INTRODUCTION TO
THE FEASTS
OF THE LORD
(Prophecy
Plus Ministries)
(Daymond R.
Duck)
THE AUTHORITY OF ALL SCRIPTURE
Paul said, “ALL SCRIPTURE is given by INSPIRATION
OF GOD, and is PROFITABLE for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for
instruction in righteousness” (II Tim. 3:16).
ü
ALL SCRIPTURE
includes the Old Testament AND New
Testament.
Ø
Someone said, “The
Old Testament is the New Testament concealed and the New Testament is the Old
Testament revealed.”
1)
They go together
to give a complete picture.
2)
They help us
understand each other.
3)
They are
complimentary not contradictory.
ü
All Scripture is
given by INSPIRATION OF GOD.
Ø
If we ignore the
Old Testament:
1)
We will be
ignoring God.
2)
We will be
muzzling or silencing God.
3)
We will have a
limited understanding of the New Testament.
4)
We will have a
limited understanding of Bible prophecy.
ü
All Scripture is
PROFITABLE.
Ø
Everything in the
Bible is important.
Jesus told some Jews to, “SEARCH the SCRIPTURES;
for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which TESTIFY OF
ME” (Jn. 5:39).
ü
Jesus told us to
SEARCH the SCRIPTURES.
ü
Jesus said the
Scriptures are ABOUT or TESTIFY of Him.
ü
But the New
Testament didn’t exist when Jesus said this.
ü
The only
Scriptures that existed when Jesus said this are found in the Old Testament.
ü
If we ignore the
Old Testament, we will ignore things Jesus wanted us to know about Him.
Paul said, “For whatsoever things were
written AFORETIME were written for our LEARNING, that we through patience and
comfort of the scriptures might have HOPE” (Rom. 15:4).
ü
The Old Testament
is for the Christian’s LEARNING and HOPE.
Note:
-
Jesus called the two men on the road to
Emmaus FOOLS for not believing all that the Old Testment prophets said (Luke
24:25).
-
Jesus called Pharisees and Sadducees
HYPOCRITES because they paid more attention to the weather than the Old
Testament signs of His coming (Matt. 16:1-3).
INTRODUCTION TO THE FEASTS OF THE LORD
(Prophecy
Plus Ministries)
ü
There are seven
Feasts of the Lord.
Ø
All of them are
listed in Leviticus chapter 23:
1)
The Feast of
Passover (Lev. 23:4-5).
2)
The Feast of
Unleavened Bread (Lev. 23:6-8).
3)
The Feast of First
Fruits (Lev. 23:9-14).
4)
The Feast of
Pentecost (Lev. 23:13-22).
5)
The Feast of
Trumpets (Lev. 23:23-25).
6)
The Feast of
Atonement (Lev. 23:26-32).
7)
The Feast of
Tabernacles (Lev. 23:33-44).
ü
They are called
“Feasts of the Lord” not Jewish feasts or feasts of Israel.
ü
The Lord gave
these feasts:
Ø
So Israel and the
Church will remember the past and teach it to their children.
Ø
So Israel and the
Church will have a better understanding of what God has done and what God will
do (have a prophetic view of the future).
THE FEASTS OF THE LORD ARE PROPHETIC
ü
Understanding the
Feasts of the Lord will help us understand what’s going on.
Ø
The three spring
feasts are prophecies about the First Coming of Jesus.
1)
They have been
perfectly or LITERALLY fulfilled.
Ø
The one summer
feast is a prophecy about the Church age.
1)
It is currently
being fulfilled.
Ø
The three fall
feasts appear to be prophecies connected with the Second Coming of Jesus.
1)
They will probably
be perfectly or LITERALLY fulfilled in the near future.
ü
Every time the
Jews have celebrated a feast day for about 3500 years from the time of Moses
until today, they have rememembered a segment of their history and revealed a
prophecy about the first coming of Jesus, the Church or the Second Coming of
Jesus.
THE FEASTS OF THE LORD ARE FASTS,
CELEBRATIONS & PROPHECIES
Ø
Christians
sometimes think of a feast as a meal.
1)
But to the Jew a
feast day could be just the opposite.
Ø
A feast day could
be a fast day instead of a meal.
1)
Or it could be a
celebration instead of a meal.
Ø
Some feast days
were fast days (for mourning or affliction).
1)
And some feast
days were celebrations (for rejoicing).
