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Texts -- Leviticus 23:1-31 (NET)

Context
Regulations for Israel’s Appointed Times
23:1 The Lord spoke to Moses : 23:2 “Speak to the Israelites and tell them, ‘These are the Lord’s appointed times which you must proclaim as holy assemblies – my appointed times :
The Weekly Sabbath
23:3 “‘Six days work may be done , but on the seventh day there must be a Sabbath of complete rest , a holy assembly . You must not do any work ; it is a Sabbath to the Lord in all the places where you live .
The Festival of Passover and Unleavened Bread
23:4 “‘These are the Lord’s appointed times , holy assemblies , which you must proclaim at their appointed time . 23:5 In the first month , on the fourteenth day of the month , at twilight , is a Passover offering to the Lord . 23:6 Then on the fifteenth day of the same month will be the festival of unleavened bread to the Lord ; seven days you must eat unleavened bread . 23:7 On the first day there will be a holy assembly for you; you must not do any regular work . 23:8 You must present a gift to the Lord for seven days , and the seventh day is a holy assembly ; you must not do any regular work .’”
The Presentation of First Fruits
23:9 The Lord spoke to Moses : 23:10 “Speak to the Israelites and tell them, ‘When you enter the land that I am about to give to you and you gather in its harvest , then you must bring the sheaf of the first portion of your harvest to the priest , 23:11 and he must wave the sheaf before the Lord to be accepted for your benefit– on the day after the Sabbath the priest is to wave it. 23:12 On the day you wave the sheaf you must also offer a flawless yearling lamb for a burnt offering to the Lord , 23:13 along with its grain offering , two tenths of an ephah of choice wheat flour mixed with olive oil , as a gift to the Lord , a soothing aroma , and its drink offering , one fourth of a hin of wine . 23:14 You must not eat bread , roasted grain , or fresh grain until this very day , until you bring the offering of your God . This is a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all the places where you live .
The Festival of Weeks
23:15 “‘You must count for yourselves seven weeks from the day after the Sabbath , from the day you bring the wave offering sheaf ; they must be complete weeks . 23:16 You must count fifty days – until the day after the seventh Sabbath – and then you must present a new grain offering to the Lord . 23:17 From the places where you live you must bring two loaves of bread for a wave offering ; they must be made from two tenths of an ephah of fine wheat flour , baked with yeast , as first fruits to the Lord . 23:18 Along with the loaves of bread , you must also present seven flawless yearling lambs , one young bull , and two rams . They are to be a burnt offering to the Lord along with their grain offering and drink offerings , a gift of a soothing aroma to the Lord . 23:19 You must also offer one male goat for a sin offering and two yearling lambs for a peace offering sacrifice , 23:20 and the priest is to wave them– the two lambs – along with the bread of the first fruits , as a wave offering before the Lord ; they will be holy to the Lord for the priest . 23:21 “‘On this very day you must proclaim an assembly; it is to be a holy assembly for you. You must not do any regular work . This is a perpetual statute in all the places where you live throughout your generations . 23:22 When you gather in the harvest of your land , you must not completely harvest the corner of your field , and you must not gather up the gleanings of your harvest . You must leave them for the poor and the foreigner . I am the Lord your God .’”
The Festival of Horn Blasts
23:23 The Lord spoke to Moses : 23:24 “Tell the Israelites , ‘In the seventh month , on the first day of the month , you must have a complete rest , a memorial announced by loud horn blasts , a holy assembly . 23:25 You must not do any regular work , but you must present a gift to the Lord .’”
The Day of Atonement
23:26 The Lord spoke to Moses : 23:27 “The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement . It is to be a holy assembly for you, and you must humble yourselves and present a gift to the Lord . 23:28 You must not do any work on this particular day , because it is a day of atonement to make atonement for yourselves before the Lord your God . 23:29 Indeed , any person who does not behave with humility on this particular day will be cut off from his people . 23:30 As for any person who does any work on this particular day , I will exterminate that person from the midst of his people ! 23:31 You must not do any work . This is a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all the places where you live .

