Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles)

Also known as חַג הָאָסִף (hag ha-asif—Feast of Ingathering), Feast of Booths, and Feast of Temporary Shelters

Moses told the children of Israel that the Feast of Booths is “a statute forever throughout your generations” and that “All who are native-born in Israel shall dwell in temporary shelters, that your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in temporary shelters when I brought them out of the land of Egypt.” (Lev.3:4-43) But the Feast of Tabernacles isn’t just a Jewish holiday. There will come a time when “all the families of the earth” will be required to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. Zechariah tells everyone (not just the children of Israel) that ”It will happen that everyone who is left of all the nations that came against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of Hosts, and to keep the feast of booths. It will be that whoever of all the families of the earth doesn’t go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of Hosts, on them there will be no rain. If the family of Egypt doesn’t go up and doesn’t come, neither will it rain on them. This will be the plague with which the LORD will strike the nations that don’t go up to keep the feast of booths. This will be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that don’t go up to keep the feast of booths.” Zechariah 14:16–19 (WMB)

Sukkot / Tabernacles / Booths / Ingathering

Exodus 23:16 (WMB)
And the feast of harvest [hag ha qatsir], the first fruits of your labors, which you sow in the field; and the feast of ingathering [Heb. hag ha-asif], at the end of the year, when you gather in your labors out of the field.

Exodus 34:22 (WMB)
22 “You shall observe the feast of weeks [Heb. hag shavuoth] with the first fruits of wheat harvest [Heb. bikkure qetsir hittim], and the feast of harvest [Heb. hag ha-asif] at the year’s end.

Leviticus 23:33-43 (WMB)
33 The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 34 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say, ‘On the fifteenth day of this seventh month is the feast of booths [hag sukkoth (festival of temporary shelters)] for seven days to the LORD. 35 On the first day shall be a holy convocation. You shall do no regular work. 36 Seven days you shall offer an offering made by fire to the LORD. On the eighth day shall be a holy convocation to you. You shall offer an offering made by fire to the LORD. It is a solemn assembly; you shall do no regular work.
37 “ ‘These are the appointed feasts of the LORD which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to offer an offering made by fire to the LORD, a burnt offering, a meal offering, a sacrifice, and drink offerings, each on its own day—38 in addition to the Sabbaths of the LORD, and in addition to your gifts, and in addition to all your vows, and in addition to all your free will offerings, which you give to the LORD.
39 “ ‘So on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the fruits of the land, you shall keep the feast of the LORD seven days. On the first day shall be a solemn rest, and on the eighth day shall be a solemn rest. 40 You shall take on the first day the fruit of majestic trees, branches of palm trees, and boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days. 41 You shall keep it as a feast to the LORD seven days in the year. It is a statute forever throughout your generations. You shall keep it in the seventh month. 42 You shall dwell in temporary shelters for seven days. All who are native-born in Israel shall dwell in temporary shelters, 43 that your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in temporary shelters when I brought them out of the land of Egypt. I am the LORD your God.’ ”

Numbers 29:12-40 (WMB)
12 “ ‘On the fifteenth day of the seventh month you shall have a holy convocation. You shall do no regular work. You shall keep a feast to the LORD seven days. 13 You shall offer a burnt offering, an offering made by fire, of a pleasant aroma to the LORD: thirteen young bulls, two rams, fourteen male lambs a year old, all without defect; 14 and their meal offering, fine flour mixed with oil: three tenths for every bull of the thirteen bulls, two tenths for each ram of the two rams, 15 and one tenth for every lamb of the fourteen lambs; 16 and one male goat for a sin offering, in addition to the continual burnt offering, its meal offering, and its drink offering.

17 “ ‘On the second day you shall offer twelve young bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs a year old without defect; 18 and their meal offering and their drink offerings for the bulls, for the rams, and for the lambs, according to their number, after the ordinance; 19 and one male goat for a sin offering, in addition to the continual burnt offering, with its meal offering and their drink offerings.

20 “ ‘On the third day: eleven bulls, two rams, fourteen male lambs a year old without defect; 21 and their meal offering and their drink offerings for the bulls, for the rams, and for the lambs, according to their number, after the ordinance; 22 and one male goat for a sin offering, in addition p 139 to the continual burnt offering, and its meal offering, and its drink offering.

23 “ ‘On the fourth day ten bulls, two rams, fourteen male lambs a year old without defect; 24 their meal offering and their drink offerings for the bulls, for the rams, and for the lambs, according to their number, after the ordinance; 25 and one male goat for a sin offering; in addition to the continual burnt offering, its meal offering, and its drink offering.

