Bible is the Word of God. It is an attempt of God to communicate with man. Just like phonetic sounds and written words, God employed other communication media. The rituals and festivals were as much symbolic expressions of God as the spoken word and the written word. They contain the revelations of God to mankind. In giving a calendar of seasons and festivals God still speaks to his people. In these articles, we are trying to understand this.

What is unfolded in the scripture is God's plan and purpose for humanity:

Eph.1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace 8 that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. 9 And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment--to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.

Basically the festival calendar is given in Leviticus 23. This chapter describes eight festivals.

Although there are a total of seven feasts (the divine number for perfection or completeness in the Bible), God divided the seven festivals into three major festival seasons. Every male was to present themselves before the Lord three times in a year in each festival group. The Three Pilgrim Festivals (Shalosh Regalim), the main "Leg" Festivals are : Passover (Pesach), the Feast of Weeks (Shavuot) and the Feast of Tabernacles (or Booths) (Sukkot). Others are centered around these basic themes.The name "Leg" Festival comes from the fact that at these festivals people used to make pilgrimages to the Temple in Jerusalem according to the cammandment.

The First festival group:Pesach
The feasts of Passover (Pesach),
The feasts of Unleavened Bread (Hag HaMatzah),
and The feasts of First Fruits (Bikkurim)
These falls in the month of Nisan, which is the first month of religious calendar in the spring of the year.

The second festival: The Feast of the Weeks
The Feast of Weeks (Shavuot), or Pentecost, is a week long festival observed in the third religious month of Sivan.

The third festival group: The Feast of the Tabernacles.
The Feast of Trumpets (Yom Teruah),
The feasts of Atonement (Yom Kippur), and
The feasts of Tabernacles (Sukkot)
These fall in the seventh month of Tishrei, which is in the fall of the year (Exodus 23:14-17; 34:22-23: Deuteronomy 16:16-17).

Three is the number of completeness. Three is the number of persons in the Trinity. Three is the number of perfect testimony and witness which is the assurance of things. (Deuteronomy 17:6; 19:15; Matthew 18:19-20; Luke 24:44-45; 2 Corinthians 13:1; 1 Timothy 5:19; 1 John 5:8). Seven is the number of Spirits in the Holy Spirit. Seven again is the total possible ways of interaction between three persons including self interaction. 3! + 1 =7 the relational structure is 3+1+3
 

The festivals are a witness or testimony to mankind regarding the complete plan of redemption. As the students of Old Testment understands all rituals and sacrfices and plans were an attempt on the part of god to communicate to man his plan of redemption.

The first thing we notice here is that the whole festival calendar is based on agriculture and not based on animal husbandry. However the feasts were ordained and given to the Israel while they were still nomads in the desert relying on sheeps. That was their profession.

Gen 47:3 Pharaoh asked the brothers, "What is your occupation?" "Your servants are shepherds," they replied to Pharaoh, "just as our fathers were."

Num 14: 28 So tell them, 'As surely as I live, declares the LORD, I will do to you the very things I heard you say:

29 In this desert your bodies will fall--every one of you twenty years old or more who was counted in the census and who has grumbled against me.

30 Not one of you will enter the land I swore with uplifted hand to make your home, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun.

31 As for your children that you said would be taken as plunder, I will bring them in to enjoy the land you have rejected.

32 But you--your bodies will fall in this desert.

33 Your children will be shepherds here for forty years, suffering for your unfaithfulness, until the last of your bodies lies in the desert.

34 For forty years--one year for each of the forty days you explored the land--you will suffer for your sins and know what it is like to have me against you.'

35. I, the LORD, have spoken, and I will surely do these things to this whole wicked community, which has banded together against me. They will meet their end in this desert; here they will die."

Nomadic life is the result of sin. See the punishment of Cain:

Gen 4: 10 The LORD said, "What have you done? Listen! Your brother's blood cries out to me from the ground.

11 Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand.

12 When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth."

13 Cain said to the LORD, "My punishment is more than I can bear.

14. Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence; I will be a restless wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me."

Looking forward to a settled agricultural life has always been the ideal of man.

Heb 11: 9 By faith he (Abraham) made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise.

9. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.

So the accomplishment of the promise of salvation cannot be attained execept with the killing of the lamb. This is the payment of sin. That is why Passover has to be the first of the month in the process of redemption. Then comes the barley harvest giving the foretaste of the new life celebated in the waving of the sheaf before the Lord.

The first real taste of the new life comes with the wheat harvest - the pentecost. Now the agricultural culture has come to stay. The remaining festivals are based on the fruit of the vine - it is the final celebratin of life,

Ps. 104: 14 He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate-- bringing forth food from the earth:

15 wine that gladdens the heart of man, oil to make his face shine, and bread that sustains his heart.

Various Levels of Understanding

Those who have studied Prophecy will realized that every prophecy has three levels of meanings. The first level is the basic immediate meaning with a historical material realization. Then there is a mental level with a higher intellectual meaning. Finally there is a spiritual and final fulfillment. There are other levels of fulfillment progressively going from individual to families to communities to the nation to mankind as a whole. When we study the meaning of festivals we probably should look into all these aspects. We may not be able to take up all these levels. But they are all involved simultaneously. However we will restrict our study to three basic levels Thus we have in essence a five dimensional significance for the festivals.

