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L EVITICUS 23
page 113
Unleavened Bread. This festival to the Lord
continues for seven days, and during that time
the bread you eat must be made without yeast.
7 On the first day of the festival, all the people
must stop their ordinary work and observe an
official day for holy assembly. 8 For seven days
you must present special gifts to the Lord. On
the seventh day the people must again stop all
their ordinary work to observe an official day for
holy assembly.”
Celebration of First Harvest
9 Then the Lord said to Moses, 10 “Give the following instructions to the people of Israel.
When you enter the land I am giving you and
you harvest its first crops, bring the priest a
bundle of grain from the first cutting of your
grain harvest. 11 On the day after the Sabbath,
the priest will lift it up before the Lord so it may
be accepted on your behalf. 12 On that same day
you must sacrifice a one-year-old male lamb
with no defects as a burnt offering to the Lord.
13 With it you must present a grain offering consisting of four quarts* of choice flour moistened
with olive oil. It will be a special gift, a pleasing aroma to the Lord. You must also offer one
quart* of wine as a liquid offering. 14 Do not eat
any bread or roasted grain or fresh kernels on
that day until you bring this offering to your
God. This is a permanent law for you, and it
must be observed from generation to generation
wherever you live.
The Festival of Harvest
15 “From the day after the Sabbath—the day you
bring the bundle of grain to be lifted up as a
special offering—count off seven full weeks.
16 Keep counting until the day after the seventh
Sabbath, fifty days later. Then present an offering of new grain to the Lord. 17 From wherever
you live, bring two loaves of bread to be lifted up
before the Lord as a special offering. Make these
loaves from four quarts of choice flour, and
bake them with yeast. They will be an offering
to the Lord from the first of your crops. 18 Along
with the bread, present seven one-year-old male
lambs with no defects, one young bull, and two
rams as burnt offerings to the Lord. These burnt
offerings, together with the grain offerings and
liquid offerings, will be a special gift, a pleasing
aroma to the Lord. 19 Then you must offer one
male goat as a sin offering and two one-year-old
male lambs as a peace offering.
23:13a Hebrew 2 ⁄10 of an ephah [4.4 liters]; also in 23:17.
23:13b Hebrew 1 ⁄4 of a hin [1 liter]. 23:21 This celebration,
called the Festival of Harvest or the Festival of Weeks, was later
called the Festival of Pentecost (see Acts 2:1). It is celebrated
today as Shavuot (or Shabuoth). 23:24 Hebrew On the first
day of the seventh month. This day in the ancient Hebrew
lunar calendar occurred in September or October. This festival
is celebrated today as Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year.
23:27a Hebrew on the tenth day of the seventh month; see
23:24 and the note there. This day in the ancient Hebrew lunar
calendar occurred in September or October. It is celebrated
today as Yom Kippur. 23:27b Or to fast; similarly in 23:29, 32.
20 “The priest will lift up the two lambs as a
special offering to the Lord, together with the
loaves representing the first of your crops. These
offerings, which are holy to the Lord, belong to
the priests. 21 That same day will be proclaimed
an official day for holy assembly, a day on which
you do no ordinary work. This is a permanent
law for you, and it must be observed from generation to generation wherever you live.*
22 “When you harvest the crops of your land,
do not harvest the grain along the edges of your
fields, and do not pick up what the harvesters
drop. Leave it for the poor and the foreigners living among you. I am the Lord your God.”
The Festival of Trumpets
23 The Lord said to Moses, 24 “Give the following
instructions to the people of Israel. On the first
day of the appointed month in early autumn,*
you are to observe a day of complete rest. It will
be an official day for holy assembly, a day commemorated with loud blasts of a trumpet. 25 You
must do no ordinary work on that day. Instead,
you are to present special gifts to the Lord.”
The Day of Atonement
26 Then the Lord said to Moses, 27 “Be careful to
celebrate the Day of Atonement on the tenth day
of that same month—nine days after the Festival
of Trumpets.* You must observe it as an official
day for holy assembly, a day to deny yourselves*
and present special gifts to the Lord. 28 Do no
• Celebration
LE V I TI C U S 23:1-44
Why did the Israelites have so many
holidays? If you think God doesn’t enjoy
times of fun and celebration, think again.
In this chapter God instituted seven
different holidays that gave the people
nineteen days off. God wanted the
people to take time off from the routines
of everyday life and pause to rest, relax,
enjoy the company of friends and family,
and celebrate special occasions (such
as the harvest of crops). There was,
however, one other important part of
each holiday which is often missing from
today’s holidays—worship. Holidays were
holy days, a beautiful blend of worship
and fun. Praising God for his love and
thanking him for his past blessings were
essential parts of each holiday in Israel
because they reminded the people of
God’s past faithfulness, whom they were
serving, and what life was all about. As
you celebrate future holidays, don’t forget
to include God in your celebrations.