Ø
But the Feasts of
the Lord were fasts, celebrations and prophecies.
THE FEASTS OF THE LORD ARE ALSO
THANKSGIVING FOR THREE HARVESTS
ü
The spring harvest
or thanksgiving.
Ø
The Feast of First
Fruits thanks God for the barley harvest (the resurrection of Jesus and others).
ü
The summer harvest
or thanksgiving.
Ø
The Feast of Weeks
thanks God for the wheat harvest (the beginning of the Church).
ü
The fall harvest
or thanksgiving.
Ø
The Feast of
Tabernacles thanks God for the remainder of the harvest of the earth: fruit,
dates, etc. (the Tribulation Saints, Israel, etc.).
ü
So the Feasts of
the Lord are multi-purpose: fasts, celebrations, prophecies, and thanksgiving.
THE FEASTS OF THE LORD ARE ABOUT JESUS
1. The Feast of PASSOVER (About the sacrifice of
Jesus; the redemption of
Israel
and the redemption of the Church)
Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may
be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even CHRIST OUR PASSOVER is sacrificed
for us: (I Cor. 5:7).
2. The Feast of Unleavened BREAD (About the
burial of Jesus; holy living; living without sin, etc.)
And JESUS said unto them, I am the BREAD of life:
he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never
thirst. (Jn. 6:35)
3. The Feast of FIRST FRUITS (About the
resurrection of Jesus; then all of His)
But now is CHRIST risen from the dead, and become
the FIRSTFRUITS of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came
also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ
shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: CHRIST THE FIRSTFRUITS;
afterward they that are Christ's at his coming. (I Cor. 15:20-23).
4. The Feast of Weeks or PENTECOST (About the
Holy Spirit sent by Jesus; harvest; the birth of the Church)
And when the day of PENTECOST was fully come,
they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from
heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were
sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat
upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to
speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance (Acts 2:1-4).
5. The Feast of TRUMPETS (About gathering;
appears to be the Rapture or gathering of the Church and Israel gathered to be grafted back
in)
But I would not have you to be ignorant,
brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others
which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so
them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you
by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of
the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall
descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the
TRUMP of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive
and remain shall
be caught up together with them in the clouds, to
meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord (I Thess.
4:13-17).
Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all
sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at
the last TRUMP: for the TRUMPET shall sound, and the dead shall be raised
incorruptible, and we shall be changed (I Cor. 15:51-52).
6. The Feast of ATONEMENT (About sorrow and
repentance of Israel; appears
to be the Second Coming of Jesus with His Church to rescue
Israel
at the Battle
of Armageddon)
And not only so, but we also joy in God through
our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the ATONEMENT (Rom. 5:11).
7. The Feast of TABERNACLES (About Kingdom rest
and restoration; appears to be the beginning of the Millennial Reign of Jesus on
the Throne of David with Satan bound and chained for a thousand years)
And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt
[TABERNACLED] among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only
begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth (Jn. 1:14).
Yet have I set my king UPON MY HOLY HILL OF ZION (Psa. 2:6).
Thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth
a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall becalled the
Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him THE THRONE OF HIS
FATHER DAVID: and he shall reign OVER THE HOUSE OF JACOB for ever; and of his
kingdom there shall be no end (Luke 1:31-33).
THE FEASTS OF THE LORD ARE “SET APART”
And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto
the children of Israel, and say unto them, Concerning the feasts of the LORD,
which ye shall proclaim to be HOLY CONVOCATIONS, even these are my feasts (Lev.
23:1-2).
ü
The feasts of the
Lord are “HOLY CONVOCATIONS.”
Ø
Holy means the
Feasts of the Lord are “set apart” by God.
Ø
Convocations means
the Feasts of the Lord are “assemblies” or “rehearsals.”
Ø
The Feasts of the
Lord are set apart by God to assemble or rehearse the people for the real thing.
ü
We can rehearse
events that are past or future.
Ø
Some people
rehearse the Civil War which means they remember a past event.
Ø
Some people
rehearse a play which means they rehearse for a future event.
Ø
The feasts of the
Lord are holy convocations that do both.
1)
They point
backwards and forwards.
2)
They remind us of
past events, but they also look forward to future events.
Ø
The Lord’s Supper
is an example.
1)
For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this
cup, ye do show the Lord's DEATH till he COME (I Cor. 11:26).
