Exodus 23:14

23:14 “Three times ¹  in the year you must make a pilgrim feast ²  to me.

Exodus 23:17

23:17 At ³  three times in the year all your males will appear before the Lord God. ⁴ 

Exodus 34:23

34:23 At three times ⁵  in the year all your men ⁶  must appear before the Lord God, ⁷  the God of Israel.

Deuteronomy 16:16

16:16 Three times a year all your males must appear before the Lord your God in the place he chooses for the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Weeks, and the Festival of Temporary Shelters; and they must not appear before him ⁸  empty-handed.

Luke 2:41

Jesus in the Temple

2:41 Now ⁹  Jesus’ ¹⁰  parents went to Jerusalem ¹¹  every ¹²  year for the feast of the Passover. ¹³ 

¹ tn The expression rendered “three times” is really “three feet,” or “three foot-beats.” The expression occurs only a few times in the Law. The expressing is an adverbial accusative.

² tn This is the word תָּחֹג (takhog) from the root חָגַג (khagag); it describes a feast that was accompanied by a pilgrimage. It was first used by Moses in his appeal that Israel go three days into the desert to hold such a feast.

³ tn Adverbial accusative of time: “three times” becomes “at three times.”

⁴ tn Here the divine Name reads in Hebrew הָאָדֹן יְהוָה (ha’adon yÿhvah), which if rendered according to the traditional scheme of “Lord” for “Yahweh” would result in “Lord Lord.” A number of English versions therefore render this phrase “Lord God,” and that convention has been followed here.

⁵ tn “Three times” is an adverbial accusative.

⁶ tn Heb “all your males.”

⁷ tn Here the divine name reads in Hebrew הָאָדֹן יְהוָה (ha’adon yÿhvah), which if rendered according to the traditional scheme of “Lord” for “Yahweh” would result in “Lord Lord.” A number of English versions therefore render this phrase “Lord God,” and that convention has been followed here.

⁸ tn Heb “the Lord.” See note on “he” in 16:1.

⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.

¹⁰ tn Grk “his”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹¹ map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

¹² tn On the distributive use of the term κατά (kata), see BDF §305.

¹³ sn The custom of Jesus and his family going to Jerusalem every year for the feast of the Passover shows their piety in obeying the law (Exod 23:14-17).