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                       Feast Of Tabernacles

                            Sukkot

"Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, 'On the fifteenth of this seventh month is the Feast of Booths for 7 days to the L-rd.'" Leviticus. 23:33-43
The Feast of Tabernacles (Booths) (Sukkot) follows Yom Kippur as a time of rejoicing, of bringing in the harvest, of thanksgiving for Adonai's provision during the past year, and of remembering our wilderness experience when HaShem brought us out of Egypt and dwelt among His people. Temporary booths are constructed with materials that grow from the ground and in such a way as to allow the stars to be seen at night. The booths are then decorated with fruit and vegetables. The people were to live in these dwellings for seven days.

Another observance related to Sukkot involves what are known as The Four Species (arba minim in Hebrew) or the lulav and etrog. We are commanded to take these four plants and use them to "rejoice before the L-rd." The four species in question are an etrog (a citrus fruit native to Israel), a palm branch (in Hebrew, lulav), a myrtle branch (hadas) and a willow branch (arava). The three branches are bound together and referred to collectively as the lulav. The etrog is held separately. One recites a blessing and waives the species in six directions, symbolizing the fact that G-d is everywhere.

The four species are also held during the Hallel prayer in religious services, and are held during processions around the bimah (the table where the Torah is read) each day during the holiday. These processions commemorate similar processions around the alter of the ancient Temple in Jerusalem. The processions are known as Hoshanahs, because while the procession is made, we recite a prayer with the refrain, "Hosha na!" (please save us!). On the seventh day of Sukkot, seven circuits are made. For this reason, the seventh day of Sukkot is known as Hoshanah Rabbah (the great Hoshanah).

Many Americans, upon seeing a decorated sukkah for the first time, remark on how much the sukkah (and the holiday generally) reminds them of Thanksgiving. This is not entirely coincidental. Our American pilgrims, who originated the Thanksgiving holiday, were deeply religious people. When they were trying to find a way to express their thanks for their survival and for the harvest, they looked to the Bible for an appropriate way of celebrating and based their holiday in part on Sukkot.

Sukkot reminds us of how HaShem said: "And I will dwell among the sons of Israel and will be their G-d." (Ex. 29:45) and how Yeshua dwelt among us: " I will dwell in them and walk among them; And I will be their G-d, and they shall be My people". (2 Corinthians 6:16)

An important lesson of Sukkot is that the Holy One, Blessed Be He, intends for His people to realize a life of joy, a joy which flows out of a relationship with Him first, and then out of the relationships we have among others. Sukkot is indeed an important holiday and will be celebrated one day with Yeshua:

"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 L-rd of hosts, and to celebrate the Feast of Booths...whichever of the families.....does not go up to worship the King...will be the plague..to smite the nations... " (Zechariah 14:16-19)

 


 

'For seven days you shall present an offering by fire to the L-rd. On the eighth day you shall have a holy convocation and present an offering by fire to the L-rd; it is an assembly. You shall do no laborious work." Leviticus 23:36-43
The day after the seventh day of Sukkot, is the holiday Shemini Atzeret. In Israel, Shemini Atzeret is also the holiday of Simchat Torah. Outside of Israel, where extra days of holidays are held, only the second day of Shemini Atzeret is Simchat Torah. These two holidays are commonly thought of as part of Sukkot, but that is technically incorrect; Shemini Atzeret is a holiday in its own right and does not involve the special observances of Sukkot. Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah are holidays on which work is not permitted.

Shemini Atzeret literally means "the assembly of the eighth (day)." Rabbinic literature explains the holiday this way: G-d is like a host, who invites us as visitors for a limited time, but when the time comes for us to leave, He has enjoyed himself so much that He asks us to stay another day.

 


Simchat Torah, Rejoicing of the Torah, is celebrated the day after the eighth day of Sukkot and is to be one of the most joyous festivals of the year. While not a Biblical holiday, Simchat Torah is an important time because it marks the end and the beginning of the annual Torah reading cycle when the last passage of Deuteronomy and the first verse of Genesis are read to demonstrate how the study of Torah is never ending.

The celebration is marked by seven processions around the synagogue with all the Torah scrolls. As many worshipers as possible are given the opportunity to carry a Torah scroll. It is customary for the children to be provided with special flags or banners and sometimes with miniature scrolls, as they join in the processions as well.  The processions are accompanied with spirited singing and dancing.

As Messianic Believers we can truly rejoice knowing that Yeshua is our Living "Torah". We look forward to the joy that will come when the word of HaShem will be followed perfectly in the Kingdom of Messiah!

"So Moses declared to the sons of Israel the appointed times of the L-rd. Leviticus 23:44