2)
The Lord’s Supper
is an assembly or a rehearsal that reminds us of the past (the DEATH of Jesus).
3)
And the Lord’s
Supper is an assembly or a rehersal that reminds us of the future (the SECOND
COMING of Jesus).
Ø
The Feasts of the
Lord are selected past events that reveal facts about selected future events.
THE FEASTS OF THE LORD ARE A SHADOW OF
THINGS TO COME
For the law having a SHADOW of good THINGS TO
COME, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices
which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect
(Heb. 10:1).
ü
The Law (the
writings of Moses) has or contains a SHADOW of good THINGS TO COME (a shadow of
future things).
Ø
A shadow is not
the real thing, but it is an image of the real thing.
ü
The Old Testament
contains an image of future things.
Ø
These are good
things not doom and gloom things.
Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in
drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:
Which are a SHADOW of things to come; but the BODY
is of Christ (Col. 2:16-17).
ü
The holy days (the
Feasts of the Lord) and sabbaths are a SHADOW of things to come, but the BODY
(the real thing) is Jesus.
Ø
The Feasts of the
Lord are set aside by God as pictures, or object lessons or visual aids.
Ø
They recall past
events and illustrate future events.
Ø
The past event is
the shadow and the future event is the real thing.
Ø
Someone has said,
“A picture is worth a thousand words.”
Ø
The Feasts of the
Lord are pictures that help us understand the real thing.
1)
The real thing is
Jesus.
a.
If we want to
understand Jesus, we need to look at the Old Testament pictures.
THE FEASTS OF THE LORD ARE CLUSTERED INTO
SEASONS
These are the feasts of the LORD, even holy
convocations, which ye shall proclaim in THEIR SEASONS (Lev. 23:4).
ü
The Feasts of the
Lord are SEASONAL:
Ø
The spring season
(time of the spring rains).
Ø
The summer season
(time of the dry or summer season).
Ø
The fall season
(time of the fall rains).
THREE TIMES IN A YEAR shall all thy males
appear before the LORD thy God in the
place which he shall choose; in the FEAST OF UNLEAVENED BREAD, and in the FEAST
OF WEEKS, and in the FEAST OF TABERNACLES: and they shall not appear before the
LORD EMPTY (Deut. 16:16).
ü
Every male Jew in
Israel was required to appear
or visit the Temple
in Jerusalem THREE TIMES A YEAR.
ü
These three visits
were called “Pilgrimages” or “Pilgrimage Festivals.”
ü
They were required
to visit the Temple
during:
Ø
The FEAST OF
UNLEAVENED BREAD (time of the spring season),
Ø
The FEAST OF WEEKS
(time of the dry or summer season),
Ø
The FEAST OF
TABERNACLES (time of the fall season).
ü
Every male Jew was
required to take an offering.
Ø
They could not
appear before the Lord EMPTY (without an offering).
Note:
-
As a devout Jew, Jesus observed the feasts.
-
Many of His teachings and miracles occurred
while He was in Jerusalem
to observe the feasts.
-
Joseph and Mary were on a Pilgrimage to
celebrate the Feast of Passover when the twelve year old Jesus tarried in Jerusalem to teach at the Temple (Luke 2:41-49).
-
Jesus was in Jerusalem
for the Jews’ Passover when He drove the money changers out of the Temple (Jn. 2:13-25).
Ø
Interestingly,
Jesus called it the Jews’ Passover not the Feast of Passover or the Feast of the
Lord or the Lord’s Passover.
1)
This means the
Jews had stopped doing God’s will and started doing their will (they had turned
the Feast of Passover into a ritual and an opportunity to make money.).
-
Jesus was in Jerusalem for the Feast of Pentecost when
he healed the man at the Pool of Bethesida who had been sick for
thirty-eight years (Jn. 5:1-16).
-
Jesus was in Jerusalem
for the Feast of Tabernacles when He taught at the Temple (Jn. 7:1-39).
Put my
diagram “The Feasts of the Lord” here.
HEBREW AND GREGORIAN CALENDARS
|
Month on Hebrew (Jewish) Sacred
Calendar
|
Month on Hebrew (Jewish) Civil Calendar
|
Hebrew (Jewish) Name
|
Gregorian Name
|
|
1
|
7
|
Nisan (Abib)
|
March-April
|
|
2
|
8
|
Lyyar (Ziv)
|
April-May
|
|
3
|
9
|
Sivan
|
May-June
|
|
4
|
10
|
Tammuz
|
June-July
|
|
5
|
11
|
Ab
|
July-August
|
|
6
|
12
|
Elul
|
August-Sept.
|
|
7
|
1
|
Tishri
|
Sept.-Oct.
|
|
8
|
2
|
Heshvan
|
Oct.-Nov.
|
|
9
|
3
|
Kieslev
|
Nov.-Dec.
|
|
10
|
4
|
Tebeth
|
Dec.-Jan.
|
|
11
|
5
|
Shebat
|
Jan.-Feb.
|
|
12
|
6
|
Adar
|
Feb.-Mar.
|
|
13
Leap
Year
|
|
Adar Sheni
|
|
1)
The Hebrew Civil
Calendar is based upon the farming seasons.
2)
In
Israel, Leap Year comes once every three years.
3)
Leap Year (Adar
Sheni) is 29 days long and it means “the second Adar.”
4)
Every third year
is Leap Year and the Jews add an extra month.
5)
A Jewish prophetic
year is 360 days long.
6)
One orbit of the
moon around the earth takes 29 ½ days.
7)
A Jewish month is
29-30 days long.
8)
A Jewish month
begins with a new moon.
9)
The full moon
occurs at the middle of the month.
10)
A Jewish day
begins at sundown (approximately 6 p.m.) and ends at sundown the next day.
11)
A Jewish
Sabbatical year lasts seven years (2001, 2008, 2015, etc.).
THE FEASTS OF THE LORD
|
Month
on Hebrew Sacred Calendar
|
Hebrew Month and Day
|
Feast
|
Gregorian Month and Season or Pilgrimage
|
|
1st
Month
|
Month
of Nisan (also called Abib)
|
|
March-April
|
|
|
Day
14
|
Passover
|
Spring
|
|
|
Day
15-21
|
Unleavened Bread
|
Spring
|
|
|
Day
16
|
Firstfruits
|
Spring
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
3rd
Month
|
Month
of Sivan
|
|
May-June
|
|
|
Day 6
|
Weeks
or Pentecost
|
Summer
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
7th
Month
|
Month
of Tishri
|
|
Sept.-Oct.
|
|
|
Day 1
|
Trumpets or
Rosh
Hashanah
|
Fall
|
|
|
Day
10
|
Atonement or
Yom
Kippur
|
Fall
|
|
|
Day
15-21
|
Tabernacles
Or
Succoth
|
Fall
|
1)
There are three
feast seasons (spring, summer and fall).
a.
The first three
feasts are spring season feasts (These three feasts were fulfilled at the first
coming of Jesus).
b.
The fourth feast
is a summer season feast (This is currently being fulfilled by the Church Age).
c.
The last three
feasts are fall season feasts (They have a future fulfillment).
2)
There are three
“Pilgrimage Feasts” or three feasts that the male Jews were supposed to attend
in Jerusalem
each year.
a.
They were supposed
to attend the Feast of Unleavened Bread in the spring.
b.
They were supposed
to attend the Feast of Weeks in the summer.
c.
They were supposed
to attend the Feast of Tabernacles in the fall.
Note:
-
The ten days between Tishri 1 and Tishri 10
are called “The Ten Days of Awe” (They are for self-examination and
repentance in preparation for Atonement. They may pre-figure a period of
time between the Rapture and the Second Coming.).
-
The longest feast in the spring is Unleavened
Bread. The male Jews went to
Jerusalem
for eight days in the spring to observe all three feasts, but they
sometimes said they were going there to observe Unleavened Bread.
-
The longest feast in the fall is Tabernacles.
The male Jews went to Jerusalem
for twenty-one days in the fall to observe all three feasts, but they
sometimes said they were there to observe Tabernacles.
THE JEWISH DIVISIONS OF A DAY
ü
A Jewish day is
divided into two twelve-hour segments:
Ø
It has twelve
hours of darkness called NIGHT.
1)
And twelve hours
of light called DAY.
Ø
The two
twelve-hour divisions are based upon the Creation:
1)
In the beginning God created the
heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void;
and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon
the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And
God saw the light, that it was
good: and God divided the light from the darkness. And God
called the light DAY, and the darkness he called NIGHT. And the evening and the
morning were the first day (Gen. 1:1-5).
