SUKKOT part 1 “Adonai said to Moshe, ‘Tell the people of Isra’el, “On the fifteenth day of this seventh month is the feast of Sukkot for seven days to Adonai. On the first day there is to be a holy convocation; do not do any kind of ordinary work. For seven days you are to bring an offering made by fire to Adonai; on the eighth day you are to have a holy convocation and bring an offering made by fire to Adonai; it is a day of public assembly; do not do any kind of ordinary work.”’” Leviticus 23:33-36 As we come to the end of the Jewish season of high holy days, we come to the beginning of the eight days of Sukkot. This Festival begins on the 15th of Tishri, the fifth day following Yom Kippur, and moves us from a solemn time to a joyous occasion. Sukkot is so joyful that it has also been named Z’man Simuchteinu, the Season of Rejoicing. Like Pesach (Passover), and Shavu’ot (Pentecost), this season is also one of the three pilgrimage festivals. Sukkot is a season we find two distinct purposes within. First, historically, Sukkot commemorates the forty-year period during which the Israelites wandered in the desert and lived in temporary shelters, known as sukkahs. The second derives from Leviticus 23 where Adonai speaks concerning the fall harvest. Sukkot was to be a time of bringing in the latter harvest; a Jewish Thanksgiving so to say. No work is permitted on the first and second day, as well as the final day following where convocation is performed. The word “sukkot” translates as “booths” and refers to the temporary dwelling place known as the sukkah. In Leviticus 23:42 we read that within these booths all the people of Israel are to dwell. It is in these temporary homes that one is to, at the very least, enjoy a meal with family as a reminder of the command. Since it is only temporary, it serves that the exterior three walls would seem flimsy. It is the roof that bears the utmost importance as it should consist of anything grown from the ground, be it corn stalks, branches, or palm branches. Likewise, the interior also fits in with the harvest theme as fruit decorates the inside of the sukkah. As the feast then begins when the sun falls, the blessings are said over the wine and bread. Reading in Leviticus 23:40, we find the details of taking for ourselves a fruit, palm branches, twigs of a braided tree and brook willows. With these we are to rejoice before Adonai for seven days. This mix is known as arba minim in Hebrew, or the Four Species. Today we know this as an etrog (a citrus fruit similar to a lemon), and palm branch, two willow branches and three myrtle branches. The six branches are woven together and are referred to in themselves as the lulav, while the citrus is held separately. While holding these one recites a blessing, then waves the items in all directions. This symbolizes the fact that Adonai is everywhere. These items are also held during the Hallel prayer and during processions around the pedestal where the Torah is read from. But why these plants? It is said that the long straight palm branch represents the spine, the myrtle leaf represents the eye, the willow the mouth, and the fruit the heart. All of these parts have the potential to be used for sin, but should be used instead to live out His commands. We will come back to the details of Sukkot tomorrow, but for today I leave you with this thought. The word convocation, as seen in Leviticus 23:33-36, means rehearsal. In fact, all the feasts that Adonai established are rehearsals. But what are we rehearsing? Simply put, His appointed times. There will come a day, and it appears to be coming soon, when Yeshua will return. All these rehearsals are meant to prepare us, to prepare our hearts, for that time. As a teen I was involved in theater occasionally and remember hearing the quote, “All the world is a stage.” On a grander scale, all of life is a rehearsal. When the rehearsal is done and the curtain is drawn back for real, will you have rehearsed enough? If not, then let us start now before it is too late. Come back to the ancient ways (Jer 6:16).
Posted on: Wed, 18 Sep 2013 15:29:25 +0000
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