Next there was the feast of harvest (Pentecost). At that time they were to offer a basket full of the firstfruits of their harvest to the Lord, before they began to reap the rest of it. In this way they gave the Lord His portion first, and they also acknowledged that the harvest was really His. They took it as from His hand.
It is also a beautiful picture of Christ who is the firstfruits from among the dead. Because He has been raised to glory, the whole harvest will be gathered in (1 Corinthians 15:20,2320But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. (1 Corinthians 15:20)
23But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming. (1 Corinthians 15:23)). The harvest began, as it were, on the day of Pentecost, though it actually takes in all the redeemed ones. The reaping time is going on now. What are you and I doing in His harvest fields? (John 4:35-3635Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest. 36And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal: that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together. (John 4:35‑36).) Are we seeking to proclaim the Saviour’s love to sinners? Let us remember that the harvest will soon be ended.
The Feast of Tabernacles
This brings us to the next feast — the feast of ingathering, sometimes called the feast of tabernacles. At that time the children of Israel rejoiced before the Lord because the whole harvest had been gathered in. What rejoicing there will be in heaven and on earth when the whole redeemed company joins in redemption’s song! Will you be in heaven to sing the Saviour’s praises in that day? If you are not saved, do not go another day without settling this important matter.
Leaven and Fat
The two things mentioned in the eighteenth verse are important. “Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread; neither shall the fat of my sacrifice remain until the morning” (ch. 23:18).
We can apply this in a practical way to ourselves. Some of our young readers profess to be saved through the blood of Jesus. Leaven represents evil, and it was forbidden to have blood and leavened bread together. Are you walking in separation from evil? We are living in days of easy profession, and since God was so definite in His commands to His people Israel, how much more careful we should be, when we think of how much He has done for us!
The fat of the sacrifices was their part. It was also God’s part and it was to be offered at once, rather than being left until the morning. God must have His portion first. How often we look after our own interests first, and then if we have time we think of the Lord’s claims. Too often we leave His things till tomorrow so that we can look after our own things today, but this was not God’s way for Israel, nor is it His way for us. The Lord should have first place today. Are we ready to give it to Him?
Grace and Separation
The Lord promised to go before His people (as the Angel) and lead them into the land of Canaan. This promise was conditional on their obedience. Therefore although grace brought them in they never possessed all God had for them. There is, however, a blessed day coming when God will bring them into a possession of all their land, but it will be on the ground of pure grace at that time.
Once more, at the very end of Exodus 23, they were reminded to be in separation from the people of the land, “lest they make thee sin against Me” (ch. 23:33). We can never go on in worldly friendships and expect to be kept from dishonoring the Lord’s name. The world is still at enmity with God, and how can we be friends of God’s enemies? (James 4:44Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. (James 4:4))
Further Meditation
1. Who was to get the first portion of the fat of the offering?
2. There are many places in Scripture where God calls for the first place. What examples do we have of blessing that results from Him having the first place?
3. This chapter presents Christ’s first place in the harvest and in the offerings and separation from the world. Having Christ first in the life so that He crowds out the world is an important theme of Living Wholly for God by J. G. Bellett.