ü
A Jewish NIGHT is
twelve hours long (6 p.m. to 6 a.m.).
Ø
A Jewish night is
divided into four watches (a sentry’s turn of duty).
1)
The first watch is
from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
2)
The second watch
is from 9 pm. to 12 pm.
3)
The third watch is
from 12 p.m. to 3 a.m.
4)
The fourth watch
is from 3 a.m. to 6 a.m.
a.
It was the fourth
watch when Jesus walked on water (Matt. 14:25; Mk. 6:48).
ü
A Jewish DAY is
twelve hours long (6 a.m. to 6 p.m.).
Ø
A Jewish day is
divided into four principal hours.
1)
The first
principal hour begins at 6 a.m.
a.
It was morning
(probably 6 a.m.) when Jesus was taken to Pontius Pilate (Matt. 27:1).
2)
The third
principal hour begins at 9 a.m.
a.
It was the third
hour when Jesus was crucified (Mk. 15:25).
b.
It was the third
hour when the Holy Spirit fell on Pentecost (Acts 2:15).
3)
The sixth
principal hour begins at 12 a.m.
a.
Darkness covered
the land from the sixth hour unto the ninth hour when Jesus was crucified (Matt.
27:45; Mk. 15:33)
4)
The ninth
principal hour begins at 3 p.m.
a.
Jesus died when
the ninth hour came (Matt. 27:46-50).
Note:
-
Evening began at 3 p.m. to the Jews.
-
Joseph of Arimathaea asked for the body of
Jesus in the evening or around 3 p.m. (Matt. 27:57).
SYMBOLIC MEANING IN SOME OF THE OFFERINGS
ü
The Jews were
required to present offerings at the feasts of the Lord (Deut. 16:16).
ü
The offerings are
a different study from the feasts, but they are also prophetic and they reveal
many things about Jesus.
Ø
No offering is
acceptable to God unless it speaks of Jesus.
Ø
He alone decides
what is acceptable.
ü
It should be noted
that the Burnt offering, the Peace offering, the Sin offering, and the Trespass offering are offerings that
involve the shedding of blood.
Ø
These point to the
death of Jesus.
ü
The Meat offering
(also called the Meal offering, Grain offering and the Food offering) did not
involve the shedding of blood.
Ø
These point to
Jesus as the Bread of Life.
ü
In some cases, the
type of animal offered (whether it is a bullock, young ox, sheep, goat,
turtle-dove, pigeon, etc.) speaks of the person’s ability to pay.
Ø
The poor could
offer something of lesser value which means the door is open to everyone.
ü
The perfection of
the offerings (no blemishes) speaks of the perfection of Jesus.
ü
The offerings
teach that we are accountable to God and there is a penalty for sin.
ü
Laying hands on
the offering signifies the transfer of sins.
ü
Washing the
offering signifies the washing of the Water of the Word.
ü
The ashes from a
burnt offering signify the finished work of Jesus.
ü
Using the best
grain or finest flower signifies the Bread of Life would
be the very best
Bread of Life available.
ü
Oil “IN” the
bread, flour, etc. usually speaks of the Holy Spirit IN Jesus.
Ø
He was indwelt by
the Holy Spirit).
ü
Oil “ON” the
offering usually speaks of the anointing (pouring out) of the Holy Spirit ON
Jesus.
Ø
The Holy Spirit
descended like a dove and lit UPON Jesus (Matt. 3:16).
ü
Spices,
frankincense, things that give off a good aroma usually speak of God’s pleasure
with the sacrifice.
Ø
The good life of
Jesus, His obedience, His death, etc.
pleased God.
ü
Leaven speaks of
sin, evil, false doctrines, etc. while unleavened or no leaven speaks of
sinlessness, perfection, etc.
Ø
Jesus was without
leaven or sin.
ü
The offerings
teach us that we should be thankful, give to God, worship Him, recognize Him as
the source of what we have, etc.
ü
Peace offerings
teach that we need to make peace with God and there is a way.
ü
Killing animals
reminds us that we can have a Substitute.
Ø
Someone can take
our place.
ü
The offerings
teach us obedience pleases God.
ü
Offerings made
outside the camp signify the death of Jesus outside the city of Jerusalem.
ü
The bitter herbs
on Passover are a reminder of the hard times under
slavery in Egypt.
