Col 2:16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:
17 Which are a shadow of things to come; ….
This is third in a series of articles on the major biblical feasts. It follows The Passover Pattern and A Few Looks at Pentecost; both posted earlier this year [2003].
We are going to cover the basic layout of the Feast of Tabernacles, and then focus on two major prophetic themes of this feast. They are The Revelation of Jesus Christ and End Time Revival and Harvest. Along the way, we will look at biblical events that took place during the feasts as partial fulfillment of their prophetic meaning. And we will examine the question: What exactly does it take to transform a believer into a totally obedient servant of the Lord?
The Feast of Tabernacles
The Feast of Tabernacles has a double meaning. It is often used in a general way to denote the entire group of fall feasts. Specifically it refers to a 7-day period from Tishri 15-21. This is similar to how Passover is used to mean the group of spring feasts, but the actual Passover is just one day of those feasts.
Tabernacles Ordinances
Here is the portion of scripture that lays out the basic ordinances of the fall feasts, or Tabernacles.
Leviticus 23:23 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
24 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation.
25 Ye shall do no servile work therein: but ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD.
26 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
27 Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD.
28 And ye shall do no work in that same day: for it is a day of atonement, to make an atonement for you before the LORD your God.
29 For whatsoever soul it be that shall not be afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from among his people.
30 And whatsoever soul it be that doeth any work in that same day, the same soul will I destroy from among his people.
31 Ye shall do no manner of work: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.
32 It shall be unto you a sabbath of rest, and ye shall afflict your souls: in the ninth day of the month at even, from even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath.
33 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
34 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.
35 On the first day shall be an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein.
36 Seven days ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD: on the eighth day shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD: it is a solemn assembly; and ye shall do no servile work therein.
37 These are the feasts of the LORD, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD, a burnt offering, and a meat offering, a sacrifice, and drink offerings, every thing upon his day:
38 Beside the sabbaths of the LORD, and beside your gifts, and beside all your vows, and beside all your freewill offerings, which ye give unto the LORD.
39 Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye have gathered in the fruit of the land, ye shall keep a feast unto the LORD seven days: on the first day shall be a sabbath, and on the eighth day shall be a sabbath.
40 And ye shall take you on the first day the boughs of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and ye shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days.
41 And ye shall keep it a feast unto the LORD seven days in the year. It shall be a statute for ever in your generations: ye shall celebrate it in the seventh month.
42 Ye shall dwell in booths seven days; all that are Israelites born shall dwell in booths:
43 That your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.
44 And Moses declared unto the children of Israel the feasts of the LORD.
The Jewish Calendar
The Jewish calendar is a lunar calendar and each month begins on a day of the new moon. To even up the lunar calendar with our solar calendar, an extra month is added every 3 months or 7 times in 19 years according to Kevin Conner [The Feasts of Israel 1980 Bible Temple Pubs]. This is why Passover [and Easter], Jewish New Year and Tabernacles fall at different times of the year in our solar calendar. Passover comes in the first month of the Jewish religious calendar, named Aviv also known as [a.k.a.] Nisan. Tabernacles comes in the seventh month, named Tishri.
Here's a little chart of how the months run.
|
Solar Calendar |
Sacred Calendar |
Civil Calendar |
|
March-April |
Aviv or Nisan |
Tishri |
|
April-May |
Iyyar |
Heshvan |
|
May-June |
Sivan |
Kieslev |
|
June-July |
Tammuz |
Tebeth |
|
July-August |
Ab or Av |
Shebat |
|
August-September |
Elul |
Adar |
|
September-October |
Tishri |
Aviv or Nisan |
|
October-November |
Heshvan |
Iyyar |
|
November-December |
Kieslev |
Sivan |
|
December-January |
Tebeth |
Tammuz |
|
January-February |
Shebat |
Ab or Av |
|
February-March |
Adar and Adar II |
Elul and Elul II |
In years where an extra month is added, the extra month comes at the end of the religious year. So in those years you have Adar I and Adar II. This means that there is a constant set of intervals between the Passover feasts and the Tabernacles feasts. And that Nisan is always the first month of the religious year, Tishri is always the seventh month of the religious year and the first month of the civil year.
If you think this is confusing, you're right.
I have found that many of the authorities, who are supposed to be experts on this stuff will give you differing dates for the feasts. [Authorities are like lawyers or economists, if you have three of them in the same room, you'll get 5 opinions.]
To make things more interesting, the Jewish calendar day changes at 6pm in the afternoon instead of at 12 midnight.
If you think this is confusing, you're really right.
The Layout of Passover
Here's an example going back to material from The Passover Pattern. Some authorities claim Passover falls on the 14th and some claim it falls on the 15th. The catch is that the day begins at 6pm in the Jewish calendar. So, it works like this.
On the 10th of Nisan, they take a lamb from the flock. It's inspected for 4 days.
On the 14th the lamb is killed and roasted, from 3 - 6pm.
At 6pm, the day changes to the 15th.
Then the lamb is eaten.
Also, on the 15th begins the first day of The Feast of Unleavened Bread. It runs for 7 days.
On the 16th is the feast of First Fruits.
The 16 is also the first day of the Counting of the Omer. This is where 50 days are counted off till Pentecost.
So as near as I can figure it out it works like this.
The 14th of Nisan or Aviv is called 'The preparation of the Passover'.
The 15th is called Passover and the beginning of Unleavened Bread.
The 16th is called First Fruits or day 1 of the Omer.
Day 1 of the Omer is the first day of the 50-day count leading to Pentecost a.k.a. Shavuot.
Pentecost falls on Sivan 6.
[Some authorities [Kevin Conner, in The Feasts of Israel, 1980] claim that First Fruits falls on the 18th as that is the day of Jesus resurrection. I use a Jewish Calendar Program that runs on Windows called Kaluach. You can down load it Here; it's about 400KB. This calendar shows day 1 of the Omer on the 16th, but it does not specify a day for First Fruits, [Bikkurim in Hebrew]. Eddie Chumney says, "Today, this festival is not observed in traditional Judaism." The Seven Festivals Of The Messiah Eddie Chumney http://www.hebroots.com]
Now here is the layout of the Fall Feasts a.k.a. Tabernacles.
