpose), because He rested from all His work on it, which Elohim created to make.
Genesis 2:2,3
The weekly Sabbath was set apart at creation before Noah, Abraham, or Israel ever existed. In their attempt to unite and harmonize pagan practices, the church at Roman changed the Sabbath from the seventh day to the first day of the week (Sun-day). This was done because they practiced sun god worship of Mithra. The Romans had found a way to control people through familiar concepts and practices.
Constantine the Great changed the Sabbath to Sunday on March 7, in the year 321 CE (Common Era). The Catholic Church quickly followed suit.
“It [the Roman Catholic Church] reversed the Fourth Commandment by doing away with the Sabbath of God’s word and instituting Sunday as a holiday.”
History of the Christian Church (1873), N. Summerbell
The Pope is of so great authority and power that he can modify, explain, or interpret even Divine Laws…The Pope can modify divine law, since his power is not of man, but of God, and he acts as vicegerent of God upon earth.” Translated from Lucius Ferraris, Prompta Bibliotheca (Ready Library).
Translated from Lucius Ferraris, Prompta Bibliotheca
We observe Sunday instead of Saturday because the Catholic Church transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday.
The Convert’s Catechism of Catholic Doctrine (1946), Peter Geiermann,
Unfortunately, many heathen idolatrous customs and traditions have been mixed in with Christianity, and Yah’s appointed times have been ignored or forgotten by the church. When you substitute Sun-day worship for the true Sabbath, you break the fourth commandment.
Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to Yahuah your Elohim, on which you must not do any work—neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant or livestock, nor the foreigner within your gates. For in six days Yahuah made the heavens and the earth and the sea and all that is in them, but on the seventh day He rested. Therefore Yahuah blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy.
Exodus 20:8-11
Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as Yahuah our Elohim has commanded you. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to Yahuah your Elohim, on which you must not do any work—neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your ox or donkey or any of your livestock, nor the foreigner within your gates, so that your manservant and maidservant may rest as you do.
Sabbath days of rest are also incorporated into appointed times such as Unleavened Bread, Shavuot, Yom Teruah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot and the Last Great Day feast.
The Fall Feasts of Yah
Yom Teruah – Feast of Trumpets
On the first day of the seventh month, you are to hold a sacred assembly, and you must not do any regular work. This will be a day for you to sound the trumpets.
Numbers 29:1
The blowing of the trumpet or shofar (yobel/Strong’s #2986) on this feast day is a call for Yah’s people to assemble. Yom (Strong’s #3117) means”day” in Hebrew. Teruah (Strong’s #8623) can mean either “a shout or blast of war, alarm, or joy.”
These various trumpet sounds conveyed a specific message to the congregation. It instructed the people to either prepare for war or celebration. In these last days it is conceivable that both meanings hold true as we march toward the day when Yah’s Kingdom comes to earth.
Trumpet sounds are mentioned numerous times throughout biblical history.
1 Corinthians 15:52 — resurrection
Revelation 8:6 — 7 angels blowing 7 trumpets
Numbers 10:2-8 — trumpet blasts calling community together and dispersing the camps on their journeys
Psalm 98:6 — instruments used for making a “joyful noise”
Hosea 5:8 — battle cry as a foreign invader enters the land
1 Chronicles 16:6 — priests with trumpets before the ark
Matthew 24:31 — gathering of the elect
Joshua 6:13 — Joshua’s campaign against Jericho
Judges 7:18 — Gideon’s campaign against Midian
Many times in scriptures our Heavenly Father’s voice is compared to that of a trumpet.
After this I looked and saw a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had previously heard speak to me like a trumpet was saying, “Come up here, and I will show you what must happen after these things.”
Revelation 4:1
For you have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom, and storm; to a trumpet blast or to a voice that made its hearers beg that no further word be spoken.
Hebrews 12: 18,19
On the third day, when morning came, there was thunder and lightning. A thick cloud was upon the mountain, and a very loud blast of the ram’s horn went out, so that all the people in the camp trembled.
Exodus 19:16
Let’s take another look at Joshua’s strategy for taking the land at Jericho. They were instructed to march around the city 7 times while the priests blew 7 shofars. Finally, at the long blast of the seventh trumpet, the people were to shout a great shout. This is when the kingdom of Jericho came to an end and the people conquered it. They victoriously entered their Promised Land.
The Hebrew word shout is rua (Strong’s #7321) and means to raise a shout or give a blast. Teruah (Strong’s #8643) can mean either a shout or blast of war, alarm, or joy. We see both going on here with the priests blowing trumpets and the people shouting on the 7th shofar blast.
So what is Yom Teruah, all about? In my humble opinion this day of trumpet blasts or soundings should cause us to look back at what happened when Joshua took Jericho and what we can look forward to at the resurrection. Every time we remember Yom Teurah we are rehearsing the day the trumpet will sound and those who have put their trust in Yeshua will rise in the resurrection. At that time we will enter the Promised Land of New Jerusalem and serve our King Yeshua in his Kingdom on earth.
Yom Kippur – Day of Atonement
On the tenth day of this seventh month, you are to hold a sacred assembly, and you shall humble yourselves; you must not do any work.
Numbers 29:7
Yom Kippur comes ten days after Yom Teruah as the mood shifts from the blowing of trumpets, to a spirit of humility before Yah. There is much debate about how we should memorialize this day. Should we collectively fast, pray, or do something else? Why is this called a day of atonement? Before we go further in our effort to unpack the meaning of this important day, let’s dig deeper into the Hebrew words for atonement and humble.
Historically Yom Kippur was a day marked by a sin offering for the entire nation. On this day the high priest would enter the inner veil of the Temple bearing the blood of the sin offering. (Hebrews 9:7) A second goat or “scapegoat” (azazel) was released as a visual illustration of the total removal of sin.
On this day you are not to do any work, for it is the Day of Atonement, when atonement is made for you before the LORD your God.
Leviticus 23:28
The word atonement used in this verse is the Hebrew word kaphar (Strong’s #3722) which means to cover over, pacify, forgive, appease or make propitiation.
When we examine the word humble, it gets a bit stickier as it relates to Yom Kippur. Rabbinical tradition holds that a day of fasting was required of this day. They apparently equated fasting with humility. But is this how we are to interpret it? When you compare scriptures using the Hebrew word for humble — anah — you may come to a different conclusion. Here are a few examples:
Then Yahuah said to Abram, “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not their own, and they will be enslaved and afflicted four hundred years.
Genesis 15:13
He humbled you, and in your hunger He gave you manna to eat, which neither you nor your fathers had known, so that you might understand that man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.
Deuteronomy 8:3
So the Egyptians appointed taskmasters over the Israelites to afflict them with forced labor. As a result, they built Pithom and Rameses as store cities for Pharaoh.
Exodus 1:11
If anah meant fast, then the Israelites would have been fasting a long time during their Egyptian enslavement. Forty years of fasting in the wilderness would have annihilated these people. In both Matthew and Mark’s gospels the Pharisees asked Yeshua why his disciples did not fast.
Jesus replied, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while He is with them? But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.
Matthew 9:15
When prophesying about the New Jerusalem in the coming Kingdom, Zechariah mentions fasting done in the seventh month.
This is what the LORD of Hosts says: The fasts of the fourth, the fifth, the seventh, and the tenth months will become times of joy and gladness, cheerful feasts for the house of Judah. Therefore you are to love both truth and peace.
