Bible Strands
Leviticus 23:34
“Speak to the Israelites and say, ‘On the fifteenth day of the seventh month the Feast of Tabernacles to the LORD begins, and it continues for seven days.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — God instructs Moses to address the Israelites regarding the upcoming festival. This command occurs within the broader list of appointed feast days in Leviticus 23.
The words — The Hebrew verb דַּבֵּר (dabber) commands "speak," and the phrase בַּחֲמִשָּׁה עָשָׂר יוֹם (ba-chamishah asar yom) specifies "on the fifteenth day." These terms anchor the directive in precise verbal authority and chronological markers.
The thread — The festival's chronological anchor appears in Numbers 29:12 and Nehemiah 8:14, which record its observance and later restoration. The Gospel of John 7:2 merely notes the feast's proximity in the narrative timeline without detailing its requirements.
Why it lands — The text establishes a fixed calendar marker for communal worship before deriving any application. Readers must recognize the commanded timeline as a structural boundary for Israel's religious observance.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
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.
Cross-references
- Nehemiah 8:14 And they found written in the Law, which the LORD had commanded through Moses, that the Israelites were to dwell in booths during the feast of the seventh month,
- John 7:2 However, the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles was near.
- Numbers 29:12 On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, you are to hold a sacred assembly; you must not do any regular work, and you shall observe a feast to the LORD for seven days.
- Ezra 3:4 They also celebrated the Feast of Tabernacles in accordance with what is written, and they offered burnt offerings daily based on the number prescribed for each day.
- Exodus 34:22 And you are to celebrate the Feast of Weeks with the firstfruits of the wheat harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering at the turn of the year.
- Zechariah 14:16 Then all the survivors from the nations that came against Jerusalem will go up year after year to worship the King, the LORD of Hosts, and to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles.
- Exodus 23:16 You are also to keep the Feast of Harvest with the firstfruits of the produce from what you sow in the field. And keep the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year, when you gather your produce from the field.
- Deuteronomy 16:13 You are to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days after you have gathered the produce of your threshing floor and your winepress.
- John 1:14 The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
- Hebrews 11:9 By faith he dwelt in the promised land as a stranger in a foreign country. He lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise.