Leviticus 23:4-8

Leviticus 23:4-8

[4] These are the feasts  of the LORD,  even holy  convocations,  which ye shall proclaim  in their seasons.  [5] In the fourteenth  day of the first  month  at even  passover.  [6] And on the fifteenth  day  of the same month  is the feast  of unleavened bread  unto the LORD:  seven  days  ye must eat  unleavened bread.  [7] In the first  day  ye shall have an holy  convocation:  ye shall do  no servile  work  therein. [8] But ye shall offer  an offering made by fire  unto the LORD  seven  days:  in the seventh  day  is an holy  convocation:  ye shall do  no servile  work  therein.

What does Leviticus 23:4-8 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

Leviticus 23:4 introduces the seven annual festivals. Whereas the Sabbath could be observed anywhere, the other feasts required attendance at the central sanctuary for participation.
In one sense the Passover (Heb. Pesah, Leviticus 23:5) was the most important feast (cf. Exodus 12:1-28). It commemorated God"s deliverance of Israel from Egyptian slavery by a powerful supernatural act and His preparation of the nation for adoption as His special treasure.
Jesus died as the Paschal Lamb on Passover in the year He died for our sins ( John 19:14; Matthew 26:17-29; cf. 1 Corinthians 5:7; 1 Peter 1:18-19). [1]
The Passover was primarily a time when Israel commemorated the Lord"s deliverance from bondage in Egypt. Likewise our worship should include a commemoration of our past salvation from the bondage of sin (cf. Matthew 26:26-29).
"It is noteworthy that the object of faith was not the typology of the sacrifices ... or a consciousness of the coming Redeemer, but God Himself." [2]
The day after the Passover marked the beginning of the seven-day Feast of Unleavened Bread (or Festival of Thin Bread, CET, Leviticus 23:6-14; cf. Numbers 28:16-25). This was one of the three feasts that all the adult males in Israel had to attend along with the feasts of Firstfruits and Tabernacles ( Exodus 23:17; Deuteronomy 16:16). It was a holy convocation or gathering together of the nation around the sanctuary.
This feast reminded the believing Israelite that he needed to live a clean life since God had redeemed him by the blood of the Passover lamb (cf. 1 Corinthians 5:6-8; Galatians 5:9).
"God requires his people to preserve their spiritual heritage through the commemoration of their redemption and the life of purity to follow." [3]