Zechariah 8:19
Arguments can be made for both sides I guess. So, does Yah command us to fast on this day? I don’t believe He has. It is possible to do a fast and not have a heart that is submitted to Yeshua, our High Priest and coming King. I tend to agree with brothers and sisters in the faith who choose to honor this unique Sabbath day by submitting to his Torah commandments and confessing our individual sins and the sins of our nation with a spirit of humility.
Sukkot – Feast of Booths
On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, you are to hold a sacred assembly; you must not do any regular work, and you shall observe a feast to Yahuah for seven days.
Numbers 29:12
Sukkot or the Feast of Tabernacles is considered a festival of joy because it was during this time that Rachel found out she was pregnant with Benjamin and Abraham learned that Sarah was with child. Abraham is the first to celebrate Sukkot; building booths or sukkahs for himself and his servants. It was also during this festival that Jacob passed the priesthood to Levi.
And Levi discharged the priestly office at Bethel before Jacob his father in preference to his ten brothers, and he was a priest there, and Jacob gave his vow: thus he tithed again tithe to the Lord and sanctified it, and it became holy unto him.
Book of Jubilees 32:9, R.H. Charles translation
On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, after you have gathered the produce of the land, you are to celebrate a feast to Yahuah for seven days. There shall be complete rest on the first day and also on the eighth day.
Leviticus 23:29,40
The feast of Sukkot, along with Unleavened Bread and Shavuot are considered pilgrimage festivals.
Three times a year all your men are to appear before the LORD your God in the place He will choose: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Tabernacles. No one should appear before Yahuah empty-handed.
Deuteronomy 16:16
When you study the Scriptures and take careful note, you will also see how a December 25th birthday for our Messiah is not believable. For one thing, we are told that the shepherds were watching over their sheep at night. After month seven the cold and rainy season would have set in and the sheep brought inside. The first chapter of Luke provides more evidence to the timing of Yeshua’s birth.
There was 6 months between the birth of Yochanan (John) and the birth of Yeshua according to scripture. Hebrew tradition asserts that John was born at Passover. Yeshua would then be born 6 months later; perfect timing for Sukkot. The course of Abijah5 and this reasoning would not add up for Yeshua to have been born in December. In Luke 2:10 it states that “great joy” would be to all people. Sukkot was already known as the “Season of Our Joy”. What would make it more joyful than a savior being born and tabernacling with us at that very season? Sukkot is a picture perfect time for the birth of The Messiah. Most Messianic Jews teach that Yeshua was born on the 1st day of Sukkot and then circumcised on the 8th day of Shemini Atzeret (incidently, both of these days are Sabbaths). Sukkot would have been perfect timing! Hebrews 9:11 speaks of Yeshua being a more perfect “tabernacle”.
Leisa Baysinger, Our Ancients Paths
John was conceived by Elizabeth when his father Zechariah’s priestly course ended. Mary conceived Yeshua by the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit) at the sixth month mark of Elizabeth’s pregnancy; placing his birth around the time of Sukkot. It is interesting that the name Abijah means “Yahuah is my father.” Huppah and Jeshebeab’s courses (13 and 14) came around the time of Sukkot in the fall. Huppah means “covering or canopy.” Jeshebeab’s name means “may the father sojourn or dwelling of the father.” This gives us a new perspective on the Word that became flesh and tabernacled among us!
On the eighth day you are to hold a solemn assembly; you must not do any regular work.
Numbers 29: 35
The eight day which is attached to Sukkot is also called Addition or the Eighth Great Day. The Book of Jubilees attributes this added day to the feast of booths to Jacob.
And he celebrated there yet another day, and he sacrificed thereon according to all that he sacrificed on the former days, and called its name ‘Addition,’ for this day was added. And the former days he called ‘The Feast.’ And thus it was manifested that it should be, and it is written on the heavenly tablets: wherefore it was revealed to him that he should celebrate it, and add it to the seven days of the feast. And its name was called ‘Addition,’ because it was recorded amongst the days of the feast days, according to the number of days of the year.
Book of Jubilees 32:27-30, R.H.Charles translation
I sincerely hope what is written here will help you in your quest to know more about the Kingdom of Yahuah. As believers in Messiah we have a wonderful inheritance awaiting us if we don’t stray off the ancient paths. If this information is new to you, that’s alright. You can begin researching everything that is included in the articles posted on this blog and information included in our book The Gospel Worth Dying For (in PDF or paperback).
Download the 2022/2023 Feast Calendar
We have prepared a calendar for you to follow as you dig deeper into your understanding of the feasts of Yahuah. It has been synced with dates on the Gregorian calendar and is available below as a free PDF download.
FOOTNOTES
1 Most of us were taught to focus solely on the second half of the Bible; suggesting that the Old Testament was not relevant to New Testament believers in Messiah. This old/new covenant dichotomy as led to much confusion. The Bible’s message is a united whole. The narrative is integrated and will not make sense if treated as two separate messages. The promises given to Abraham will not be realized until the Kingdom comes down to earth. Our New Covenant promises will not be realized until we are resurrected and born again from the womb of Sheol. This side of immortality we have a down payment on those promises through the presence of the Ruach HaKodesh and experience the new birth proleptically. (Hebrews 8:1-12 and Jeremiah 31: 27-34).
2 Each festival of Yah is a moed (מוער). However, when the word chag (חג) is used, it denotes the three annual “pilgrim” festivals which were mandatory for all Hebrew males: Unleavened Bread, Shavuot, and Sukkot.
3 The Christmas festival was a part of pagan sun worship long before the birth of Yeshua. Originally called Saturnalia or Paganalia, it served as a compromise in attempts to lure pagans into Christianity. During the time of Constantine’s rule the Roman church assigned December 25 as the date for the celebration of Yeshua’s birth around 320 or 350 CE. (Jeremiah 10:1-8)The Scriptures however place Messiah’s birth at the time of the fall feasts. Easter, with its fertility bunnies and eggs, is also a pagan celebration taken out of Babylon. It is not another way of honoring Passover. (1 Corinthians 11:23-24) Easter’s pagan rites of spring is connected to Nimrod and the sun god Baal. Easter worship began during the early 2nd century by bishop Sixtus of Rome.
4Israel: He will rule as Elohiym or prince of Elohiym; the upright in Elohiym. Yashar’el: a symbolical name of Ya’aqov; also (typically) of his posterity: the nation of the 12 tribes; the name of the kingdom of the 10 northern tribes after the split of the kingdom of Shalom. (The house of Yashar’el). The identity of all believers in MASHIACH. [Cepher definition]
Note: Do not confuse Yashar’el with the modern day nation of Israel. Biblical Israel or Yashar’el is rooted in the entirety of the Scriptures. This includes the Bible canon of 66 books and other extra biblical writings. Judaism incorporates “Jewish” rabbinical interpretation, Talmudic caveats, and tradition into its theology. Judaism does not represent the message of the Gospel once and for all delivered to the saints.
5 David set up the 24 priestly divisions and handed the instructions over to Solomon. During David’s reign there were two priests, Abiathar and Zadok. However, when Abiathar participated in the rebellion against David which was fomented by Adonijah, he was removed. At this time Zadok (a descendent of Eleazar) and his descendants occupied the office of High Priest. The divisions collapsed after Judah was carried off to Babylon in 586 B.C.E. (Before the Common Era) (1 Kings 1:1-8; 1:24-26)
Shavuot — also known as the Feast of Weeks — is the second of three mandatory pilgrimage festivals to Jerusalem that the men of Israel were required to make each year. These three so-called “ascendant” festivals served as a visual affirmation of the nation’s commitment to the Most High. They were mandated by Torah, and a condition of the nation’s covenant promise to Yahuah.
