Feast of Weeks

Introduction
The Feast of Weeks (also known as Shavuot and Pentecost) will be celebrated this year from sundown on Saturday, May 19 to sundown on Sunday, May 20. Described in Leviticus 23, the Feast of Weeks is the second of the three pilgrim feasts which required all Jewish males to travel to Jerusalem to observe (Exodus 23:14-7, Exodus 34:22-23, and Deuteronomy 16:6). The Feast of Weeks derives its name from the fact that it starts seven full weeks (exactly 50 days) after the Feast of Firstfruits. Since the festival takes place exactly 50 days after Firstfruits, it is also known as Pentecost, which means "fifty" in Greek.

Each of the three "solemn feasts" (Feast of Unleavened Bread, Feast of Weeks and Feast of Tabernacles) required all Jewish men to travel to Jerusalem to attend the festival and offer sacrifices. All three of these feasts required that a first fruit offering be made at the temple as a way of expressing thanks for God's abundance. The Feast of First Fruits (celebrated during the eight-day Feast of Unleavened Bread) included the first fruit offerings of the barley harvest. The Feast of Weeks was the celebration of the first fruits of the wheat harvest. The Feast of Tabernacles involved the first fruit offerings of the olive and grape harvests.

Since the Feast of Weeks was one of the harvest feasts, they were to "present an offering of new grain to the LORD" (Leviticus 23:16). This offering was to be "two wave loaves of two-tenths of an ephah" which were made "of fine flour...baked with leaven." The offerings were to be made of the first fruits of that harvest (Leviticus 23:17). Along with the wave offerings, they were also to offer seven first year lambs that were without blemish along with one young bull and two rams. Additional offerings are also prescribed in Leviticus and other passages which outline how this feast is to be observed.

This time of celebration in Hebrew is known as Shavuot, which means "weeks". This is one of three separate terms that are used in Scripture to refer to this important festival. Each name represents an important aspect of this holiday. Besides being called the Feast of Weeks in Leviticus 23, it is also called the "Day of the Firstfruits" (Numbers 28:26) and the "Feast of Harvest" (Exodus 23:16).

Additionally, the festival of Shavuot marks the culmination of the redemption, sometimes call Atzeret Pesach, or the Gathering of Passover. Since the Exodus from Egypt was intended to lead to the revelation of God's words on Mount Sinai, the goal of Passover is the giving of the Torah to the Jewish people. God took the Jews out of Egypt so that they would be His own treasured people, holy and separated from the pagan cultures around them.

According to Jewish scholars: The new moon of Nisan marks the start of sacred time, Passover remembers the sacrifice of the Passover lamb, the first day of Unleavened Bread remembers the Exodus from Egypt, the seventh day of Unleavened Bread remembers the crossing of the Red Sea, the counting of the Omer recalls the days before the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai, and Shavuot remembers the giving of the Torah exactly seven weeks after the Exodus.


The Biblical background of Shavuot
The book of Exodus tells us how Moses was sent by God to Egypt to be a deliverer of Israel. Pharaoh did not heed Moses' appeals to set the people of Israel free from their slavery. Thus, the stage was set for a showdown between the God of Israel and Egypt's false gods.

After repeated demonstrations of the glory and power of the LORD, God told Moses that He would bring a final harsh plague that would cause Pharaoh to relent and allow the Israelites to leave Egypt. In God's final plague, all the firstborn in the land of Egypt would be killed--except for those who observed what God called the Passover.

The LORD commanded on Nisan 10 that the heads of each household select an unblemished young male lamb to be offered as a sacrifice to the LORD. On the afternoon of Nisan 14, a family member was to slaughter the lamb and smear some of its blood on the sides of the doorframe. The lamb was then to be roasted and eaten with unleavened bread (matzah) and bitter herds (maror). This meal was to be consumed in haste since those observing Passover would quickly leave Egypt the next morning (Nisan 15) as they began their Exodus. The LORD also required that only matzah was to be eaten for a week after the Passover meal (from Nisan 15 to Nisan 21).

At midnight on Nisan 15, the LORD killed all the firstborn who did not place the blood of the lamb upon their door frame. Those who trusted in the LORD were "passed over" from the angel of death. Pharaoh and most of the Egyptians experienced death in their households. They begged the Israelites to leave Egypt. After 400 years in Egypt, 600,000 adult males along with women, children and a mixed multitude departed Egypt with a wealth of gold and silver which the Egyptians had given to them.