Tabernacles Basics
Meaning: A time of turning
Dates: Elul 1 - Tishri 10
Idea: This is a season of repenting in preparation for the High Holy days to come.
Meaning: Rosh Hashanah is Head of the Year, Yom Teruah is Day of the awakening blast [of the trumpet or shofar], a shout, or a War Cry.
This is Jewish New Year, the first day of the civil year. In the religious calendar, it is the first day of the seventh month.
Dates: Tishri 1
Idea: Blow a Trumpet in Zion, a Call for Repentance
Meaning: Fearsome or awesome days
Dates: Tishri 1 - 10
Idea: A period of even more intense repentance. These are the High Holy Days.
Meaning: Day of atoning sacrifice.
Dates: Tishri 10
Idea: Getting Right with God
Meaning: Booths
Dates: Tishri 15-21
Idea: Preparing a Dwelling, Time of Great Joy, Harvest
- Season of Teshuvah
- Feast of Trumpets a.k.a. Rosh Hashanah also Yom Teruah
- Days of Awe a.k.a. Yomim Noraim
- Day of Atonement a.k.a. Yom Kippur
- Tabernacles a.k.a. Succot [or Succoth]
- The Eighth Day or The Great Day a.k.a. Shemini Atzeret
Meaning: The eighth assembly
Dates: Tishri 22
Idea: Even more great Joy.
Rosh Hashanah is how most secular Jews refer to The Feast Of Trumpets. But it is not called that in the bible. All that Rosh Hashanah means is head of the year. We call it Jewish new years. We celebrate new years on January 1, there is also Chinese new years, and so on. But The Feast Of Trumpets is not just another day to celebrate. Observant Jews and anyone who understands the feasts know it as Yom Teruah, the day of the shout or awakening blast.
Eddie Chumney points out the importance of the idea of awakening.
The theme of awakening from sleep is used throughout the Bible. It is found in John (Yochanan) 11:11; Romans 13:11; Daniel 12:1-2; and Psalm (Tehillim) 78:65. In Isaiah 51:9 it is written, "Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the Lord; awake as in the days of old, the generations of long ago..." (NAS). The arm of the Lord is used as a term for the Messiah in Isaiah (Yeshayahu) 53:1. The word arm is the Hebrew word zeroah. During Passover (Pesach), a shankbone, known as the zeroah, is put on the plate. So, "awake" is a term or idiom for Rosh HaShanah. In Isaiah (Yeshayahu) 51:9 quoted earlier, the awakening is associated with the coming of the Messiah. (Eddie Chumney)
A Pattern in the Fall Feasts
OK lets look at the ideas behind each element here.
A Season Of Repenting
A Call For Repentance
Intense Repentance
Getting Right with God
Preparing a Dwelling, Time of Great Joy, Harvest
Do you see a pattern here? First of all, we see Repentance, Repentance and Repentance. That's a great thing, you can't overstress it. It's like those other repetitive slogans: Location, Location and Location; or Prioritize, Prioritize and Prioritize.
And then what does repentance produce? Getting right with God of course!
OK so what does Getting right with God result it? It results in a great many things, and they are expressed in a great variety of ways all through the bible. Here we see three mentioned.
Getting right with God brings great joy. There is just nothing comparable to the Joy of the Lord! He says The Joy of the Lord is my strength.
Preparing a Dwelling speaks of dwelling with God and Him dwelling with you. It's entering in and dwelling with Him, in his Rest and his Peace.
Consider now that Tabernacles is the seventh feast and comes in the seventh month. It is a High Holy Day and a Sabbath [Lev. 23:39]. Entering in and dwelling with Him, in his Rest as we said above speaks of the Sabbath rest. In the quotes from Leviticus you can see a continual emphasis on doing no work. This is a time when we must stop all striving, struggling and trying to do things in our own strength. A time to give up what we have on our agenda and get with God's agenda.
As the Sabbath is the seventh day, it corresponds to the seventh millennium in God's prophetic week. This is a clue that the final fulfillment of Tabernacles is in this seventh millennium.
Now tabernacles takes place during the time of fruit harvest. [Passover is at the barley harvest, and Pentecost is at the wheat harvest, so the idea of harvest is always an element of these feasts.]
Getting right with God brings a great harvest into his Kingdom. This is also part of the Joy.
From this, you should be able to see elements of one of our two main themes: End Time Revival and Harvest.
Alternate Names of the Feasts
The Feast of Tabernacles was also called
The Feast of Ingathering, because in took place in the season of harvest
The Feast of The Seventh Month, because in took place in the seventh month
The Feast of Dedication, because Solomon dedicated the temple at this time
The Feast of The Open Book, because people were taught the Law at this time
The Feast of Illumination, because the temple was illuminated at this time
The Feast of The Outpouring Of The Waters, because they had a water pouring ceremony at this time. Each of these titles is also prophetic.
Hanukah is also called The Feast of Dedication and this is another source of confusion. The bible speaks of Jesus in temple during the Feast of Dedication, John 10:22, and some writers take that to mean Hanukah. Since Hanukah is not one of the festivals mentioned by Moses, I tend to think that the incident refers to tabernacles.
Prophetic Types
Earlier we quoted Colossians chapter 2:
Col 2:16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:
17 Which are a shadow of things to come; . . .
When the bible says something is a shadow, it means that it is an image or figure; it is a picture. It is a type and in effect, a prophecy of things to come. This is why we study the feasts, not so we can impress people with our knowledge of Jewish practices.
Here is another way of explaining it.
In 1991 Destiny Image published a book by Lou Berthleson titled Holiness for these Awesome Days. Here is what he says in chapter one about the prophetic nature of the Feasts of the Lord.
Our study of patterns will begin with the feasts of the Lord as set forth in Leviticus 23. The Jews saw these as appointments with the Lord Jehovah. They called the festivals Miqra', or rehearsals.
In First Thessalonians 5:1-5 Paul addresses mature Jews about the "appointed" time of Jesus' return. He referred to the festivals, Sabbaths and new moons that were the focus of the Jews' religious calendar.
The word "times" in First Thessalonians 5:1-5 is Mowed, which is translated, "a specific appointment in time, a particular time or appointed season." The seven feasts of the Lord were given as appointments or rehearsals. They were designed by the Lord to foretell the events that would surround the coming of His Son and ever point to the proper attitudes requited of believers.
