These are the first two feasts of the year. For now, just notice their structure or their arrangement. There is a one-day feast (Passover), followed by a seven-day feast.
So, we saw that the first two feasts were a one-day feast followed by a seven-day feast, and here we see that same pattern, but in reverse, like a mirror. The last feasts of the year are a seven-day feast, followed by a one-day feast. That is not an accident. As we will see, what we observe later in the year relates to what we observe at the beginning.
Knowing what we do of God, both as the Creator and as the One who inspired these things, we should know that this is not happenstance. In everything God does, there is a purpose and precision, and His written word is no exception. His feasts and holy days are no exception. And this arrangement of one day plus seven days, and then seven days plus one, is also no exception. This pattern invites us to explore these feasts together, which will help us to get just a little more into the mind of their Author.
And that's what we will be doing today. We will compare and contrast Unleavened Bread and Tabernacles. We will look at what is the same and what is different, so that we might uncover connections that we may not have seen before.
And for our topic today, the eight feast days are also arranged in a chiasm. Passover relates to the 8th Day. The First Day of Unleavened Bread - and, really, most of Unleavened Bread - relates to Tabernacles. The Last Day of Unleavened Bread relates to Atonement. And Pentecost and Trumpets are linked as well. We have tended to look at them just as a sequence, but when we identify the commonalities between the pairs, it helps us to better understand what God is teaching us with these times that He has set apart.
As we read, the reason that we stay in temporary dwellings is because God made the Israelites stay in booths when He delivered them from slavery in Egypt. Now, maybe it seems unusual that the instructions for this feast mention the exodus, which we associate with the Unleavened Bread. We have tended to think of Tabernacles in terms of looking ahead. But by God's command, Israel had to look back to and remember the exodus journey, and this applies to us as well.
This passage is all about the First Day of Unleavened Bread, beginning with the night of solemn observance, just after sunset. Unleavened Bread pictures God's deliverance from the environment of sin. It is about what God did and does for us - it is a memorial of His deliverance. But notice where this took place: Verse 37 puts the beginning of the exodus at Succoth. That was the first place they camped after leaving Ramses in Egypt proper.
So, this is a commonality with Tabernacles, because the place the Israelites camped for the First Day of Unleavened Bread is what this feast is named after. The Jews call this Feast Sukkot, which is the Hebrew word for tabernacle, tent, or booth. And the name of the first place the Israelites camped is Succoth, which is the same word, except that it is plural. So, the Israelites stayed in booths in Succoth. This is curious because they stayed in booths in the place that had already been named booths. It was already named Succoth when they got there and made their camp. The backstory to this is found in Genesis 33:17:
So, the place the Israelites camped for the First Day of Unleavened Bread was named after the dwellings Jacob made for his animals, and those dwellings are what this current feast is named after. It's one of those understated connections in God's word. But it shows a linkage between these feasts. They have a common origin.
Another commonality with these feasts is that they are both kept for seven days. That may sound obvious, and it is, but it is worth reviewing God's commands so we don't forget. Back in verse 6, it says, …seven days you must eat unleavened bread. You don't have to turn to these, but I will read to you the same command in other … . . .
