Before we consider the feasts of Jehovah separately, in detail, let us look at them all together. There were seven feasts, or if we include the Sabbath there were eight feasts. The Sabbath was different from the other feasts in several ways.
It is described in a separate section of Leviticus to the other feasts. You will note the subject of this feast begins, "Concerning the set feasts of Jehovah.... these are my set feasts." (Lev. 23:22Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, Concerning the feasts of the Lord, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, even these are my feasts. (Leviticus 23:2) N.T.) After speaking of the Sabbath, we get almost the same words for an introduction to the other seven feasts, "These are the set feasts of Jehovah." (verse 4 N.T.). No other feast has this special introduction. Also the Sabbath was observed weekly, all the other feasts were yearly.
The Sabbath was observed at the people's own home, but the other feasts must be observed at "the place" which Jehovah should choose to place His Name there. (Deut. 12:14; 16:614But in the place which the Lord shall choose in one of thy tribes, there thou shalt offer thy burnt offerings, and there thou shalt do all that I command thee. (Deuteronomy 12:14)
6But at the place which the Lord thy God shall choose to place his name in, there thou shalt sacrifice the passover at even, at the going down of the sun, at the season that thou camest forth out of Egypt. (Deuteronomy 16:6)). The Sabbath has never been completely fulfilled and will not be completely fulfilled until eternity, but the other seven feasts are all fulfilled inside a certain time. The seven feasts may be divided into two parts, four in the first part and three in the second part.
The Passover, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of First-fruits and Pentecost, were the first four. These all came close together. Then there was an interval of about four months, during which there was no "feast of Jehovah" and no "holy convocation" of the people at Jerusalem. It was a long pause between the Feast of Pentecost and the next feast, the Feast of Blowing of Trumpets, during which no fresh call from Jehovah to His people was heard. Surely the Lord had a purpose in this, and a lesson for us to learn. The meaning is perhaps that the truths pictured in the first four feasts have already been fulfilled, whereas that which is pictured in the last three feasts have not yet been fulfilled. The long space between the Feast of Pentecost and the next feast perhaps pictures the long space of more than 2000 years since the day of Pentecost to the day in which we now live.
The first four feasts seem to be connected with the Lord's heavenly people, the Church— while the last three seem to be especially connected with His earthly people Israel, through perhaps the heavenly people are also pictured in these three feasts.
We will see that the first four feasts have been exactly fulfilled, and this makes us expect that the last three feasts will also be exactly fulfilled in God's own time. The failure of man and all man's wickedness can never change the purposes of God.
How this chapter should strengthen our faith in the entire truth of every word of the Bible! Those who tell us that it is false, are too blind to see the wonderful accuracy and truth and beauty in a chapter like this, or they could never again doubt God's Word. The more closely we look at the works of man, the worse they appear, but the more closely we examine the works of God, the more beautiful do they appear.
God commanded all the males in Israel to appear before Him three times every year, at the Feast of the Passover, at the Feast of Pentecost and at the Feast of Tabernacles (Ex. 23:14-1714Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year. 15Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of the month Abib; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before me empty:) 16And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labors, which thou hast sown in the field: and the feast of ingathering, which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labors out of the field. 17Three times in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord God. (Exodus 23:14‑17)). They had to come to the place the Lord had chosen to place His Name there. (Deut. 16:1616Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the Lord thy God in the place which he shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles: and they shall not appear before the Lord empty: (Deuteronomy 16:16)). And they must not come with "empty hands." (Deut. 16:1616Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the Lord thy God in the place which he shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles: and they shall not appear before the Lord empty: (Deuteronomy 16:16) (Chinese); Ex. 29:2424And thou shalt put all in the hands of Aaron, and in the hands of his sons; and shalt wave them for a wave offering before the Lord. (Exodus 29:24); Lev. 16:1212And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the Lord, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the vail: (Leviticus 16:12); Deut. 26:22That thou shalt take of the first of all the fruit of the earth, which thou shalt bring of thy land that the Lord thy God giveth thee, and shalt put it in a basket, and shalt go unto the place which the Lord thy God shall choose to place his name there. (Deuteronomy 26:2)).
