Jesus’ Last Supper Timing

The timing of Jesus’ Last Supper (His final Passover meal) needn’t cause confusion or division among Christians.  Most Christians believe that Jesus’ sacrifice fulfilled the Passover and all the Old Testament (OT) types of sacrifices, which were offered anciently in Israel (and some elsewhere).

Jesus has been called the ‘Passover Lamb’.  But some Christians carry this analogy a step further, thinking that Jesus died at the very time the Passover lambs were being sacrificed at the temple.  Others think Jesus ate the annual Passover lamb meal with His disciples at the Last Supper, before He died the next afternoon.  Which is it?  It can’t be both ways!  Also, although Jesus is called the “Lamb of God” in scripture (Jn.1:29, 36), no verse actually calls Him the ‘Passover Lamb’.

The term “Passover” has different meanings in the Bible.  I see five different but related ways the term Passover is used in scripture:

Passover can refer to: #1 the sacrificial lamb/kid from the flock (Ex.12:5, 21, De.16:2); #2 the festival offering/Chagigáh meal from the herd on the afternoon of Abíb 15 (De.16:2, 2Ch.35:8); #3 the initial 24-hour occasion (Nu.33:3); #4 the entire Feast period (Ezk.45:21, Lk.22:1); #5 Christ, the Lord who passed-over Egypt (1Co.5:7, Ex.12:27).  Of these five, Passover most often referred to #1 the sacrificial lamb, #3 the initial 24-hour occasion, or #4 the entire feast period of Abib 14-15 to Abib 21 inclusively.

To provide the scriptural background, let’s review a few aspects of historical OT Passovers.  The first Passover occurred in Egypt in Ex.12:1-ff.  v.4-8 “Your lamb…the whole assembly of Israel shall kill it between the evenings. And they shall eat the flesh that night roasted with fire, with unleavened bread.”  The lambs must be roasted, not boiled in water.  v.10-11 “You shall not leave any of it over until morning. And you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord’s Passover [péhsak Strongs h6453, Hebrew].”  It was eaten as one holy meal.  There wasn’t time for leavened bread to rise…by dawn the exodus would begin (v.30-37).  For further detail, see the topic “Passover and the Exodus Timing”.

The Lord later gave more instructions to Israel for the Passover.  Ex.12 isn’t the complete picture!  De.16:1-2 “You shall sacrifice the Passover to the Lord your God from the flock and the herd, in the place where the Lord chooses to establish His Name.”  For future Passovers, God commanded them to sacrifice more than a lamb/kid from the flock.  v.3-6 “You aren’t allowed to sacrifice the Passover in any of your towns.”  Again, the roasted lamb/kid must be gone by morning.  Yet they’d keep feasting for the few days during which they must appear at the central sanctuary where God placed His Name (v.16).  The Passover from the herd was always eaten there in the day(s) following the lamb meal.

King Josiah obeyed.  2Ch.35:1 they “Celebrated the Passover to the Lord in Jerusalem.”  The temple in Jerusalem was the place of God’s name in those days.  v.7-9 “Josiah contributed flocks of lambs & kids, plus 3,000 bulls. His officers contributed for the Passover offerings, 2,600 from the flock, 300 bulls.”  Passover bulls are from the herd, not the flock.  v.13 “They roasted the Passover lambs as prescribed, and boiled the holy offerings in pots.”  The Passover from the herd could be boiled.  v.16-18 “The sons of Israel celebrated the Passover at that time, and the Feast of Unleavened Bread 7 days.” (Le.23:5-6.)

The Passover from the herd was called a chagigah or festival offering.  Ex.23:15 “Seven days you must eat unleavened bread in the month Abib. None may appear before Me empty without an offering.”

Theologian Joachim Jeremias The Eucharistic Words of Jesus, p.20 “It is true that Páschal sacrifices [chagigah] were eaten during the seven days of the feast (Nisán 15–21).”  Alfred Edersheim The Temple, p.170-171 “The Chagigah was a peace offering. The Chagigah for the 15^th of Nisan [Abib] was obligatory.”  Again, the Passover sacrifice from the herd was commanded by the Lord in De.16:2.  The offerer would share in eating the chagigah at the environs of the temple.

Days in ancient Israel began at sunset.  Jews in Jerusalem would remove leaven by candlelight from dwellings early on the night beginning Abib 14, before the Passover lambs were killed in the afternoon of Abib 14 (ref Ex.34:25).  So leaven was actually out for 8 days, Abib 14–21.  Josephus acknowledged this in Antiquities of the Jews 2:15:1. “We keep a Feast for 8 days, of Unleavened Bread.”

The wave sheaf was offered after the weekly sabbath during the feast, or on Abib 16.  Josephus op. cit. 3:10:5 “On the 16^th day of the month they offer the firstfruits of their barley, a sheaf of the ears.”  Only then could the barley harvest in Israel begin (Le.23:9-14).  Israelite men would remain at the city of the central sanctuary/temple for 7–8 days, or at least until the sheaf was waved to begin the harvest.  While there, they ate the Passover sacrifice from the herd for the chagigah.  Chag (h2282) meant “feast”.

The term “Passover” could also refer to the entire feast period.  The context determines the meaning.  Ezk.45:21 “In the first month on the 14^th day you shall have the Passover, a feast of 7 days, unleavened bread shall be eaten.”  As we’ve seen, the feast included the Passover from the herd too.  Lk.22:1 “The feast of unleavened bread drew near, which is called the Passover [páscha g3957, Greek].”  “Passover” and “Feast of Unleavened” were somewhat synonymous expressions in Jesus’ day.  The term “unleavened” (ázumos g106) was common in the old Greek, which became the Septúagint/LXX.

The timing of Jesus’ Last Supper and crucifixion parallels the Passover proceedings done Abib 14–15!

Mk.14:12 “On the first day of unleavened bread, when the Passover lamb was being sacrificed, His disciples said to Him, ‘Where do want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover?”  Again, leaven was customarily removed in advance, so dwellings were free of leaven for 8 days.  Barnes Commentary “The feast continued for 8 days, including the day the paschal lamb was killed.”  That’s Abib 14–21 inclusively.  It was mandatory that the lamb/kid be killed and its blood sprinkled at the altar on Abib 14 (Ex.12:6), not Abib 13 or Abib 15.  All leaven had been removed by the afternoon of Abib 14.

The synoptic gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke…all use the two terms “Passover” and “unleavened”.  But the term “unleavened” never appears in John’s writings.  When John refers to the entire feast period, he calls it the “Passover”!  For example, Jn.6:4 “Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand.”  Again, the meaning of the term Passover wasn’t limited to the beginning sacrificial lamb meal.  John’s usage is significant…as we examine the (incorrect) claim of some that John’s timing of Jesus’ crucifixion date differs from that of the three synoptics!

In Mk.14:12-17, Jesus’ Jewish disciples knew this was the correct time (Abib/Nisan 14) to sacrifice the Passover lamb they would eat with Him that night.  So they asked which house to prepare for the meal.  It would’ve been sin if Jesus (and they) had killed or eaten it at the wrong time!  But Jesus is a sinless Savior.  This day is their ‘preparation day’, so to speak, for the Passover lamb.  Gill Exposition Mk.14:12 “It was now Thursday morning, and the Passover was to be slain after the middle of the day, between the two evenings, and eaten in Jerusalem that night.”  (The lamb couldn’t remain overnight, Ex.12:6-10.)  Fourfold Gospel Commentary “The feast of unleavened bread began properly on the 15^th, and lasted 7 days, but this was the 14^th, on which the paschal lamb was slain. However, it was common to blend the names Passover and unleavened bread interchangeably to describe the entire 8 days.”

Mk.14:18-21 Jesus ate the Passover lamb meal with them that night (sunset began Abib/Nisan 15) at His Last Supper.  “One of you will betray Me. One who dips with Me in the bowl.”  His betrayal is addressed while they eat.  v.22-26 bread & wine is served.  They exit.

The inclusion of the betrayal discussion in all four gospel accounts is key to our understanding the timing and harmony in the four gospels!

Luke’s account of the Last Supper timing agrees with Mark’s.  Lk.22:7 “Then came the first day of unleavened bread, when the Passover lamb must be killed.”  Again, it was mandatory that the lamb be killed on Abib 14!  v.8 Jesus said, “Go and prepare the Passover lamb for us to eat”.  v.14-20 they partook of bread & wine.  (also see the topic “Bread and Wine in the Church”.)  v.21-23 “The hand of the one betraying Me is on the table.”  Luke’s account also includes the betrayal discussion at the meal.

Let’s compare Matthew’s account.  Mt.26:17 “On the first day of unleavened bread the disciples came to Jesus and asked, ‘Where do you want us to prepare the Passover for you to eat.”  v.20 “When evening came [sunset began Abib 15], He was at table with the twelve disciples.”  Jesus said in v.21-25, “One of you will betray Me”.  v.26-30 they share the bread & wine (later it’s also symbolic), and exit.

