TRANSLATION OF
“FEAST”
Two important Hebrew words appear in Leviticus chapter 23, both translated as
feast, but in Hebrew they have a different connotation.
a. Moed
As we’ve seen in verse 2, “Feast” is translated from the Hebrew word “Moed”,
which means: appointed time, meeting, assembly, determined or precise point in
time. The Feasts are times determined by God, and when we connect to them we are
able to know His Plans and take a look at His Agenda.
(Ephesians 1:7-10) In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness
of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, (8) which he lavished
upon us, in all wisdom and insight (9) making known to us the mystery of his
will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ (10) as a plan for
the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things
on earth.
God does not work in a spontaneous and casual way; He has a purpose and
a plan. Jesus came to the world at a time determined by God (Galatians 4:2, 4),
and He has also determined the exact time in which he will judge the world
(Acts 17:31).
b. Jagag
In Leviticus 23:6 we find another Hebrew word that is translated as
“feast”: Jag which means: festival or solemn feast. It comes from the
root word Jagag which means: to move in circles, to march in a sacred
procession, to celebrate, to dance.
God gave us the feasts as part of a cycle that must be kept every year.
The purpose of celebrating them is for us to achieve a higher understanding of
the divine plan for the redemption of the world.
IN THE APPOINTED
PLACE
The feasts were not only an appointed time, but they were also to be
celebrated in the place chosen by God.
The Lord said that He would choose a place to carry out His plan of
redemption.
(Deuteronomy 16:5-6) You may not offer the Passover sacrifice within any of
your towns that the LORD your God is giving you, (6) but at the place that the LORD
your God will choose, to make his name dwell in it, there you shall offer the
Passover sacrifice, in the evening at sunset, at the time you came out of
Egypt.
(Deuteronomy 16:10-11) Then you shall keep the Feast of Weeks to the LORD your
God with the tribute of a freewill offering from your hand, which you shall
give as the LORD your God blesses you. (11) And you shall
rejoice before the LORD your God, you and your son and your daughter, your male
servant and your female servant, the Levite who is within your towns, the
sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow who are among you, at the place that
the LORD your God will choose, to make his name dwell there.
The place that the Lord chose to put His name in is
(2 Kings 21:4) And he built altars in the house of the LORD, of which
the LORD had said, “In Jerusalem
For those of us who live far from Jerusalem, this does not mean that we
cannot celebrate it in our nations, rather, it means that we are to be conscious
that the fulfillment will take place in Jerusalem, the city in which the Lord
chose to put His Name.
Jesus died, was buried and rose from the dead in Jerusalem , each of this he carried out during
a Feast day. The disciples had to wait in Jerusalem
to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit. When He returns for a second time,
the Messiah will set His foot in the Mount of Olives, which is in Jerusalem
(Zachariah 14:4). During the Millennium, the Messiah King will reign over all
the Earth and his government will be based in Jerusalem .
THREE TIMES A YEAR
Even though there are a total of seven feasts, they are divided into
three seasons.
(Exodus 23:14) Three times in the year you shall keep a feast to me.
(Deuteronomy 16:16) Three times a year all your males shall appear before the
LORD your God at the place that he will choose: at the Feast of Unleavened
Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Booths. They shall not appear
before the LORD empty-handed.
1st Convocation (Nisan 14-21) Passover, Unleavened Breads and
First fruits
2nd Convocation (50 days later) Weeks or Pentecost
3rd Convocation (Month 7, or Tishrei) Trumpets, Day of
Atonement and Booths
FOR EVERYONE
The feasts were not only considered for the “Jews” (although
traditionally only they have kept them). The Feasts belong to the Lord;
therefore, all who have taken hold of God’s salvation can celebrate them.
(Deuteronomy 16:11) And you shall rejoice before the LORD your God, you and
your son and your daughter, your male servant and your female servant, the
Levite who is within your towns, the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow
who are among you, at the place that the LORD your God will choose, to make his
name dwell there.
The invitation is for all who believe in God and for those who have received
divine redemption.
(Isaiah 56:3-7) Let
not the foreigner who has joined himself to the LORD say, “The LORD will surely
separate me from his people”; and let not the eunuch say, “Behold, I am a dry
tree.” (4) For thus says the LORD: “To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, who
choose the things that please me and hold fast my covenant, (5) I will give in
my house and within my walls a monument and a name better than sons and
daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off. (6) “And
the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD, to minister to him, to love the
name of the LORD, and to be his servants, everyone who keeps the Sabbath and
does not profane it, and holds fast my covenant— (7) these I will bring to my
holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt
offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house shall
be called a house of prayer for all peoples.”
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