Chapter 23
Enumeration of all the feasts and holy days.
The Sabbath
1. Passover, First month, fourteenth day, at twilight.
2. Feast of Unleavened Bread,. First month, fifteenth day, lasting 7 days.
2025 - note the phrasing here: Leviticus 23:8 NASB1995 [8] But for seven days you shall present an offering by fire to the Lord. On the seventh day is a holy convocation; you shall not do any laborious work.’ ” No laborious work as contrasted with no work at all including no elevator floor selections or turning on burners. ESV translates it "no ordinary work". Darby goes with "no manner of servile work", as does KJV. In fact, this word, Strongs H5656, occurs 141 times in the KJV and is translated service 96 of those. The idea seems to be that you can't go to work as usual for someone else on this day, but not at all that you can't tie your own shoes! Violating the Sabbath was a capitol offense under the law. Do we really think God would have them stoned for pushing an elevator button? That one guy DID get stoned for picking up sticks, but perhaps that was his job rather than just fire his own use.
https://bible.com/bible/100/lev.23.8.NASB1995
3. Feast of Firstfruits. Specifically says this is forever.
4. The Feast of Weeks. Seven weeks after firstfruits. Forever.
2022 - For the first time, I note that the bread offered here is to be baked with leaven. It is a wave offering. These verses:
"18 And you shall present with the bread seven lambs a year old without blemish, and one bull from the herd and two rams. They shall be a burnt offering to the LORD, with their grain offering and their drink offerings, a food offering with a pleasing aroma to the LORD. 19 And you shall offer one male goat for a sin offering, and two male lambs a year old as a sacrifice of peace offerings. 20 And the priest shall wave them with the bread of the firstfruits as a wave offering before the LORD, with the two lambs. They shall be holy to the LORD for the priest." [Lev 23:18-20 ESV]
So the bread and the seven lambs and a bull as a burnt offering. The lambs and bull are sacrificed with their grain and drink offerings. Burnt offering comes first.
Then a male goat as a sin offering.
Then 2 male lambs as a peace offering. These lambs are waved. The peace offering is never burned up all the way, nor carried outside. The priests eat the peace offering.
Several of these say they are statutes forever, in all your dwelling places, throughout your generations. This might well mean that they should continue even after the perfect sacrifice. Maybe this is why the temple will be rebuilt and why sacrifices will recommence someday, as seems to be implied in the NT.
2025 - stated this way: 21 ...It is a statute forever in all your dwelling places throughout your generations. [Lev 23:21b ESV]. Here is the point. If the church and the Jews are now one and t he same, and not any different, would not this "forever" statute, along with several others, be incumbent upon the church? I mean, the Jews indeed DO still observed these. Why don't we? And shouldn't the Jews be doing the Lord's Supper and Baptism...of course we see that they don't because of blindness, but supposedly we do see.
5. Feast of Trumpets. Seventh month, first day.
6. The Day of Atonement. Seventh month, tenth day. From evening the 9th day of the month, until evening the 10th day. A 24 hour fast, once a year. People were to afflict themselves, and if they did not, they were to be cut off. MSB implies that the affliction was to fast on this day. This sacrifice is forever.
2025 - 21 And you shall make a proclamation on the same day. You shall hold a holy convocation. You shall not do any ordinary work. It is a statute forever in all your dwelling places throughout your generations. ... 28 And you shall not do any work on that very day, for it is a Day of Atonement, to make atonement for you before the LORD your God. [Lev 23:21, 28 ESV]. That other noun, that I think means "service work", is missing in this verse. H5656 is not here t his time. THIS one means no work at all! It repeats the none at all idea in vs 31. This one is, I think, a lot more restrictive than the do no service work injunction.
2025 - After noting these ideas, and looking back to vs 3, and the statute about the Sabbath, it is definitely a Sabbath of COMPLETE rest. No work for others, but also no work for ourselves. After this year's reading, I think this still applies if you put Israel and the church together. Which I do not.
7. The Feast of Booths. Seventh month, fifteenth day. lasting 7 days. Forever.
2022 - Much much later, Hanukah was added to these.