The synoptic gospels of Mark, Luke, Matthew all address the betrayal and the bread & wine at supper.

Jesus had known He would die.  Even before He sent out the 70 missionaries, Jesus had said in Lk.9:22 (some time before His last Passover), “The Son of Man must be killed and raised up on the third day”.  Jn.13:1 “Before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knew that His hour had come to leave this world.”

Again, John never calls the 7–8 day feast the “Feast of Unleavened (Bread)”.  In John, the entire Feast period is the Passover (g3957).  But Jesus’ last meal in John’s gospel differs somewhat from the synoptic gospel accounts of His last meal.  In Jn.13, there’s no bread & wine mentioned at the meal.  And John’s account adds that Jesus washed His disciples’ feet during supper (Jn.13:4-ff).

Some Bible readers think the meal in Jn.13 was eaten one day earlier than the meal in Mk.14, Lk.22, Mt.26.  But in all four gospels it’s the same Passover lamb meal, the same Last Supper (also called the Lord’s Supper, 1Co.11:20).  How do we know it is, since John omits the account of bread & wine (and never uses the term “unleavened”)?  (also see “Wine or Grape Juice in Jesus’ Cup?”.)

We know it’s the same because…John’s meal includes the betrayal discussion too, as do the synoptics!  Jn.13:21-30 “Truly I say to you, one of you will betray Me. He it is, to whom I will give a morsel, when I have dipped it.”  If the betrayal discussion in John 13 was at a previous meal (one day earlier), there’d be no need to address this issue again in Mk.14, Lk.22, Mt.26 (at Passover)!

As the Jn.13 Passover lamb meal is ending, Jesus continues to speak at length to His disciples in Jn.14-17.  Then in Jn.18, Jesus is in the (exit) garden…the same as in Mk.14, Lk.22, Mt.26!  It’s the night of Abib/Nisan 15 (cf. Est.3:7).  As Judas betrays Him, Jesus is apprehended by a Roman cohort and taken to the high priest’s court.  Peter denies Jesus.  Jesus is awake all night.  This sequence is in Jn.18:1-27.

Then after dawn (during Abib 15) the Jews take Jesus to the government headquarters of Pontius Pilate.  Jn.18:28 “It was early morning; and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness, His accusers didn’t enter, because they wanted to be able to eat the Passover.”  Those Jews feared possible (rabbinic) defilement in the headquarters of gentiles, the Praetórium.  How is the term “Passover” used here in Jn.18:28?

David Stern Jewish New Testament Commentary, p.206 “The Pesach [Passover] in this verse refers to other food eaten during Pesach, specifically the chagigah (festival sacrifice). This is the Pesach meal they would have been unable to eat, because their defilement would have lasted till sundown. If ‘the Pesach’ meant the Passover lamb, defilement in the morning might not have been a problem.”  Not a problem because…most uncleanness/defilement (ref Ac.10:28a) would’ve lasted only until evening of a day…and the Passover lamb was eaten after sunset at the beginning of a new day!

Gill Exposition Jn.18:28 “Not the Passover lamb, for that they had eaten the night before. But the ‘Chagigah’, or feast on the 15^th day of the month.”  Robertson’s NT Word Pictures “In 2Ch.30:22 we read, ‘And they did eat the festival 7 days’, when the paschal festival is meant, not the paschal lamb or paschal supper. There are eight other examples of Passover in John’s gospel, and in all of them the feast is meant, not the supper. Not the meal of Jn.13:2, which was the regular Passover meal.”

Talmud Pes.vi.3 “One Levitically defiled cannot offer the Chagigah.”  Edersheim The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, p.866 “Entrance into the Praetorium on the morning of the first Passover day would have rendered it impossible for them to offer the Chagigah, which was also designated by the term Pesach [Passover].”  The chagigah meal from the herd/boiled things would be that day, Abib 15!  The Bible didn’t specify exactly when to eat from the herd (e.g. 2pm Abib 15)…but De.16:2, 2Chr, John’s gospel, the Talmud, etc. is historical evidence of this Passover week custom!  Jn.18:28 doesn’t refer to a lamb meal as upcoming that night…supposed defilement would end at sunset! (e.g. Le.15:7-8)

Jn.19:13-14 “Pilate brought Jesus out to them. It was the preparation of the Passover.”  “Preparation” doesn’t refer to the Passover lamb meal.  We saw in Mt.26:17, Mk.14:12, Lk.22:8 that Jesus’ disciples had prepared the Passover lamb meal the previous day (and Jesus ate it that night).  The koiné Greek term for preparation was paraskeué g3904.  For the Jews, every Friday is the “preparation”, and every Saturday is the sabbath.  Mk.15:42 “It was the preparation [g3904 paraskeue], that is, the day before the sabbath.”

JFB Commentary Jn.19:14 “It was the preparation, the day before the Jewish sabbath.”  Edersheim The Temple, p.138 “Friday is called in the gospels ‘the preparation.”  The term for Friday in modern Greek is Paraskevi, and the term for Saturday is sabbato/(sabbath)!  In Jn.19:14, it is the “preparation day” (Friday) which fell during the 7–8 day feast period/Passover.  Again, John never uses the term “Feast of Unleavened”…it’s all the “Passover” in John.

Jesus was then crucified. (also see “Jesus’ Death – The Physical Cause”.)  Jn.19:31 “It was the preparation, and the next day was to be a great [g3173 mégas] sabbath because it was the Passover. The Jews asked Pilate that their bodies be taken down.”  That Saturday was a “great” sabbath, not a “high” sabbath.  cf. Re.21:12 “The city wall was great [g3173 megas] and high [g5308 hupselós].”  The Greek term in Jn.19:31 is megas/great, not hupselos/high!  The sabbath in Jn.19:31 was great because it was the sabbath of Passover week when possibly a million people were in Jerusalem, or…Abib 16 was the annual wave sheaf day, according to the LXX, Josephus, Philo, Edersheim, Gill, Chief Rabbi Dr. J.H. Hertz.

Jn.19:41-42 Jesus’ body was laid in the tomb towards the end of the “preparation”.  Lk.23:52-56 “It was the preparation day, and the sabbath [g4521] was about to begin. The women saw the tomb. They returned and rested on the sabbath according to the commandment.”  The weekly sabbath command in Ex.20:8, “Remember the sabbath [h7676] day, to keep it holy”.  In scripture, the only “sabbath” (h7676, g4521) days are the weekly sabbath and Day of Atonement.  Other occasions are shabathóns (h7677), like sabbatoids.  As Jesus ‘rested’ in the tomb, the righteous women ‘rested’ on Saturday.

Then…He is risen (Mt.28:6)!  At dawn Sunday Abib 17, Jesus is alive; the tomb was empty (Lk.24:1-3)!

The Passover lamb was a type of Christ’s sacrificial death.  The annual Day of Atonement sacrifice too was a type of Christ (1Jn.2:2, 4:10; LXX Le.23:28 & 25:9)…but He wasn’t crucified on Atonement.  Nor on all typical morning/evening sacrifices, needless to say.  The Chagigah offering of Abib 15 was also a type of Christ…on which day He was crucified.  All sacrifices, sin offerings, etc. prefigured Him.

Recap: Days began & ended at sunset.  Wednesday night Abib 14 the Jews searched to remove leaven.  Thursday afternoon Abib 14 Jesus’ Passover lamb was properly killed, its blood to be sprinkled on the altar (2Ch.35:11, Le.3:7-8).  He ate the lamb Thursday night, early on Abib 15.  That very night, Abib 15, was an historic night of vigil, a “watch” (Mk.14:37, Ex.12:42).  Jesus was apprehended.  The crucifixion process began Friday Abib 15 (their “preparation”) between 9am and noon.  Jesus died before sunset began the weekly sabbath of Abib 16.

All four gospel accounts agree on the timing, and in them we also see glimpses of God’s OT Passover requirements.  Christ at His Last Supper/Passover didn’t violate any Passover commands which Christ as the Word of God (who “passed-over” Egypt) gave to Moses & Israel.  Again, “Passover and the Exodus Timing” details the timing of Israel’s first Passover and exodus from Egypt.  To further examine the timing issue, there is another topic which focuses on the “Three Days and Three Nights” (Mt.12:40).

Passover and the Exodus Timing

This topic focuses primarily on only two days in the history of ancient Israel.  It details the timing of their first Passover sacrifice in Góshen, with their ensuing exodus from Egypt.

The annual Passover occurred in the first month, Abíb, of Israel’s sacred year.  De.16:1 “Observe the new moon [or month, Strongs h2320 khódesh, Hebrew] of Abib and celebrate the Passover to the Lord your God.”  (Abib is also called Nisán, Est.3:7.)  How was the new moon/month reckoned anciently?

