Feast of Tabernacles

The Feast of Tabernacles or Sukkot is God’s seventh festival. People celebrate God as a Permanent Shelter during Sukkot, when they live in temporary booths for an entire week. The festival reminds Israel that God supernaturally provided for 40 years in the wilderness and He continues to provide today. Messiah Yeshua will fulfill this feast on that future day when He tabernacles with God’s people!

This chapter in the Feast Book takes you to the Second Temple for a joyful, week-long holiday. Pilgrims erected their own family booth or sukkah in the streets and fields around Jerusalem. For seven joyous days, they remembered God’s faithfulness in the wilderness when the Israelites left Egypt. You will see yourself dancing with first century pilgrims during the evening lighting ceremonies at the Temple. You will feel like the unseen guest at the morning water ceremony where Jesus or Yeshua made a stunning declaration about living water in John 7:37. You will discover how Yeshua could have been born during Sukkot, and how His ministry was confirmed during Sukkot when Moses and Elijah talked with Him on the Mount of Transfiguration.

God brings world peace on a future Feast of Tabernacles as Messiah begins His reign on earth. Everyone will celebrate Tabernacles during this coming Messianic Age to honor God’s kingdom (Zechariah 14:16-17). Isaiah 11 describes this coming age:

• Ferocious animals are at peace with meek lambs.
• The earth is filled with the knowledge of God as waters cover the sea.
• Yeshua, the root of Jesse (Son of David), is a banner for all people.
• Ephraim, those Israelites now scattered in the nations, dwells in peace with Judah, the Jewish people.
• Together, they conquer the enemies of Israel and establish her biblical borders.

Learn to build a backyard sukkah, and wave branches and fruits. Celebrating the Feast of Tabernacles fulfills Leviticus 23:34-43, and helps prepare for the millennial reign of Messiah on earth! This chapter explains how to celebrate with traditional prayers, menus, and recipes.

In Scripture

³³ And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, ³⁴ ”Speak to the people of Israel, saying, On the fifteenth day of this seventh month and for seven days is the Feast of Booths to the LORD. ³⁵ On the first day shall be a holy convocation; you shall not do any ordinary work. ³⁶ For seven days you shall present food offerings to the LORD. On the eighth day you shall hold a holy convocation and present a food offering to the LORD. It is a solemn assembly; you shall not do any ordinary work.
³⁷ ”These are the appointed feasts of the LORD, which you shall proclaim as times of holy convocation, for presenting to the LORD food offerings, burnt offerings and grain offerings, sacrifices and drink offerings, each on its proper day, ³⁸ besides the LORD’s Sabbaths and besides your gifts and besides all your vow offerings and besides all your freewill offerings, which you give to the LORD.
³⁹ ”On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the produce of the land, you shall celebrate the feast of the LORD seven days. On the first day shall be a solemn rest, and on the eighth day shall be a solemn rest. ⁴⁰ And you shall take on the first day the fruit of splendid trees, branches of palm trees and boughs of leafy trees and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days. ⁴¹ You shall celebrate it as a feast to the LORD for seven days in the year. It is a statute forever throughout your generations; you shall celebrate it in the seventh month. ⁴² You shall dwell in booths for seven days. All native Israelites shall dwell in booths, ⁴³ that your generations may know that I made the people of Israel dwell in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.” —Leviticus 23:33-43 [ESV]