1. All festivals are a memorial for historical events.
2. All festivals are prophetic indicating a future complete fulfillment.
3. All of the festivals teach about the Jesus the Redeemer.
4. All of the festivals are agricultural in content which amplifies the meaning of the festivals in fulfillment of prophecy.
5. All of the festivals teach about your personal relationship with God and how a believer grow in the knowledge of Jesus and grow into maturity into His likeness

The first festival described is the sabath day which is the celebration of the creation of man according to God's day. The whole purpose of history is centered around God's purposes for man. It is this God works out through history. The structure of the Leviticus 23 indicates that though it is an on going celebration it is probably not part of the seasonal festivals. It is a festival that runs through the entire seasons giving the purpose for those festivals. Sabath is a constant celebration of life. It is the covenant symbol between Yahvh and Israel (Ex. 31:15-17)

Summertime: Time to labor; there are no feasts until the Fall .
This represents the Church Age. And the struggle of the individual believer into santification.

I have given the calendar in accordance with the Levitical order. However the Jewish festival lists - by Jews everywhere -  gives the order starting from the feast of the trumpets. This change took place after the Chaldean captivity following their exposure to the pagan calendar. Jewish New Year starts with the Trumpets even though the bible clearly states that Nissan is to be the first of the months. It indicates a difference of understanding. The meaning of the festival symbolism will be totally lost unless we start with Nissan. "In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the Lord's passover."
-Leviticus 23:5

Talmud - Mas. Rosh HaShana 2a MISHNAH GIVES FOUR NEW YEARS. ON THE FIRST OF NISAN IS NEW YEAR FOR KINGS AND FOR FESTIVALS. ON THE FIRST OF ELUL IS NEW YEAR FOR THE TITHE OF CATTLE. R. ELEAZAR AND R. SIMEON, HOWEVER, PLACE THIS ON THE FIRST OF TISHRI. ON THE FIRST OF TISHRI   IS NEW YEAR FOR YEARS, FOR RELEASE AND JUBILEE YEARS,  FOR PLANTATION AND FOR [TITHE OF] VEGETABLES. ON THE FIRST OF SHEBAT IS NEW YEAR FOR TREES, ACCORDING TO THE RULING OF BETH SHAMMAI; BETH HILLEL, HOWEVER, PLACE IT ON THE FIFTEENTH OF THAT MONTH.

Abel started with the sacrifice by bringing a lamb while Cain started with the agricultural offering. It did make a difference. Cain was announcing that he do not need a redemption, and he himself is his own redeemer.

The basic meaning of the three festival seasons are: Pesach (Passover)- is the festival of freedom from bondage Shavuot (Weeks) is the festival of walking in freedom towards the goal Sukkot (Tabernacles) is the festival of fellowhip and union with God: God with us They refer to important events in Jewish history thus: Pesach - Freedom from bondage from Pharoah Shavuot - Law governing day to day life was administered until they reached Canaan Sukkot - God lived with his people in the temple in Jerusalem. They are connected with agricultural life pattern thus: Pesach - the early barley harvest Shavuot - a wheat and fruit harvest Sukkot - the ingathering of grain and fruit harvest

They are connected with the New Isarel the Church thus:

Pesach - the sacrfice of Jesus on the cross Shavuot - Pentecost when the first fruits of the harvest of believers were gathered followed by their walk in this world in obedience. Sukkot - the ingathering of the believers in rapture to be the wife of the lamb.

They are connected with the individual thus:

Pesach - the acceptance of the believer that the sacrfice of Jesus on the cross as his own. Shavuot - Pentecost when the Holy Spirit guides the person through this world.. Sukkot - the ingathering of the believer in rapture to be with the Lord always

This structural pattern is developed in detail in the remaining studies.

Human History: The Week of Millenniums

As we have mentioned, the Sabbath is not included in the cycle of seven festivals but runs through the year. It is the unifying underlying feature of the plan of God. The Scripture indicates that there is a cycle of 7 portrayed all through as is shown in the table below:

Extending this concept of Sevens, Rabbis deducted that human history will extend over 7 milleniums when everything will be restored and a new and higher dimensional cycle of sevens will start. This will contain 6 millenium of toil and struggle culminating in the sabbath millenium of rest for mankind in the establishment of the Kingdom of God. Messiah would reign in person over all the world from Jerusalem (Isaiah 24:21-23). Christian Eschatological understanding based on the revelation given to John corroborates this. However the inclusion of the new Israel brings in a new seven cycle within the history. The final age for the church is the raptured church which becomes the wife of the lamb. The Church age goes through seven periods within the seven ages of the gentile period and culminates in the rapture of the church.

There are various harvests that are represented in the festival.  The first festival season of Nissan is related to the barley harvest. Barley is an emergency food and not the everyday food which is wheat.  Wheat harvest is connected with the pentecost.  However the season of trumpets, festival of lights and of taberancle is closely related to wine harvest and olive harvest.  While wheat harvest is important as it is the major food component, wine and olives are special that they represent joy and exuberance and excellency.  As the barley harvest represents the Israel, the wheat harvest represents the Church, there is a final harvest which is more excellent that these at the end times when the trumpet calls.  Win represent both life and judgement because of the color.