Leviticus 23
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The weekly Sabbath and the special days throughout the year.

Text
Comments
.1 ¶ And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
.2  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.
.3  Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the sabbath of rest, an holy convocation; ye shall do no work therein: it is the sabbath of the LORD in all your dwellings.
   3 - Six days The seventh-day Sabbath is here seen in a different class from the other rest days or "feasts." The chapter is about the feasts, verse 1 but doesn't start listing them until verse 4. It is also the only weekly special day.
.4 ¶ These are the feasts of the LORD, even holy convocations, which ye shall proclaim in their seasons.
.5  In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the LORD'S passover.
.6  And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the LORD: seven days ye must eat unleavened bread.
.7  In the first day ye shall have an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein.
.8  But ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD seven days: in the seventh day is an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein.
   4 - Holy convocation They were times of corporate worship. Also ps05514; he1025.
   5 - Passover Remembering the lamb protecting the children of Israel from the destroying angel who passed over the homes of those who had blood on the doorposts ex12. Thus the Lamb of God sets us free from sin in the way He set His people free from slavery in Egypt jn1914.
   6 - Unleavened bread Yeast (leaven) represented sin. The unleavened bread represented the sinless Lamb. The seven days began at sundown after the crucifixion. The first whole day was weekly Sabbath.
 9  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
.10  Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest unto the priest:
 11  And he shall wave the sheaf before the LORD, to be accepted for you: on the morrow after the sabbath the priest shall wave it.
 12  And ye shall offer that day when ye wave the sheaf an he lamb without blemish of the first year for a burnt offering unto the LORD.
.13  And the meat offering thereof shall be two tenth deals of fine flour mingled with oil, an offering made by fire unto the LORD for a sweet savour: and the drink offering thereof shall be of wine, the fourth part of an hin.
 14  And ye shall eat neither bread, nor parched corn, nor green ears, until the selfsame day that ye have brought an offering unto your God: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.
   The wave sheaf At His resurrection, Christ opened the way for our resurrection co0115-8; 1co1520. He was the wave sheaf. He ascended for the Father's approval jn2017.
.15 ¶ And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven sabbaths shall be complete:
 16  Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat [food] offering unto the LORD.
.17  Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deals: they shall be of fine flour; they shall be baken with leaven; they are the firstfruits unto the LORD.
 18  And ye shall offer with the bread seven lambs without blemish of the first year, and one young bullock, and two rams: they shall be for a burnt offering unto the LORD, with their meat offering, and their drink offerings, even an offering made by fire, of sweet savour unto the LORD.
 19  Then ye shall sacrifice one kid of the goats for a sin offering, and two lambs of the first year for a sacrifice of peace offerings.
.20  And the priest shall wave them with the bread of the firstfruits for a wave offering before the LORD, with the two lambs: they shall be holy to the LORD for the priest.
.21  And ye shall proclaim on the selfsame day, that it may be an holy convocation unto you: ye shall do no servile work therein: it shall be a statute for ever in all your dwellings throughout your generations.
 22  And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not make clean riddance of the corners of thy field when thou reapest, neither shalt thou gather any gleaning of thy harvest: thou shalt leave them unto the poor, and to the stranger: I am the LORD your God.
   15 - Seven sabbaths That is, seven weeks. The feast was called Pentecost in the time of Christ ac02. It came around the first of June.
   17 - Baken with leaven in contrast to the unleavened bread v6. This symbolized the time when the Holy Spirit would be given to enable human agents to work with the divine Christ who was in heaven.
   18, 19 - Notice that several types of offerings were to be made: burnt, meat [food - the bread of v17], drink, sin, and peace v19.

 

.23 ¶ And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
 24  Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation.
 25  Ye shall do no servile work therein: but ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD.
 26  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
.27  Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD.
 28  And ye shall do no work in that same day: for it is a day of atonement, to make an atonement for you before the LORD your God.
.29  For whatsoever soul it be that shall not be afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from among his people.
 30  And whatsoever soul it be that doeth any work in that same day, the same soul will I destroy from among his people.
 31  Ye shall do no manner of work: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.
.32  It shall be unto you a sabbath of rest, and ye shall afflict your souls: in the ninth day of the month at even, from even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath.
   24 - Blowing In preparation for the day of atonement nu2901.
   27 - Day of atonement ... afflict A time of heart searching and prayer while the high priest was in the most holy place of the sanctuary le1630.
   28 - No work This was the complete rest as required for the weekly Sabbath v3. On other ceremonial holy days during the sanctuary year the people were to do "no servile work" implying that some work was acceptable. Verses 7, 21, 25, 36.
   29 - Not afflicted ... cut off So the work of Christ, represented by the high priest, is a work of judgment. Those found by the Lord not to have humbled their souls (who have maintained their arrogance) will be excluded from the reward of the saved. re2211f.
   30 - Doeth any work Why might this be such a serious offense? It would be a refusal of the Lord's work of reconciliation or atonement for cleansing the soul le1630.
   32 - Even unto even Days, including Sabbaths, were considered to begin at sundown. This was the pattern during creation week ge0105.
 33 ¶ And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
.34  Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the feast of tabernacles for seven days unto the LORD.
 35  On the first day shall be an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein.
.36  Seven days ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD: on the eighth day shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD: it is a solemn assembly; and ye shall do no servile work therein.
 37  These are the feasts of the LORD, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD, a burnt offering, and a meat offering, a sacrifice, and drink offerings, every thing upon his day:
   34 - Feast of tabernacles A tabernacle is a tent. In practice they were to make shelters from trees (below). This final feast day represents our home in heaven as symbolized by the Israelites finding their new home in Canaan. As they looked back to their time in the wilderness, we will look back and remember our time on this sin-cursed earth.
.38  Beside the sabbaths of the LORD, and beside your gifts, and beside all your vows, and beside all your freewill offerings, which ye give unto the LORD.
.39  Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye have gathered in the fruit of the land, ye shall keep a feast unto the LORD seven days: on the first day shall be a sabbath, and on the eighth day shall be a sabbath.
.40  And ye shall take you on the first day the boughs of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and ye shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days.
 41  And ye shall keep it a feast unto the LORD seven days in the year. It shall be a statute for ever in your generations: ye shall celebrate it in the seventh month.
 42  Ye shall dwell in booths seven days; all that are Israelites born shall dwell in booths:
 43  That your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.
 44  And Moses declared unto the children of Israel the feasts of the LORD.
   39 - Also in the fifteenth day Expansion on the instructions beginning at v34.
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