Pericope

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  • Inilah Hari Kelima Puluh [KJ.241]
  • [Lev 23:3] Holy Sabbath
  • [Lev 23:3] Lord, This Day Thy Children Meet
  • [Lev 23:3] Opening Hymn

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Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • Moses revealed God's purpose for giving the Mosaic Covenant in this chapter.19:1-6 The Israelites arrived at the base of the mountain where God gave them the law about three months after they had left Egypt, in May-June (v. 1...
  • The Hebrews derived the title of this book from the first word in it, wayyiqra', translated "And He [the Lord] called"(1:1). "And"or "then"is a conjunction that shows that what follows in Leviticus is a continuation of the na...
  • "At first sight the book of Leviticus might appear to be a haphazard, even repetitious arrangement of enactments involving the future life in Canaan of the Israelite people. Closer examination will reveal, however, that quite...
  • Leviticus continues revelation concerning the second of three elements necessary for any nation to exist, namely, a people (Gen. 12:10--Exod. 19), their law (Exod. 20--Num. 10:10), and their land (Num. 10:11--Josh. 24).Leviti...
  • The peace (fellowship, NIV) offering was the third sacrifice of worship. It represented the fellowship between God and man that resulted from the relationship that God had established with the redeemed individual. Peace and f...
  • The sacrifices and offerings that Moses described thus far in the law were not sufficient to cleanse all the defilement that the sins of the people created. Much sinfulness still needed covering. Therefore God appointed a yea...
  • The second major division of Leviticus deals with how the Israelites were to express their worship of Yahweh in their private lives."The first sixteen chapters of Leviticus are concerned primarily with establishment and maint...
  • We move from public regulations in chapter 16 to intimate regulations in chapter 18 with chapter 17 providing the transition. In contrast to the first sixteen chapters, chapter 17 says very little about the role of the priest...
  • God considered the Israelites (chs. 17-20), the priests, the holy gifts, and the sacrifices (chs. 21-22) as set apart to Him as holy. He regarded certain days and times of the year in the same way (ch. 23). This chapter conta...
  • The Sabbath (v. 3) was, of course, a weekly observance in contrast to the other feasts that occurred only once a year. Moses introduced the annual holidays in verse 4. God had prescribed Sabbath observance earlier (Exod. 20:8...
  • Verse 4 introduces the seven annual festivals.In one sense the Passover (Heb. Pesah, v. 5) was the most important feast (cf. Exod. 12:1-28). It commemorated God's deliverance of Israel from Egyptian slavery by a powerful supe...
  • The Feast of Firstfruits included the presentation of firstfruits of the spring barley harvest in the Promised Land. The Israelites also offered a lamb, flour, and wine, all representative of God's provisions of spiritual and...
  • This festival had several names: Harvest, Weeks, and Pentecost (Gr. pentekostos, meaning "fiftieth"). It fell at the end of the spring harvest 50 days after Passover, namely, the day after the end of the seventh week. Penteco...
  • During the seventh month of Israel's religious calendar three festivals took place. This reflects the importance that God attached to the number seven in the Mosaic economy. Not only was the seventh day special (v. 3) but so ...
  • Moses described this day (Heb. Yom Kippur) in chapter 16 more fully for the priests' benefit. Here he stressed the responsibilities of the average Israelite.This day was a fast rather than a feast. The people were to "humble"...
  • Genesis reveals how people can have a relationship with God. This comes through trust in God and obedience to Him. Faith is the key word in Genesis. God proves Himself faithful in this book.Exodus reveals that God is also sov...
  • Another step in preparing to enter Canaan involved setting forth in an organized fashion all the sacrifices that God required the priests to offer for the whole nation during a year. These offerings maintained fellowship with...
  • The point of connection of this section with what precedes is the sacrificial meals. Moses repeated here the instructions regarding those important feasts that included sacrificial meals that the people would eat at the taber...
  • 5:13-15 "Despite Joshua's long military experience he had never led an attack on a fortified city that was prepared for a long siege. In fact, of all the walled cities in Palestine, Jericho was probably the most invincible. T...