The 1^st day of Abib, and the 1^st of every month, was determined by the new moon.  Although new moon terminology is Biblical, the Lord didn’t say how the new moon is determined.  In De.16:1, “observe” as translated is significant, if it’s taken literally…to see with the eye.

Today the new moon may be reckoned by: Hillel II’s calculated lunisolar Hebrew calendar of the 300s AD; the astronomical conjunction (when the moon is unseen between the earth and sun); sighting the first visible crescent of the moon.  The three methods result in 2 or 3 different days to begin the month.

Which method was used in Bible times?  The 1^st century Jewish historian Philo The Special Laws 2:26: 141 “At the time of the new moon, the sun begins to illumine the moon with a light which is visible to the outward senses.”  Theological Workbook of the Old Testament, v.1, p.266 “The new moon began when the thin crescent of the new moon was first visible at sunset.”  Many sources confirm this.

How to sight a first visible crescent: Stand on a hill.  It can be faintly seen just above a clear western horizon, 25 minutes or so after sunset.  The horns of the crescent/sickle point south.  After several minutes, the moon disappears below the horizon.  Their new month and day #1 began then, near sunset.

Most Bible scholars believe days in ancient Israel began at sunset or dusk, when 3 stars become visible or when the fowls come home to roost.  The scriptural backing is in Le.23:32 and Ne.13:19.  Luke also used this reckoning in Acts 27:27, 33, where he indicated the 14^th night preceded the 14^th day.

Josephus Wars of the Jews 4:9:12 “At the beginning of every seventh day, in the evening twilight.”  Josephus wrote in the 1^st century AD, and sunset still marked their beginning of the new day.

Our modern days begin at midnight.  But unlike our 24-hour day of 12am to 12am, ancient Israel’s 24-hour day was more like 6pm to 6pm.  So their daily 24-hour periods don’t precisely line up with ours.  Due to the overlap, below I’ll assign Gregorian calendar dates to the two days in Israel’s history, to help put the Passover/exodus timing in modern perspective.

This first Passover in Egypt was a one-time event and a partial model, having some instructions which wouldn’t apply to any subsequent Passover (according to Dr. J.H. Hertz, late Chief Rabbi of the British Empire).  For example: In Egypt they were to eat this one Passover in haste with their loins girded and staff in their hand (Ex.12:11).  The animal blood was put on the doorposts of houses, rather than sprinkled at the altar (Ex.12:7 versus Le.3:8, 2Ch.35:11).  This Passover was taken only from the flock, and not also from the herd (Ex.12:5 versus De.16:2 & 2Ch.35:7-8).  In Egypt, there was no conditional allowance to keep the Passover in the 2^nd month of the year (later allowed in Nu.9:1-14, 2Ch.30:15-16).

Let’s now examine the order for this first Passover lamb or kid sacrifice, and then the events of the two days, as the ancient Israelites were departing Egypt.

Ex.12:1, 5-6 “This month shall be the beginning of months….You shall take it [the animal] from the sheep or goats. Keep it until the 14^th day of this same month. Kill it between [beyn h996] the evenings [h6153].” (Young’s and Green’s literal translations.)  In Hebrew, “beyn ha arbáyim”.

Israel’s first month of Abib began near the time of the vernal equinox.  To put the timing in Gregorian calendar terms, let’s presume the new moon of Abib was sighted near 6pm on our Mar 20.  So it was Abib 1 until sunset Mar 21.  With a presumed Mar 20 month start, then Abib 14 began at sunset Apr 2 and ended at sunset Apr 3.  The next day, Abib 15, was from sunset Apr 3 until sunset Apr 4.

What time of day on Abib 14 were the Passover lambs/kids killed?  Was it after sunset (6–9pm on our presumed Apr 2), or in the mid-afternoon (1–5pm of our Apr 3)?  Apr 2 sunset time in Cairo, Egypt is 6:14pm.  This issue is disputed.  Some people think it was killed, gutted and skinned after sunset (at the start of Abib 14), as it was getting dark.  Most think it was killed later in the mid-afternoon (towards the end of Abib 14).  The difference is approximately 20 hours.

Dr. Hertz says the Hebrew text regarding the Passover sacrifice in Ex.12:6 means literally “between the two evenings”.  The text of the related Le.23:5 & Nu.9:5 also has the idiom “between the evenings”.

According to Jewish sages, the first evening or ‘setting’ of the sun was at noon or so, when the sun starts to descend from high noon; and the second evening or ‘setting’ was at sunset or dusk (when the new day begins).  Those were the two evenings for the Israelites…at noon and at sunset.

Barnes Notes Ex.12:6 “The Hebrew has between the two evenings…The most probable explanation is that it includes the time from afternoon, or early eventide, until sunset.”  JFB Commentary “The interval between the sun’s beginning to decline and sunset, corresponding to our three o’clock in the afternoon.”

Josephus (37–100 AD) was born in Jerusalem a few years after Jesus’ crucifixion.  His mother was descended from Jewish Hasmónean royalty, and his father was a priest.  Josephus was intimately familiar with the Jerusalem Temple, its observances and their timing.

Josephus Antiquities of the Jews 2:14:6 “When the 14^th day was come…they offered the [Passover] sacrifice.”  The Passover lamb was killed on Abib 14, not the 13^th or 15^th (ref 2Ch.35:1).  Josephus Wars 6:9:3 “Passover, when they slay their sacrifices from the 9^th hour to the 11^th.”  That was 3pm to 5pm, between the first evening (12 pm) and second evening (6 pm sunset/dusk).  Philo op. cit., 27:145-149 said the Passover was sacrificed in the afternoon of the 14^th day of the month.  The 2^nd century BC Book of Jubilees 49:1, “Kill it before it is evening”.  Before the second evening of 6pm.

Yeshiva.co Ask the Rabbi: Bein HaArbayim “Between the evenings’ or ‘between the settings’, when the first setting of the sun is its descent after noon, and the second is sundown. Here, the phrase means ‘the afternoon.”  The Hebrew ‘beyn ha arbayim’ means ‘the afternoon’ of modern English parlance.

McClintock and Strong, v.7, p.735 “Eustathíus [Greek scholar in Thessalonica]…shows that the Greeks too held that there were two evenings; one they called the latter evening [sunset] at the close of the day, and the other the former evening, which commenced immediately after noon.”  Not only Israel.

‘Morning’ was the time period of the sun’s ascension; ‘Evening’ was the period of the sun’s decline.

Years ago I searched the Bible to find other activities which likewise occurred between the evenings.  Such passages reflect whether it was daylight or dark!  That’s revealing!  Three such incidents follow:

(1) Nu.28:3-8 is about their daily sacrifice, offered twice-a-day, every day of the year.  v.4 “You shall offer one lamb in the morning and the other lamb between [h996] the evenings [h6153].”  Young’s, Green’s literals confirm the Hebrew means “between the evenings”.  The Jubilee Bible 2000 and KJV margins read “between the two evenings.”  Ex.29:38-42 is the same guidelines for the daily sacrifice.

The above passages of Nu.28 & Ex.29, commanding the daily sacrifice, both refer to the morning sacrifice first, and then the other sacrifice.  The daily order enjoins for the second sacrifice of the pair to be offered later during that same day, and before a new day begins at sunset.

Josephus Antiquities 14:4:3 “The Jews…did still twice each day, in the morning and about the 9^th hour, offer their sacrifices upon the altar.”  The 9^th hour was 3pm in the evening/afternoon.

Other Jews too say the daily morning & evening sacrifice was around 9am & 3pm.  Alfred Edersheim The Temple, p.108, 174, 165 “The morning sacrifice… it coincided with the 3^rd hour of the day, or 9am…The evening sacrifice ordinarily was slain at 2:30 pm, and offered at about 3:30pm…on the eve of the Passover the evening sacrifice was offered an hour before its usual time.”

Jewish Encyclopedia: Passover Sacrifice “The paschal lamb was slain on the eve of the Passover, the afternoon of the 14^th of Nisan, after the Támid [evening] sacrifice had been killed, i.e., three o’clock.”

(2) The incident in 1Ki.18:19-46 where Elijah confronted the prophets of Báal, in the 800s BC.  v.19-26 the prophets of Baal called on Baal “from morning until noon”.  v.27-29 “When mid-day was past, they raved until the time of the evening sacrifice.”  Again, the daily evening sacrifice was to be offered between the evenings (Nu.28:4, Ex.29:39).  v.36 then at the time of the evening sacrifice, Elijah offered his prayer.  v.38 Fire fell!  Notice all that next transpired…before it got dark!

1Ki.18:40 Elijah orders the execution of all the false prophets.  The people go to the brook Kishón and slay those 450 men.  It took some time to kill 450 men (unwilling to die)!  v.41-43 then Elijah ascends to the top of Mt. Carmél (1,500 ft. high) and tells his servant to go look toward the sea. The servant goes back & forth seven times!  v.44 finally, on the seventh time the servant sees a small cloud…it must still be daylight for him to see it!  v.45 then the sky grew black with visible storm clouds (not with night).

Obviously that entire sequence couldn’t have been observed if sunset had occurred prior to when fire fell from God back in v.38.  This incident is strong evidence that there was plenty of daylight remaining after the hour of the evening sacrifice…in 850 BC Israel (long predating Talmúdic interpretations).

(3) The incident of confession and reconciliation in Ezra 9 & 10.  (It’s too long to quote in full here.)  Ezr.9:4-5 “I sat appalled until the evening offering.”  Here was Ezra at the time of the evening offering, which was offered every day “between the evenings”, at 3pm in the mid-afternoon.  v.6-15 Ezra’s lengthy prayer follows.  Ezr.10:1 “While Ezra was praying, a very large assembly of men, women and children came to him from Israel, weeping bitterly.”  v.2-4 Shecaniáh then addressed Ezra.  v.5 Ezra arose; priests and all Israel swore they would comply.  v.6 then Ezra went into Jehohanán’s chamber.  This incident occurred in early December during the colder rainy season (v.9, 13).

Ancient Israel was an agricultural society.  MDHarris Institute Daily Life in 1^st Century Israel “The early Jew rose before the sun [Pr.31:15]…and tilled the fields for several hours before his morning meal.”  biblegateway.com Everyday Meals “Only two meals a day were usually eaten (Ex.16:12, 1Ki.17:6). The chief meal of the day (and probably the only one for the poor) was served in the early evening, an hour or two before sunset when the duties of the day were over. After the meal for an hour or two before bedtime the men sat around and talked.”  From this, we can ascertain that they started getting ready for bed at sunset, as darkness was setting in.  Dec 1 sunset time in Jerusalem is 4:34pm.  (Sunset times in Jerusalem: Mar 21 5:50pm, Apr 3 6:00pm, Jun 21 6:47pm w/o DST, Sep 21 5:37pm.)

It’s quite unlikely that women and children would have gathered to Ezra after dark, especially at that cold wet season!  These actions of Ezra et all, done after the time of the evening sacrifice, indicate that the daily sacrifice, done “between the evenings”…wasn’t at dusk, but in full daylight of mid-afternoon.

All three of the above incidents reflect the time of the evening sacrifice, slain “between the evenings”, was mid-afternoon.  And the Passover lamb/kid was likewise offered between the evenings (Ex.12:6).

{Sidelight: Rendering the Ex.12:6 & Nu.28:4 “between the evenings” as “twilight”, confuses the issue.  In middle English, “twi” meant two or double.  As twi-tongued.  We have the English words twi-ns and twi-ce.  Also: a twibil is a double-bladed ax, a twinter is a domestic animal two winters old, a twicer is a person who does two things.  But “twilight” now indicates half (half-light at dusk or early dawn), not two or double.  The ancient Jewish (and Greek) understanding resembles the older English twi, since Israelites identified two evenings.  And the ancient Passover sacrifice occurred in-between.}

Edersheim’s The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, p.813 “The period ‘between the two evenings’ when the Paschal lamb was slain. There can be no question that, in the time of Christ, it was understood to refer to the interval between the commencement of the sun’s decline and what was reckoned as the hour of final disappearance (about 6 pm).”  “Between the evenings” = our “afternoon”.

In the 1^st century, the priests at the Jerusalem temple didn’t sprinkle the blood of hundreds of Passover lambs on the altar at night (2Ch.30:15-16, 35:11)!  That ritual took a few hours in afternoon daylight.

The Biblical and historical evidence is…the Passover lamb was killed in the afternoon of Abib 14 (in our calendar scenario, Apr 3).  However, by the time it was roasted and the Passover meal prepared, sunset would’ve occurred to begin Abib 15, and it’s about dark (our early night of Apr 3).

Ex.12:8 commanded unleavened bread with the Passover meal.  Ex.12:17-19 “In the first month, on the 14^th day at evening [h6153], you shall eat unleavened bread, until the 21^st day of the month at evening [h6153]. For seven days no leaven shall be found in your houses.”  That 7–day period of Abib 14 to Abib 21 didn’t start between the evenings.  The Hebrew term beyn (h996 between) isn’t in the text.  When or at/from which “evening” did it begin?  Notice two other passages as frame of reference:

Le.23:27 “On exactly the 10^th day of the seventh month is the day of atonement.”  These parameters define their 10^th day…v.32 “It is a sabbath of complete rest, on the 9^th of the month at evening [h6153], from evening [h6153] until evening [h6153] you shall keep your sabbath.”  The day of atonement, the 10^th day, was specifically from the evening or sunset which ended the 9^th day until the next evening or sunset (ending the 10^th day).  Again, a sunset (the ‘second evening’) ended an old day and began the new day.  ref 2Ch.18:34 “The king of Israel propped himself up in his chariot until evening [h6153]. He died at sunset.”  Again…sunset, 3 visible stars or fowls roosting…signified the evening date change.  The seven days of unleavened bread began at the sunset which ended Abib 14 and started Abib 15.

{{Sidelight: However, Jews traditionally removed leaven from houses before the lamb was slain on the afternoon of Abib 14, applying Ex.34:25 to the Passover. “You shall not offer the blood of My sacrifice with leavened bread.”  The clean-out process must begin well before the sunset ending Abib 14.  So in practice, their dwellings were without leaven for more like 8 days, not 7.  Josephus Antiquities 2:15:1 “We keep a feast for 8 days, of unleavened bread.”  (He affirmed the 7 days of scripture; see below.)

Any timing differences the 1^st century Sádducee sect may have had are unproven.  No actual Sadducee writings survive.  We only know of the sect from their being mentioned in the Bible (14 times) and in (opposing) historical writings.  Káraite Judaism may or may not share Sadducáic views; it is uncertain.  Whereas Josephus, born in Jerusalem and governor of Galilee, was an eyewitness to the timing of the rituals done at the Temple, including those performed “between the evenings” (beyn ha arbayim).  Philo too made pilgrimage to the Jerusalem Temple, at least once (Philo op. cit., On Providence 2:64).}}

Nu.28:17 “On the 15^th of the month is the feast. Unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven days.”  Days #15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21…that’s seven.  They feasted until the sunset which ended Abib 21 and began Abib 22.  (Starting at sunset on our projected Apr 3, ending at sunset on Apr 10.)  Josephus Wars 3:10:5 “The feast of unleavened bread falls on the 15^th day of the month and continues for 7 days. The second day of unleavened bread is the 16^th day of the month.”  Jsh.5:10 “At Gilgál the sons of Israel celebrated the Passover on the 14^th day of the month at evening [h6153].”  The tabernacle with God’s Name was there in those days.  After the lamb was slain in the mid-afternoon of Abib 14, they prepared the Passover meal and began celebrating/feasting at evening or sunset ending Abib 14/beginning Abib 15.  (cf. Le.23:32, as the day of atonement, the 10^th day of the 7^th month, began “on the 9^th day at evening”.)

Now let’s see the timing of the final events of the exodus, from Ex.12:

In Ex.3:21-22, the Lord said they would take silver, gold and clothing from the Egyptians.  This spoiling of them was done in Ex.11:2-3, prior to that first Passover and 10^th plague on Egypt (ref Ex.12:35-36).

Ex.12:1-21 the Passover lamb was slain in the afternoon of Abib 14 “between the evenings”.  Its blood was obediently put on the doorposts.  The lamb was roasted & eaten with unleavened bread a few hours later after Abib 15 had begun at sunset.  v.11 they ate it in haste.  Bread could take many hours or even two days to rise.  There wasn’t time (v.33-34), since they must make ready to depart before dawn!

Ex.12:22-28 Israelites must wait inside their dwellings until morning (firstborns are protected by the blood), while God the Word “passed over” Egypt (Christ, the Jews’ “Passover”, 1Co.5:7) with the 10^th plague.  v.29-32 this occurred at midnight of Abib 15 (beginning our Apr 4).  Egyptian firstborn males died.  Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron (a firstborn son, Ex.6:20) at night (it was now safe to go outside), saying, “Rise up! Go from among my people!”  v.33-34 the Israelites took their unleavened dough…and exited.  v.37 “Israel journeyed from Ramesés to Succóth.”  A few other verses:

De.16:1 “In the month of Abib the Lord brought you out of Egypt by night.”  The exodus began late in the night of Abib 15, before bread could have fermented.  It was still dark, about the time when dawn begins to lighten the sky with ‘morning’.  Nu.33:3 “They journeyed from Rameses on the 15^th day of the first month, on the next day after the Passover.”  Again, the Passover was killed on Abib 14 (2Ch.35:1).  Ex.12:17, 41 on that “very day” of Abib 15, which began the seven days of unleavened bread, they marched out.  The scriptures are in agreement!

A related sequel to this topic is “Jesus’ Last Supper Timing”.  To segue or preview it: Mt.26:17-19, Mk.14:12-16, Lk.22:7-14 when the day came, Jesus’ disciples asked Jesus where they should prepare the Passover meal for Him and their group.  As obedient Jews, they’d been keeping Passover all their lives.  As Jesus had (Lk.2:41).  They knew it was the day and the time when the Passover lambs must be killed at the Temple, and the blood sprinkled on the altar (Le.3:7-8).  Again, that was Abib 14…not Abib 13, not Abib 15!  Jesus didn’t sin regarding the day/time the lamb was killed.  He never sinned; if He had, we’d have no Savior!  However, the disciples didn’t know that Jesus will soon die; this would be His last Passover meal.  Peter & John went to the Temple, the lamb’s blood was sprinkled; they then brought the lamb to the upper room where their meal was roasted/prepared.

Ex.12:42 “It was a night of vigil for the Lord to bring them out from Egypt, so that on this night all Israel is to keep vigil to the Lord for generations to come.”  It was a night to be “much observed”.  The night of Abib 15 was to become a night of vigil or a watch, for all generations to honor what the Lord did that night.  It is significant what Jesus said on that night after His last (Passover) supper.  Mt.26:40 Apostolic Bible Pólyglot “Could you not be vigilant with me one hour!”

Mk.15:25-37 Jesus, as the sacrificial lamb, was placed on the cross around 9am (the “3^rd hour”) and He died on the cross around 3pm (the “9^th hour”)…the times of the daily morning and evening lamb sacrifice!  And Jesus’ sacrifice for us is effective day after day, year after year…Praise the Lord!

For more on Passover, see the topics: “Passover and Peace Offerings”, “Feasts of the Lord and the Jews”, “Days Israel Observed – God-Ordained”, “Jesus’ Last Supper Timing”.

Feast of Booths/Tabernacles

When Jesus incarnated in the Holy Land, He kept the Old Testament (OT) feasts the Lord gave to Israel (including the Jews).  Jn.7:2 NASB “Now the feast of the Jews, the Feast of Booths, was at hand.”  In the Jn.7 verses that follow, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for this pilgrim feast.

It was celebrated annually, usually in early October, beginning around 15 days after the September equinox.  (The start date varies slightly from year-to-year; their calendar differed from ours.)  What did this week-long, or 8-day, festival celebrate?  Why was it called the Feast of Booths?  That’s a strange name for a feast.  To understand why it was called that, let’s go back to the book of Exodus.

Most Bible students are generally familiar with the Exodus account where the Lord God freed Moses and the Israelites from Egyptian bondage.  This topic will note their first camps upon departure, their time in the wilderness, and the memorial relation to the later Feast of Booths they’d celebrate in the land of Canáan.  (There was no Feast of Booths prescribed in Egypt.)

As they were leaving Egypt that spring, in Ex.12:37-38 “The sons of Israel journeyed from Ramesés to Sukkóth [Strongs h5523, Hebrew], 600,000 men on foot”.  Rameses was another name for the Góshen area of Egypt where the ancient Israelites lived, and/or a city in Goshen (Ge.47:6, 11).  There were perhaps two million Israelites, counting the women & children with the “mixed multitude”.

The proper noun Sukkoth (h5523) meant ‘booths’, according to Strongs Bible Dictionary, ISBE, etc.

At least two places are named Sukkoth (h5523) in the Bible.  The one was there in Egypt.  Another was east of the Jordan River, in the area of Canaan which would later be allotted to the Israelite tribe of Gad.

A few centuries earlier, the patriarch Jacob had stopped at the other Sukkoth as he was re-entering the land of Canaan from NW Mesopotámia.  Ge.33:17 “Jacob journeyed to Sukkoth [h5523] and built for himself a house, and made booths [sukkót h5521] for his livestock; therefore he named the place Sukkoth [h5523 Booths].”  The term sukkot is the plural of sukkáh/booth h5521.  Those booths referred to a temporary hut, shelter, or lean-to.  Booths/sukkot were erected for people or livestock.  Unlike tents, such booths weren’t portable.

Much later the prophet Jonah built a temporary booth for himself just east of Nineveh.  Jnh.4:5-6 “He made a booth [h5521] and sat under it. The Lord appointed a plant and it grew up over Jonah to be a shade over his head. Jonah was very glad to have the plant.”  Those make-shift booths provided partial protection from the elements.

When the Israelites left Egypt, they remained in the wilderness for 40 years (Ne.9:21).  But they didn’t dwell in open-air huts/booths for that time!  Such huts were used by harvesters, and are uncommon in the desert.  The wilderness climate in that area could be harsh, with intense heat and bitter cold.  Furthermore, in the dry wilderness there wasn’t enough forestland or necessary foliage for men to keep erecting a lean-to as family dwellings…not for all those people for 40 years!

Rather, in the wilderness the Israelite families lived in tents.  Ex.16:1, 16 indicate that God began the manna provision 30 days or so after they left Egypt. “Gather it every man according to the number of persons each of you has in his tent [óhel h168].”  Ex.33:10 “All the people would arise and worship, each at the entrance of his tent [h168].”

Fred H. Wright Manners and Customs of Bible Lands “The Children of Israel lived in tents during their 40 years in the wilderness.”  Dr. David HaCohen When and Where the Israelites Dwelt in Sukkot “When staying in places for short periods, people use tents and don’t live in booths (i.e., sukkot), which are heavy and unwieldy. Wandering people don’t use booths.”  Also Nu.11:10, 16:27; De.1:27; Jsh.3:14 are some of the verses which show the Israelites living in tents for those years…not in booths.

Tents were made of animal skins or cloths/canvas, and were portable.  The term sukkot (h5521 booths) is never used as wilderness dwellings for the Israelites, except when it refers to the “Feast of Booths”.

Yet the Lord instructed Moses that native-born Israelites in the Land of Canaan were to keep an annual “Feast of Booths” (h5521) in the early autumn.  The Feast of Booths is specifically noted in ten OT verses: Le.23:34; De.16:13, 16, 31:10; 2Ch.8:13; Ezr.3:4; Ne.8:14; Zec.14:16, 18, 19.

The translation of words into other languages is sometimes imprecise.  Also the meanings of words within a language change over time.

The Feast of Booths is called the Feast of Tabernacles in many Bibles (Tyndale, KJV, etc.).

Our English word ‘tabernacle’ comes from the Latin words tabérna and then tabernáculum, used to translate the OT Greek Septúagint term skené (g4633).  Tabernaculum meant a booth, hut, tent, or place of worship.  It may be portable or stationary.  And our noun ‘tabernacle’ too is a rather general term.

In scripture, “tabernacle” most often referred to the portable sacred tent in which the Lord dwelt among the Israelites during the centuries prior to the construction of Solomon’s temple.  The Hebrew OT term mishkán (h4908) is translated “tabernacle”.  The roof of God’s mishkan/tabernacle structure was a tent (h168; g4633 Septuagint/LXX) covering made of goat’s hair and ram skins, Ex.26:1, 7-14.

However, in the LXX, the term skene (g4633) was used as the translation for both mishkan/tabernacle (h4908) and ohel/tent (h168)!  The term skene isn’t explicit, and misunderstandings have resulted.

In the previously noted ten OT verses where “Feast of Booths” (sukkot h5521) occurs, the LXX NETS has the following: “Feast of Tents” (skene g4633) in Le.23:34; De.16:13; 2Ch.8:13; Ezr.3:4; Ne.8:14.  “Feast of Tent Pitching” (skenopegía g4634) in De.16:16, 31:10; Zec.14:16, 18, 19.  A stationary hut or lean-to shelter isn’t apparent in those LXX verses!  In Jn.7:2, this feast is literally the “Feast of Tent Pitching” (g4634).  Some Bibles render Jn.7:2 the “Feast of Booths”, others the “Feast of Tabernacles”.

So we see that in part, the mix of terms used in translations is a problem of derivation and semantics.

Philologos: Booths, Tabernacles, Tents and Huts “Rather than speak of…tabernacles that aren’t tabernacles and booths that aren’t booths, it is indeed more sensible to say Sukkot.”  As Jews call it.

The Hebrew mishkan (h4908) is rendered tabernacle in English.  But in the Hebrew OT the autumn feast is never called the “Feast of Mishkan”, even though the Lord dwelt in His tabernacle.  Nor is this feast called the “Feast of Ohel” (h168 tents), even though the Israelites dwelt in tents in the wilderness and a tent covered God’s tabernacle.  Rather, this autumn feast is called the Feast of Sukkot/Booths.