How happy the men of Israel must have been as they all gathered from every part of the country to the same center, all with one heart and one object, to meet the Lord and out of the fullness of blessing He had given them, to give back to Him His portion! "Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the Lord thy God which He hath given thee." (Deut. 16:1717Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the Lord thy God which he hath given thee. (Deuteronomy 16:17)). Men believe that the little group of Psalm (120 134) called the "Songs of Degrees," were sung by these happy crowds as they journeyed to the city of the Great King, Jerusalem.
While the Lord's people were right in their hearts, they rejoiced in these feasts of Jehovah, and were glad as they said to one another, "Let us go into the house of the Lord." (Psa. 122:11<<A Song of degrees of David.>> I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord. (Psalm 122:1)).
But, alas, when their hearts turned away from the Lord, they found His feasts wearisome and soon neglected them, so that in the last chapter of Judges when telling of the place which the Lord had chosen for His feasts, (Judg. 21:1919Then they said, Behold, there is a feast of the Lord in Shiloh yearly in a place which is on the north side of Beth-el, on the east side of the highway that goeth up from Beth-el to Shechem, and on the south of Lebonah. (Judges 21:19)), it was necessary to give the most careful directions as to how to find it. But if every male went to that place three times a year as God had commanded, every man of Israel would know the way perfectly.
In the book of Malachi (1:10 N.T.) the Lord asks, "Who is there among you that would even shut the doors? And ye would not kindle fire on mine altar for nothing," and for the offerings to Jehovah they brought "the lame, and the sick," (Mal. 1:1313Ye said also, Behold, what a weariness is it! and ye have snuffed at it, saith the Lord of hosts; and ye brought that which was torn, and the lame, and the sick; thus ye brought an offering: should I accept this of your hand? saith the Lord. (Malachi 1:13)) saying of the Lord's things, "What a weariness." Indeed, things had grown so bad in the days of Malachi that God spoke of "the dung of your solemn feasts." (Mal. 2:33Behold, I will corrupt your seed, and spread dung upon your faces, even the dung of your solemn feasts; and one shall take you away with it. (Malachi 2:3)).
Are we any better in our day? How often do we turn from the Lord's things to seek our own things. Even in the days of the Apostle Paul, he must write, "All seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ's." And again he must say, "This thou knowest, that all they which are in Asia be turned away from me.”
May the Lord Jesus so fill our hearts that all things else lose their attractiveness, and may we truly say,
“Naught that I have my own I call,
I hold it for the Giver,
My heart, my strength, my life, my all,
Are His, and His forever.”
We have seen that in the Gospel of John the feasts of Jehovah had become "the feasts of the Jews.”
When we come to the epistles, we find that the Christians have but one feast, not yearly, but on the first day of every week, the Lord Himself as Host calls us to His table to eat His Supper, in remembrance of Himself, and He Himself is present with us.
The Passover looked forward to the death of Christ. The Feast of Unleavened Bread spoke of the communion of saints in holiness and love, the Feast of First-Fruits told us of the resurrection of Christ, the Feast of Pentecost looked forward to the coming of the Holy Spirit. In the harvest, (verse 22), we may see the return of Christ.
Are not all these included in the Lord's Supper, as week by week we gather to remember Himself? As we look back to the death of Christ, we enjoy the communion of saints, we remember that Christ is not dead, but risen, the power to enjoy all this, and to worship, is only by the Holy Spirit, and we "do this" "till He come.”
Truly of that cross we may sing,
“O mystery of mysteries!
Of life, and death the tree;
Center of two eternities
Which look with rapt, adoring eyes,
Onward and back to Thee—
O cross of Christ, where all His pain
And death is our eternal gain.”
“My Beloved is mine and I am His”
SoS. 2:16
“I am my Beloved’s and His desire is toward me.”
SoS. 7:10.