The Radiant Mission Podcast | Episode 38
Host: Rebecca Twomey @theradiantmission
Co-Host: Rachel Smith @rachelsmithsmith
Thank you for listening to The Radiant Mission podcast! We are on a mission to encourage and inspire you on your walk with Christ and as you journey through life.
In Episode 38 we discuss the final Biblical feast: The Feast of Tabernacles, also known as Sukkot or the Feast of Booths.
In This Episode on The Final Biblical Fall Feast: The Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot):
As a reminder, there are seven Biblical feasts described in the Bible in what’s known as the Torah, which is the first 5 books of the Bible. Four of the feasts are in the Spring, and three are in the Fall.
The 7 feasts in the Bible:
- Pesach (The Passover) This is the foundational feast
- Unleavened Bread. This feast was to last for 7 days
- First Fruits
- Shavuot (Pentecost or Feast of Weeks)
- Rosh HaShanah (Feast of Trumpets)
- Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement)
- Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles)
The Feast of Tabernacles, or Sukkot, is the final Biblical feast mentioned in the Bible.
It is also known as the Feast of Booths. There is a significance to the use of tents, known as booths.
This feast is five days after The Feast of Atonement or Day of Atonement.
The Feast of Tabernacles comes with a command to rejoice before the Lord. This is why most people who keep it consider it the most fun feast. It’s like a week-long harvest party that happens five days after the most solemn feast of Yom Kippur. Who says Yahweh doesn’t want us to have fun?!
Secondly, the translation I read from used the term “booth” in reference to these dwelling places we are supposed to build and dwell in for the week. This is to serve as a reminder of the Israelites time dwelling in booths for the 40 years in the wilderness.
A booth, also known as a Sukkah, is essentially a tent, or a temporary dwelling place. Similar to the other week long feast, the feast of unleavened bread, it is supposed to be a tangible way for us to remember and live out this important time after the Israelites were delivered from slavery to Egypt. Sukkot’s focus, however, is meant to be remembering the time when Yahweh quite literally dwelled with His people. And even though they dwelled in these humble tents, they had the Creator of the Universe there with them in the pillar of smoke and cloud sustaining their every need.
Like Unleavened Bread, this feast also includes two sabbaths. They occur on the first day and the last day, this time the 8th day.
This simply means everyone is to rest and do no work. Which… in Rachel’s experience… is exactly what one needs after a week-long camping party.
There were times in History, like when King Solomon ruled, that this was considered the most important feast. And there are several reasons for that. Interestingly the first century and earlier Jews all recognized this feast as being prophetic. And specifically of the Messiah and the reason for that was because of prophets like Zechariah’s writings.
Zechariah 14:16-19
“Then it will come about that any who are left of all the nations that went against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to celebrate the Feast of Booths. 17 And it will be that whichever of the families of the earth does not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, there will be no rain on them. 18 If the family of Egypt does not go up or enter, then no rain will fall on them; it will be the plague with which the Lord smites the nations who do not go up to celebrate the Feast of Booths. 19 This will be the [h]punishment of Egypt, and the [i]punishment of all the nations who do not go up to celebrate the Feast of Booths.”
This passage is pretty fascinating because Zechariah was writing about the Millennial reign of the Messiah after the Apocalypse takes place.
What’s so important to note here is this is exactly how Yeshua will fulfill this feast in the future and anyone in His Kingdom will be celebrating this feast.
It’s interesting that the first century Jews identified Sukkot with the King reigning in His established Kingdom. So, this Feast was the one that anticipated the King’s glorious reign not only over Israel but over all nations. And this is exactly what we see at the end of the Book as well when John writes of the same events in the book of Revelation.
Another interesting detail is that Yeshua could have been born on the first day of Sukkot.
We can’t know for sure because none of the Gospel writers tell us the exact day of Yeshua’s birth. After every small little detail God has given us in His Word, like specifying to the day each of these feasts, doesn’t it seem like He would have given us that day if He wanted us to know?
From the Gospel accounts and with an understanding of how the Levitical priesthood worked, we can actually determine when John the Baptist was conceived. The reason for it is because we are given details about his father, Zechariah. He was a priest who was serving in the temple. And it actually specifies even what order of the priests he was. So, with a bit of digging we can calculate exactly when he was serving in the temple and told by the angel that his wife Elizabeth would conceive.
Then later we read that Mary comes to visit Elizabeth when she’s 6 months pregnant. John jumps in her womb at the presence of the Savior. With all the details of these events it is apparent that Yeshua would have been born in either late September or early October, according to our calendars. This is right when Sukkot falls every year.
But really what gives the strongest clue is what John says in the very first chapter of his Gospel: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God… the Word became flesh, and TABERNACLED among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of [l] the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.”
Many translations may use the word “dwelt” instead of tabernacled. This is unfortunate because the Greek word used is skeine, which is literally the verb form for sukkah or tabernacle.
John writes later in chapter 7 about Yeshua visiting the temple during the Feast of Booths.
Rachel believes he specified the Word, Yeshua, becoming flesh to tabernacle with us because he was referencing his birth at the feast of tabernacles.
Many believe there’s even more significance to this. If he were born on the first day than like every Jew, he would have been circumcised on the 8th day of feast of tabernacles as well.
Rachel has also heard good arguments that He could’ve actually born in a sukkah. That this is what the inn keeper supplied them with as a shelter outside since he had no more rooms. But, because he was a Jew, he would have had a Sukkah set up outside if this were taking place during Sukkot.
From everything Rachel has read from God’s Word about how detailed and specific He has been, especially with Yeshua’s fulfillment in the spring feasts, wouldn’t it only make sense that the timing of His Son, the long awaited Messiah who would fulfill hundreds of prophecies, would be born on a very special day to Yahweh? A day that the Jews would revere as anticipating the coming of the King who would rule Israel and all the Nations? And at His birth the King truly was born.
The final about this special Feast of Tabernacles and what it will mean when Yeshua returns.
This final feast being fulfilled is about the symbolism of the booth or tabernacle, or tent.
Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 5: “For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven, 3 inasmuch as we, having put it on, will not be found naked. 4 For indeed while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed but to be clothed, so that what is mortal will be swallowed up by life. 5 Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave to us the Spirit as a pledge.”
Wouldn’t you know it but the same Greek word Paul used that was translated to “tent” is skenos, what John also used to refer to a tabernacle? The significance here is that God wants us to remember that these bodies we are currently in, much like the sukkah, are fragile and frail. But He sustains these flesh tents through this life, just like he sustained the Israelites in the wilderness.
More importantly, a day is coming when we will put off these flesh tents, or these tabernacles, and put on our glorified bodies. And in that day, we will be tabernacling with the Lord for all eternity. This is the ultimate meaning of this Feast of Tabernacles. That as we keep it from year to year. That we reflect on the goodness of Yahweh from the past while also looking forward to His goodness at the fulfillment of this feast.
Bible Verses Mentioned on The Final Biblical Feast: The Feast of Tabernacles:
- Leviticus 23:33-44
- Zechariah 14:16-19
- 2 Corinthians 5:1-5
- Revelation 21:3-4
Resources Mentioned:
Subscribe to receive emails from The Radiant Mission
A Christian Guide to the Biblical Feasts by David Wilber
Messiah in the Feasts of Israel by Sam Nadler
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