A Bigger Pattern
Lou Berthleson also mentions a certain pattern in the events of the first feast of tabernacles that links it with the patterns of Passover and Pentecost. This pattern is also prophetic, and relates to the coming of the Lord. Here it is in part:
Moses came down from the mountain with the second set of stone tables on the Day of Atonement.
Now the questions this raises are several. What is the significance of Moses returning exactly on the Day of Atonement? How does this connect with Passover and Pentecost?
How does this fit in with the pattern of the fall feasts mentioned above? What does it have to do with the Revelation of Jesus Christ? And what is the connection to the coming of the Lord?
First of all lets look at a brief summary of the events in Exodus.
In the Exodus, Moses led the people out of Egypt at Passover.
Then they journey to Mt. Sinai and receive the law at Pentecost.
The Lord gives Moses the stone tables. Then after Moses breaks the first set of stone tables, he ascends the mountain again. He comes down again after some time with the second set of stone tables. He instructs the people to begin gathering the materials to build the tabernacle. This happened on or about the time of Tabernacles.
The tabernacle is completed 6 months later on the first day of the first month, just in time for the celebration of the Passover.
So, we can see that Passover is the beginning and the end. All of the feasts point to Jesus, our Passover, and all are prophetic.
Revelation 22:13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
Each of the feasts has been partly fulfilled by Jesus, in the past, and awaits a further fulfillment to come. We are starting to see a connection with our other main theme, the Revelation of Jesus Christ.
This also brings up one more question, how did Jesus partly fulfill the feast of tabernacles? We can see that he fulfilled Passover in his death and resurrection. And we see that the coming of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2 is a fulfillment of Pentecost. But what did he do that fulfilled tabernacles? Don't let me forget to come back to this question.
123 Days.
Now we just said earlier that Moses came down from the mountain with the second set of stone tables on the Day of Atonement. But in our short summary, all we said was that it happened on or about the feast of tabernacles. How do we peg this to be exactly on the Day of Atonement? Psalm 90 speaks of numbering days, so we'll do just that.
Ps 90:12 So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.
We saw above that the day after Passover was the first of 50 days counting off till Pentecost. So, there is our connection between Passover and Pentecost. Using a handy dandy Jewish calendar we will find that from Pentecost to Trumpets is 113 days and to the Day of Atonement is 123 days
Moses Timetable
So, we need to look at Moses schedule after Israel received the Law on the first Pentecost. Part of it is found in Exodus, and part in Deuteronomy.
First of all, Moses goes up on the mountain for 40 days.
De 9:9 When I was gone up into the mount to receive the tables of stone, even the tables of the covenant which the LORD made with you, then I abode in the mount forty days and forty nights, I neither did eat bread nor drink water:
Then he has to hurry back down the mountain to find the people have been worshipping a golden calf.
De 9:16 And I looked, and, behold, ye had sinned against the LORD your God, and had made you a molten calf: ye had turned aside quickly out of the way which the LORD had commanded you.
17 And I took the two tables, and cast them out of my two hands, and brake them before your eyes.
Moses repents before the Lord another 40 days.
De 9:18 And I fell down before the LORD, as at the first, forty days and forty nights:
Then Moses takes and destroys the golden calf. [The order of these events is not perfectly clear.]
De 9:21 And I took your sin, the calf which ye had made, and burnt it with fire, and stamped it, and ground it very small, even until it was as small as dust: and I cast the dust thereof into the brook that descended out of the mount.
Next Moses makes an ark and prepares two more tables of stone.
De 10:1 At that time the LORD said unto me, Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first, and come up unto me into the mount, and make thee an ark of wood.
Moses spends another 40 days on the mountain.
Ex 34:28 And he was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights; he did neither eat bread, nor drink water. And he wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant, the ten commandments.
Finally, Moses comes back down.
De 10:5 And I turned myself and came down from the mount, and put the tables in the ark which I had made; and there they be, as the LORD commanded me.
There are three periods of 40 days here, allowing a day for destroying the golden calf, a day to make the ark, and a day to prepare the second set of tables, we get 123 days. This places Moses return on the Day of Atonement. This is not a precise proof since we are estimating the extra three days, but it all works out very neatly making the third 40 day period line up exactly with the season of Teshuvah. He that has an ear will hear.
So, Moses returns from the mountain on the Day of Atonement. What does this signify? If we ask why did Moses return on that day, the answer would be to set in place a pattern that points to future events relating to the coming of the Lord.
Moses coming down from the mountain speaks of the Lord coming down from Heaven. We can see this in more depth by looking at more of the details.
What do we know about the Day of Atonement? Among other things, special sacrifices were made that day. It is the day of atoning sacrifice.
In the book of Hebrews, we find this description:
Heb 9:1 Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary.
2 For there was a tabernacle made; the first, wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the shewbread; which is called the sanctuary.
3 And after the second veil, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all;
4 Which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron's rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant;
5 And over it the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercyseat; of which we cannot now speak particularly.
6 Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God.
7 But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people:
The tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all is what we know as the holy of holies. The high priest would enter there once every year. This was on the Day of Atonement.
This description from Hebrews harkens back to Leviticus 16 where the Lord is telling Moses about the high priest burning incense and sprinkling the blood.
Le 16:12 And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the vail:
13 And he shall put the incense upon the fire before the LORD, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the testimony, that he die not:
14 And he shall take of the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it with his finger upon the mercy seat eastward; and before the mercy seat shall he sprinkle of the blood with his finger seven times.
This is the context of Luke 1:8-11 when Zacharias goes in to burn incense and meets the angel.
Now a key verse to understanding what happens here is Leviticus 16:2
Le 16:2 And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the vail before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat.
This is telling us that on the Day of Atonement, when the High Priest enters the Holy of Holies, the Lord Appears to him, in the cloud on the mercy seat, right on the top of the ark of the covenant. So Moses coming down from the mountain on the Day of Atonement coincides with the Lord coming down to meet the high priest on that day.
This is the one day of the year that the Lord appears in the temple. You could say that the Lord reveals himself in the temple on that day. Then you start to see a little more connection with the Revelation of Jesus Christ.
That is only part of the significance of Moses return. To comprehend the rest of it, we need to look at what else Moses does and what happens as a result.