Let’s look at the Feast of Booths, starting in Le.23:34 NASB. “On the 15^th of this 7^th month is the Feast of Booths [Sukkot h5521] for seven days to the Lord.”  The Latin Vulgate version (400 AD) has “fériae tabernaculorum” for “Feast of Booths”.  The Tyndale Bible (1530 AD) has “Feast of Tabernacles.”

Lev.23.39-40 “When you have in-gathered the crops of the Land [of Canaan], on the first day you shall take the foliage of beautiful trees, palm branches, and boughs of leafy trees and willows, and you shall rejoice before the Lord for seven days.”  Israelites were to travel to one location and on the first day of the Feast gather boughs and branches to erect their family booths/huts (and then worship nearby at God’s tabernacle or temple).  Ne.8:14-18 repeats these instructions for this Feast.

(Note: For a Feast of Booths today, many Jews traditionally erect in their own yards open-air booths with boughs, branches and leafy roofs.  They’re made of foliage and last a week or so before decaying.)

Continuing with Le.23:42-43. “For seven days all the native-born in Israel shall live in booths [h5521], so that your generations may know that I had the sons of Israel live in booths [h5521] when I brought them out from the land of Egypt. I AM the Lord your God.”  What!?

It seems something in that passage doesn’t add up!  Above were noted several scriptures which say the ancient Israelites lived in (portable) tents after departing Egypt…not in booths!  So why would God want their descendants to know the Israelites had lived in booths (and not tents) when leaving Egypt?

Again, families didn’t actually live in booths for 40 years.  Rather, what Le.23:43 meant is…their first camp upon leaving was…the Egyptian town of Sukkoth (h5523), which means ‘booths’!  Probably it was a place of such shelters.  Pulpit Commentary Ex.12:37 “The meaning of the word ‘Succoth’ is ‘booths’…Huts made of reeds are common at the present day in the tract SE of Tunis [Egypt].”  Ellicott Commentary “The district SE of Tanis…in which clusters of ‘booths’ have been at all times common.”

Ex.12:37, Nu.33:5, the supposed Book of Jasher 81:5…corroborate this first stop on their journey.  JFB Commentary Le.23:43, regarding the future Feast of Booths, “In memory of their first lodging at Sukkoth, they [later] kept the feast in shelters formed from tree boughs.”

Some ancient peoples observed sacrificial harvest festivals.  Moses had said to Pharaoh in Ex.8:27 (also in Ex.3:18, 5:3), “We must go a three days’ journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to the Lord our God as He commands us”.  (This occasion would be during their first keeping of the Feast of Unleavened Bread that spring.)  Finally, in Ex.12:31 an exasperated Pharaoh relents. “Get out from among my people, and go, worship the Lord, as you have said.”

The Feast of Booths commemorated this.  The place Sukkoth signified their deliverance and freedom!  They were no longer a slave people.  Thus the Feast of Sukkot/Booths was a celebration of the exodus from Egypt.  (The remembrance is akin to the Passover in Egypt.)  They became the free people of God!

Nu.33:3-5 “They journeyed from Rameses on the 15^th day [by night, De.16:1]…and camped in Sukkoth.”  Then late in the 2^nd afternoon, 16^th Abíb, they camped in Ethám at the wilderness (Nu.33:6; Ex.13:20; Jash.81:7).  Then late on the 3^rd day, 17^th Abib, by Pihahiróth (Nu.33:7; Ex.14:2; Jash.81:12).

When the Israelites hadn’t returned from worship after three days…Pharaoh’s army chased them after the 5^th day (from Jash.81:13-14).  Ex.14:9 Pharaoh overtook them by Pihahiroth/the sea.  Traditionally, the ancient Israelites crossed through the sea on the 7^th day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

{Sidelight: At the time of their exodus from Egypt, God commanded the Israelites to observe the 7-day Feast of Unleavened Bread (not to be confused with the autumnal Feast of Booths).  De.16:3 their bread was unleavened because they left in haste.  (Also leaven can represent sin…ref Mt.16:6, 12; 1Co.5:6-8; Ac.20:6.)  The Lord said in Ex.12:15-17, “Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the 1^st day you shall have a holy assembly, and another holy assembly on the 7^th day. You shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your hosts out of the land of Egypt.”  The holy occasion of the Passover meal occurred on the 1^st day just before the Egyptian firstborn were killed (Ex.12:8, 29).  The holy assembly of the 7^th day occurred just after the Egyptian army was killed (drowned) in the sea.  This spring Feast also commemorated Israel’s deliverance and freedom!

Poole Commentary Ex.12:16 “The 7^th day, because then Pharaoh and his host were drowned in the sea. As on the 1^st day when the firstborn were killed; so their deliverance was begun on the 1^st and completed on the 7^th day, and therefore those [two] days deserve a special character of honor.”  Rabbi Greg Killian The Seventh Day of Pésach “All of the Egyptian army, their horses…died on the 7^th day of Pesach [Passover]. They all were killed by water. Moses and Miriam sang/‘will sing’ a song to HaShém [the Name].”  Ex.15:1-22 is the song of deliverance, sung on the 7^th day for their holy assembly at the shore of the sea.  The traditional Book of Jubilees 49:23, “You [Israelites] celebrated this festival [Unleavened Bread] with haste when you went forth from Egypt till you entered into the wilderness of Shur [Ex.15:22]; for on the shore of the sea you completed it”.  So only the 1^st and 7^th days of the annual Feast of Unleavened Bread, not the intermediate days, were commanded by the Lord as holy convocations for Israel.  They’d become free!  (also see the topic “Passover and the Exodus Timing”.)}

The Israelites then spent 40 years in the wilderness…so long a time was due to their ensuing sin and unbelief (Nu.14:22-23).  The autumn Feast of Sukkot/Booths didn’t celebrate those sins and 38 years of dying in the wilderness!  The Le.23:42-43 command that they’d keep a memorial Feast of Booths in Canaan was given by God in the 1^st year after leaving Egypt, while they were at Mt. Sinai (Le.27:34)!  Following the Ex.12 Passover in Egypt and their exit, they kept the next year’s Passover in Nu.9.  They broke camp at Sinai in the 2^nd month of the 2^nd year (Nu.10:11-13).  This was before their wanderings!

It wasn’t until more than a year after departing Egypt that God decreed most of the males over age 20 would die in the wilderness (Nu.14:26-38).  Excluded from this decree were Joshua & Caleb, Levites (cf. Nu.14:29 & Nu.1:46-47), women.  And that they’d then wander for 38 more years.

The Feast of Sukkot/Booths wasn’t to celebrate their disobedience or 40 years in the wilderness!  And again, it wasn’t that they dwelt in lean-to shelters of foliage for 40 years.  Rather…their first camp as a free people was at the place called Sukkoth/Booths (in Egypt).

In scripture, the Feast of Booths is also called the Feast of Ingathering (h614), Ex.23:16, 34:22.  They would gather-in the later summer crops of the Land of Canaan.  The Feast of Ingathering was at the end of the fig, grape, pomegranate harvest.  It was a festival of rejoicing (Le.23:40).  Not only being thankful for their harvest, but they were to rejoice in the memory of their deliverance from Egyptian bondage prior to entering Canaan.  (Also De.16:13, their custom was to live in booths while harvesting grapes.  This custom has survived in Palestine.  ref International Standard Bible Encyclopedia: Wine, and Jewish Encyclopedia: Tabernacles, Feast Of.)  also see my topic “Feasts of the Lord and the Jews”.

But there’s yet more significance to the Feast of Booths.  Notice Is.4:5-6, “The Lord will create over Mt. Zion a cloud by day and flaming fire by night. There will be a booth (h5521) to give shade from the heat by day and refuge and protection.”  Isaiah indicated that God’s cloud is another type of booth.

The Shekéenah glory cloud was as a booth, providing God’s protection & shelter.  Previously the Israelites experienced this, beginning when they were entering the wilderness.  Ex.13:20-22 “They set out from Sukkoth [h5523 Booths] and camped in Etham on the edge of the wilderness. And the Lord was going before them in a pillar of cloud by day to lead them on the way, and a pillar of fire by night.”

So God’s glory cloud as a booth/sukkah (Is.4:6) began protecting them as they left Sukkoth the place of booths!  (God later even provided a plant to shade Jonah in his booth/sukkah.)  The Shekinah glory began sheltering Israel as they departed Sukkoth the place of booths/shelters!  Again Le.23:42-43, so future generations at the Feast of Booths would remember how God had delivered and protected them.

In Nu.16:42, 20:6, the glory cloud was still appearing (to guide Moses).  Ne.9:19-21 says the Shekinah glory accompanied them for all 40 years in the wilderness!  God’s cloud by day and fire by night gave some covering from the heat, and provided some warmth from the cold, of the wilderness/desert.

