Leviticus 23:33-44·~2 min

The Feast of Tabernacles

The LORD appoints the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days, with sacred assemblies, food offerings, and rest on the opening and closing days, distinct from Sabbaths and other gifts and vows.

A³³nd the LORD said to Moses, ³⁴“Speak to the Israelites and say, ‘On the fifteenth day of the seventh month the Feast of Tabernacles to the LORD begins, and it continues for seven days. ³⁵On the first day there shall be a sacred assembly. You must not do any regular work. ³⁶For seven days you are to present a food offering to the LORD. On the eighth day you are to hold a sacred assembly and present a food offering to the LORD. It is a solemn assembly; you must not do any regular work. ³⁷These are the LORD’s appointed feasts, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies for presenting food offerings to the LORD — burnt offerings and grain offerings, sacrifices and drink offerings, each on its designated day. ³⁸These offerings are in addition to the offerings for the LORD’s Sabbaths, and in addition to your gifts, to all your vow offerings, and to all the freewill offerings you give to the LORD.

After the produce is gathered, Israel keeps the feast with rest, gathered branches, rejoicing, and dwelling in booths, so later generations remember the wilderness dwellings after the exodus.

³⁹On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, after you have gathered the produce of the land, you are to celebrate a feast to the LORD for seven days. There shall be complete rest on the first day and also on the eighth day. ⁴⁰On the first day you are to gather the fruit of majestic trees, the branches of palm trees, and the boughs of leafy trees and of willows of the brook. And you are to rejoice before the LORD your God for seven days. ⁴¹You are to celebrate this as a feast to the LORD for seven days each year. This is a permanent statute for the generations to come; you are to celebrate it in the seventh month. ⁴²You are to dwell in booths for seven days. All the native-born of Israel must dwell in booths, ⁴³so that your descendants may know that I made the Israelites dwell in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt. I am the LORD your God.’”

Moses announces the LORD's appointed feasts to the Israelites.

⁴⁴So Moses announced to the Israelites the appointed feasts of the LORD.

Section summaryThe Feast of Tabernacles fills seven days in the seventh month with assemblies, offerings, rest, rejoicing, and dwelling in booths. After the land's produce is gathered, Israel celebrates before the LORD and remembers that He made them live in booths when He brought them out of Egypt.

Role in the chapterThis closing section gathers the chapter's themes into a final, expansive feast. It joins harvest, joy, offering, rest, and historical memory, then ends by showing Moses handing the whole calendar on to Israel.