As soon as the Jews left Egypt, a fiery pillar of cloud appeared before them, leading them from Rameses to Succoth and then southward into the desert (Exodus 12:20-21). But after the Israelites left, Pharaoh had a change of heart. He decided to summon his army and chase the Israelites to enslave them again (Exodus 14:4). Six days later, on Nisan 21, the Israelites were trapped--they had the Egyptian army behind them and the Sea of Reeds before them. The pillar of cloud moved behind the Israelites and stood between them and the Egyptians. Moses then stretched out his staff before the sea, and it miraculously parted so that the Israelites could walk through it. When the Jews had safely crossed to the other side of the sea, the Egyptians tried to follow after them. However, Moses again stretched out his staff, and the waters came crashing down upon them, drowning the Egyptian army.

After 45 days in the desert, on the new moon of Sivan, the Jews reached the desert of Sinai and camped near the mountain where Moses had first been commissioned (Exodus 19:1). During the previous weeks, the Israelites had become more and more reliant upon the LORD. Therefore, their hearts and minds became more and more ready to receive the instruction (Torah) from God before entering the Promised Land.

Moses ascended the mountain, and there God commanded him to tell the leaders that if they would obey the LORD and keep His covenant, they would be the LORD'S "kingdom of priests" and "holy nation". After delivering this message, the people responded by proclaiming, kol asher diber Adonai na'aseh ("all that the LORD has spoken, we shall do"). Moses then returned to the mountain and was told to command the people to sanctify themselves before the LORD descended on the mountain in three days. The people were to abstain from worldly comforts and not touch (under the penalty of death) the boundaries of the mountain.

On the morning of the sixth of Sivan, exactly seven weeks after the Exodus, all the children of Israel gathered at the foot of Mount Sinai, where the LORD descended amidst thunder, lightning, smoke, fire and the blast of the shofar. The LORD then declared the foundation of moral conduct required of the people, the Ten Commandments.

The sound of the shofar grew louder and louder until terror gripped the hearts of the people. The LORD then uttered, "I am the LORD Your God who took you out of Egypt." As the LORD began speaking the second commandment, the people began falling back in fear. They begged Moses to be their mediator before God. The people then stood afar off while Moses alone drew near to God.

As mediator of the covenant, Moses later reported to the Israelites all the words of the LORD. The people responded in unison, kol hadevarim asher diber Adonai na'aseh ("all the words which the LORD has said, we will do.") Moses wrote down the words of the covenant, built an altar at the foot of Mount Sinai with twelve pillars (one for each tribe of Israel) and ordered sacrifices be made to the LORD. He took the sacrificial blood from the offerings, threw half upon the altar and read the covenant to the people. The people ratified the covenant with the words, kol asher diber Adonai na'aseh v'nishma ("all that the LORD says, we will do and obey"). Upon hearing their ratification, Moses took the other half of the sacrificial blood and threw it on the people saying, "Behold, the blood of the covenant that the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words" (Exodus 24:8).

Next, Moses, Aaron (and his sons Nadav and Avihu), and seventy elders of Israel ascended Mount Sinai to eat a "covenant affirmation meal" between Israel and the LORD. It was there that the elders beheld the awesome glory of the God of Israel, under whose feet was "a pavement of sapphires, like the very heaven for clearness" (Exodus 24:9-11).

After returning from the mountain with the elders, the LORD commanded Moses to go back up to receive luchot ha'even (the tablets of stone) inscribed with the Ten Commandments (Exodus 24:12). He remained on the mountain for a total of 40 days and 40 nights learning Torah while the Israelites waited for him at the camp below (Exodus 24:13-18).


The Agricultural Background
When the Israelites began to settle the Promised Land, the meaning of Shavuot was transformed into an agricultural holiday that celebrated the LORD'S provision for His people. Exactly seven weeks after the barley harvest is Shavuot, which is the start of the wheat harvest. There are seven species of fruits yielded in Israel: barley, wheat, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives and dates. As soon as the Jewish farmer saw the first sign of fruit ripening in his field or orchard, he would tie a string or ribbon around it to designate it as the first fruit.

Later, the farmer would pick the fruit, place it in a basket woven of silver and gold (the poor used wicker baskets made from willow branches) and set off for the Temple in Jerusalem to observe either the Feast of First Fruits (for the barley harvest), the Feast of Weeks (for the wheat harvest) or for the Feast of Booths (for the fruit harvest). The baskets would be placed on oxen adorned with garlands of flowers. As the pilgrims neared Jerusalem, the grand procession became a parade with folks singing and dancing.