  • God eventually withdrew the famine from Judah (v. 6) probably in response to His people's calling out to Him for deliverance (cf. Judg. 3:9, 15; 4:3; 6:6; 10:10; 16:28). This verse sounds one of the major themes of the story:...
  • The motif of God's providence, His working out His own plan through the circumstances of life, which runs through the Book of Ruth, is especially strong in this pericope.The writer introduced Boaz as a kinsman (lit. acquainta...
  • The text does not record exactly when the exiles arrived in Jerusalem, but it was probably sometime in 537 B.C. since Cyrus issued his decree in 538 B.C. The "seventh month"(v. 1) of the Jew's sacred calendar was Tishri (late...
  • Compared with the dedication of the first temple this one was very modest. Solomon had offered more than 200 times as many animals.96The Jews offered one sin offering, which involved slaying a goat, for each of the 12 tribes ...
  • This ceremony reflects the form of Israelite worship that had developed in exile. Almost the same elements that characterized the synagogue services begun then appear here. The people assembled, there was a request for the re...
  • Note that the spiritually revived people had an insatiable appetite to learn more about God's Word. This is a normal outcome of true revival.Apparently part of what Ezra and his associates read to the people, or at least to t...
  • 2:1-2a The Lord spoke to Jeremiah and instructed him to proclaim a message to the people of Jerusalem, a message from Yahweh.2:2b The Lord recalled how His people used to love (Heb. hesed) Him devotedly when they were followi...
  • There were three aspects to Judah's failure: the people's perversity (vv. 20-25), their injustice (vv. 26-29), and their leaders (vv. 30-31).143"Jeremiah rebukes the Judeans as a whole for their utter stupidity and lack of mo...
  • 45:18-20 On the first new year's day of each year the people should offer a young bull without blemish to cleanse the accumulated sinful defilement of the sanctuary. The priest in charge was to apply some of the blood of a si...
  • Joel called on four different entities to mourn the results of the locust invasion: drunkards (vv. 5-7), the land (vv. 8-10), farmers (vv. 11-12), and priests (v. 13). In each section there is a call to mourn followed by reas...
  • 6:16 Fasting in Israel involved going without food to engage in a spiritual exercise, usually prayer, with greater concentration. Fasting fostered and indicated self-humiliation before God, and confession often accompanied it...
  • This parable stresses the extensive ultimate consequences of the kingdom that would be out of all proportion to its insignificant beginnings."Whereas the parable of the mustard seed answers the question of whether the phase o...
  • 27:51a The inner veil of the temple is undoubtedly in view here, the one separating the holy place from the holy of holies (cf. Heb. 4:16; 6:19-20; 9:11-28; 10:19-22). The tearing happened at 3:00 p.m., the time of the evenin...
  • John omitted the earthquake, the angel rolling away the stone that covered the tomb entrance, and his sitting on the stone (Matt. 28:2-3). He also did not include the appearance of two angels to the women who visited the tomb...
  • 3:17-18 If Peter's charges against his hearers were harsh (vv. 13-15), his concession that they acted out of ignorance was tender. Peter undoubtedly hoped that his gentle approach would win a reversal of his hearers' attitude...
  • Paul began by reaffirming their commonly held belief: Jesus Christ was raised from the dead. In this section the apostle stressed the objective reality of both Jesus Christ's death and resurrection.15:1 The Corinthians and al...
  • Paul turned next to show that the resurrection of Christ makes the resurrection of believers both necessary and inevitable. The consequences of this fact are as glorious as the effects of His not being raised are dismal. Thos...
  • As the preceding verse revealed, Paul's plans were tentative to some extent. He wanted the Corinthians to know that he anticipated a return to Corinth and hopefully a stay of several months. Timothy and Apollos might return t...
  • 2:26 The "these things"in view probably refer to what John had just written (vv. 18-25)."The author concludes his attack on the false teachers with a warning and a word of encouragement for his followers."992:27 The "anointin...

Expositions Of Holy Scripture (Maclaren)

  • Lev. 23:33-44And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 34. Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the feast of tabernacles for seven days unto the Lord. 35. On the first day s...
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