De.1:2 it was actually only an 11-day journey from the Horéb mountains to Kadésh-barnéa…near where the Israelites spent 38 years.  Yet in spite of their disobedience, the Shekinah glory remained with the Israelites the whole time.  The Lord is so compassionate and gracious!

The Feast of Sukkot/Booths signified God’s providence, His loving care and protection.  Then, decades after being delivered from Egypt (representative of bondage)…following the 7-day Feast of Booths, the 8^th day celebration (Le.23:39) of Shémini Atzerét or ‘eighth assembly’ signified the new order of things for Israel as now free in the Promised Land!  (In addition, see “God Tabernacles With Humans”.)

Thanks be to God for His continual loving care and protection…in which we too, His New Covenant people in the order of Melchisedek (Ps.110:4), are privileged to share!

Halloween and Noah’s Flood

Halloween ordinarily elicits images of death, ghosts and spirits.  We read about old heathen Hallowe’en customs of the West European Druid Celts, ‘barbarians’, etc…on All Hallows’ Eve or All Saints’ Eve.

CBN: What Are the Pagan Roots of Halloween? “Halloween itself originated in paganism. The Celtic Festival of Samhain [Sáhwin] was observed on October 31 [or Nov 1, Celtic days began at sunset]. The souls of the dead were said to revisit their homes on this day and the festival acquired sinister significance, with ghosts, witches, goblins, black cats, fairies and demons said to be roaming about.”

Samhain is called the Witches’ New Year (celebrated by neo-pagans).  It was a harvest festival which preluded the darker winter season.  The word Samhain means ‘November’ on the Irish Gaelic calendar.

Encyclopaedia Brittanica: Halloween “People set bonfires on hilltops for relighting their hearth fires for winter and to frighten away evil spirits; and they sometimes wore masks and other disguises to avoid being recognized by the ghosts thought to be present.”  This originated Halloween masks & costumes.

The Acronym: The Pagan Origins of Halloween “Celtic culture dates back to 1200 BCE. During the 3-day celebration, it was believed that the barrier between humans and otherworldly spirits was broken. Samhain was reframed as a Christian celebration to capitalize on the festival’s popularity, to help spread Christianity.”  History.com: How the Early Church Christianized Halloween “Tricks were traditionally blamed on faeries. Token offerings of harvested food [were] offered the spirits to placate them. Children would play games to entertain the dead. Pope Gregory 1 [590–604 AD] advised that a missionary should simply convert them [old religious customs] to a Christian religious purpose.”

But Is.5:20 warns, “Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil”.  De.18:10-12 NASB “There shall not be found among you anyone…who uses divination, who practices witchcraft, or a sorcerer. Whoever does these things is detestable to the Lord.”  Witchcraft, etc. was an ‘abomination’ (KJV) in God’s eyes!

Wikipedia: Halloween “Irish and Scottish immigrants took many Halloween customs to North America in the 19^th century. Halloween activities include trick or treat [olden threats], attending costume parties, carving pumpkins [or turnips] into jack-o-lanterns, lighting bonfires, apple bobbing, divination games, playing pranks, scary stories, watching horror films.”  Facts.net: Halloween Facts “Halloween is the second highest-grossing commercial holiday, second only to Christmas in the U.S.”  It’s very popular!

On our modern Gregorian calendar, Halloween occurs the night of Oct 31^st.  Wikipedia: All Souls’ Day “Also known as the Day of the Dead, a day of prayer and repentance for the faithful departed, observed by Roman Catholics and other Christian denominations annually on 2 Nov. The celebration is the last day of Allhallowtide, after All Saints’ Day (1 Nov) and Halloween (31 Oct).”  Like Samhain, 3 days.

The rest of this topic takes an unconventional look at Halloween and a very ancient All Souls’ Day.

It involves ancient calendars.  In 45 BC, Julius Caesar made January 1 the beginning of the calendar year (Julian calendar).  However, very anciently the new year generally began around mid–September.

Much earlier…Armenians, Assyrians, Egyptians, Ethiopians, Hebrews began their year in late summer.

Old Assyrian Calendar Oxford Studies “The calendar of Upper Mesopotamian kingdom (Sámsi-Adád [1808–1776 BC]) started in August. Previous interpretations suggested a beginning of the Old Assyrian year the day of the autumnal equinox.”  (Akítu harvest festivals were held at both equinoxes.)

egypttoday.com 2021 “September 11 marks the beginning of the Egyptian year within the first calendar in human history; one of the first calendars known to mankind. This year is the 6,263^rd Egyptian year.”  Thoth’s Calendar “Established in the reign of Pharaoh Shépseskaf [2500 BC?]. New Year’s Day fell on the first of the month of Thoth, around August 29.”  Wikipedia: Thoth “The first month of the ancient Egyptian and Coptic calendars. It lies between 11 Sep and 10 Oct of the Gregorian calendar.”  Wikipedia: Ethiopian Calendar “The New Year occurs on 11 September [Gregorian calendar].”

Let’s look at pertinent Biblical calendar background.  Moses’ ancestry included Isaac, Noah, etc., and he was also raised by Pharaoh’s daughter, Ex.2:9-10.  Ac.7:21-22 “Moses was educated in all the learning of the Egyptians.”  Josephus Antiquities of the Jews 2:10:1-2 Moses had been a general in the Egyptian army, warring against Cush/Ethiopia.  Moses, an Egyptian name, knew when the Egyptian year began.

Moses noted, Ge.26:12 (Septúagint/LXX) “Isaac sowed in the Land and reaped in the same year barley 100-fold”.  Circa 1900 BC.  The time to sow barley & wheat in Israel is Nov–Dec; and then it’s reaped in Apr–June.  For Isaac to sow and reap in the same year, their new year could’ve occurred near the autumn equinox.  But the new year couldn’t have occurred in Jan or at the spring equinox in March, between the sowing and reaping cycle of Nov to June.  Else Isaac would’ve reaped in the next year, not in the same year he sowed.  Isaac’s father Abraham had purchased land in Canáan from Hittites (Ge.23:10-20).  Ancient Calendars 5: Anatólia “Before the Late Bronze Age, the Hittite New Year came at the autumn equinox…Based on Akkádian documents from the Old Assyrian period.”

congdon ministries: Calendars of the Bible “At that time [of Moses, 1500s BC], peoples of Palestine, being agricultural, started their calendar systems in the early autumn, with the olive harvest. Likewise the Gezer/Egyptian calendar.”  The 900s BC ‘Gezer calendar’ tablet, found 20 mi. west of Jerusalem at the Philistine border, is one of the earliest Phoenícian or Paleo-Hebrew inscriptions discovered.  Times of Israel: Rosh Hashánah and the Mystery of the Gezer Calendar “The name Tíshrei is taken from the Akkadian month name Tashritu, or the ‘Beginning’ month. The first month in the inscription, ‘Moons of Gathering (agricultural produce)’, would then refer to Tishrei (Sep-Oct) and Héshvan (Oct-Nov).”

The month Tishri began Israel’s civil or calendar year.  Ex.23:16 the Feast of Ingathering/Booths at the full moon of Tishri occurred in early Oct “at the end of the year”. ref Ex.34:22.  Le.25:9-10 “You shall sound the ram’s horn on the 10^th day of the 7^th month [Tishri], on the Day of Atonement [Yom Kíppur, in Hebrew].”  The consecrated jubilee year was thus proclaimed in Israel on this 10^th day of Tishri, in the early autumn.  Ezk.40:1 “At the beginning of the year [Rosh Hashanah Strongs h7218 h8141, Hebrew] on the 10^th of the month [Yom Kippur].”  The annual High Holydays are Tishri 1-10.

{Sidelight: When the ancient Israelites were exiting Egypt, the Lord said to Moses in the early spring, Ex.12:1-2 “This shall be the beginning of months for you”.  It was the time of the first Passover.  In Ex.13:4 YHVH instructed Moses that their months (of the sacred year) were to begin then with Abíb the 1^st month. (also called Nisán, Est.3:7 & Ne.2:1; ‘Nísanu’, Babylonian.)  It follows that Siván would become the 3^rd month, Tishri (also called Éthanim, 1Ki.8:2) the 7^th month, Márcheshvan or Chéshvan or Heshvan the 8^th month, etc., according to God’s sacred calendar.  From the 1500s BC, at least two calendar reckonings were in effect simultaneously in ancient Israel.  The month Abib (Nisan), which began near the spring/vernal equinox, became the 1^st month of the year for future reckoning months, sacred festivals, and some king reigns.  The 7^th month Tishri, occurring near the autumn equinox Sep 20, was still the beginning month of the year for reckoning years, also jubilees and timing young unpicked or ‘uncircumcised’ trees (Le.19:23).  Abib/Nisan began the festival year.  New Years Day for ancient Israel remained at the month Tishri, according to the civil calendar (not the sacred calendar).}

The Jewish people celebrate the beginning of the (civil) year on Rosh Hashanah, the 1^st day of Tishri on the new moon.  It marked the “turn of the year” (Ex.34:22, 23:16).  Pulpit Commentary “The old Hebrew year ended…in autumn.”  Wikipedia: Rosh Hashanah Lit. “Head of the year’, the Jewish New Year, begins on the 1^st day of Tishrei…the traditional anniversary of the creation of Adam and Eve.”