Three times a year all your men are to appear before the LORD your God in the place He will choose: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Tabernacles. No one should appear before the LORD empty-handed.
Deuteronomy 16:16 Berean Study Bibles
Since all believers in Messiah through faith and obedience are considered Israel,1 when we memorialize Yah’s feasts we honor our Heavenly Father. Through our actions we show others that we want to go home — back to the Garden. We are demonstrating our faith in the Father’s promise that through Yeshua we will live with Him in New Jerusalem. This place is also known as the Promised Land which descends to earth following the tribulation.
Then one of the seven angels with the seven bowls full of the seven final plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the holy city of Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, shining with the glory of God. Its radiance was like a most precious jewel, like a jasper, as clear as crystal. The city had a great and high wall with twelve gates inscribed with the names of the twelve tribes of Israel, and twelve angels at the gates.
The heart’s desire of every believer is to go home. Our journey back to the paradise that was lost by Adam involves a rough and tumble pilgrimage. The way is paved with heartache, pain, disappointment, fear, deception, and betrayal. However, humanity’s dream of ultimately dwelling with our Creator can only become a reality through Yeshua. He meant it when he promised to prepare a place for us in the Kingdom to come. (John 14:2,3)
Both Isaiah and Micah hinted at these pilgrimages actually being dress rehearsals for what resurrected saints will see happening once New Jerusalem comes down to earth. The “sheep nations” (Matthew 25:31-34) consisting of mortal humanity who enter the Millennium will also participate in these pilgrimages as part of their training in righteousness.
In the last days the mountain of the house of the LORD will be established as the chief of the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream to it. And many peoples will come and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us His ways so that we may walk in His paths.” For the law will go forth from Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
Isaiah 2:2,3 Berean Study Bible
And many nations will come and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us His ways, so that we may walk in His paths.” For the law will go forth from Zion and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
Micah 4:2 Berean Study Bible
And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it. Its gates shall not be shut at all by day (there shall be no night there). And they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it.
Revelation 21: 24-26 New King James Version
Our Return to the Kingdom
In our effort to get back home, we must ascend or go up little-by-little. The Hebrew word for ascent is ma’alot. It is used often in the Psalms of Ascent — Psalms 120-134. Just as the Hebrews journeyed up to Jerusalem to present their gifts, we must also ascend to a higher way of living.
Many believe the ascent referred to were the 15 steps that led to the Jerusalem temple. Others think the ascent is connected to the people’s journey back from exile. Both interpretations hold true. Like rebellious Israel and Judah, we too have been disobedient. We have spent years in exile, separated from the Father. We have broken His covenant and long for His presence.
While the earthly temple was never meant to be an end in itself, it pointed to a time and place where Father and Son would dwell with humanity. So ultimately, these Psalms of Ascent remind us that Yah’s presence with His people will become a reality.
Here are excerpts from just a few of the Psalms of Ascent that the people sang on their way to Jerusalem.
I will lift up my eyes to the hills — From whence comes my help? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.
Psalm 121:1-4 NKJV
Jerusalem is built as a city that is compact together, where the tribes go up, the tribes of the LORD, to the Testimony of Israel, to give thanks to the name of the LORD. For thrones are set there for judgment, the thrones of the house of David.
Psalm 122: 3-5 NKJV
Unto You I lift up my eyes, O You who dwell in the heavens. Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their masters, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the LORD our God, until He has mercy on us.
Psalm 123:1,2 NKJV
Out of the depths I have cried to You, O LORD; Lord, hear my voice! Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications. If you, LORD, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with You, that You may be feared. I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in His word I do hope.
Psalm 130:1-5 NKJV
If your sons will keep My covenant and My testimony which I shall teach them, their sons also shall sit upon your throne forevermore.” For the Lord has chosen Zion; He has desired it for His dwelling place: “This is My resting place forever; here I will dwell, for I have desired it. I will abundantly bless her provision; I will satisfy her poor with bread. I will also clothe her priests with salvation. And her saints shall shout aloud for joy. NKJV
Psalm 132:12-16
These Psalms of Ascent remind believers that when we follow the Way of Yeshua, we will ascend to a higher level of faith and spiritual maturity. We will remember the Father’s mercy, forgiveness, kindness, long suffering, redemption and love. These are the things that bring us joy as we focus on the Father and His rules for living righteously.
Shavuot’s Ties to Noah, Abraham, and Moses
Shavuot is a festival of renewal of the eternal Covenant. Jubilees tells us that this festival has been kept in heaven since the beginning — before the earth was created. It was celebrated by Noah, Moses, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
We serve a Creator who keeps His promises and expects us to do the same. Yah told Noah that He would never again destroy the world with a flood and promised that the Seasons would continue as long as the earth remained.
And He gave to Noah and his sons a sign that there should not again be a flood on the earth. He set His bow in the cloud for a sign of the eternal covenant that there should not again be a flood on the earth to destroy it all the days of the earth. For this reason it is ordained and written on the heavenly tablets, that they should celebrate the feast of weeks in this month once a year, to renew the covenant every year. And this whole festival was celebrated in heaven from the day of creation till the days of Noah…
Jubilees 6:15-18Pseudepigrapha, by R.H. Charles
“Thus I establish My covenant with you: Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood; never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.” And God said: This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: “I set My rainbow in the clouds and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth.
Genesis 9:11-13New King James Version
After Noah died, his sons and grandsons did not continue this feast. However, Abraham did.
But Abraham observed it, and Isaac and Jacob and his children observed it up to thy days and in thy days the children of Israel forgot it until ye celebrated it anew on this mountain.
Jubilees 9:19Pseudepigrapha, by R.H. Charles
And in the fifth year of the fourth week of this jubilee, in the third month, in the middle of the month, Abram celebrated the feast of the first-fruits of the grain harvest. And he offered new offerings on the altar, the first-fruits of the produce, unto the Lord, an heifer and a goat and a sheep on the altar as a burnt sacrifice unto the Lord; their fruit offerings and their drink offerings he offered upon the altar with frankincense. And the Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him: ‘I am God Almighty; approve thyself before me and be thou perfect. And I will make My covenant between Me and thee, and I will multiply thee exceedingly.’ And Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him and said: ‘Behold my ordinance is with thee, and thou shalt be the father of many nations. Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but they name from henceforth, even for ever, shall be Abraham. For the father of many nations have I made thee. And I will make thee very great, and I will make thee into nations, and kings shall come forth from thee. And I shall establish My covenant between Me and thee, and to thy seed after thee.2
Jubilees 15:1-9 Pseudepigrapha, by R.H. Charles
It is interesting that the golden calf incident in Exodus 32 is also connected to Shavuot. In their impatience and impudence the people pressured Aaron into making an idol. This act violated the first and second commandments.
And he received the gold from their hand, and he fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made molded calf. Then they said, “This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!” So when Aaron saw it, he built an alter before it. And aaron made a proclamation and said, “Tomorrow is a feast to the LORD.”
Exodus 32:4,5 New King James Version
I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt; out of the house of bondage. You hall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself a carved image — any likeness of anything that is in heaven above or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them.
