Feast of Tabernacles
Sukkot – The Feast of Tabernacles
The seventh and final biblical feast given by the Lord is known as Sukkot, or "The Feast of Tabernacles/ Booths" (hkko - sook-kaw). It is the most joyful and festive of all Israel's feasts. It is also the most prominent feast, mentioned more often in Scripture than any of the other feasts. This feast also served as the historical backdrop for the most important teaching of the Messiah in John, chapters 7-9.
The Meaning of Sukkot. Most often it is referred to as Sukkot, or Tabernacles/ Booths. The English word "tabernacle" is from the Latin tabernaculum meaning "booth," "tent," or "hut." It acquired this name from the biblical requirement for all Israelites to dwell in tabernacles or temporary shelters during the holiday. It was to be an annual reminder of God's provision during the forty-year wilderness sojourn when Israel lived in similar shelters. Another name, "the Feast of Ingathering," points to the celebration of praise given to God for the final harvest of the season (Ex 23:16; 34:22). This feast is celebrated with great joy. The joy was twofold, for it commemorated God's past goodness and provision during their wilderness sojourn. It also commemorated God's present goodness and provision with the completion of the harvest season.
Moses communicates the seriousness of vows....remember that there was no contract in that day.....A person's word was as binding as his signature. Under Isrealite law, parents could overrule their children's vows....hopefully, this helps with maturity and guidance. A husband can confirm or nullify his wife's vow if he choses...silence implies approval. Remember that this is a patriarchial society.....
Carol, just a question back to 27:13. God told Moses that he would be "gathered unto thy people, as Aaron was...." A footnote in my Bible said that God is telling Moses that he will die physically but will have eternal life with the ones whose bodies died before him. Is this what most Biblical scholars think in regard to this passage? Just wondering about heaven and hell at this point in history, since Christ Jesus had not been born yet?? (Realize we are beyond this chapter but didn't have time to comment yesterday.)
ReplyDeleteGreat question since Jesus had not come yet!! Here's a good summation from the scholars that I like....see what you think:
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There cannot be any doubt that Moses died and was buried (Deuteronomy 34:5-6). Therefore, for him to have been in heaven while Jesus was still in the flesh, Moses had to be resurrected from the dead, receive eternal life, and "put on immortality" (1 Corinthians 15:53). But the Bible is clear that Jesus had to be the first one to be resurrected to eternal life. 1 Corinthians 15:20, "But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept."
The Apostle Paul said Jesus had to be "the firstborn from the dead" and "have the preeminence" (Colossians 1:18). If anyone preceded Jesus, then he wasn't the firstborn from the dead. Since some people believe Enoch and Elijah did not die, but that Moses did die, then that would mean Moses had the preeminence over Jesus. Therefore, since Jesus had to be the first to be resurrected unto eternal life and the first to ascend into heaven and stand before God, Moses could not possibly have been in heaven while Jesus was on earth
Hebrews 11:23-28 talks about Moses living by faith. Now read verses 39-40, which say that Moses did not receive the promise of a resurrection unto eternal life and perfection. This should settle any disputes to the contrary. What about Michael and Satan disputing about Moses' body? Jude 9 does not say Michael won the dispute and then took Moses to heaven. Since there is no mention of heaven here, nor in the entire book of Jude, we should not assume he was taken there.
So am I to understand that this group of people now are basically a new group of people....were these people children when this was done earlier.....or were they not even born when the parent generation did this earlier?
ReplyDeleteso this is new to this group of people....these offerings and laws.......And do these people understand that this needs to be taken seriously unlike the earlier generation because so many of them died......
And I see in 27:12 that God would not allow Moses to enter the Promised Land because of disobedience, but His grace did allow him to view the land from a distance.
I know I sound completely dumb, but how much time exactly has passed since Moses and the people first set off? And how many groups of people have they had to fight along the way.....I know many have died because of plague, but what else killed these people along the way......I know many doubted God and his promise and that is what slowed them down......I guess I have just gotten completely confused on the time span and battles and effects of this and plague.
Sometimes the Bible isn't real obvious about timelines and it jumps back and forth...just wait till we get to Isaiah. The people wander for a total of 40 years. Not everyone has died off completely because the Lord promised Abraham that he'd be a great nation. If God killed everyone, he wouldn't have kept his covenant, and God does what he says he is going to do....so the kids have grown.....scripture doesn't tell us why they were getting another lesson....perhaps the first generation was so grumbly that they didn't bother to teach the kids right, or maybe Moses was just refreshing.....God didn't think it was important for us to know or he would have inspired it in scripture. You are right that there were tons of plagues and battles, but a first generation had to die out. They paid the price for not trusting God when they listened to the bad report from the spies instead of trusting God to deliver them into the Promised Land. Note that even today, the Jews are not in the Promised Land....still some disobedience, perhaps.....can you say JESUS is the only way!!!!!
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