We are all familiar with the story of the first Passover. Every year, as Passover approaches, we look back to the events surrounding God's sparing the Israelite firstborn and delivering His people from Egypt. We reflect on the lessons we can learn from the events connected with the first Passover and Days of Unleavened Bread. We also appreciate how Jesus Christ's life fulfilled those Old Testament types, through the events of His final Passover meal with His disciples, and His subsequent crucifixion and resurrection.
At Pentecost, in the same way, we look back to events of the first Pentecost after Israel left Egypt—when God gave the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai. It marked the establishment of the Old Covenant, between God and Israel. We also focus on the first Pentecost of the New Testament era, when God miraculously poured out His Spirit from heaven upon Christ's disciples. It marked the beginning of God's establishment of a New Covenant with those who respond to His calling.
Clearly, the inaugural Passover and Pentecost seasons are recorded in Scripture. Looking back at "firsts" gives us much to reflect on as we strive to understand all the spiritual lessons God wants us to learn. What lessons do we find in the first Feast of Tabernacles? Are the events surrounding the first Feast of Tabernacles recorded in Scripture? If so, what can we learn from them? In this article, we will examine what the Bible reveals about this matter. By doing so, we can gain new insight into this final of the three festival seasons, through which God reveals His great plan of salvation.
A Look at Israel's First Year
Exodus 12 makes very clear the events of the first Passover and Days of Unleavened Bread. While those dates are clearly named, and the events that transpired are described, it is not quite so simple when we come to Pentecost. However, by examining Scripture closely, we can verify the traditional Jewish understanding that God gave His law on the first Pentecost. Because we calculate Pentecost by counting 50 days, beginning with the Sunday during the Days of Unleavened Bread (the day the wavesheaf was offered), it does not always fall on the same calendar date. Yet it can only vary by a few days, falling anywhere from Sivan 5 to Sivan 10. Jewish tradition has long held that the first Pentecost occurred on Sivan 6. During Jesus' earthly lifetime, the temple priesthood properly counted from the Wavesheaf Sunday, and thus always celebrated Pentecost on a Sunday. The Pharisees sought always to celebrate Pentecost on Sivan 6, regardless of the day of the week on which it might fall (this is the practice most Jews follow today). All of the scriptural evidence points to the first Pentecost occurring on Sivan 6, because in the year of the Exodus that day fell on a Sunday.
Notice what Scripture reveals: "In the third month after the children of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on the same day, they came to the Wilderness of Sinai" (Exodus 19:1). The Hebrew word for month is chodesh, which literally refers to the new moon. The expression "the same day" means the first of the month, the day of the new moon. This would be Sivan 1.
After arriving at Sinai, Moses went up the mount and communed with God, bringing back to the people God's covenant proposal (Exodus 19:3–6). This would have been on Sivan 2. After coming back down the mountain, Moses assembled the people and told them what God had said (vv. 7–8). This was on Sivan 3. The next day, Moses went back up the mountain to take the people's response to God (vv. 8–9). This was on Sivan 4. God told Moses that the people were to sanctify themselves "today and tomorrow" and be ready to meet with Him on the third day (vv. 10–11). The expression "today and tomorrow" would have referred to Sivan 4 and 5. The day on which they met with God was Sivan 6—the first Pentecost.
So, is it possible to know what happened on the first Feast of Tabernacles—the fifteenth day of the seventh month in the year Israel came out of Egypt? By comparing the accounts in Exodus and Deuteronomy, we will see that the answer is actually made plain.
To begin, we should note that there are 127 days between Sivan 6 and Tishri 15 (the Holy Day beginning the Feast of Tabernacles). Does the Bible show any significant event occurring 127 days after the first Pentecost? It certainly does!
Notice the timing. After the law was given on Pentecost, Moses and the elders of Israel went part-way up Mount Sinai. They partook of a great banquet in the presence of the God of Israel. "Now the glory of the Lord rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days. And on the seventh day He called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud" (Exodus 24:16).What happened next? "So Moses went into the midst of the cloud and went up into the mountain. And Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights" (v. 18). During the time that Moses was up on the mountain, Israel made a golden calf, and when he came down from Sinai he found the nation holding an idolatrous orgy.
God was angry, and He threatened to destroy the whole nation. Moses responded by spending time in prayer and fasting, beseeching God for mercy for the people. Did you ever wonder how long Moses spent, down from the mountain, interceding with God? Scripture reveals that he spent another 40 days (Deuteronomy 9:15–21). After that, Moses went back up the mountain, into God's presence, where he received a second copy of the Ten Commandments. He was once again up on the mountain, for another 40 days (Exodus 34:1–4, 28). Add it up. There was a seven-day period following Pentecost before Moses went up into the presence of God, followed by three periods of 40 days each. This adds up to 127 days.
How do we know that there were 127 days between the first Pentecost and the beginning of the Feast of Tabernacles? The Hebrew calendar is both lunar and solar. The months are based upon the cycles of the moon. The moon takes approximately 29.5 days to revolve around the earth. For this reason, Hebrew months alternate in length between 30 days and 29 days. The first, third, fifth and seventh months routinely have 30 days, while the second, fourth and sixth have 29 days. If Pentecost were on Sivan 6, there would be 24 more days in the third month. Adding to those 24 days the 29 days of the fourth month, the 30 of the fifth month, the 29 of the sixth month and the first 15 days of Tishri (the seventh month) brings us to 127.
It was exactly 127 days after the giving of the law on the first Pentecost that Moses came down Mount Sinai for the second time! Moses came down the mountain on the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles! Notice how he came: "Now it was so, when Moses came down from Mount Sinai (and the two tablets of the Testimony were in Moses' hand when he came down from the mountain), that Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone.... and all the children of Israel... were afraid to come near him" (Exodus 34:29–30). Exodus 35 records that Moses summoned the Israelites, and in his instructions taught them how to build a tabernacle for holding the Ark of the Covenant. The purpose of the tabernacle was that God might dwell among the people of Israel (Exodus 25:8).
Consider the significance. Here we see a ruler coming in glory, bringing the law of God in his hands. We also see the God of Israel preparing to tabernacle among the nation. As we examine these three components, we will see that they connect very deeply with the ultimate fulfillment of the Feast of Tabernacles.
Coming in Glory
As Moses approached the Israelite camp at the base of the mountain, those who first saw him did a double-take. Moses did not realize that his face was emitting a glowing light. He shone with a glory he had absorbed from being in the actual presence of God. The Israelites found that glory so frightening that Moses put a veil over his face to mask it when he spoke to them. He took the veil off when he went into the tent of meeting to commune with God, but he put it back on when he came out before the people (Exodus 34:29–35).
The Apostle Paul tells us that the glory Moses had absorbed from the presence of God gradually faded away (2 Corinthians 3:7). Paul compares the temporary glory of Moses with the permanent glory of Christ. He explains that just as Moses had to veil his face in speaking to the people, so also the real spiritual intent of his message is veiled from them as well. Scripture anticipates the time when "in this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all people a feast of choice pieces, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of well-refined wines on the lees. And He will destroy on this mountain the surface of the covering cast over all people, and the veil that is spread over all nations" (Isaiah 25:6–7). These verses look forward to the time of the Millennium, and are often read and commented upon during the Feast of Tabernacles.
Jesus Christ told His disciples that some of them would see Him coming in the Kingdom of God (Matthew 16:28). About a week later, this was fulfilled for Peter, James and John in one of the most memorable events of their entire lives. Christ took them up on a high mountain, and was transfigured before them so that He shone like the sun. Moses and Elijah also appeared with Him in radiant glory (Luke 9:28–31). This account's connection to the Feast of Tabernacles is strengthened when we examine Peter's suggestion. He wanted to build three tabernacles so that they might remain right there on the mountain to celebrate the upcoming festival (Matthew 17:4).
What was the meaning of this radiant glory? Jesus Christ will return to this earth in power and great glory to usher in the fulfillment of the Feast of Tabernacles (Matthew 24:30). The saints will be raised in glory to rule with Him over the nations. Daniel records that the resurrected saints will shine like the brightness of the stars (Daniel 12:3). Our fleshly bodies will have been changed at the resurrection to be like Christ's glorious body (Philippians 3:21). God is bringing many sons to glory (Hebrews 2:10).
When Moses came down the mountain from God on the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles, he radiated glory. This anticipates the time that Jesus Christ and the immortal saints will set foot on this earth, shining in glory, to usher in the time of the rulership of the Kingdom of God over the nations.
The Law of God
When Moses came down from Mount Sinai on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, he not only came in glory, he came bringing God's law in his hands (Exodus 34:29). When Jesus Christ returns to this earth, He will rule the nations with God's law.
