Chapter Twenty-Nine

The Feast of Trumpets. – The Day of Atonement. – The Feast of Tabernacles.

Numbers 29:1. In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a holy convocation; you shall not do any ordinary work. It shall be for you a day of blowing the trumpets, Numbers 29:2. and you shall offer a burnt offering, a pleasing aroma to the Lord: one bull from the herd, one ram, and seven male lambs a year old without blemish, Numbers 29:3. with their grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil, three tenths of an ephah for the bull, two tenths for the ram, Numbers 29:4. and one tenth for each of the seven lambs, Numbers 29:5. also one male goat as a sin offering, to make atonement for you; Numbers 29:6. besides the burnt offering of the new moon and its grain offering, and the regular burnt offering and its grain offering, and their drink offerings, according to the rule, as a pleasing aroma to the Lord. The feast (announced by the sound of the sacred) trumpets was celebrated on the first day of the autumn month of Tishrei (September), which was the seventh month in the sacred year of the Hebrews. According to verse 6, the sacrifices of the Feast of Trumpets did not exclude the sacrifices of the new moon and the daily sacrifices, which were to be offered in the usual order, in addition to the festival ones.

Numbers 29:7. On the tenth day of this seventh month you shall have a holy convocation and afflict yourselves; you shall do no work, Numbers 29:8. and you shall offer a burnt offering to the Lord, a pleasing aroma: one bull from the herd, one ram, and seven male lambs a year old; they shall be without blemish to you; Numbers 29:9. and their grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil, three tenths of an ephah for the bull, two tenths for the ram, Numbers 29:10. a tenth for each of the seven lambs, Numbers 29:11. also one male goat as a sin offering, [to make atonement for you,] besides the sin offering of atonement, [and besides the regular burnt offering and its grain offering, and their drink offerings, according to the rule of those offered as a pleasing aroma, as an offering by fire to the Lord]. The great day of national purification began in the evening of the ninth day of the month of Tishrei (September). On the tenth day in the morning a sacred assembly of the people took place at the tabernacle, at which all the ceremonial indicated in chapter 16 of the book of Leviticus was carried out. As a conclusion, the sacrifice of a goat as a sin offering (independent of the one offered by lot) was made and the burnt offerings – both festival and daily – were offered. Num 29:12-38. From the 15th to the 21st day of the month of Tishrei (September) the Feast of Tabernacles (Lev 23:33-36) was celebrated, established in remembrance of the wandering of the Jews through the wilderness and of the numerous manifestations of God’s mercy toward the people that took place during this wandering. The fullness of the religious joy of the Israelites was expressed in the extraordinary abundance of festival sacrifices. During the seven days of the feast, there were offered as burnt offerings: 70 bulls, 14 rams, and 98 lambs (twice as many as at Pentecost). Only the sin offering remained unchanged: each day one goat was offered. Participating in worship, the Hebrews held in their hands bouquets of greenery and flowers. With such bouquets they also walked afterward, after the worship service. From the time of the Second Temple, two newly instituted rites began to be performed at the Feast of Tabernacles: 1) the rite of the pouring of water and 2) the lighting of lamps. The order of the first rite was as follows. One of the priests took a golden vessel, went with it to the Pool of Siloam and drew water, after which, met with singing, he entered the inner gates of the temple and poured the water into the tubes of the altar. The second rite consisted in the fact that after the evening sacrifice on the women’s court of the temple four high lamps were lit, covered with lamps. On the steps of the stairs leading to the women’s gallery, the Levites stood and, moving from step to step (with prolonged stops on the lower, 10th, and 15th steps), played musical instruments and sang. To the accompaniment of sacred songs and instrumental music, those present made joyful movements. As if to clarify the motives for the celebration, the priests turned to the people and said: “Our fathers turned away from the temple and worshiped the sun, but we – no, we are faithful to Jehovah and to his temple.” The joyful mood that seized the people during this feast was so great that a saying arose: “He who has not seen the bright days of the Feast of Tabernacles has never seen true joy!”

Numbers 29:39. These you shall offer to the Lord at your appointed feasts, in addition to your vows and your freewill offerings, for your burnt offerings, and for your grain offerings, and for your drink offerings, and for your peace offerings. Concerning the peace offerings and those made voluntarily, see Lev 3:1; Lev 7:11-21.