At the temple, each family would present the basket of first fruits to the priest to be put before the altar while reciting the following passage:

A wandering Aramean was my father. And he went down into Egypt and 

sojourned there, few in number, and there he became a nation, great, 

mighty and populous. And the Egyptians treated us harshly and humiliated us 

and laid on us hard labor. Then we cried to the LORD, the God of our fathers, 

and the LORD heard our voice and saw our affliction, our toil and our oppression. 

And the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, 

with great deeds of terror, with signs and wonders. And He brought us into this place 

and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. And behold, now I bring 

the first of the fruit of the ground, which You, O LORD, have given me. And You shall 

set it down before the LORD Your God and worship before the LORD Your God. 

(Deuteronomy 26:5-11)

After the Temple was destroyed in 70 A.D., the agricultural aspect of Shavuot could no longer be observed. The Talmudic sages later re-connected this festival with the giving of Torah at Mount Sinai. Shavuot came to be called "The Season of the Giving of the Torah". To this day, it has become customary to stay up all night studying Torah. While this custom is wonderful, Jewish law prohibits afflicting or torturing yourself on a holiday. So, it you are tired, it is better to go to sleep.

Timeline of Giving the Torah
1. Nisan 1: The start of the sacred year
On the first of Nisan, two weeks before the Exodus, the LORD showed Moses the new moon and commenced the divine lunar calendar. This is called Rosh Chodashim.

2. Nisan 15: Passover
Two weeks later, God was ready to deliver the Israelites from their bondage. Earlier that night, the Israelites ate the Passover meal and covered their doorposts with the blood of the lamb. At midnight on Nisan 15, the LORD sent the last of the ten plagues upon the Egyptians, killing their firstborn.

3. Nisan 20: Pharaoh traps the Israelites
Pharaoh's army traps the Israelites against the Sea of Reeds. The glory of the LORD intervenes and prevents the Egyptians from attacking.

4. Nisan 21: The parting of the sea
The following day, the LORD commands Moses to order the Israelites to march into the waters of the sea. The waters part, and the children of Israel walk across dry land in the midst of the sea. When the Egyptians attempt to follow, the waters rush back and drown them. The Israelites celebrate their deliverance with the Song of the Sea in praise to the LORD (Exodus 15:1-18).

5. Sivan 1: Arrival at Sinai
The Israelites finally arrive at the desert of Sinai (Exodus 19:1) where Moses was first commissioned.

6. Sivan 2: The Day of Distinction (Yom HaMeyuchas)
On this day, Moses ascends Mount Sinai. God tells him to tell the people: "You shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation" (Exodus 19:2-7).

7. Sivan 3-5: Three days of preparation
On Sivan 3, the LORD instructs Moses to set boundaries for the people around the mountain in preparation for giving the Torah three days later (Exodus 19:9-15).

8. Sivan 5: The covenant offered
On Sivan 5, Moses made a covenant with the Jewish people at the foot of Mount Sinai at which the people declare, "All that the LORD has spoken, we shall do and hear" (Exodus 19:8).

9. Sivan 6: The giving of the Torah
On Sivan 6, exactly seven weeks after the Exodus, the LORD reveals Himself on Mount Sinai. All Israel hears the LORD speak the first two of the Ten Commandments. Following this initial revelation, Moses re-ascends Sinai for 40 days to receive the remainder of the Torah. This date coincides exactly with the Feast of Shavuot.


Feast of Weeks and the Messiah
Like all the other feasts, the Feast of Weeks is important in that it foreshadows the coming Messiah and His ministry. Each and every feast signifies an important aspect of God's plan of redemption through Christ Jesus. Jesus was crucified as the Passover Lamb and rose from the grave on the Feast of Firstfruits. Following His resurrection, Jesus spent the next 40 days teaching His disciples before ascending into heaven (Acts 1). Fifty days after His resurrection, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to dwell within the disciples and empower them for ministry. The Holy Spirit arrived on the Feast of Weeks (Pentecost).

The spiritual significance of the Feast of Weeks are numerous. Some see the two loaves of leavened bread offered during the Feast of Weeks as a foreshadowing of the time when Messiah would make both the Jew and Gentile to be one in Him (Ephesians 2:14-15). This is also the only feast where leavened bread is used. Leaven in Scripture is often referred to symbolically as sin. The leavened bread used in the Feast of Weeks is thought to be representative of the fact that there is still sin within the assembly (body of Messiah) and will be there until Messiah returns.