Exodus 23:14-19·~1 min

The Three Feasts of Pilgrimage

Three yearly feasts are appointed before the LORD: Unleavened Bread in memory of the exodus, Harvest with firstfruits from the field, and the required appearance of Israel's males before him.

T¹⁴hree times a year you are to celebrate a feast to Me. ¹⁵You are to keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread as I commanded you: At the appointed time in the month of Abib you are to eat unleavened bread for seven days, because that was the month you came out of Egypt. No one may appear before Me empty-handed. ¹⁶You are also to keep the Feast of Harvest with the firstfruits of the produce from what you sow in the field. ¹⁷Three times a year all your males are to appear before the Lord GOD.

Sacrificial blood must not be offered with leaven, feast fat must not remain until morning, and the best firstfruits must be brought to the LORD's house.

¹⁸You must not offer the blood of My sacrifices with anything leavened, nor may the fat of My feast remain until morning. ¹⁹Bring the best of the firstfruits of your soil to the house of the LORD your God.

Section summaryIsrael is told to appear before the LORD three times each year in ordered feasts tied to deliverance and harvest. Worship is marked by presence, gifts, and careful handling of what belongs to God's feast.

Role in the chapterThis section gives the covenant a shared calendar of remembrance and gratitude. It gathers the people before God at fixed times and binds worship to the fruit of the land he gives.