Leviticus Chapter 23

 Feast of Trumpets, Day of Atonement and Feast of Tabernacles

When you hear the bugler playing reverie, remember the Feast of Trumpets and the wake-up call for all of us.

One of the traditions of the Jews is to throw breadcrumbs into a river or stream to symbolize casting away their sins. It’s also customary to eat a new fruit, a symbol of newness. Another tradition is to eat apples dipped in honey, hoping to evoke a sweet new year. Think of it as a New Years Eve celebration without the liquor.

The Feast of Trumpets pointed toward certain aspects of Christ's work, especially related to the Day of the Lord. Joel 2:1 predicted, "Blow a trumpet in Zion; sound an alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the LORD is coming; it is near."

In the New Testament, it is interesting to find that the second coming of Jesus will include the sound of a trumpet. I Cor. 15:51-52 states, "Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed-in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed." I Thess. 4:16 likewise notes, "For the LORD himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.”

The meaning of our holidays can change over time. At one time, Thanksgiving was a religious day set aside for giving thanks to God for His blessings. Today, in a more secular culture, many people associate Thanksgiving with a family gathering, a huge meal and football. The Feast of Trumpets was viewed as a time for repentance; today Christians view it as a time to repent in light of the imminent rapture of the Church.

Lev. 23:26 is the Day of Atonement, also known as Yom Kippur, and was the one day of the year where the Israelites were to “deny themselves.” In other words, fast. Fast, as in don’t eat or drink anything.

Of course, there were some exceptions concerning the required fast. The children, sick, and elderly were exempt from fasting. In Lev. 18:5 God says, “Keep my decrees and laws, for the man who obeys them will live by them.” This is understood by the Jews that they were not to die by them. Human life takes precedence over observing a ritual. For instance, they can lie to protect someone’s life. We saw this when the midwives lied to the Egyptian officials and when Rahab lied to save the life of the Israelite spies.

On the Day of Atonement, the priest would take two goats, kill one as a sin offering, and sent the other off into the desert to bear away the sins of the people. The latter goat was called the scapegoat. The sins of Israel were transferred to the scapegoat. On this day the high priest would enter the Holy of Holies, the only time he would be allowed to enter this area.

In the New Testament we see that Christ is the one who made the atonement for our sins. Rom 3:25 “God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith.”

Heb. 10:19-20, “Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body. . .”

The Day of Atonement is now obsolete, since Jesus atoned for our sins, once and for all. 

We have scapegoats today. A scapegoat is someone we blame for our problems. The Jews were blamed by the Germans for the loss of WW I. I had a student say to me, “You failed me.” I told her, “I didn’t fail you; I was just the scorekeeper.” I was ready for that comment. I was not going be her scapegoat.

Lev. 23:34 Feast of Tabernacles

This is the last of the Holy Days and this festival lasts for eight days. The Feast of Tabernacles, or Booths or Ingathering, is a harvest festival that celebrates the harvest. The Jews call it Sukkot. The Israelites were to collect palm leaves and live-in temporary booths or tent for seven days. This was to remind them of their journey from Egypt to Canaan when they didn’t have any permanent housing.

Solomon’s temple was dedicated on the Feast of Tabernacles (2 Chron. 5:2-3). Era and Nehemiah kept this festival (Ezra 3:4; Neh. 8:14-18). Sadly, the Israelites didn’t keep the festivals very well.

These holy days were a shadow of things to come. Jesus was crucified on Passover. He was buried on unleavened bread. He was resurrected on Firstfruits. He sent the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. Many speculate that he will rapture the church on the Feast of Trumpets. He will them come with his church on the Day of Atonement and reign with us on the Feast of Tabernacles. In Rev. 21:3-5 we read, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.” 

Jesus observed these Holy Days. Jesus observed the Feast of Tabernacles (John 7:1–52). Paul kept the feast (Acts 18:20-21).

We can learn from these festivals, but we are not required to observe them. There was only one of these holy days that Jesus commanded Christians to observe. “Do this in remembrance of me,” he said at his last Passover (Luke 22:19; I Cor. 11:24).

The early church, composed entirely of Jewish Christians, continued to observe the festivals. They were assembled in one place on Pentecost (Acts 2:1). The next mention of a festival in in Acts 12:3-4. Herod arrested Peter during the days of Unleavened Bread. The mere mention of a festival does not imply a command for its observance. It’s a description not a prescription. It is neither a command nor an example.

In Acts 18:21 we find Paul debating the Jews in the synagogue at Ephesus. They wanted him to stay longer but he said, Acts 20:16, “. . . he was in a hurry to reach Jerusalem, if possible, by the day of Pentecost.”

In Acts 20:6 we find that Paul sailed from Philippi after the Feast of Unleavened Bread.”

The Day of Atonement is mentioned when Paul was sailing to Rome. Acts 27:9, says, “Much time had been lost, and sailing had already become dangerous because by now it was after the Fast.” Again, this is not a command for the church to observe this day, only a chronological marker in the story.

The churches in Judea observed various Jewish customs and we see in Acts 15 and Gal 2 that they had many traditions that were not binding on the Gentiles. There are no commands for the church to observe these customs, nor is there a prohibition against observing them.

Paul told the Corinthian church to expel the immoral brother and wrote, in I Cor 5:7, “Get rid of the old yeast that you may be a new batch without yeast . . .. v.8 “Therefore let us keep the Festival, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with bread without yeast, the bread of sincerity and truth.”

Paul is speaking metaphorically, comparing yeast to sin. He urged the church to expel the immoral brother because, as we would say, one apple can ruin the whole batch. Paul says that the people in the church, the saved ones, were already unleavened, that they were a “new batch without yeast” (v.7). Paul was speaking of spiritual leaven or sin that had to be removed, not physical leaven.

If we are circumcised in our hearts, then physical circumcision is not necessary. When we live in sincerity and truth, we are not required to physically remove leaven from our homes. We have already fulfilled the spiritual meaning that the physical rite pictured.

Col 2:16 says, “Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.”

We are neither commanded nor forbidden to observe these festivals. They can be helpful if they emphasize what Christ has done for us. These festivals are not signs of true Christianity and are not the basis for judging whether someone is in the faith.

For more information on the Festivals or Holy Days, watch Zola Levitt: