Shavuot
The last Feast of Yahweh's "spring feasts", Shavuot is yet another wonderful appointed time from our Creator for His people.
We have seen our Messiah as the Passover Lamb, true Unleavened Bread, and the Firstfruits from the dead, so how does Shavuot figure into the fulfilling of His Feasts? Let us seek Him for understanding.
We have seen our Messiah as the Passover Lamb, true Unleavened Bread, and the Firstfruits from the dead, so how does Shavuot figure into the fulfilling of His Feasts? Let us seek Him for understanding.
Leviticus 23:15-22
In looking at the description of Shavuot in Leviticus 23:15-22 we see Yahweh commanding Moses and the children of Israel to keep the feast by counting seven Sabbaths (7 weeks; literally seven sevens) and one day.
"Until the morrow after the seventh Sabbath you count fifty days, then you shall bring a new grain offering to Yahweh".
- Leviticus 23:16
The feast of Shavuot, or Feast of Weeks, was given to count the days following the firstfruits offering during Unleavened Bread, and to offer the firstfruits offering of wheat. Looking at the words that were translated as 'firstfruits' in the feasts of Firstfruits and Shavuot reveals something very interesting.
First of all, the word used for firstfruits in relation to the Feast of Firstfruits, in Leviticus 23:10, is 'reshiyth' as defined below:
"Until the morrow after the seventh Sabbath you count fifty days, then you shall bring a new grain offering to Yahweh".
- Leviticus 23:16
The feast of Shavuot, or Feast of Weeks, was given to count the days following the firstfruits offering during Unleavened Bread, and to offer the firstfruits offering of wheat. Looking at the words that were translated as 'firstfruits' in the feasts of Firstfruits and Shavuot reveals something very interesting.
First of all, the word used for firstfruits in relation to the Feast of Firstfruits, in Leviticus 23:10, is 'reshiyth' as defined below:
H7225
ראשׁית
rê'shı̂yth
ray-sheeth'
From the same as H7218; the first, in place, time, order or rank (specifically a firstfruit): - beginning, chief (-est), first (-fruits, part, time), principal thing.
Next the word for firstfruits in relation to Shavuot, as found in Leviticus 23:17,20 is 'bikkur' which means:
H1061
בּכּוּר
bikkûr
bik-koor'
From H1069; the first fruits of the crop: - first fruit (-ripe [figuratively), hasty fruit.
bikkur (firstfruit) is from the root word ba'kar:
H1069
בּכר
bâkar
baw-kar'
A primitive root; properly to burst the womb, that is, (causatively) bear or make early fruit (of woman or tree); also (as denominatively from H1061) to give the birthright: - make firstborn, be firstling, bring forth first child (new fruit).
What can we gather from these words and their meanings? Let's look back just a bit further in the Scripture.
Writing of the Torah
In Exodus 19-20 we see Yahweh meeting with His people whom He had delivered from the bonds of slavery in Egypt. He spoke with them from Mt. Sinai giving them the first 10 of His Commandments.
When Yahweh gave His Commandments to the people it seemed to be His intention for them to be written on their hearts and minds from the beginning and not on stone (Deuteronomy 30:11-18). David saw this (Psalm 40:6-8), as did Abraham some 400 years before the Israelites were in captivity (Genesis 26:5). The Scriptures say that Messiah is our High Priest after the order of Melchizedek
(Psalm 110:4), who came out to meet Abraham with bread and wine (Genesis 14:18-24; Hebrews 7:1-10) after his rescue of Lot from king Chedorlaomer and the kings who followed him. Chedorlaomer interestingly enough means, "handful of sheaves" (sheaves were waived before YHVH at the Feast of Firstfruits). It is important to understand that Messiah is of the order of Melchizedek
as we will continue to see.
The Great I AM was drawing His people into a covenant with Him as compared to a marriage betrothal and said He would make them a "kingdom of priests and a set apart nation" (Exodus 19:5-6). This is the same language He uses to describe His people in the "New" Covenant (1 Peter 2:9; Revelation 1:5-6). Those whose faith is in Yahshua the Messiah are adopted into His family and are kings and priests in the order of Melchizedek, which is an eternal priesthood in which, again, our Savior is High Priest. This Melchizedekian priesthood not only replaced the Levitical priesthood but also preceded it, since it is eternal!
As Yahweh spoke from the mountain we see that the people refused to hear anymore for they feared they would die. It is said that Moses was also afraid, but he approached the thick darkness where his Creator was (Hebrews 12:21; Exodus 20:20-21). Unlike Moses, the people did not harken to the voice of Yahweh and asked Moses to go up for them rather than listening to the Creator Himself. They chose Moses as their mediator when Hebrews tells us that only Messiah is the true Mediator between Elohim and mankind (Hebrews 7:23-8:6). We also know that Messiah was there willing and able to mediate (1 Corinthians 10:1-4), however, the people chose poorly. Now those who are a part of the "New" Covenant have become partakers of the better promises that Yahweh had desired for His people all along. His Torah has been written on our hearts and minds by the Pure, Set-Apart Spirit,
(Psalm 110:4), who came out to meet Abraham with bread and wine (Genesis 14:18-24; Hebrews 7:1-10) after his rescue of Lot from king Chedorlaomer and the kings who followed him. Chedorlaomer interestingly enough means, "handful of sheaves" (sheaves were waived before YHVH at the Feast of Firstfruits). It is important to understand that Messiah is of the order of Melchizedek
as we will continue to see.
The Great I AM was drawing His people into a covenant with Him as compared to a marriage betrothal and said He would make them a "kingdom of priests and a set apart nation" (Exodus 19:5-6). This is the same language He uses to describe His people in the "New" Covenant (1 Peter 2:9; Revelation 1:5-6). Those whose faith is in Yahshua the Messiah are adopted into His family and are kings and priests in the order of Melchizedek, which is an eternal priesthood in which, again, our Savior is High Priest. This Melchizedekian priesthood not only replaced the Levitical priesthood but also preceded it, since it is eternal!
As Yahweh spoke from the mountain we see that the people refused to hear anymore for they feared they would die. It is said that Moses was also afraid, but he approached the thick darkness where his Creator was (Hebrews 12:21; Exodus 20:20-21). Unlike Moses, the people did not harken to the voice of Yahweh and asked Moses to go up for them rather than listening to the Creator Himself. They chose Moses as their mediator when Hebrews tells us that only Messiah is the true Mediator between Elohim and mankind (Hebrews 7:23-8:6). We also know that Messiah was there willing and able to mediate (1 Corinthians 10:1-4), however, the people chose poorly. Now those who are a part of the "New" Covenant have become partakers of the better promises that Yahweh had desired for His people all along. His Torah has been written on our hearts and minds by the Pure, Set-Apart Spirit,
"But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says Yahweh:
I will put My Torah in their minds and write it on their hearts; and I will be their Elohim,
and they shall be My people."
- Jeremiah 31:33
I will put My Torah in their minds and write it on their hearts; and I will be their Elohim,
and they shall be My people."
- Jeremiah 31:33
"I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone
out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.
I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes and you will keep
My judgments and do them. Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers;
you shall be My people and I will be your Elohim."
- Ezekiel 36:26-27
out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.
I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes and you will keep
My judgments and do them. Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers;
you shall be My people and I will be your Elohim."
- Ezekiel 36:26-27
Notice in both of those passages from the prophets Jeremiah and Ezekiel that Yahweh makes the same promise: that the people will be His and He will be their Elohim. This only happens when one enters covenant with Him. So what is the sign of the covenant? We know that Messiah said His blood was the blood of the new covenant (Matthew 26:28), but what is the seal that marks our inclusion into that covenant? If we look back at the prophets again we see that Yahweh would give His people a new heart, one of flesh rather than stone. Paul mentions this in his second letter to the believers in Corinth,
"You are our letter written in our hearts, known and read by all men;
clearly you are a letter of Messiah, ministered by us, written not with ink
but by the Spirit of the living Elohim, not on tablets of stone
but on the tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart."
- 2 Corinthians 3:2-3
clearly you are a letter of Messiah, ministered by us, written not with ink
but by the Spirit of the living Elohim, not on tablets of stone
but on the tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart."
- 2 Corinthians 3:2-3
On the heart of flesh is where He writes His Torah, by the Spirit. The Spirit is our seal until the day of redemption (Ephesians 4:30;
2 Corinthians 1:21-22; Romans 8:23) and He is the One who writes the Torah upon the heart of every believer as prophesied about in the "New" Covenant. The Torah is our mark that we belong to Yahweh (Deuteronomy 6:5-9; Revelation 14:12-13). Remember that Yahshua is the living Word (John 1:1) and the foundation of the Spirit's ministry in our lives is the Word (John 17:17; 14:17, 26). The Torah is the foundation of our faith (Romans 3:31) and is the word of Elohim (Psalm 119:142, 160; John 17:17).
2 Corinthians 1:21-22; Romans 8:23) and He is the One who writes the Torah upon the heart of every believer as prophesied about in the "New" Covenant. The Torah is our mark that we belong to Yahweh (Deuteronomy 6:5-9; Revelation 14:12-13). Remember that Yahshua is the living Word (John 1:1) and the foundation of the Spirit's ministry in our lives is the Word (John 17:17; 14:17, 26). The Torah is the foundation of our faith (Romans 3:31) and is the word of Elohim (Psalm 119:142, 160; John 17:17).
The Spirit Poured Out
So how does all of this tie in with Shavuot? Looking back once more to that eventful day at Mt. Sinai we see that not only did Yahweh want to enter covenant with those there but He gave the terms of the covenant...and this all happened around the time of Shavuot! If we follow the timing of events beginning in Exodus 12, when the Passover was instituted and the days of Unleavened Bread established, we arrive at the giving of the Torah at Sinai near Shavuot.
Moses and all those freed from slavery left Egypt on the first day of Unleavened Bread (Exodus 12:11-17) and then traveled through the wilderness of the Red Sea (Exodus 13:18). It is highly likely that journeying from Egypt to the Red Sea (from Succoth, through Etham and onward) would have taken about three days. This would have led the people to the sea on Firstfruits (Leviticus 23:9-14). This feast of Firstfruits, which falls in the middle of the Days of Unleavened Bread, points to Messiah's victory over death as the firstfruits offering from the dead. What better timing for the Israelites and those with them to experience life from the dead as they were finally free from captivity (Exodus 15) and passed through the water (ie. baptism) of the Red Sea?
Next in Exodus 16:1 we see the children of Israel arriving in the Wilderness of Sin on the fifteenth day of the second month. One month had gone by since their leaving from Egypt. It would have only been another 2 weeks until Shavuot would have been upon them (50 days after Firstfruits in Unleavened Bread). We see that one week passes in chapter 16, which would only leave one week left before Shavuot. In chapter 17 of Exodus we read that the people moved to Rephidim, where they fought against Amalek. Then in chapter 18 Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, came to visit Moses and the people who were encamped at the mountain of Elohim (Exodus 18:5).
Then in Exodus 19:1, after the departure of Jethro we read that it was the third month after the children of Israel had departed from Egypt and had come to the Wilderness of Sinai.
So Yahweh meets with the people, offers them a covenant, and speaks His Torah to them near the time of Shavuot. Remembering that the Torah is written on the heart of a believer only by the Pure Spirit let us look to another eventful day of Shavuot...Acts 2.
"When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place."
- Acts 2:1
Pentecost is the Greek word 'pentekoste' meaning "the fiftieth day" from the Hebrew 'shavuot' meaning "weeks" as in the counting of 50 days after Firstfruits.
As we read on in Acts 2 we see Peter and the others speaking in various languages to those who were gathered for the Feast and delivering the message of repentance and salvation from Elohim. Here, at the Day of Shavuot, Yahweh had poured out His Spirit on those with ears to hear and eyes to see, reversing the confusion He brought to the rebellious at Babel (Genesis 11:1-9) and delivering from slavery to sin, just as He had delivered those from slavery in Egypt (a type of spiritual bondage).
Now remember those words we defined earlier, 'reshiyth' and 'bikkur'?
'Reshiyth', meaning 'the first, in place or order', is in relation to the Feast of Firstfruits in which our Messiah has become the "firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep" (1 Corinthians 15:20).
'Bikkur', which from its root means, 'firstborn' and is used in the Feast of Shavuot, relates to us - His people - defined as those who accept His covenant and walk in His Torah, empowered by the Set-Apart Spirit!
So now we who are in Messiah Yahshua are given the firstfruits of the Spirit as a guarantee on our hearts that we belong in covenant with Him, enabled and empowered, by the Spirit, to walk in His Torah which He has prepared for us to walk in (Ephesians 2:8-10).
Moses and all those freed from slavery left Egypt on the first day of Unleavened Bread (Exodus 12:11-17) and then traveled through the wilderness of the Red Sea (Exodus 13:18). It is highly likely that journeying from Egypt to the Red Sea (from Succoth, through Etham and onward) would have taken about three days. This would have led the people to the sea on Firstfruits (Leviticus 23:9-14). This feast of Firstfruits, which falls in the middle of the Days of Unleavened Bread, points to Messiah's victory over death as the firstfruits offering from the dead. What better timing for the Israelites and those with them to experience life from the dead as they were finally free from captivity (Exodus 15) and passed through the water (ie. baptism) of the Red Sea?
Next in Exodus 16:1 we see the children of Israel arriving in the Wilderness of Sin on the fifteenth day of the second month. One month had gone by since their leaving from Egypt. It would have only been another 2 weeks until Shavuot would have been upon them (50 days after Firstfruits in Unleavened Bread). We see that one week passes in chapter 16, which would only leave one week left before Shavuot. In chapter 17 of Exodus we read that the people moved to Rephidim, where they fought against Amalek. Then in chapter 18 Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, came to visit Moses and the people who were encamped at the mountain of Elohim (Exodus 18:5).
Then in Exodus 19:1, after the departure of Jethro we read that it was the third month after the children of Israel had departed from Egypt and had come to the Wilderness of Sinai.
So Yahweh meets with the people, offers them a covenant, and speaks His Torah to them near the time of Shavuot. Remembering that the Torah is written on the heart of a believer only by the Pure Spirit let us look to another eventful day of Shavuot...Acts 2.
"When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place."
- Acts 2:1
Pentecost is the Greek word 'pentekoste' meaning "the fiftieth day" from the Hebrew 'shavuot' meaning "weeks" as in the counting of 50 days after Firstfruits.
As we read on in Acts 2 we see Peter and the others speaking in various languages to those who were gathered for the Feast and delivering the message of repentance and salvation from Elohim. Here, at the Day of Shavuot, Yahweh had poured out His Spirit on those with ears to hear and eyes to see, reversing the confusion He brought to the rebellious at Babel (Genesis 11:1-9) and delivering from slavery to sin, just as He had delivered those from slavery in Egypt (a type of spiritual bondage).
Now remember those words we defined earlier, 'reshiyth' and 'bikkur'?
'Reshiyth', meaning 'the first, in place or order', is in relation to the Feast of Firstfruits in which our Messiah has become the "firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep" (1 Corinthians 15:20).
'Bikkur', which from its root means, 'firstborn' and is used in the Feast of Shavuot, relates to us - His people - defined as those who accept His covenant and walk in His Torah, empowered by the Set-Apart Spirit!
So now we who are in Messiah Yahshua are given the firstfruits of the Spirit as a guarantee on our hearts that we belong in covenant with Him, enabled and empowered, by the Spirit, to walk in His Torah which He has prepared for us to walk in (Ephesians 2:8-10).
"For you have not come to the mountain that may be touched and that burned with fire
and to the blackness and darkness and tempest, and the sound of a trumpet
and the voice of words, so that those who heard it begged that the word
should not be spoken to them anymore.
(For they could not endure what was commanded:
'And if so much as a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned
or shot with an arrow.
And so terrifying was the sight that Moses said,
'I am exceedingly afraid and trembling.')
But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living Elohim,
the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels,
to the general assembly and congregation of the firstborn
who are registered in heaven,
to Elohim the Judge of all,
to the spirits of just men made perfect,
to Yahshua the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the
blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel."
- Hebrews 12:18-24
and to the blackness and darkness and tempest, and the sound of a trumpet
and the voice of words, so that those who heard it begged that the word
should not be spoken to them anymore.
(For they could not endure what was commanded:
'And if so much as a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned
or shot with an arrow.
And so terrifying was the sight that Moses said,
'I am exceedingly afraid and trembling.')
But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living Elohim,
the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels,
to the general assembly and congregation of the firstborn
who are registered in heaven,
to Elohim the Judge of all,
to the spirits of just men made perfect,
to Yahshua the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the
blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel."
- Hebrews 12:18-24