Remember that the first time that Moses disappeared for 40 days, the people got restless and went into rebellion and idolatry. Compare that to the second time Moses came down, what happened then?
For one thing, he manifested the Glory of God.
Ex 34:29 And it came to pass, when Moses came down from mount Sinai with the two tables of testimony in Moses' hand, when he came down from the mount, that Moses wist not that the skin of his face shone while he talked with him.
Secondly, the people experienced a Fear of the Lord.
30 And when Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone; and they were afraid to come nigh him.
Thirdly, He began to instruct the people.
Ex 35:1 And Moses gathered all the congregation of the children of Israel together, and said unto them, These are the words which the LORD hath commanded, that ye should do them.
In the very next verse, Moses emphasized the Sabbath rest of the Lord and called for holiness.
Ex 35:2 Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day there shall be to you an holy day, a sabbath of rest to the LORD: whosoever doeth work therein shall be put to death.
Then in Exodus 35:4 and following he commands the people to gather the materials for construction of the tabernacle. And instead of the usual rebellion and murmuring, we find willing obedience.
Ex 35:21 And they came, every one whose heart stirred him up, and every one whom his spirit made willing, and they brought the LORD'S offering to the work of the tabernacle of the congregation, and for all his service, and for the holy garments.
The people are described as willing five times in Ex 35.
What is it that made them so willing? To put it another way, what does it take to transform a believer into a totally obedient servant? Consider the following:
Jer 31:31 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:
33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.
34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.
This tells us of a new covenant that the Lord intends to make with his people. He will write his law in our hearts. And we shall all know Him. This is part of the Revelation of Jesus Christ.
Here is another description from Jeremiah 32.
Jer 32:40 And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me.
Here we see that this new covenant will make it so that his people will not depart from him. Ezekiel explains it this way:
Eze 36:26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.
27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.
The Lord is promising that he will cause us to obey him! This will certainly do the job of seeing us become totally willing and obedient. It means getting right with God and staying that way.
Willing And Obedient
So, when Moses finds the people willing and obedient what does that typify? Remember what Moses brought with him on his return. It was the second set of stone tables. Symbolically the first set of tables was the first covenant, and the second set of tables represents this second covenant.
So now, we see some more significance in Moses actions. Moses coming down from the mountain with the second set of tables is prophetic of the Lord coming to his people and establishing this second covenant that Jeremiah and Ezekiel wrote about. The new covenant is what makes us willing and obedient.
Are There Two Second Comings Of The Lord?
In the Revelation of Jesus Christ, chapter 19 depicts the Second Coming like this:
Re 19:11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.
12 His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.
But in Hosea, we read that he will come to us as the latter rain!
Ho 6:1 Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up.
2 After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight.
3 Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the LORD: his going forth is prepared as the morning; and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth.
In Joel chapter 2 the same ideas is expressed.
Joe 2:23 Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month.
28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:
29 And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.
So, we need to consider two comings of the Lord, one spiritual, and one physical or literal.
Hosea also tells us that this happens in the third day. Prophetically the third day is the third 1000-year period since Jesus first came and the 7th 1000-year period since Adam. This puts us in the seventh millennium or Sabbath Rest of the Lord. Earlier we said that tabernacles points to this seventh millennium.
So then, Moses return on the Day of Atonement is a prophetic picture of the spiritual coming of the Lord during the 7th millennium. Ezekiel 36:27 says And I will put my spirit within you, [this is a spiritual coming] and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. And this spiritual coming brings the new covenant with it. This is what it takes to make a believer become a totally willing and obedient servant.
Other places in the scripture tell about the people being willing. Notably Judges 5:1-5 and Psalm 110 which alludes to the third day as the Day of thy Power.
Ps 110:3 Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth.
Also compare Hosea 6:1-2 with this passage in Jeremiah 32, the same chapter we cited above concerning the new covenant.
Jer 32:42 For thus saith the LORD; Like as I have brought all this great evil upon this people, so will I bring upon them all the good that I have promised them.
Earlier we said that our two themes are The Revelation of Jesus Christ and End Time Revival and Harvest. Well so far have we gotten two out of three. The coming of the Lord as the latter rain establishes the second covenant by putting his Spirit within us.
It brings the Glory of God to his people and creates the Fear of the Lord within them. This is nothing less than the Revelation of Jesus Christ and it is End Time Revival. Since we become totally obedient servants of our King Jesus, it is also the Kingdom of God in its fullness.
You can find other examples of how the Revelation of Jesus Christ transforms someone into a totally obedient servant, Isaiah 6 for example. The most notable of these is what happened to a man named Saul of Tarsus on the road to Damascus.
Harvest
Now what about harvest? What do Moses actions prophesy in the way of harvest?
Moses commanded the people to collect the materials for construction of the tabernacle. The work was finished and tabernacle was raised up on the first day of Nisan or Aviv. It was done in time for the Passover!
Ex 40:17 And it came to pass in the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, that the tabernacle was reared up.
And here we find our answer. Gathering the materials for the tabernacle represents the harvest. The Passover is the [physical] Second Coming of Jesus Christ! This means that Moses actions here are an allegory of God's entire end time plan.
Everything we have said about the feast of tabernacles relates to that end time plan.
God's Dwelling Place
So how does the gathering of the materials for the tabernacle tell us anything about harvest?
The tabernacle was to be God's dwelling place. Later a temple was built for God's dwelling place. David spoke of building him a house to dwell in. These three terms for God's dwelling all speak of the church, this is to be a spiritual dwelling, the house or family of God. [Note that the bible speaks of someone's family as being their house in many cases, as in house of Jacob, or house of Joseph.] There is also a connection between the idea of the house of God and the Body of Christ. They are ways of saying the same thing for a spirit can dwell in a body in the same manner as a man can live in a house.
Ac 7:48 Howbeit the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands; as saith the prophet,
1Co 3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
So ultimately, God is not going to dwell in a physical structure at all.
Re 21:3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
The materials of the tabernacle or temple speak of men, the souls of men, which are to be harvested in these end times. Peter uses this analogy to speak of us as lively stones.
1Pe 2:5 Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.
Being a lively stone means being a part of the spiritual temple. It is also to be a member of the family or part of the body. In Ephesians 2, these ideas are tied together.