Le.23:23-24 “The Lord spoke to Moses…‘On the 1^st day of the 7^th month [Tishri] you shall have a memorial by sounding [trumpets].”  Here the Hebrew term for “memorial” was zikarrón, and for “sounding”, teruáh.  New Year’s Day, Rosh Hashanah, is also known as: Yom Zikkaron, Day of Memorial…Yom Teruah, Day of Sounding (Trumpets)…Yom HaKéseh, Day of the Concealed Moon.

They acknowledged this Day of Memorial (1 Tishri) as the birthday of Adam.  In the days of Isaac, Abraham, Noah’s Flood, and back to the Creation…the season of Tishri was the 1^st month of the year.  It began in late summer near the autumnal equinox (+/- 15 days).

2,000 years ago, Josephus identified the name of the month and time of year when Noah’s Flood began.  op. cit. 1:3:3 “This calamity happened in the 600^th year the of Noah’s age, in the 2^nd month called by the Hebrews Marcheshvan; for so did they order their year in Egypt; but Moses appointed Nisan [Abib] should be the 1^st month [of the year] for their festivals…although he preserved the original order of the months [the civil calendar year starting in Tishri] as to selling & buying and other ordinary affairs.”

Ge.7:11-13 “In the 2^nd month, on the 17^th day of the month” (Marcheshvan or Cheshvan or Heshvan) the Noachian Flood came.  After the flood, Noah’s ark rested in the mountains of Armenia, and he planted a vineyard in the valleys (Ge.8:4, 9:20).  Ancient Armenian Calendar “The new year started with the month Návasard (from Armenian ‘New Year’) on August 11 [pre-2000 BC].”

Jewish Encyclopedia: Flood, The “The rain lasted during the months of Heshwan and Kíslew [time of Hanukkah]; the waters increased in Tebét, Shebát, Adár, Nisan, Iyár [spring]….The Hebrew year originally began in the fall.”  1200 AD Jewish philosopher Maimónides, “The beginning of our years is in Tishrei”.  And the month of Cheshvan still begins around Oct 15 on today’s Hebrew calendar.  (Long after Noah, Israel’s sacred calendar originated at Ex.12:2; then Cheshvan became the 8^th month.)

eyeopeningtruth.com “Chesvan is called the month of bool [1Ki.6:38 Bul], a name that stems from the word for ‘flood’. The flood began on the 17^th of Chesvan.”  Rabbi Ari Goldberg The Bitter Month “Chesvan is when darkness reigns, yet growth begins beneath the surface. Chesvan is classically referred to as Marchesvan. ‘mar’ [Strongs h4751] in Hebrew means ‘bitter’. The flood began on the 17^th of Chesvan.”  Bitter Chesvan.  Frederick A. Filby The Flood Reconsidered, p.106-108 “The old world perished in November. In ancient Assyria the ceremonies for the souls of the dead were in the month Arahsamna, which is Marcheswan.”

Pagan customs surround Halloween.  Sir James Frazier associated All Souls’ Day, the ancient Egyptian Festival of the Dead, with Nov 1^st in Adonis, Osiris, Attis. “The custom was observed throughout the whole of Egypt, and is referred by Heródotus as prevailing in the 5^th century BC.”  Nov 1^st falls in the month of Cheshvan or Marcheshvan or Heshvan in mid-autumn, according to the Hebrew calendar.

Some think the Deluge actually began on that day, November 1^st!  Again, for many ancient peoples, the new year began in mid-Sep.  For the 17^th day of the ancients’ 2^nd month to fall on Nov 1 according to our modern calendar, the 1^st day of the ancients’ 1^st month would’ve been near September 15.  D. Davidson wrote, “The day generally celebrated throughout the world, in ancient and modern times, as the anniversary of the Catastrophe [Flood], is 1^st November, with variations generally from 31^st October to 2^nd November.”  My desk calendar says the date Nov 2^nd is the Day of the Dead!

There is Old Testament evidence that the Jews memorialized and observed days of catastrophes.  Zec.8:19 “The fast of the 4^th, the fast of the 5^th, the 7^th, the 10^th months [sacred calendar].”  According to this verse, traditional fast days were instituted to remember four national afflictions.  In the 4^th month (on 17 Támmuz) Nebuchadnézzar took Jerusalem (Je.39:1-2).  In the 5^th month (on 9^th -10^th of Av) the temples of Solomon (Je.52:12-13) and Herod (Mk.13:1-2) were destroyed, 650 years apart.  The 2^nd day of the 7^th month was traditionally the date governor Gedaliáh was murdered (2Ki.25:25).  The 10^th day of the 10^th month was the siege of Jerusalem in 588 BC (Je.52:4, 39:1).  Again, since the 1500s BC, Hebrew months are reckoned from the spring Nisan/Abib.  (But years are still reckoned from Tishri.)

It seems the Jews didn’t view those national catastrophes as Divine Judgments, which could lead the people to national repentance.  Instead, they memorialized the national calamities and annually observed the dates on which they’d occurred (all too often without repentance)!

And it’s not only the Jewish people who memorialize catastrophes.  (Noah wasn’t Jewish.)  e.g. every Aug 6^th (‘A-Bomb Day’) the Japanese city of Hiróshima holds the Peace Memorial Ceremony.  In New York City, the 9/11 Ground Zero Memorial is now where the World Trade Center buildings once stood.  And our Memorial Day holiday in late May remembers those who died in military service.

The dates appear to coincide to make All Souls’ Day the memorialization of an earlier great catastrophe…that rainy day when all souls died!  Nov 2^nd is the Day of the Dead!  Perhaps the old Halloween custom of bobbing for apples represents a very ancient gruesome reality?!

biblestudy.org: The True Origin of Halloween “It is entirely possible that the origin of the holiday is a perverted memorial to the people put to death in Noah’s Flood.”  Pastor Bradford Winship The Origins of Halloween and Noah’s Flood “October 31^st Halloween, meaning hallowed or sacred evening, is the day Noah boarded the ark and the great flood came. Taken as the devil’s holiday, but the day actually belongs to God.”  Yet there’s no record that Noah, Moses, or other patriarchs annually wore masks & costumes to hide their identity or scare away evil spirits!  I’m not endorsing Halloween observance!

{{Sidelight: A minority view thinks Noah’s Flood occurred in Iyar, the 2^nd month of Israel’s sacred calendar.  But that calendar didn’t exist prior to 1600 BC, in the time of Genesis.  Ge.7:11 & 8:3-4 the Flood lasted for 5 months, exactly 150 days.  But there’s only 147 or 148 days between the 2^nd and 7^th months on Israel’s later sacred calendar!  The historical sources Moses used for Genesis had a different calendar reckoning.  For evidence of an older new year, ref: Ex.23:16, 34:22; Le.25:9-10; Ezk.40:1-ff at the “beginning of the year” Ezekiel saw his grandest vision while fasting on Yom Kippur!}}

History does have a way of repeating itself.  e.g. the destruction of both Temples and a few other historical calamities which befell the Jewish people are said to have happened on the 9^th of Av!

To conclude…After the Flood, God made a covenant with Noah and the living creatures.  Ge.9:9-17 God promised, “All flesh will never again be cut off by the water of a flood. This is the sign of the covenant; I will set my bow in the cloud, and I will look upon it to remember the everlasting covenant.”

God was as a warrior who came in judgment in the days of Noah.  God’s bow imagery also symbolizes His mighty power.  (ref “bow” in Hab.3:9-10, Lam.2:4, Re.6:2, De.32:23).  Yet in Ge.9 His weapon was set aside unstrung in the clouds, representing peace.  JFB Commentary Ge.9:13 “A bow unstrung, or without a string, is a proper symbol of peace and friendship.”

The apostle Paul wrote in Ro.3:23, “All have sinned”.  Also Ro.6:23a “The wages of sin is death.”  Since the Garden of Eden, the result of sin has been death for all humanity (Ge.2:16, 3:19; Ro.5:12).

Regardless of the exact calendar day the Flood began, historically Halloween commemorates death.

We’ve all seen rainbows as they’ve occasionally appeared through the clouds.  But as Christians, we pursue the spiritual ‘pot of gold’ at the end of the rainbow!  Ro.6:23b “The gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  Eternal life is our gift and our future through Jesus!  Thank You, Lord!