“You shall rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days”

“You shall live in booths for seven days” Leviticus 23:40c, 42a

HEAVEN, FOR SURE I’M GOING THERE

A Study of the Jewish Sukkot Celebration

Lev. 23:33-36; 39-43

...On the fifteenth day of this seventh month is the Festival of Sukkot, seven days for the L-RD. -Lev. 23:34

The Festival of Sukkot begins on the fifth day after Yom Kippur. Agriculturally, Sukkot is a harvest festival. "Sukkot" means "booths," and refers to the temporary dwellings that we are commanded to live in during this holiday in memory of the period of wandering. The name of the holiday is frequently translated "Feast of Tabernacles," which, like many translations of Jewish terms, isn't very useful. This translation is particularly misleading, because the word "tabernacle" in the Bible refers to the portable Sanctuary in the desert, a precursor to the Temple. Sukkot lasts for seven days. No work is permitted on the first and eighth days of the holiday.

From the study of the Festival of Sukkot we learn a lot about Heaven which is no coincidence but rather a mystery in scriptures that requires a little studying. First, we talk a little about how the orthodox Jews celebrate this festival, even today.

Sukkot hearkens back to times in ancient Israel when Jews would build huts near the edges of their fields during the harvest season. One of these dwellings was called a "sukkah" and "sukkot" is the plural form of this Hebrew word. These dwellings not only provided shade but allowed the workers to maximize the amount of time they spent in the fields, harvesting their food more quickly as a result.

Sukkot is also related to the way the Jewish people lived while wandering in the desert for 40 years as recorded in Lev. As they moved from one place to another they built tents or booths, called Sukkot that gave them temporary shelter in the desert.

At the beginning of sukkot (often during the days between Yom Kippur and Sukkot) Jews construct a sukkah. In ancient times people would live in the sukkot and eat every meal in them. In modern times people most often build a sukkah in their backyards or help their synagogue construct one for the community. This custom was so popular in ancient days that as the people came to Jerusalem and for those that lived there, every available plot of ground would be covered by a booth, the sukkot.

In constructing the Sukkot, an important requirement is that there should be nothing between your sukkah and the open sky. The sukkah needs to be covered with raw, unfinished vegetable matter. Many communities decorate the sukkah with colorful posters depicting holiday themes, by hanging fresh fruits or other decorations from the beams. A sukkah must have at least three walls. The walls must be at least 32 inches high, and the entire structure may not be taller than 30 feet.

Few people live in the sukkah today but it is popular to eat at least one meal in it. At the beginning of the meal a special blessing is recited, which goes: "Blessed are you, Adonai our God, Ruler of the universe, who has sanctified us with commandments, and commanded us to dwell in the sukkah. It is interesting that they Wave the ‘etrog’ which is related to our lemon and the ‘lulav’ which is a myrtle twig such as our modern day crepe myrtles that are so colorful. They follow prescribed patterns in waving the foliage to represent God’s dominion over Creation. Evidently, Jesus was pleased with this form of worship since he never reprimanded the Jews in any of his teachings such as he did in their ceremonial washing of the cups, pitchers and kettles, Mark 7:4. Their worship was a farce, he told them but never did he talk in a negative way about their worship of God in the Festival of Tabernacles. Deuteronomy 17:13-15

Instead, it is very interesting to note that in John 7 through 10 Jesus celebrated Sukkot, the Feast of Tabernacles which was referred to as the Festival of Shelters, John 7:2, 10. Branches have been symbolized as symbols of worship as Isaiah wrote in Isaiah 55:12,

“The trees of the fields will clap their hands! . . . . . . . ”

The multitudes from Jerusalem, on meeting Jesus, 'cut down branches from the trees, and strewed them in the way,’ Matt 21:8, 9; John 12:12,13 which was a reference to Christ. On the last day of the festival, Jesus declared that he was the source of living water, referring to the Holy Spirit that would be sent, John 7:37-39.

With joy you will drink deeply from the fountain of salvation, Isaiah 12:3

In the center of the court stood four towering menorahs (lamp stands), each with four branches of oil lamps. Their wicks were manufactured from the worn-out linen garments of the priests. Each menorah had long ladders leading up to the lamps which were periodically refilled by young priests carrying large pitchers of olive oil up ladders to a height of 75 feet. The Feast of Tabernacles began in the middle of the lunar month when the harvest moon was full and the autumn sky was clear. The outline of the surrounding Judean hills was clearly visible in the soft moonlight. Against this backdrop, the light of the Temple celebration was breathtaking. All night long, the elders of the Sanhedrin performed impressive torch dances, while the steady yellow flames of the menorah oil lamps flooded the Temple area and the streets of Jerusalem with brilliant light. Although Jerusalem was usually very dark with just little lanterns burning here and there, a fire burning in a stove, during this festival, the city of Jerusalem was blazing with light. It was in this setting that Jesus told the people,

“I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life, John 8:12

During this celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles, Jesus reminded the people that he was the water of life (John 7:37, 38) and they celebrated a water-pouring ceremony as part of the celebration. He told them he was the light of the world as they enjoyed the blazing light of burning olive oil in the 75-foot-tall menorah

“. . . . . . . I am the light of the world.” John 9:5b

Jesus explained that he was the good shepherd whose purpose is to give a rich and satisfying life, John 10:1-10. He is our provision for a physical harvest and every need that we have.