Deuteronomy 5: 6-9 New King James Version
And do command the children of Israel to observe this festival in all their generations for a commandment unto them: one day in the year in this month they shall celebrate the festival. For it is the feast of weeks and the feast of first fruits: this feast is twofold and oaf a double nature: according to what is written and engraved concerning it, celebrate it. For I have written in this book of the first law, in that which I have written for thee its sacrifices that the children of Israel should remember and should celebrate it throughout their generations in this month, one day in every year.
Exodus 32:4,5 New King James Version
Shavuot is Pentecost
Shavuot is not just a “Jewish” thing as some naively insist. It is a festival that we are told to celebrate from generation to generation. Yeshua recognized its significance when he chose this day to fill his disciples with the Holy Spirit in the Upper Room on Pentecost.3 (Pentecost to the Greek work which means “the fiftieth day.” This is not a coincidence.
Leviticus tells us that this “Feast of Weeks” happens on the fiftieth day, following 7 weeks of Sabbaths after Passover (7×7 = 49 +1). It is also the day Moses presented the Torah (rules for living) to the people at Sinai.
You shall also count for yourselves from the day after the sabbath, from the day when you brought in the sheaf of the wave offering; there shall be seven complete sabbaths. ‘You shall count fifty days to the day after the seventh sabbath; then you shall present a new grain offering to the LORD.
Leviticus 23:15,16 Berean Study Bible
When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like a mighty rushing wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw tongues like flames of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
Acts 2:1-4 Berean Study Bible
What was inscribed on stone tablets at Mount Sinai was now proleptically being inscribed on believing hearts of flesh. When the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit) was given in Acts, it was a foreshadowing of the first Resurrection event when the redeemed would receive new bodies. Our resurrection bodies will have the Torah engraved on our hearts so we will never sin again.
Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt — a covenant they broke, though I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. “But this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD. I will put My law in their minds and inscribe it on their hearts. And I will be their God,and they will be My people. No longer will each man teach his neighbor or his brother,saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ because they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquitiesand will remember their sins no more.”
Jeremiah 31:31-34 Berean Study Bible
This New Covenant reality has not yet materialized. If you are tempted to say yes, it has, then ask yourself these questions: “Do you have all of the commandments contained in the Scriptures committed to memory? Do you still sin?” Both Jeremiah and the author of Hebrews 8:8-10 are speaking of a future event.
The Joy of Remembering Shavuot
Although as believers in Messiah we are not journeying to a temple in Jerusalem these days, we are encouraged to remember Yah’s Feasts Days. These annual pilgrimages to Jerusalem reminded the Israelites of their heritage and the eternal promises of Yah. They were considered joyous occasions because the people were given the opportunity to give back to Yah in appreciation for all He had done for them. It should do the same for us as we await our Messiah’s return.
As you read through the Psalms of Ascent your heart will be lead to meditate on the goodness of Yah. In his rules for living called the Torah, we are taught how to love our Father and our brothers and sisters. These festivals are a way of promoting community, strengthening our faith, and giving honor to Yah. The gift of the Holy Spirit was meant to empower us to do this. What a joy!
Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious oil upon the head, running down on the beard, the beard of Aaron, running down on the edge of his garments. It is like the dew of Hermon, descending upon the mountains of Zion; for there the Lord commanded the blessing — Life forevermore.
Psalm 133, A Song of Ascents of David, New King James Version
Hanging On His Words with Ken Heidebrecht
FOOTNOTES
1 Biblical Israel has nothing to do with the nation which currently bears that name in the Middle East. It consists of believers from every nation, tribe, tongue and people who have put their faith in the Messiah for redemption. This process, also known as salvation is carried out by our High Pries Yeshua and will reach its apex at the resurrection. However, the land on which earthly Jerusalem now sits will also be the place where the New Jerusalem will descend to earth. See The Gospel Worth Dying For, Chapter 6, “Here Comes the Bride.”
2 Compare with Genesis 15 and The Apocalypse of Abraham Part 2, Chapters 9, 20
3 From Strong’s #G4005, pentekoste. Thayer’s Greek Lexicon gives this definition: “the second of the three great Jewish feasts, celebrated at Jerusalm yearly, the seventh week after the Passover, in grateful recognition of the completed harvest.”
The Hebrew calendar in Jubilees and Enoch is the focus of this article. Why? Because this 364 day solar based method of timekeeping is not just a register of the year. This calendar dictates when we celebrate appointed times and marks the seasons of the year. It also serves as a token of religious identity and facilitates loving fellowship and community. Needless to say, the type of calendar we choose to follow will impact our spiritual walk in profound ways.
Calendar Essentials
Essential to any calendar is the notion of order. Without order, a calendar is rendered useless. From the beginning, the Father decreed that the sun, moon, and stars would move in orderly precision along predictablepaths. Consequently, these luminaries were equipped to govern the yearly, monthly, and weekly feast observances.
And on the fourth day He created the sun, and the moon, and the stars, and set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon all the earth, and to rule over the day and the night, and divide the light from the darkness.
Jubilees 2:8,9 R.H. Charles translation
Then God said, “Let there be light-bearers (sun, moon, stars) in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be useful for signs (tokens) [of God’s provident care], and for marking seasons, days, and years;
Genesis 1:14 The Amplified Bible
These scripture verses tell us that the sun, moon, and stars are also involved in time tracking. However, the sun was given a unique role. It was created to be a great sign, and plays a predominate part in the scheduling of sabbaths and feast days.
And God appointed the sun to be a great sign on the earth for days and for sabbaths and for months and for feasts and for years and for sabbaths of years and for jubilees and for all seasons of the years.
Jubilees 2:9,10 R.H. Charles translation
And command thou the children of Israel that they observe the years according to this reckoning — three hundred and sixty-four days, and (these) will constitute a complete year, and they will not disturb its time from its days and from its feasts; for everything will out in them according to their testimony, and they will not leave out any day nor disturb any feasts.
Jubilees 6:32 R.H. Charles translation
Sun and Moon
As we dive deeper into a study of the Scriptures, we all come to a point when we ask questions like: “Is the Sabbath on Saturday or Sunday?”, “What calendar should I use?”, or “Am I observing the right feast days?” Questions like these are not frivolous. They are the breadcrumbs of discovery that help us realize the calendar’s connection to our covenant with the Almighty. Since all believers in Messiah are destined to become part of a Kingdom of priests, having an accurate calendar is essential to fulfilling our covenant responsibilities.
But there are so many versions of the Hebrew calendar being published these days, it is hard to know which one is sanctioned by Yah. Is it the lunar, solar, or lunar-solar hybrid version? Is a year 365 or 364 days? Do “holidays” such as Christmas, Thanksgiving and Easter meet the criteria for Yah’s appointed times? How you answer these questions will have a profound impact on your spiritual growth.