"Now it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow to it. Many people shall come and say, 'Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, and we shall walk in His paths.' For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem" (Isaiah 2:2–3). The prophet Isaiah further described what tomorrow's world will be like, when the Messiah will judge the world in righteousness. It will be a time when they "shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea" (Isaiah 11:9). God's law will be known universally!
Ezekiel described the future gathering of Israel at the onset of the Millennium. "Thus says the Lord God: 'I will gather you from the peoples, assemble you from the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel'" (Ezekiel 11:17). The Israelite nations will be brought back from the most horrible captivity imaginable— captivity brought on by national sins of ignoring God's law. When Israel is once more brought home, its peoples will be in a state of deep repentance. God inspired Ezekiel to describe that He will at that time give Israel a new heart and a new spirit. This will allow the nation to truly walk in God's statutes and judgments, to be His people and to worship Him truly as their God (Ezekiel 11:19–20).
Jeremiah, describing this outpouring of the Holy Spirit, makes it plain that under the New Covenant, God writes His law in our hearts and minds (Jeremiah 31:33). Peace and prosperity for the whole world will result as the nations of the world live in harmony with the law of God, and thereby reap blessings instead of curses.
The Feast of Tabernacles reminds us of the thousand year rule of the Kingdom of God. Because God's law will be proclaimed and kept all over the earth, it will be a wonderful time. When Moses, on the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles, came from God bringing the tablets of stone containing the Ten Commandments, this anticipated the time when Jesus Christ will return to set up a worldwide government based upon that very law in its full spirit and intent.
God's Presence Among Us
Daniel explained, in the visions recorded in Daniel 2 and Daniel 7, that a time will come when the governments of this world will be crushed and swept from the scene. In fact, "the God of Heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed" (Daniel 2:44). The King of that Kingdom will be the resurrected and glorified Jesus Christ (Revelation 19:11– 16). He is the One who was the Rock of Israel (1 Corinthians 10:4), and therefore He is the very One who dwelt among the Israelites by filling the tabernacle with His glory.
Many centuries later, that One who was the Rock of Israel— who was in the beginning with God and was the instrument of creation itself—became flesh and was born as a human being (John 1:1–3, 14). In fact, John tells us that the Word was made flesh and tabernacled (as the Greek is literally translated) among us (v. 14). At the beginning of the first Feast of Tabernacles, Moses instructed Israel about the work of building a tabernacle so that God would dwell among them. This instruction anticipated the future time when the God of Israel would tabernacle among His people—first in human flesh, and ultimately as the returning, glorified, King of kings and Lord of lords.
Isaiah 32 describes a time when a King shall reign in righteousness (v. 1), and people will dwell in peaceable habitations, secure dwellings and quiet resting places (v. 18). Jerusalem, the city of the great King, is described as a tabernacle that will not be taken down (Isaiah 33:20). During this millennial time, God will be recognized as Judge, Lawgiver, King and Savior (v. 22). This time when the Lord will dwell among His people, and they will see His glory, will be a time when the desert will blossom, the blind will see and the lame will leap (Isaiah 35:1–6).
The Feast of Tabernacles pictures the millennial reign of the Messiah, a time of which we read: "Behold, the Lord God shall come with a strong hand, and His arm shall rule for Him; behold, His reward is with Him, and His work before Him. He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom, and gently lead those who are with young" (Isaiah 40:10–11). The Feast of Tabernacles reminds us that Jesus Christ will soon dwell upon this earth, among human beings, as King of kings.
At the festival season, we also look even beyond the Millennium. We anticipate the time beyond the thousand years when "the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God" (Revelation 21:3).
As we approach this year's Feast of Tabernacles, we can reflect back on the lessons found in the first Feast of Tabernacles, which Israel observed in the wilderness. It was a time when Moses descended from the presence of God, radiating glory. He came bringing in his hands the law of God, and the plans for a tabernacle so that God might dwell in the midst of His people. These three components of the first Feast of Tabernacles anticipated the final fulfillment that is yet to come, the ushering in of the rule of the Kingdom of God on this earth!
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Clarification:
"The First Feast of Tabernacles" (September-October 2008 Living Church News) relied in part on an assumption that the first Pentecost of the Exodus occurred on Sivan 6, contrary to the long-accepted chronology placing Pentecost on Sivan 8 that year. While we encourage readers to appreciate the valuable and lasting spiritual principles and lessons in the article, the Church continues to accept the traditional Sivan 8 chronology.