Eph 2:19 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God;
20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;
21 In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:
22 In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.
We see here in this passage a mention of being fellow citizens, which would mean citizens of the Kingdom of God. Next mentioned is the household of God, so we are part of the family of God. Also, we are built into a habitation of God, a dwelling, through the Spirit, that is the second covenant, his spirit in us. We are built on the foundation where Jesus is the chief cornerstone. In him, the building is fitly framed. That is the building or body if you please is properly assembled. And the building or body, once properly assembled, grows into a holy temple. So, we are to be built into God's dwelling place.
There are two very important points to notice here. One, the building or body is properly assembled in Christ; the phrase fitly framed is also sometimes translated as rightly joined. Two, the building or body then grows.
The same idea is seen later in Ephesians 4.
Eph 4:14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;
15 But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:
16 From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.
Here it speaks of maturity as growing up, that is growing up into Him, Christ, the Head of the Body. So that maturity is to be in Christ. Next, we see mentioned that the whole body is fitly joined to the head. And that this causes the body to increase or be built up.
Assembly And Growth
The two ideas here are assembly and growth. They relate very simple to our theme. Assembly is End Time Revival, and Growth is the Harvest.
In our case of Moses, we can see these two points clearly.
His coming down on the day of atonement and finding the people willing to hear the word of the Lord and obey speaks of End Time Revival, which means the proper assembly of The Body Of Christ. The gathering of the building materials then speaks of the growth of the body once it is properly assembled, in other words, the harvest.
An Illustration from Scripture
This can be seen illustrated in the story of the construction of Solomon's temple.
David had the desire to build a house or temple, but God only allowed him to gather some of the materials and plan for the building.
Solomon, Shelomoh in Hebrew, means peaceful. His name speaks of the time of peace or rest. The Sabbath rest or seventh day is when the actual assembly and completion of God's dwelling takes place. His dwelling is his rest or place of rest. Psalm 132 is a prayer for the Lord to come into his rest. This means to come and dwell in his resting-place. This resting-place is in his body, the church, once it is properly assembled.
Ps 132:8 Arise, O LORD, into thy rest; thou, and the ark of thy strength.
When David passed on and Solomon came to rule speaks of this time of rest. And it was Solomon who built the temple, which is a type of the place of rest. Solomon used the materials David had gathered but also gathered 10 times as much besides that, which also went into the temple building.
Now look at the ideas of assembly and growth. Solomon assembled the materials David gathered, and then he added another 10 times more. Comparing this to the end time revival it implies that the Body Of Christ will experience at least a 10 times increase in growth during the harvest, once it is revived [properly assembled].
Let's take this illustration a little further. David's rule represents the church from the time of Jesus till now. Just as David gathered building materials, the church has had converts all this time. David never actually constructed the temple. In like manner the church has never been properly assembled, at least that part of it that is on the earth. When Solomon took over all he had was a lot of building materials laying all about in no particular order. This is like the church of today. We have millions of Christians all over the world who are not rightly connected or assembled into a body. In many cases, they are actually fighting each other. Solomon starts to build the temple and put all the materials at hand to use. Likewise the coming of the Lord as the latter rain will put things in order in his Church, and establish his kingdom.
A Recap
What we've seen here so far is this:
We saw that the basic pattern of Tabernacles could be summed up like this. Repentance, repentance, repentance, getting right with God; followed by the dwelling place and great joy in the harvest.
Then we analyzed Moses' actions at the first tabernacles. We can see that this basic pattern is contained in Moses' actions and that our two main themes are present also.
Moses spends a second 40 days on the mountain. This speaks of repentance.
Moses coming down on the Day of Atonement points to the coming of the Lord in the end times as the Latter Rain. This is The Revelation of Jesus Christ.
Moses teaching the word of God to the people points to Jesus who is the word of God. This is The Revelation of Jesus Christ.
Moses' arrival brings the Glory of God, The Fear of the Lord and makes the people willing to serve. This points to End Time Revival, or in other words, getting right with God, which is a direct result of The Revelation of Jesus Christ.
Moses instructing the people to gather materials and raise up the tabernacle points to End Time Harvest.
Everything Moses did points to what Jesus is going to do in the end times. It is all the work of the Lord.
In Zechariah 4, we see this verse speaking about Zerubbabel. He is also a type of Jesus, so as you read this verse substitute the name of Jesus for Zerubbabel.
Zec 4:9 The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto you.
This shows that the Lord begins the work and He is the one to finish it.
Partial Fulfillments Of Tabernacles
Like the other feasts the Lord established by Moses, Tabernacles has had several partial fulfillments. We're now going to look at a few.
Moses and the Open Book
In chapter 31 of Deuteronomy, there is a special mention of the Feast of Tabernacles and Moses actions at that time which relate to it as the Feast of the Open Book. The entire chapter covers this but the key elements are found here:
De 31:9 And Moses wrote this law, and delivered it unto the priests the sons of Levi, which bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and unto all the elders of Israel.
10 And Moses commanded them, saying, At the end of every seven years, in the solemnity of the year of release, in the feast of tabernacles,
11 When all Israel is come to appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose, thou shalt read this law before all Israel in their hearing.
12 Gather the people together, men, and women, and children, and thy stranger that is within thy gates, that they may hear, and that they may learn, and fear the LORD your God, and observe to do all the words of this law:
13 And that their children, which have not known any thing, may hear, and learn to fear the LORD your God, as long as ye live in the land whither ye go over Jordan to possess it.
Solomon's Dedication of the Temple
When Solomon had completed the temple, it was dedicated during tabernacles. The Ark of the Covenant was brought from Mt. Zion where David had placed it and taken into the temple. The Ark of course symbolizes the presence of God. Once it was properly located, the Glory of God manifested as a cloud that filled the temple, much as the same glory cloud filled the tabernacle in Moses' day. This is a case of the symbol immediately followed by the reality.
1Ki 8:1 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto king Solomon in Jerusalem, that they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion.
2 And all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto king Solomon at the feast in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month.
10 And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD,
11 So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD.
Haggai's prophecies
In the Book of Haggai, the prophet's very name is prophetic. It means festive, feast, festival of Jehovah or born at the time of the festival. Haggai gives three prophecies, all having to do with the rebuilding of the temple, which he calls the House of the Lord.
All three prophecies are given on very specific dates. The first one comes on the first day of the sixth month, which is the start of Teshuvah, the season of repentance.
