Feast of Tabernacles/Sukkot & the 8th day

Tabernacles last 7 days + the 8^th day make it 8 days, which was for the Israelites to celebrate their wanderings for 40 years.  It was a week to dwell in booths, or tents (tabernacles-sukkot), to remember the desert journey. It is a very joyful week.

This feast is the most joyous Appointed Time within the yearly cycle. This is the last of the 3 Pilgrimage Feasts (Unleavened Bread & Shavuot).

Leviticus 23:34-36 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying, ‘On the fifteenth day of this seventh month is the Festival of Booths for seven days to Yahuah. ‘On the first day is a set-apart gathering, you do no servile work. ‘For seven days you bring an offering made by fire to Yahuah. On the eighth day there shall be a set-apart gathering for you, and you shall bring an offering made by fire to Yahuah. It is a closing festival, you do no servile work.

Deuteronomy 16:13-14 “Perform the Festival of Booths for seven days after the ingathering from your threshing-floor and from your winepress, and you shall rejoice in your festival, you and your son and your daughter, and your male servant and your female servant, and the Levite, and the stranger and the fatherless and the widow who are within your gates.

Sukkot (Succot) was always to occur at “the end of days,” the end of the harvest season. The grain had previously been cut, gathered, threshed and presented at Shavuot. Now the fruits had been harvested, and brought before Yahuah. There was new wine and that was especially helpful relative to the command to rejoice. It was time to go to the House of Yahuah and celebrate.

A sukkah, the singular for of sukkot, is a tent or temporary dwelling place (tabernacle). The covenant people construct and reside in each year to commemorate living with Yahuah. Our sukkot is a temporary house as we look forward to dwelling in the permanent House of Yahuah that He builds.

Sukkot is a feast that lasts 7 days, the first day is a Sabbath (rest) day but the last day; the 7^th is not a Sabbath. The last day is linked to the last of the days of judgment, or the final judgment. Sukkot is a seven day feast followed by an eighth day, a separate day from Sukkot.

On this day, 5 days after the Day of Atonement, Yahuah proceeds to tabernacle with man for 1,000 years.  It pictures Elohim living with His creation (Revelation 20:11-chapter 22). He came to “tabernacle among us” – John 1:14.

 

The 8^th day is a final Appointed Time beyond the 7^th day of Sukkot and simply called the 8^th day. The 8^th day is a Sabbath day.

Leviticus 23:36 on the eighth day there shall be a set-apart gathering for you, and you shall bring an offering made by fire to Yahuah. It is a closing festival, you do no servile work.

On the last day of the Festival they dance with the Torah throughout the streets, in celebration of the Word of Yahuah.

Many things in the scriptures happened on the 8^th day; circumcision, firstborn given to Yahuah and the 8^th day the tabernacle was opened for business. The 8^th day was a day of new beginnings for the covenant people in their relationship with Yahuah.

The sukka is to remind us that Israel dwelled in temporary structures prior to moving into the Promised Land. This 8^th day also involves dwelling with Yahuah. It is when the House is opened to those in the covenant. It is when we leave our temporary dwellings, transcend time and abide with Him.

It is the time of the restoration of all things.

Acts 3:19-21 “Repent therefore and turn back, for the blotting out of your sins, in order that times of refreshing might come from the presence of the Master, and that He sends Yahusha Messiah (Jesus), pre-appointed for you, whom heaven needs to receive until the times of restoration of all matters, of which Elohim spoke through the mouth of all His set-apart prophets since of old.

In John 7:37-39, we read: “On the last day, the great day of the Feast”, during the celebration of the water pouring, Yahusha stood up and declared “If any man thirst, let him come to Me and drink.  He that believes on Me, as the Scriptures has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.

The Bride of Messiah will rule and reign with her Bridegroom, not only for this 1,000 years, but in the New Jerusalem, forever - (Revelation 19-22). There are many passages in the Word, which describe the peace and prosperity of this time.

 

This Feast also pictures the coming of the Father to the earth at the end of the age.  He will come to rise up the wicked, and judge them, sending them justly to the lake of fire.  He will create a new heaven and a new earth, and bring His City—the New Jerusalem—down over the earth, where He will reign from forever.

HallelluYah! Praise our Almighty.