The seven days of the festival picture the world to come and the 1,000 Millennial Kingdom age. Yeshua was born during the Festival of Sukkot and the meaning of ‘the word became human and tabernacled with us’ (John 1:14) foretells the Millennial kingdom when the King Messiah will again tabernacle with us forever and ever.

We will now look at the significance of the Sukkot as a description of Heaven and our eternity with Jesus. Moses wrote, as directed by God, that the celebration of the Sukkot Festival must be observed for seven days each year and then the very significant command—‘This is a permanent law for you,’ Lev. 23:41. That simply means that it is a perpetual statute and in the same way eternity is forever and ever, Rev. 22:5,

“. . . . . . . . And they will reign forever and ever.”

As is true for heaven where the Apostle John writes, “Yes, says the Spirit, they are blessed indeed and they will rest from their hard work….” Rev. 14:1, so the Jews were commanded to rest during some of the festival days.

“ . . . The first and eighth day of the festival will be days of complete rest.” Lev. 23:39

“In heaven there will be rejoicing and gladness,” Rev. 19:7

In the same way, during the celebration of the Sukkot Festival, there was to be rejoicing.

“Then celebrate with joy before the Lord your God for seven days” Lev. 23:40

The sukkah was a temporary dwelling place for Moses writes in Leviticus that for seven days you must live outside in little shelters, Lev. 23:42

In the same way, during this present age, we are in temporary bodies but we are being given an eternal body as Jesus explains to the people during the festival celebration.

The people were arguing as to whether this indeed was the Messiah (John 7:25-27), Jesus told them that they could not go where he was going, John 7:34. He was speaking to the sinners, those that would not make it to heaven and it is true today as well, anyone who does not confess that he is indeed the Messiah, will not go where he is going. To the believers, however, he tells them they have a home prepared for them, John 14:2, 3.

In heaven we will be given our glorified bodies,

For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. II Cor. 5:1

He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control. Phil. 3:21

From Moses to the time of Christ, sins were forgiven through the atonement, the death of an animal, the shedding of blood. During the festival, Jesus was confronted with teachers of religious law and the Pharisees who brought a sinner to him, wanting Jesus to condemn the woman since she had been caught in the act of adultery but Jesus, at the end of his discussion with the accusers, simply told the woman, . . . Go and sin no more,” John 8:11.

In heaven, John writes, that there will be no more death or sorrow, crying or pain, Rev. 21:4. All these things are gone forever. There will be no more death from sin. There will be no tempter so there will be no sin.

During the seven days of celebration of the Sukkot, there was worshipping and glorifying God and as already mentioned, Jesus never reprimanded the people for insincere or wrongful acts of worship since he was pleased with their worship. During this present age, Jesus is glorified by the Father (John 8:54) and in heaven, of which the Sukkot is a type, the people and angels will be worshipping God together.

After this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb. They were clothed in white robes and held palm branches in their hands. And they were shouting with a mighty shout, “Salvation comes from our God who sits on the throne and from the Lamb!” And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living beings. And they fell before the throne with their faces to the ground and worshiped God. Rev. 7:9-11

Finally we see that the Festival of Sukkot was for all people and as Jesus was celebrating the Feast of Tabernacles, as he walked this earth, he preached to the people telling them that there are other sheep not of this sheepfold, John 10:16. Jesus loves them too, John 3:16. During the Millennial Kingdom, there will be a Divine perpetual light; there will be a continuous day with no darkness, Zechariah 14:7.

Life-giving waters will flow out of Jerusalem, half to the Dead Sea and half to the Mediterranean. There will be plagues on all the nations that fought against Jerusalem and those nations that survive the plague will go to Jerusalem each year to worship the Lord and celebrate the Festival of Shelters. Those nations that refuse to go will not get any rain, Zechariah 14:16, 17, 19. It is very interesting, during the Millennial kingdom, the Feast of Tabernacles, Sukkot, Festival of Shelters will be celebrated. It was celebrated in Ancient Israel, in the present age, from the time of Christ to our day and will be celebrated in the Millennial kingdom as well.

In that final Sukkot, referred to as Paradise, Heaven and Eternity, there will be a crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language worshipping and praising God, Rev. 7:9. What a wonderful time of celebration that will be. Praise be to God, Amen.