Hag 1:1 In the second year of Darius the king, in the sixth month, in the first day of the month, came the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet unto Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, saying,
2 Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, This people say, The time is not come, the time that the LORD'S house should be built.
7 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Consider your ways.
8 Go up to the mountain, and bring wood, and build the house; and I will take pleasure in it, and I will be glorified, saith the LORD.
The second prophecy of Haggai comes on the last day of tabernacles proper.
Hag 2:1 In the seventh month, in the one and twentieth day of the month, came the word of the LORD by the prophet Haggai, saying,
2 Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, and to the residue of the people, saying,
3 Who is left among you that saw this house in her first glory? and how do ye see it now? is it not in your eyes in comparison of it as nothing?
4 Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, saith the LORD; and be strong, O Joshua, son of Josedech, the high priest; and be strong, all ye people of the land, saith the LORD, and work: for I am with you, saith the LORD of hosts:
5 According to the word that I covenanted with you when ye came out of Egypt, so my spirit remaineth among you: fear ye not.
6 For thus saith the LORD of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land;
7 And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD of hosts.
8 The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts.
9 The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the LORD of hosts: and in this place will I give peace, saith the LORD of hosts.
The third prophecy was given on the day before Hanukah, and speaks of further blessings to come. Hanukah was not established at the time of Haggai and significance of the timing is unclear.
Nehemiah and the Open Book
In the book of Nehemiah, there is a partial fulfillment of tabernacles. It's found in verses 7:73 through 8:18. Here we read of a solemn gathering of the people that took place in the seventh month, the time of the fall feasts.
Ne 8:1 And all the people gathered themselves together as one man into the street that was before the water gate; and they spake unto Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded to Israel.
Here in this verse are four things you should hear with spiritual ears. First, the people come into unity. Second the water gate speaks of the pouring out of the Spirit, Third, Ezra the scribe is a type of the Holy Spirit because a scribe is one who writes out the Law, and the Spirit is the one who inspired the writers of the bible. Fourth, the scribe brings the 'book of the law', this points to The Revelation of Jesus Christ.
This chapter goes on to describe how Ezra read from the book and taught the people to understand it's meaning. There are 10 or 12 references, depending on how you count them, which imply that the people received and understood the meaning of the word. This harkens back to the idea that Tabernacles is the Feast of the Open Book. And it also speaks of the opening of the seven-sealed scroll in Revelation. And of course opening the book that was sealed once again speaks of the Revelation of Jesus Christ. Let's look at this in detail.
The Meaning Of The Scroll
Moses had a commission to tell the Israelites that God had sent him. 'Tell them I am that I am'. That I AM had sent him. He also had authority to pronounce judgments.
Jesus had the same commission to reveal the Nature of God to the people of God. And he had the authority to pronounce judgments.
In the End Times, it will be God's people in this role.
In Revelation 5, The Lamb who is worthy takes the scroll. Some claim that the scroll represents the decrees of God concerning the acts of judgment and redemption to occur in the last days. The seven seals represent the judgments and they are opened by Jesus, the Lamb, because he has the authority to initiate all the judgments to follow.
Other writers have claimed that the scroll is the 'title deed to planet earth' or a catalog of woe and sorrow.
Kevin Conner says:
The opening of the Book in the Feast of Tabernacles is alluded to in the opening of the Seven-sealed Book in Revelation 5:1-5 and the opened little book in Revelation 10:1-11. The Book is God's Word, the Holy Bible, the Book of Redemption. [p. 92}
I too prefer to think of the scroll as representing the bible itself. The reasons for this are scriptural and provide a marvelous glimpse of the sheer genius of God in the construction of his word.
1. The Scroll is said to be written within and without or on the front and back side. Rev. 5:1
2. The stone tables of the Law given to Moses are said to be written on the front and back sides.
Ex 32:15 And Moses turned, and went down from the mount, and the two tables of the testimony were in his hand: the tables were written on both their sides; on the one side and on the other were they written.
This identifies the scroll with the law, hence with the bible, and ultimately with the Word of God, Jesus. So, Moses coming down with the law is like the Holy Spirit coming to reveal Jesus.
3. Since part is on the back side, then clearly it's not all readily apparent. Some meaning is hidden. The sealed scroll clearly has only a part of the writing visible.
4. There are several references to books being sealed in the O T. [Isa 8:16, 29:11-12, and Dan 12:4] Daniel says they are sealed till the end. Here opening the scroll is the unsealing of the books.
5. Opening the seals means revealing hidden meaning in the Word. So opening the scroll is one of many illustrations of the key concept summarized in the opening verse of Revelation. The Revelation of Jesus Christ.
6. Jesus is the only one who can open the scroll. No man is worthy. This shows that God reveals himself. Man cannot learn of these things on his own.
7. Each seal that is opened produces a judgment, and this also speaks of the Revelation of Jesus Christ since as Ps 9:16 says "The LORD is known by the judgment which he executeth: …."
So, the Lamb that was slain is Jesus Christ. The Scroll is Jesus Christ. Opening the Scroll is the Revelation of Jesus Christ. The Judgments that come forth are the Revelation of Jesus Christ. And the book is the Revelation of Jesus Christ. The Bible is The Revelation of Jesus Christ. In other words, it's all about knowing God.
Since the Feast of Tabernacles points to the opening of the Book, we may expect that God will reveal hidden meanings in the bible during the End Time revival. In fact, that's what is prophesied in Daniel 12.
Da 12:4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.
Da 12:9 And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.
Jesus' Fulfillments Of Tabernacles
In the gospel of John chapters 7, 8 and 9 all take place during tabernacles. The beginning of chapter 7 has a discussion with his brothers about going up to Jerusalem for the feast of tabernacles. He tells them to go but that he would not go up yet.
John 7:10 But when his brethren were gone up, then went he also up unto the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret.
Then in verse 14 Jesus suddenly shows up.
John 7:14 Now about the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the temple, and taught.
Since this shows the Lord coming to the temple during the feast, it counts as a partial fulfillment of tabernacles.
Also it is a partial fulfillment of Malachi 3:1
Mal 3:1 Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.
Later on we read:
John 7:37 In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.
38 He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.
39 (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)
Here also is a partial fulfillment in which Jesus also reveals himself as the source of living water, and speaks of the pouring out of the Holy Spirit. It ties in with tabernacles as The Feast of The Outpouring Of The Waters. It's another case of the Revelation of Jesus Christ. Also, note that this happened on the exact same day as Haggai's second prophecy.
On the very next day in John chapter 8 we see how Jesus duplicates the action of Moses coming down from the mountain and teaching the people. Note also that he came into the temple. This is another partial fulfillment of tabernacles.
John 8:1 Jesus went unto the mount of Olives.
2 And early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him; and he sat down, and taught them.
Later in that same chapter, we see Jesus revealing himself again as the light of the world. This ties in with tabernacles as the Feast of Illumination.
Joh 8:12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
Acts Chapter 2
In the second chapter of Acts, the Holy Spirit comes upon the assembled group of disciples.
Ac 2:1 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
3 And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.
This is generally regarded as the beginning of the church, the giving of the Spirit and the start of the New Covenant. This is partly true. It was a partial fulfillment for the building of the church, a partial fulfillment of the giving of the Holy Spirit, and a partial fulfillment of the New Covenant. These three ideas here are all roughly synonymous ways of looking at the same thing.
Verse 1 above says "they were all with one accord in one place." The idea here is unity of the brethren. So clearly, this is a also partial fulfilling of Psalms 133, which speaks of the End Time Revival in terms of the anointing coming upon the head and body of Aaron. It typifies the proper assembly of the head and body of Christ, for Jesus is our High Priest and in him is our place of unity. There we see the blessing come. That blessing is the Spirit, the presence and glory of God, life eternal. It is dwelling in the secret place of the most high as in Psalms 91, who is the way, the truth and the life.
Ps 133:1 Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!
2 It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments;
3 As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there the LORD commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.
In The Last Days
We said the giving of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2 is a partial fulfillment. Peter in his sermon that day makes mention of the prophecy of Joel. He is telling the people that what they are experiencing that day is a fulfillment of Joel's prophecy.
Ac 2:14 But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words:
15 For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day.
16 But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel;
17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:
18 And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:
This is a reference to Joel Chapter 2:28-29.
We know it's only a partial fulfillment because the rest of what Joel has to say there still awaits fulfillment in the last days. Look at verses 30-31.
Joel 30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.
31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.
A Measure of the Spirit
The description of the coming of the Holy Spirit as cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them also indicates a partial fulfillment. It shows that each one received a measure of the Spirit. The had a small flame rest on them. The complete fulfillment will be intensely greater. It will be the Spirit without measure.
Heb 12:29 For our God is a consuming fire.
The Pickle Recipe
As we are looking at the baptism of the Holy Spirit, a good way to explain this comes from a word study on baptism.
Some time back I copied the following definitions from the On Line Bible program. This definition of baptism came with a very interesting word study that illustrates what God is about to do in the Church. There are two words closely related to baptism; Bapto and Baptizo.
baptizo {bap-tid'-zo}
1) to dip repeatedly, to immerse, to submerge (of vessels sunk)
2) to cleanse by dipping or submerging, to wash, to make clean with water, to wash one's self, bathe
bapto {bap'-to}
1) to dip, dip in, immerse
2) to dip into dye, to dye, colour
Not to be confused with baptizo. The clearest example that shows the meaning of baptizo is a text from the Greek poet and physician Nicander, who lived about 200 B.C. It is a recipe for making pickles and is helpful because it uses both words. Nicander says that in order to make a pickle, the vegetable should first be 'dipped' (bapto) into boiling water and then 'baptised' (baptizo) in the vinegar solution. Both verbs concern the immersing of vegetables in a solution. But the first is temporary. The second, the act of baptising the vegetable, produces a permanent change.
When used in the New Testament, this word more often refers to our union and identification with Christ than to our water baptism. E.g. Mark 16:16. 'He that believes and is baptised shall be saved'. Christ is saying that mere intellectual assent is not enough. There must be a union with him, a real change, like the vegetable to the pickle! Bible Study Magazine, James Montgomery Boice, May 1989.
The interesting idea here is that union with Christ is what He requires and when this is real, and not just a positive confession, there will come a real, permanent change in us. Like the vegetable is radically transformed, well so must we be transformed.
All the great moves of God in the past, including the book of Acts, have just been bapto's, temporary changes. The revivals of the past have had long term permanent effects of course but the awesome holiness, the irresistible power of the Lord has only lingered on for short periods.
Even this refreshing called the new wine or the river is just a bapto. A bapto is the ankle deep water of the river. the knee deep and waist deep, the chest deep water is still a bapto. At these levels, you can always get back out of the water. When it gets over your head, it's baptizo. See Ezekiel 47:1-5. When you can no longer go on your own way, it's baptizo. When you have to change from walking to swimming, never to go back it's baptizo. It's a permanent change. It's the kingdom of God come into your life and you entering into the kingdom. It's the manifesting of the sons of God.
Like the pickle is changed, we will take on the texture, the color, the taste and the aroma of the Lord God of Heaven. We will be like Him because we will see Him as He is. The world will forget what we were like before because they will see Jesus in us. That's what tabernacles is pointing us toward.
The Earnest of the Spirit
Another way to approach this partial fulfillment idea is to look at what the scriptures say about the Giving of the Spirit.
In Ephesians, it tells about being sealed by the Holy Spirit using the word earnest.
Eph 1:13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.
Eph 4:30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.
Second Corinthians also mentions the earnest of the Spirit.
2Co 1:21 Now he which stablisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God;
22 Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.
2Co 5:5 Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit.
So what is an earnest?
Strong's lexicon gives this definition:
earnest - a pledge, i.e. part of the purchase-money or property given in advance as security for the rest.
In other words, an earnest is a down payment. It's only part of the payment. And the early church receiving this partial payment in Acts 2 means that it was a partial fulfillment.
The word for earnest is translated pledge in the Old Testament.
Ge 38:18 And he said, What pledge shall I give thee? And she said, Thy signet, and thy bracelets, and thy staff that is in thine hand. And he gave it her, and came in unto her, and she conceived by him.
Easton's bible dictionary says this:
The Spirit is the earnest of the believer's destined inheritance (2 Cor. 1:22; 5:5; Eph. 1:14). The word thus rendered is the same as that rendered "pledge" in Gen. 38:17-20; "indeed, the Hebrew word has simply passed into the Greek and Latin languages, probably through commercial dealings with the Phoenicians, the great trading people of ancient days. Originally it meant no more than a pledge; but in common usage it came to denote that particular kind of pledge which is a part of the full price of an article paid in advance; and as it is joined with the figure of a seal when applied to the Spirit, it seems to be used by Paul in this specific sense." The Spirit's gracious presence and working in believers is a foretaste to them of the blessedness of heaven. God is graciously pleased to give not only pledges but foretastes of future blessedness.
Ephesians 1:14 describes the Holy Spirit as the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession. As we are looking at the earnest meaning pledge or down payment, this tells us that the rest of the payment will come at the time of the redemption of the purchased possession. This is speaking of the redemption of the church by the full outpouring of the Spirit in the last days i.e. the End Times.
Ac 20:28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.
The Double Portion
Now back in Joel 2 it also makes reference to the latter rain, which comes in the first month. This speaks of the time of Tabernacles.
Joe 2:23 Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month.
We saw something similar in Hosea
Hosea 6:3 Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the LORD: his going forth is prepared as the morning; and he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth.
And in the New Testament, James mentions the same thing.
Jas 5:7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.
Each one of these verses mentions the former and the latter rain coming at the same time. Now the former rain is the spring rain, and the latter rain is the fall rain. [or vice versa depending on whom you consult.] But to have them both at the same time is a logical impossibility. The Lord is using this as a clue to show that he is speaking of the Double Portion. Which is to say the end time outpouring of the Spirit is going to be extra special, extra ordinary. The double portion is the inheritance of the First Born, The Lord Jesus Christ and those who are in him.
Tabernacles points to the Latter Rain - The Revelation of Jesus Christ
We have had a lot to say about the Spiritual Second Coming as the Latter Rain. We’re going to list the various ideas mentioned so far and look at what else the bible has to say about it.
First, we saw that the Spiritual Second Coming as the Latter Rain is part of The Revelation of Jesus Christ.
It includes Showing forth the Glory of God, and experiencing the Fear of the Lord. These are a natural consequence of the presence of God.
It entails revealing the meaning of the word of God.
Holiness comes with entering into the Rest of God, i.e. the Sabbath.
It is the New Covenant making the people willing and obedient.
It is the End Time Revival, The Day of God's Power, The Coming of the Kingdom, and the setting up of God's Eternal Dwelling Place.
The members of the Body of Christ will come to truly be in Christ, as they are properly assembled or rightly joined into His Body.
This is also the temple building becoming fitly framed.
God's people will all come to know him intimately as they enter into the Kingdom, Family and Household of the Lord.
It means the Spirit in us, leads us to maturity of the believer, because His Law will be written in our hearts and his Love will be set in our hearts.
It's the brethren living together in unity, under the outpouring of the Spirit.
It means being in the secret place of the most high, the place of peace that passes all understanding.
There Is More.
The Baptism of Fire
Earlier we looked at Malachi 3:1. Let's note what it says in verses 2 and 3.
Mal 3:1 Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.
Mal 3:2 But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap:
3 And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.
Malachi here mentions being refined or purified by fire. The same idea is found in the gospels when John the Baptist speaks of Jesus.
Mt 3:11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:
12 Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.
Lu 3:16 John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire:
The point here is that the baptism in the Holy Ghost is the earnest, the down payment. The Baptism of Fire is the payoff. It's what Jesus will use to purify the Church.
Isa 33:14 The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?
15 He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil;
Purifying the Church
Eph 5:26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,
27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.
Going Up To Zion
Psalm 24 touches on purifying the church, speaking of the church as the city set on a hill, Mt. Zion, The City Of The Great King.
Ps 24:3 Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place?
4 He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.
5 He shall receive the blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation.
The New Creation
Being In Christ is a great transformation. You become a new creature, carried by the spirit into the Kingdom of God.
2Co 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
Joh 3:5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
Ro 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
Ro 8:10 And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
Race, Gender, And Status Are Eliminated In Christ
The new man leaves old things behind.
1Co 13:11 When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.
When we come into unity, the differences between us will be seen as childish things, left behind by coming into maturity.
Ga 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.
Ga 6:15 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature.
Eph 4:23 And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;
24 And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.
The Love of God
Being In Christ means having his Spirit in us, and his love.
1Jo 4:16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
Ro 5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
Ro 8:39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
The Mystery Of God And The Hope Of Glory
The coming of the Lord as the Latter Rain will reveal mysteries.
Col 1:25 Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God;
26 Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:
27 To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
Partaking in the Divine Nature: Holiness
The Revelation of Jesus Christ means we will have a greatly increased knowledge of him and understanding of his ways. We shall see him as he is, and become as he is.
1Jo 3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
Ro 8:29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
2Pe 1:4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
Heb 12:10 For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.
Glory and the Unity of the Brethren
Part of the blessing that comes with unity of the brethren is the Glory of God. Jesus prayed for this unity in John 17.
Joh 17:20 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
22 And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
23 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.
24 Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.
2Co 3:18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.
Obedience to the Law in our Heart
In Psalm 40 we see a link between obedience to God's will and having his law in our hearts.
Ps 40:8 I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.
The 176 verses in Psalm 119 are written from the viewpoint of the end time believer who is going through the baptism of fire.
Completions and Conclusion
We could go on and on exploring all the ins and outs of these themes. Another 20 pages of scripture quotes would still not cover everything the bible has to say about the Revelation of Jesus Christ and the End Time Revival. Hopefully we have shared enough to let you see the implications of the pattern established in the Feast of Tabernacles.
Moses actions at the first tabernacles led to completion of the tabernacle in time to allow a celebration of Passover. All of these features of the Latter Rain lead to Completion of The Spiritual Temple. This means completion of the Global Witness when the gospel is preached through all the world.
At some point the Great Harvest comes to an end, and the enemy has his day. This we can see in Revelation 13.
Re 13:7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.
This is another completion as it brings the fullness of the Gentiles with the number of martyrs being completed also.
It amounts to the destruction of the temple. But on that topic, Jesus had this to say:
Joh 2:19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.
20 Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days?
21 But he spake of the temple of his body.
Prophetically he is speaking raising up the Body of Christ. This leads us back once again to the Passover and the Resurrection of the Saints.