Lesson - 4 Jewish Festivals

Feasts of the Jews are mentioned in the Scripture of Jews and Pentateuch
Jewish Feasts

Canonical Feasts Non- Canonical Feasts

Feasts prescribed in the scriptures Feasts that developed at later stages

Major Feasts: Major Feasts:

Passover, Feast of Unleavened Bread, Feast of Purim, Feast of Dedication (Hanukkah), Day
Tabernacles and The Pentecost. of Atonement (Yom Kippur)
Other Feasts:
Sabbath, Sabbatical Year and Yobel Year

Exodus has instructions for observing three major feasts.

Calendar of Feasts is connected with Agricultural Season of Israel: All men come before God on all
these three feasts.
1) Feast of Unleavened Bread and Passover - observed in the month of Abib
2) Feast of Harvest - when first fruit of the year was collected.
3) Feast of Ingathering / Tabernacle observed after the harvest is completed- end of harvest season.

1) Feast of Unleavened Bread and Passover

 First feast in the calendar of feasts of Jews.
 This feast is observed in commemoration of God liberating Israelites from Egypt.
 Begins on 14th of Abib, first month of Jewish calendar.
 On 14th evening Jews should sacrifice an animal and observe Passover.
 From 15th, feast of unleavened bread should be observed for seven days.
 Only unleavened bread will be eaten for seven days.
 Unleavened bread was a symbol of affliction and haste.
 There should be a council meeting on the first and the seventh day.

Passover had been a ritual of nomadic herds (travelling groups). It was not a pilgrimage feast.
 Feast of Unleavened bread had been an agricultural festival for Canaanites. The tribes of Israel (Israelites)
conquered the land of Canaan after an exodus from egypt.
 Israelites combined both these practices into a single feast.
 King Josiah of Judah convened all his people at Jerusalem and observed the Passover.
 According to the size of the household, an animal was killed and the feasts was eaten in haste.
 It was believed that the first born would be redeemed from death and the Angel of Death would passover the
houses of those who observe it. This confirms that it was celebrated as a household feast.

2) Feast of Weeks or The Pentecost / Feast of First Fruits

 Second Festival according to Jewish calendar.
 This feast was to be observed seven weeks after the observance of feast of unleavened bread.
 This feast is also known as the feast of first fruits and is observed on a single day.
 No one should appear empty handed before the Lord on that day, says the scripture.
 The Jews should make special offering of atonement (repentance) besides offering meat and drink offerings on
that day.
 The word Pentecost means fifty.

3) Feast of Tabernacles:
 This was the last of Jewish festivals according to their Calendar.
 Great feast observed after the harvest is completed.
 To be observed when all the grain and wine are collected.
 People build booth or tabernacle (movable dwelling) and will live in them for a week leaving their homes.
 This feast was celebrated in memory of Israelites living in booths or tabernacles in the desert.
 This feast falls on the week that succeeds the 15th day of seventh month (Thishri)

Non-Canonical Feasts:

1)Purim or Festival of Lots:

 Purim means Lot.
 Observed on 14th of Adar, 12th Month of Jewish calendar.
 Feast was a commemoration of deliverance of Jews from their enemy Haman through Queen Esther who was king
Haman’s recent wife, she herself was a jew. (Haman the king of Amalekites plots to kill all the Jews since
Mordeccai, a jew, refused to respect him. Esther saves).
 That day is called Day of Mordeccai.
 Also called the festival of Light.

2) Hanukkah or the Feast of Dedication:

 Feast in commemoration of the defeat of Antiochus IV by Judas Maccabees, the head of Hasmonean tribes.
 Judas and his troops reclaimed and purified the Temple of Jerusalem and started offerings to Jehovah once
again.
 This day of restoration was observed as a Feast.
 Begins on 25th day of Ninth month. Eight day long feast.
 St. John chapter 10 says Jesus went to Jerusalem for the Feast of Dedication.

Israelites understood that the periods, seven days, seven years and fifty years were specially set apart for the
Lord as times of ‘rest’.
Jews were directed to their offerings to the Lord on the seventh day i.e. the Sabbath day.
Seventh year was observed as Sabbatical year. The harvest of the Sixth year would be abundant enough to
provide for the next three years. The yield from the left over crops of six years shall be given to orphans, the poor
and the widow. The slaves would be liberated on the Sabbatical year.
The year after seven Sabbatical years was the Yobel Year (Year of Jubilee). This is the year of deliverance.
Trumpets would be blown throughout the land proclaiming liberty to all inhabitants. Every man would be allowed
to return to his possession. Yobel year would be observed in the same way as the Sabbatical year.
The tenth day of the seventh month was the Day of Atonement. It was a day of fasting. It is the only day of the
year in which the High priest entered the inner sanctuary with incense and blood offering. This day, known as
Yom Kippur was the day of afflicting (troubling) the souls (atonement (parihaaram) and repentance). Jews
observe this holy day with a day-long fast confession and intensive prayer, often spending most of the day in
synagogue.
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