Babylon’s Influence on the Calendar
Judah’s punishment for ignoring the land rest (amongst other infractions1 they committed relative to the Covenant) landed them in Babylon for 70 years. During their captivity it appears the people began assigning Babylonian names to months of the year. Traditionally days of the week and months of the year were numerically designated (i.e. month one or day one). Ancient Hebrews began their year in the spring, in the month of Abib, which is month one. (Exodus 13:4)
In Hebrew, Abib means “fresh, young ears of barley.” During the spring feast of Unleavened Bread, barley was the grain offering as it was the first major crop to ripen for harvest. Wheat was brought as an offering during Shavuot (approximately 50 days later) when that crop ripened. Typically, wine, oil, dates, grapes and figs were brought for the autumn festival of Sukkot, held in the seventh month.2
Barley and Wheat
However, the exiled Israelites of the southern kingdom began calling the first month of the liturgical year Nisan. The seventh month was called Tishrei, and was regarded as the beginning of the civil new year. Tishrei means “beginning” and originates from the Babylonian/Akkadian word tasritu.3 It includes other festivals not mentioned in Torah such as the Fast of Gedalia, Hoshanna Rabbah, and Shemini Atzeret. On the Gregorian calendar Tishrei occurs between September and October, around the time of the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot). Although the people were warned against worshipping strange gods, they chose to call month four Tammuz.
“Son of man,” He said to me, “do you see what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the darkness, each at the shrine of his own idol? For they are saying, ‘The LORD does not see us; the LORD has forsaken the land.’ ” Again, He told me, “You will see them committing even greater abominations.” Then He brought me to the entrance of the north gate of the house of the LORD, and I saw women sitting there, weeping for Tammuz.4
Ezekiel 8:12-14 Berean Study Bible
Some argue that 1 Kings is evidence that the Hebrews did indeed name their months of the year. They cite the following passage:
So all the men of Israel assembled before King Solomon at the annual Festival of Shelters, which is held in early autumn in the month of Ethanim.
1 Kings 8:2 New Living Translation
This verse refers to Sukkot, the feast of booths or shelters. Rather than ascribe the word Ethanim5 to the name of a month, it may be better to look closer at its meaning: “steady flowings.” So, instead of being the name of a month, it is perhaps a descriptive term for the heavy rainfall that occurs during the seventh month.
Some speculate that the reason Jewish sages gave the months Babylonian names was because post-exilic Yahudim (Jews) had adopted a lunar calendar, which included Babylonian-named months. The destruction of the Temple and the decoupling from their agrarian/religious rituals during the second Temple period may have also played a part.
Examples of Babylonian influenced Hebrew Calendars
Most of the so-called “Jewish” calendars found online today are of Rabbinic construction and rely heavily on human observations of the moon.
Animal bone Tel Fara Plaque. A type of ancient Israeli lunar-based peg calendar (UCL Institute of Archeology)
However, prior to the Hasmonean period, ancient Israel marked time based on an Enochian calendar:6
Every date on their calendar was anchored to a specific day of the week and did not changes from year to year.
Each quarter of the calendar would begin on day four, a Wednesday. It is the day the timekeeping heavenly bodies were created.
Each quarter-year was identical: two months of 30 days followed by a month of 31 days.
All of the appointed times or feast days occurred on the same day of the same month each year.
This calendar does not rely on human observation of the moon and its phases.
And command thou the children of Israel that they observe the years according to this reckoning–three hundred and sixty-four days, and (these) will constitute a complete year, and they will not disturb its time from its days and from its feasts; for everything will fall out in them according to their testimony, and they will not leave out any day nor disturb any feasts.
Jubilees 6:32,33 R.H. Charles translation
Israel (Northern Kingdom) separated from Judah (Southern Kingdom) around 930 BCE. Once Judah fell in 586 BCE it was never reformed. During the time of the Maccabean revolt, a Hasmonean dynasty began to rule and the land was controlled religiously and politically by foreign usurpers. A new Maccabean/Hasmonean priestly dynasty was formed which had nothing in common with the Aaronic priesthood.
Prior to Antiochus Epiphanes IV, the Hebrews followed a pre-calculated solar calendar. It guided their spiritual life and informed their identity as a set-apart people. To them it was a non-negotiable issue. Absolutely non-negotiable. So the Zadokite priest and others left Jerusalem and went into the wilderness of Qumran. This marked a time of historical and spiritual change for the nation.
Dr. Rachel Elior, Professor of Jewish Philosophy at Hebrew University in Jerusalem
The Solar Calendar in Jubilees and Enoch
The calendar mentioned in the Book of Jubilees and Enoch is evidence of the centrality of the solar calendar in ancient Hebrew culture. This 364 day calendar formula is attributed to Enoch, who was taught how to calculate the days and appointed times by angels.7
And the sun and the stars bring in all the years exactly, so that they do not advance or delay their position by a single day unto eternity; but complete the years with perfect justice in 364 days.
1 Enoch 72:128
Professor Michael Segal, lecturer at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, says the Jubilees calendar plays a big role in the calendrical texts of the Dead Sea Scrolls.
A similar calendar has been discovered in some of the Dead Sea scrolls from Qumran. A 364-day calendar is useful from the perspective that the number of days in a year is divisible by 7 (52 weeks = 364 days). Every date in the calendar is therefore anchored to a specific day of the week, and does not change from year to year. The Jubilees calendar is further divided into four quarters, each of which consists of 91 days (13 weeks of 7 days), and since this number is also divisible by 7, each date in the quarter falls out on set day of the week, without any shifts from quarter-to-quarter or year-to-year. Each quarter in the calendar begins on Wednesday, the day of the creation of the heavenly bodies relevant to time keeping (Genesis 1:14-19). Every quarter throughout history is identical, consisting of two months of 30 days and third month of 31.
Author – The Book of Jubilees: Rewritten Bible, Redaction, Ideology and Theology (English: Brill; Hebrew: Magnes; 2007).
Here are the “anchored” feast days that never change based on this calendar:
Head of the Year (1st day of month one) – always falls on the 4th day of the week (Wednesday) after the Vernal Equinox.9
Passover (14th day of month one)
Unleavened Bread (15th-21st day of month one)
Shavuot/First Fruits (15th day of third month)
Trumpets (1st day of 7th month)
Atonement (10th day of 7th month)
Sukkot (15th-22nd day of 7th month) [Includes the Addition]
This calendar is also divisible by 7:
7 days in a week
7 yearly festivals
7 Sabbaths’ countdown to Shavuot (Pentecost)
7 Shmita (sabbatical) years
Enoch is the 7th from Adam
So, it would follow reason that the total number of calendar days for the year should also be divisible by 7. It is. 364 divided by 7 equals 52 weeks in a year. However, a 354 day lunar calendar is not divisible by 7, but 6. (And 6 is the number of man).
The Enoch/Jubilees/Dead Sea Scrolls calendar places the Sun in the dominant position in terms of reckoning time. Here is a grid to help you see how this calendar works.
Month
Month
Month
Month
Length of Days
Day One Begins
1
4
7
10
30
Wednesday (day four)
2
5
8
11
30
Friday (day six)
3
6
9
12
31
Sunday (day one)
Another interesting aspect of the Hebrew calendar was its relationship to the priestly courses (mismarot) outlined in 1 Chronicles. These courses would come to Jerusalem for Temple service for a week, then rotate out as the next group arrived there to do their service. Those who resided in Qumran relied upon this cycle for calendrical relevance, but also for timekeeping and historical documentation. Each sabbath, month, year and feast bore the name of a priestly family.10
Although we maintain that a solar calendar was the predominate system of timekeeping employed by faithful priests, there is evidence that they also maintained a lunisolar calendar. Authors Robert Eisenman and Michael Wise tell us:
Although the authors of the Qumran calendrical texts disdained the lunisolar calendar, a number of their writings synchronize the two versions. The reasons for this synchronization are not entirely clear, but two suggestions may be somewhere close to the mark. First, these authors considered all time holy and its measurement ordained by God. It was probably thought necessary that someone keep a proper record of its passing. Since the opponents of the authors could not be relied upon to do so — following as they did, an illicit system — the Qumran authors took the responsibility. Thus, they tracked time by the system of their opponents as well as by their own. Second, the authors of these texts certainly expected that at some time they would be in power in Jerusalem. At that time, of course, they would impose the solar calendar. But in order to know where they were in the year, they would have to know both the false lunisolar date and the real solar date. In fact, there is some evidence that at certain points in the Second Temple period the solar calendar actually was imposed, at least for short periods.
The Dead Sea Scrolls Uncovered by Robert Eisenman and Michael Wise
This would be the equivalent of us matching the days of the week of the 365 day Gregorian calendar with the 364 day solar calendar.
Why The Calendar Is Important
As stated earlier, the calendar was and is more than just a timekeeping register of the year. It existed before Creation and was/is observed by our Heavenly Father, His Son, and the Angels. When you study the calendrical appointed times and festivals, you will be better able to comprehend events described in the Scriptures. Understanding how the calendar works gives you a deeper understanding of the biblical narratives.
The calendar is also an instrument the Father uses to facilitate fellowship with Him, and maintain loving relationships with other believers in Yeshua. We believe community is fractured when we run to and fro; observing different feast days dictated by different calendars.
We are still learning and growing in our understanding of how and when the Father wants us to observe his appointed times. We do not have all the answers. However, we are learning more and more as we comb through the Scriptures and dedicate ourselves to prayer.
To assist you in your walk, we have designed a 2022/2023 Zadok11 calendar which you can download. It corresponds to the Gregorian calendar and is easy to follow. We believe it will be a blessing to you and your family.
If you are curious to know more about the calendar, Sean Griffin and Ken Heidebrecht have put together an informative and comprehensive video to address your questions and concerns.12
3 Tishrei (or Tishri) begins with Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year festival.
4 Tammuz , meaning Sprout of Life , was a Sumerian god of fertility.
5 Strongs #H388
6 See The Gospel Worth Dying For, Chapter 8, pages 125,126
7 1 Enoch Chapters 72-75 and Jubilees 4:23,24. We are told in Jubilees that Enoch was not translated to heaven as is often the commentary preached on Genesis 5:21-24. In the Jubilees 4 account he (Enoch) “was taken from amongst the children of men, and we (the angels) conducted him into the Garden of Eden in majesty and honour…”
8The Book of Enoch, R.I. Burns, SageWorks Press, 2017
9 The Gregorian calendar designates January 1st as the start of the year while Rabbinic Judaism has civil and liturgical new years — Nisan and Rosh Hashanah.
10The Dead Sea Scrolls Uncovered by Robert Eisenman and Michael Wise
11 Zadok was a high priest in the lineage of Aaron of the tribe of Levi (who was given the priesthood from his father Jacob). Download the 2023-2024 Calendar here.
12 Sean Griffin’s YouTube Channels are Kingdom In Context and Kingdomcast. Ken Heidebrecht’s YouTube Channel is Hanging on His Words.
Bible feasts take on new meaning once you understand the Gospel of the Kingdom message. Starting with the weekly Sabbath and continuing through Sukkot, each feast day on Yah’s calendar functions as a vivid reminder of covenant promises. These appointed times are also a foreshadowing of Kingdom life.
While most churchgoers in the United States can usually explain why they celebrate the Fourth of July or acknowledge Memorial Day, few can articulate the significance of the Bible feasts mentioned in the Old Testament, Book of Jubilees, and other ancient writings. Most Christian congregations will elevate Christmas and Easter, but are silent on the sacred assemblies referred to in the Scriptures as appointed feasts. [1]
Appointed Times And Their Calendar Connection
Every culture observes holidays and traditions linked to historical or religious traditions and events. These calendrical observances connect the past to the present, and can even point to the future.
Before we take a closer look into specific feast days and their significance, let’s review the creation week. In both Genesis and Jubilees’ accounts, we are told that the sun, moon, and stars were made on day four. They were commissioned to give light, rule day and night, and divide darkness from light. On the ancient Hebrew calendar, these functions were all related to the notion of sacred time. [3] However, the Sun was singled-out as a great sign:
And God appointed the sun to be a great sign on the earth for days and for sabbaths and for months and for feasts and for years and for sabbaths of years and for jubilees and for all seasons of years.
Book of Jubilees 2:9 R.H. Charles Translation
Here you have the Sun playing the role of righteous timepiece. In the context of sacred time, this great luminary acts as a beacon for feast days, sabbaths, and jubilees. Unlike the Gregorian calendar, Yah’s calendar goes beyond being just a register of the year. It forms the foundation of our covenant with the Most High and is a critical component of our priesthood. Since all believers in Messiah are destined to become kings and priests, having a reliable calendar is essential to fulfilling our covenant responsibilities.
The calendar anchors us to set-apart time. If the calendar is unreliable, we will be hampered in our walk and run the risk of following doctrines of demons and their twisted pagan celebrations.
And command thou the children of Israel that they observe the years according to this reckoning – three hundred and sixty-four days, and (these) will constitute a complete year, and they will not disturb its time from its days and from its feasts; for everything will fall out according to their testimony, and they will not leave out any day nor disturb any feasts. But if they do neglect and do not observe them according to His commandment, they will disturb their seasons, and the years will be dislodged from this (order), [and they will disturb the seasons and the years and the years will be dislodged] and they neglect their ordinances. And all the children of Israel will forget, and will not find the path of the years, and will forget the new moons, and seasons, and sabbaths, and they will go wrong as to all the order of the years. For I know and from henceforth will I declare it unto thee, and it is not of my own devising; for the book (lies) written before me, and on the heavenly tablets the division of days is ordained, lest they forget the feasts of the covenant and walk according to the feasts of the Gentiles after their error and after their ignorance. For there will be those who will assuredly make observations of the moon – how (it) disturbs the seasons and comes in from ear to year ten days too soon. For this reason the years will come upon them when they will disturb (the order), and make an abominable (day) the day of testimony, and an unclean day a feast day, and they will confound all the days, the holy with the unclean, and the unclean day with the holy; for they will go wrong as to the months and sabbaths and feasts and jubilees.
Book of Jubilees 6:32-38 R. H. Charles translation
It is not the intention of this article to lay guilt or blame on anyone by referencing these verses. The calendar has been corrupted many times over the years, so it is impossible to know with absolute certainty which version is the correct one. However, we know that the Father will honor anyone who sincerely desires to walk in His ways.
Keys to The Calendar
The Prophet Enoch has left us with valuable insights that can help in our quest to observe feast days in their proper season. Here are keys that help us better understand when and how to celebrate the appointed times mentioned in the Bible and found in 1 Enoch. [5]
The Hebrews of antiquity followed a solar calendar
A year was 364 days [6]
Calendar days are divisible by 7
It is a priestly calendar; divided according to a seven-fold division of time
Work is prohibited every 7 days and at the following appointed times: Passover/Unleavened Bread (first and last day observance), Shavuot, Day of Trumpets, Day of Atonement, Sukkot/Addition (first day of Sukkot and the 8th day)
Each year begins on the fourth day of the week
Every 7th year is a shmita (agricultural cycle) and 7 X 7s of year (49) +1 (50) make up a Jubilee
Illustration based on 1 Enoch solar calendar
You will find a more detailed explanation of the Sun’s influence on the calendar in 1 Enoch 74: 10-17.