26 “ ‘On the fifth day: nine bulls, two rams, fourteen male lambs a year old without defect; 27 and their meal offering and their drink offerings for the bulls, for the rams, and for the lambs, according to their number, after the ordinance, 28 and one male goat for a sin offering, in addition to the continual burnt offering, and its meal offering, and its drink offering.

29 “ ‘On the sixth day: eight bulls, two rams, fourteen male lambs a year old without defect; 30 and their meal offering and their drink offerings for the bulls, for the rams, and for the lambs, according to their number, after the ordinance, 31 and one male goat for a sin offering; in addition to the continual burnt offering, its meal offering, and the drink offerings of it.

32 “ ‘On the seventh day: seven bulls, two rams, fourteen male lambs a year old without defect; 33 and their meal offering and their drink offerings for the bulls, for the rams, and for the lambs, according to their number, after the ordinance, 34 and one male goat for a sin offering; in addition to the continual burnt offering, its meal offering, and its drink offering.

35 “ ‘On the eighth day you shall have a solemn assembly. You shall do no regular work; 36 but you shall offer a burnt offering, an offering made by fire, a pleasant aroma to the LORD: one bull, one ram, seven male lambs a year old without defect; 37 their meal offering and their drink offerings for the bull, for the ram, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the ordinance, 38 and one male goat for a sin offering, in addition to the continual burnt offering, with its meal offering, and its drink offering.

39 “ ‘You shall offer these to the LORD in your set feasts—in addition to your vows and your free will offerings—for your burnt offerings, your meal offerings, your drink offerings, and your peace offerings.’ ”

Deuteronomy 16:13–15 (WMB)
13 You shall keep the feast of booths seven days, after you have gathered in from your threshing floor and from your wine press. 14 You shall rejoice in your feast, you, your son, your daughter, your male servant, your female servant, the Levite, the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow who are within your gates. 15 You shall keep a feast to the LORD your God seven days in the place which the LORD chooses, because the LORD your God will bless you in all your increase and in all the work of your hands, and you shall be altogether joyful.

Deuteronomy 31:9-13 (WMB)
9 Moses wrote this law and delivered it to the priests the sons of Levi, who bore the ark of the LORD’s covenant, and to all the elders of Israel. 10 Moses commanded them, saying, “At the end of every seven years, in the set time of the year of release, in the feast of booths, 11 when all Israel has come to appear before the LORD your God in the place which he will choose, you shall read this law before all Israel in their hearing. 12 Assemble the people, the men and the women and the little ones, and the foreigners who are within your gates, that they may hear, learn, fear the LORD your God, and observe to do all the words of this law, 13 and that their children, who have not known, may hear and learn to fear the LORD your God, as long as you live in the land where you go over the Jordan to possess it.”

Ezra 3:4 (WMB)
They kept the feast of booths, as it is written, and offered the daily burnt offerings by number, according to the ordinance, as the duty of every day required;

Nehemiah 8:13–18 (WMB)
13 On the second day, the heads of fathers’ households of all the people, the priests, and the Levites were gathered together to Ezra the scribe, to study the words of the law. 14 They found written in the Torah how the LORD had commanded by Moses that the children of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh month; 15 and that they should publish and proclaim in all their cities and in Jerusalem, saying, “Go out to the mountain, and get olive branches, branches of wild olive, myrtle branches, palm branches, and branches of thick trees, to make temporary shelters, as it is written.” 16 So the people went out and brought them, and made themselves temporary shelters, everyone on the roof of his house, in their courts, in the courts of God’s house, in the wide place of the water gate, and in the wide place of Ephraim’s gate. 17 All the assembly of those who had come back out of the captivity made temporary shelters and lived in the temporary shelters, for since the days of Joshua the son of Nun to that day the children of Israel had not done so. There was very great gladness. 18 Also day by day, from the first day to the last day, he read in the scroll of the Torah of God. They kept the feast seven days; and on the eighth day was a solemn assembly, according to the ordinance.

Psalm 81:3 (WMB)
Blow the shofar at the New Moon, at the full moon, on our feast day. [There is always a full moon on the fifteenth day of any biblical month. This psalm tells us to blow the shofar “at the New Moon” (Rosh Chodesh) AND at “the full moon on our feast day.” The full moon that happens “on our feast day” is the first day of Sukkot.]

Zechariah 14:16–19 (WMB)
16 It will happen that everyone who is left of all the nations that came against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of Hosts, and to keep the feast of booths. 17 It will be that whoever of all the families of the earth doesn’t go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of Hosts, on them there will be no rain. 18 If the family of Egypt doesn’t go up and doesn’t come, neither will it rain on them. This will be the plague with which the LORD will strike the nations that don’t go up to keep the feast of booths. 19 This will be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that don’t go up to keep the feast of booths.