There were daily (Lev. 23), weekly, monthly, and yearly
festivals, and great stress was laid on the regular observance
of them in every particular (Num. 28:1-8; Ex. 29:38-42; Lev.
6:8-23; Ex. 30:7-9; 27:20).
(1.) The septenary festivals were,
(a) The weekly Sabbath (Lev. 23:1-3; Ex. 19:3-30; 20:8-11;
31:12, etc.).
(b) The seventh new moon, or the feast of Trumpets (Num.
28:11-15; 29:1-6).
(c) The Sabbatical year (Ex. 23:10, 11; Lev. 25:2-7).
(d) The year of jubilee (Lev. 23-35; 25: 8-16; 27:16-25).
(2.) The great feasts were,
(a) The Passover. (b) The feast of Pentecost, or of weeks. (c)
The feast of Tabernacles, or of ingathering.
On each of these occasions every male Israelite was commanded
"to appear before the Lord" (Deut. 27:7; Neh. 8:9-12). The
attendance of women was voluntary. (Compare Luke 2:41; 1 Sam. 1:7;
2:19.) The promise that God would protect their homes (Ex.
34:23, 24) while all the males were absent in Jerusalem at these
feasts was always fulfilled. "During the whole period between
Moses and Christ we never read of an enemy invading the land at
the time of the three festivals. The first instance on record is
thirty-three years after they had withdrawn from themselves the
divine protection by imbruing their hands in the Saviour's
blood, when Cestius, the Roman general, slew fifty of the people
of Lydda while all the rest had gone up to the feast of
Tabernacles, A.D. 66."
These festivals, besides their religious purpose, had an
important bearing on the maintenance among the people of the
feeling of a national unity. The times fixed for their
observance were arranged so as to interfere as little as
possible with the industry of the people. The Passover was kept
just before the harvest commenced, Pentecost at the conclusion
of the corn harvest and before the vintage, the feast of
Tabernacles after all the fruits of the ground had been gathered
in.
(3.) The Day of Atonement, the tenth day of the seventh month
(Lev. 16:1, 34; 23:26-32; Num. 29:7-11). (See ATONEMENT, DAY OF
T0000363.)
Of the post-Exilian festivals reference is made to the feast
of Dedication (John 10:22). This feast was appointed by Judas
Maccabaeus in commemoration of the purification of the temple
after it had been polluted by Antiochus Epiphanes. The "feast of
Purim" (q.v.), Esther 9:24-32, was also instituted after the
Exile. (Cf. John 5:1.)
Festivals, Religious
You Might Also Like:
Read More
Have you ever heard the story of Noah's Ark? It's a famous story from the Bible about a man named Noah who built a huge boat to save himself and the a...
Read More
Have you ever heard the story of the Tower of Babel? It's a story from the Bible about a group of people who wanted to build a tower that reached all ...
Read More
Have you ever heard about the Ten Plagues in the Bible? It's a fascinating story about how God showed His power to the Pharaoh of Egypt and freed the ...
Read More
Have you ever heard about the Ten Commandments in the Bible? These are ten rules that God gave to Moses on Mount Sinai to guide the Israelites and all...
Read More
Have you ever heard about the 12 Tribes of Israel in the Bible? These tribes were the descendants of the twelve sons of Jacob, who was later named Isr...
Read More
Have you ever heard about the Ministry of Jesus in the Bible? Jesus was a great teacher and healer who spent three years traveling throughout Israel, ...
Read More
Have you ever heard about the Early Church in the Bible? After Jesus' death and resurrection, his followers began to spread his teachings throughout t...