Great Signs and Peculiar People
The word sign can be defined as a “mark, token, image, or seal; something material or external that stands for or signifies something spiritual.” [8] In this context, the Sun acts as a great sign or token of future promises and events related to our covenant with Yah which will culminate in His coming Kingdom on earth.
The weekly Sabbath [9] is another great sign. This seventh day observance draws a line of demarcation between those committed to keeping the commandments and those who are not.
And He said unto us: ‘Behold, I will separate unto Myself a people from among all the peoples and these shall keep the Sabbath day, and I will sanctify them unto Myself as My people, and will bless them; as I have sanctified the Sabbath day and do sanctify (it) unto Myself, even so will I bless them, and they shall be My people and I will be their God.
Book of Jubilees 1:19,20 R.H. Charles translation
This is a profound revelation. Honoring the seventh day Sabbath is a ritual ordained by our Creator. If you are tempted to claim that this doesn’t pertain to Christians, only “the Jews”, we have a question for you. If you have been grafted into Israel through faith in Messiah and belief in the Scriptures, do you qualify as being a part of Israel? Do you consider yourself to be one of those peculiar people mentioned in Old and New Testament scriptures as well as the Book of Jubilees?
And the Lord has chosen thee this day that thou shouldest be to him a peculiar people, and he said, to keep his commands.
Deuteronomy 26:18 Brenton Septuagint
For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself, and Israel for his peculiar treasure.
Psalms 135:4 Brenton Septuagint
Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
Titus 2:14 King James Version
But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
1 Peter 2:9 King James Version
In Hebrew, the word translated as ‘peculiar’ is segullah (Strong’s #H5459) and can mean a treasure, possession or jewel. In Greek the word is periousios (#G4041) and translates as belonging to one’s possession or a people selected by God from the other nations for his own possession. [10] It is fascinating that all believers in Yeshua who take part in the first resurrection event [11] will be the jewels that adorn New Jerusalem – the Bride – when she sets down on earth at the start of the Millennial reign of Christ. [12]
The Bible Feasts of Yahuah
Now that we have laid the foundation, let us examine the Feasts of Yahuah [13] and discuss their relevance to our walk with Yeshua, our High Priest in the Melchizedek order. As we mentioned earlier, built into the appointed days chronology is the concept of a perpetual counting of sevens, which is modeled after the seven creation days.
The the LORD said to Moses, “Speak to the Israelites and say to them, ‘These are My appointed feasts of the LORD that you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies.’
Leviticus 23:1,2 Berean Study Bible
The Weekly Sabbath
The Hebrew word for Sabbath is Shabbat (#H7676) and translates as intermission or ceasing. It is usually related to the seventh day of the week or a special feast day set aside for resting or celebrating.
By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
Genesis 2:2,3 New International Version
“But as for you, speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘You shall surely observe My sabbaths; for this is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the LORD who sanctifies you. ‘Therefore you are to observe the sabbath, for it is holy to you. Everyone who profanes it shall surely be put to death; for whoever does any work on it, that person shall be cut off from among his people. For six days work may be done, but on the seventh day there is a sabbath of complete rest, holy to the LORD; whoever does any work on the sabbath day shall surely be put to death. So the sons of Israel shall observe the sabbath, to celebrate the sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between Me and the sons of Israel forever; for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, but on the seventh day He ceased from labor, and was refreshed.”
Exodus 31:13-17 Berean Study Bible
The Passover and Unleavened Bread
The Passover looks back at the Hebrew exodus from Egypt and looks forward to the day when Yeshua returns and resurrects believers dead or alive. [14] Unleavened Bread is one of three major annual festivals (including Shavuot and Sukkot) where attendance was mandatory. It was on these occasions that the people brought the first fruits of whatever harvest had ripened at that time.
Passover is anchored to Unleavened Bread and is a picture of Yeshua being the first fruits of those risen from the dead because of what his death accomplished on our behalf.
‘These are the appointed times of the LORD, holy convocations which you shall proclaim at the times appointed for them. In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at twilight is the LORD’s Passover. Then on the fifteenth day of the same month there is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the LORD; for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you hall have a holy convocation; you shall not do any laborious work. But for seven days you shall present an offering by fire to the LORD. on the seventh day is a holy convocation; you shall not do any laborious work.
Leviticus 23:4-8 Berean Study Bible
So Moses told the people, “Remember this day, the day you came out of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; for the LORD brought you out of it by the strength of His hand. And nothing leavened shall be eaten.
Exodus 13:3 Berean Study Bible
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who Takes away the sin of the world!”
John 1:29 New King James Version
Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling or falling into sin, and to present you unblemished [blameless and faultless] in the presence of His glory with triumphant joy and unspeakable delight, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and power, before all time and now and forever. Amen.
Jude 1:24,25 Amplified Bible
It was during this appointed time that Abraham was tested on Mt. Moriah. [15] Remember, the lamb which was chosen on the tenth day of the new year was to be slain at twilight on the fourteenth day. (The lamb was held for four days so it could be inspected.) It was eaten on the fifteenth day of the first month which is Unleavened Bread.
Yeshua speaks of us keeping Passover/Unleavened Bread as a memorial forever because it will be kept in the Kingdom. [16] Passover is when Yeshua literally passes over resurrected saints as we are taken up from Sheol to New Jerusalem (the Bride) to be hidden away in our rooms while wrath is poured out on earth. [17] This explains the Apostle Paul’s reference to our “meeting him in the air.” [18] We are gather for Passover and will be undergoing the ordination into our respective priesthoods for seven days.
Shavuot/Feast of Weeks/Feast of First Fruits
Shavuot is a festival that centers around the renewal of the covenant. When Moses asked Pharaoh to let the people go so they could worship on the mountain, he was referring to the renewal of the covenant at Mt. Sinai (Horeb) during Shavuot. Following the Shavuot meal, Moses goes higher up the mountain and stays forty days and nights. [19] This is the Law that was ordained and given to Moses on tablets. Both Isaac and Judah were born on Shavuot!
And on the new moon of the fourth month we appeared unto Abraham, at the oak of Mamre, and we talked with him, and we announced to him that a son would be given to him by Sarah, his wife. And we told her the name of her son, as his name is ordained and written in the heavenly tablets (i.e.) Isaac, and (that) when we returned to her at a set time, she would have conceived a son.
Book of Jubilees16:1,3 R.H. Charles translation
And in the middle of the sixth month the Lord visited Sarah and did unto her as He had spoken and she conceived. And she bare a son in the third month, and in the middle of the month, at the time of which the Lord had spoken to Abraham, on the festival of the first fruits of the harvest, Isaac was born.
Book of Jubilees 16: 12,13 R.H. Charles translation
And again Jacob went into her (Leah), and she conceived, and bare him a fourth son, and he called his name Judah, on the fifteenth of the third month…
Book of Jubilees 28:16 R.H. Charles translation
Shavuot is a dual feast observance. It represents us fully receiving the Holy Spirit at the resurrection and harvest of souls on the Day of the Lord. It was during Shavuot that the sign of the rainbow was given as an eternal covenant. Humanity was also prohibited from drinking blood. It is a one day memorial held annually whereby the covenant is renewed.
And he gave Noah and his sons a sign that there shall not be again a flood on the earth. He set His bow in the cloud for a sign of the eternal covenant that there shall not again be a flood on the earth to destroy it all the days of the earth. For this reason it is ordained and written on the heavenly tablets that they should celebrate the feast of weeks in this month once a year, to renew the covenant every year. And this whole festival was celebrated in heaven from the day of creation until the days of Noah…till the day of Noah’s death and his sons did away with (it) until the days of Abraham, and they eat blood. But Abraham observed it, and Isaac and Jacob and his children observed it up to thy days, and in thy days the children of Israel forgot it until ye celebrated anew on this mountain.
Book of Jubilees 6:15-19 R.H. Charles translation [20]
I set My bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a sign of a covenant between Me and the earth. “It shall come about, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow will be seen in the cloud, and I will remember My covenant, which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and never again shall the water become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the cloud, then I will look upon it, to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” And God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth.”
Genesis 9:13-17 Berean Study Bible
Finally, in the Book of Jubilees we are told that Abraham dies on Shavuot.
And it came to pass in the first week in the forty-fourth jubilee, in the second year, that is, the year in which Abraham died, that Isaac and Ishmael came from the Well of the Oath to celebrate the feast of weeks – that is, the feast of the first fruits of the harvest – to Abraham, their father, and Abraham rejoiced because his two sons had come.
Book of Jubilees 22:1,2 R.H. Charles translation
Day of Trumpets
The Day of Trumpets, is celebrated on the first day of the seventh month. Also known as Yom Teruah, this day points to Yeshua’s second coming which coincides with the first resurrection.
And He will send out His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.
Matthew 24:31 Berean Study Bible
Then the seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and loud voices called out in heaven: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever and ever.”
Revelation 11:15 Berean Study Bible
And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying “Speak to the children of Israel”, saying, “in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, ye shall have a rest, a memorial of trumpets: it shall be to you a holy convocation. Ye shall do no service work, and ye shall offer a whole-burnt-offering to the Lord.”
Leviticus 23:23-25 Brenton Septuagint
Day of Atonement/Yom Kippur
The Day of Atonement is ten days after Trumpets and begins on the evening of the ninth day and ends on the evening of the tenth day of the seventh month. It is a Sabbath that focuses on humility and prayer. Yom Kippur looks to the final and complete forgiveness of our sins as we receive new bodies incapable of ever sinning again. [21]
Again the Lord said to Moses, “The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. You shall hold a sacred assembly and humble yourselves, and present an offering made by fire to the LORD. On this day you are not to do any work, for it is the Day of Atonement, when atonement is made for you before the LORD your God. If anyone does not humble himself on this day, he must be cut off from his people. I will destroy from among his people anyone who does any work on this day. You are not to do any work at all. This is a permanent statute for the generations to come, wherever you live. It will be a Sabbath of complete rest for you, and you shall humble yourselves. From the evening of the ninth day of the month until the following evening you are to keep your Sabbath.
Leviticus 23: 26-32 Brenton Septuagint
Example of a sukkah or booth for SukkotFeast
Sukkot/Feast of Tabernacles + The Addition
Sukkot or the Feast of Tabernacles is considered a festival of joy because it was during this time that Abraham learned that Sarah was with child. Abraham is the first to celebrate Sukkot; building booths of sukkahs for himself and his servants. It was during this festival that Jacob passed the priesthood to Levi.
On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, after you hav gathered the produce of the land, you are to celebrate a feast to the LORD for seven days. There shall be complete rest on the first day and also on the eighth day.
Leviticus 23:29,40 Berean Study Bible
The Addition
In the Book of Jubilees, Jacob is credited with adding an extra day to Sukkot.
And he celebrated there yet another day, and he sacrificed thereon according to all that he sacrificed on the former days, and called its name ‘Addition,’ for this day was added. And the former days he called ‘The Feast.’ And thus it was manifested that it should be, and it is written on the heavenly tablets: wherefore it was revealed to him that he should celebrate it, and add it to the seven days of the feast. And its name was called ‘Addition,’ because it was recorded amongst the days of the feast days, according to the number of days of the year.
Book of Jubilees 32:27-30 R.H.Charles translation
Unleavened Bread, Shavuot, and Sukkot were considered pilgrimage festivals. Attendance at these feasts were mandatory three times a year because it was during these gatherings that people brought the first fruits of whatever harvest was ripe at the time. These particular first fruit offerings consisted of barley in the Spring, Wheat in the Summer, plus wine, oil, olives, dates, grapes, figs and more in Autumn.
Three times a year all your males shall appear before the LORD your God at the place where he will choose: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Booths. They shall not appear before the LORD empty-handed.
Deuteronomy 16:16 English Standard Version
These celebrations are known as the Feasts of Yah because the Father, the Angels, and our High Priest Yeshua keep them in heaven. We believe the third temple will be in the New Jerusalem that descends to this earth on the Day of the Lord. When that happens, we will have a more complete understanding of how to do the feasts the way the Father intends. In the meantime, look for fellow believers who celebrate the Bible feasts and join in the festivities.
Featured Image: Josefa de Ayala, “The Sacrificial Lamb”, circa 1670-1684
FOOTNOTES
Some translations use the term festivals instead of feasts. Leviticus 23:2, Numbers 28 & 29
Genesis 1:14-17, Jubilees 2:8-11 (There is no mention of planets, which the Scriptures call “wandering stars.” These are not defined as celestial bodies in orbit around the sun.)
Book of Jubilees 2:9,10
In Daniel 7:24,25 we are told that a ruler would rise who would blaspheme the Most High and change the calendar. It was Antiochus Epiphanes IV who dislodged biblical Israel from set-apart time. During his reign he imposed a lunar calendar on the nation of Israel for the sake of tax collection. The Aaronic high priesthood was dethroned and a Hellenized priesthood, which accepted this new lunar calendar, took is place (175-159 BCE). This new priesthood had nothing in common with the priesthood that began with Aaron.
See The Dead Sea Scrolls, by Micheal O. Wise, Martin Abegg Jr, and Edward M. Cook, HarperOne. The Book of Enoch, Messianic Prophecy Edition, by R.I. Burns, SageWorks Press, 2017
The number of days Noah stayed on the ark. King David composed 364 daily Psalms and 52 sacred Psalms, one for each of the 52 Sabbaths per year.
Contrast this to the Jewish lunar and Rabbinic lunar-solar calendars, which are dependent on cycles of the moon and men’s observations. The months also carry Babylonian names like Nisan, Tammuz, and Elul.
Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition, 2003. The Hebrew word for sign is oth (Strong’s #H226) and can mean a signal, beacon, evidence, sign, token or mark.
Exodus 31:12-17
Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament
Read The Gospel Worth Dying For Appendix I, “The Gospel of the Kingdom in the Feasts of Yahuah. Numbers 28 contains a comprehensive breakdown of all the feasts and their offerings.
Read The Gospel Worth Dying For,Chapter 4, “Yeshua Our High Priest”
Genesis 22
Luke 22, Matthew 26, Ezekiel 45
Jeremiah 31:38-40
1 Thessalonians 4:16,17
Galatians 3:19 and Hebrews 2:2 (Angels were known for showing up on feast days!
This is a conversation between the Angel of the Presence and Moses while he was atop Mt. Sinai (Horeb) receiving the Law.
Read The Gospel Worth Dying For, Chapter 8, “Sheol, Heaven, and Gehenna”
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Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
