CHAP. VI. OF THE FEAST OF TABERNACLES. THE feast of tabernacles was the third grand festival, at which all the male Israelites were to attend at the national altar, Deut. xvi, 16. It derived its name from their dwelling in tabernacles*, or booths, during its celebration, Lev. xxiii, 42. It is likewise called the "feast of ingathering in the end of the year," Exod. xxiii, 16, because at this season the whole harvest, not only of the corn, but also of the vintage and other fruits, for which they were to express their thankfulness to God at this feast, was completed, Lev. xxiii, 39. It began on the fifteenth day of the month Tisri, the first of the civil and the seventh of the ecclesiastical year, and was to be celebrated seven days: "The fifteenth day of the seventh month shall be the feast of tabernacles for seven days," Lev. xxiii, 34. To which there was also added an eighth day, which was to be observed with peculiar solemnity: "Seven days shall ye 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," Lev. xxiii, 36. But as the feast of tabernacles is expressly limited to seven days, "The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the feast of tabernacles for seven days unto the Lord," ver. 34; during which only they are commanded to dwell in tabernacles or booths, ver. 42; this eighth day was not so properly a part of the feast of tabernacles, as another distinct feast which followed immediately upon it; agreeably to the account which is given in the book of Nehemiah, “They kept the feast seven days, and on the eighth day was a solemn as * The rabbies say a great deal concerning the form of these tabernacles; see Mishn. tit. Succah, and Surenhusii Tabulæ rarissimorum Tabernaculorum, prefixed to tom. v. sembly according unto the manner," chap. viii, 18. The seven days are expressly said in Leviticus to have been kept in commemoration of their dwelling in tents in the wilderness for forty years, chap. xxiii, 42, 43; the eighth day, therefore, was properly the feast of ingathering, on which they were to give thanks for their whole harvest, "after," as it is expressed in the book of Deuteronomy, "they had gathered in their corn and their wine," chap. xvi, 13-16. Indeed there is no mention, in this last passage, of this eighth day, but only of the festival of seven days. Nevertheless these being observed on a separate account, namely, to commemorate their dwelling in tents in the wilderness, we may conclude, that the rejoicing and thanksgiving, enjoined at this festival on account of the harvest, were chiefly if not wholly appropriated to the eighth day. And it is observable, that they were commanded to dwell in booths no longer than the seven days; a circumstance which shows, that the eighth day was not observed on the same account as the seven preceding. Nevertheless, as the names of the feast of the passover, and the feast of unleavened bread, which immediately followed it, are frequently confounded*, so the feast of tabernacles and of ingathering, though properly distinct, yet, following close upon one another, are sometimes spoken of as one feast, and the name of either indifferently applied to both. It was probably the eighth day, which is ordered to be kept with the solemnity of a sabbath, and not the seventh, concerning which there is no such appointment in the law, that is styled by the evangelist John "the last and great day of the feast," John vii, 37; that is, of the feast of tabernacles, ver. 2. The first day of this feast was to be kept as a sabbath, Lev. xxiii, 39, and during that and the six following days they were to dwell in tents, or booths, made of branches of several sorts of trees, which are particularly mentioned, ver. 40. The name of the first sort is 77 gnets hadhar, which we render, "goodly trees." The Jews will have it to mean the citront. The next is called thamar, or the palm. The third is ny gnets gnabhoth, which signifies any thick or * See before, chap. iv, p. 478. + Reland. Antiq. part. iv, cap. v, sect. ix; Hottinger. in Godwin. lib. iii, cap. vi, sect. iii, not. iv, p. 581–584. bushy wood; by which the Jews understand the myrtle. The last is the willow. But when Nehemiah, upon the revival of this feast, directed the people what branches to gather, he called some of them by different names, which we render olive branches, and pine branches, and myrtle branches, Neh. viii, 15. Probably, therefore, the Karraites were right in their opinion, that it was not the intention of the law to oblige them to use certain trees and no other, but only such as were fit for the purpose, and could be most readily procured, in the places were they dwelt. Accordingly Moses named such trees as were most common in his time, and Nehemiah others that were grown more common in his. It appears from the passage in Nehemiah, that the booths were to be made of these branches; but this is not expressly declared of the boughs mentioned in Leviticus. It is only said, "You shall take 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." These boughs and branches the Sadducees understand to be for making their booths; but the Pharisees, that they were to be carried in their hands*; which is the practice of the modern Jews to this day. They tie together one branch of palm, three branches of myrtle, and one of willow. This they carry in their right hands, and in their left they have a branch of citron, with its fruit, or at least of pomecitron, when they cannot procure such a branch. With these, every day of the feast, that is, for seven days, they make a procession in their synagogues round their reading desks, as their ancestors I did round the walls of Jericho, in token of the expected downfal of their enemies+. Under each of these branches a mystery is comprehended. The palm, inasmuch as it bears an insipid fruit, is an emblem of the hypocrite. The myrtle, as it has a fragrant smell, although it be barren, resembles those who perform good works without the law. The willow is an emblem of the wicked, and the citron of the righteous. They also turn about with these branches to the four cardinal points, Reland. Antiq. ubi supra; see Joseph. Antiq. lib. iii, cap. x, sect. iv, p. 175, edit. Haverc. + Buxtorf. Synag. Judaic. cap. xxi, p. 460, 461. Buxtorf. Synag. Judaic. cap. xxi, p. 457, 3d edit. and shake or push with them each way, and upwards and downwards, to drive the devil from them*. While they are making this procession, they sing Hosannah; whence this feast is called by the rabbies the Hosannah; and sometimes the branches are called by the same name. On the last day, which they call Hosannah Rabbah, or the great Hosannah, they make the procession seven times together, in memory of the siege of Jericho. The form of the Hosannah in their ritual, which they sing on this occasion, is remarkable, “For thy sake, O our Creator, Hosannah; for thy sake, O our Redeemer, Hosannah; for thy sake, O our Seeker, Hosannah;" as if they beseeched the blessed Trinity, saith Dr. Patrick†, to save them, and send them help. This feast is kept with the greatest jollity of any of their festivals, especially on the eighth day; when, according to the law, they were to feast and rejoice upon their having gathered in their corn and their wine. Hence, in the Talmud, it is often called in chag, the feast, κατ' εξοχη : and Philo calls it εορτων μεγίσην, the greatest of the feasts; and hence likewise this Jewish festival came to be more taken notice of by the heathens than any other. It is probable King Cecrops took from it the hint of the law which he ordained at Athens, "that the master of every family should after harvest make a feast for his servants, and eat together with them, who had taken pains with him in tilling his ground §." And as this Jewish festival was kept at the time of the vintage, or presently after it, when " they had gathered in their corn and their wine," it is not unlikely, that the heathens borrowed their Bacchanalia from it; and this might lead Plutarch into that egregious mistake, that the Jews celebrated this festival to the honour of Bacchus; for he saith in his Symposia," that in the time of the vintage the Jews spread tables, furnished with all manner of fruits, and lived in tabernacles, especially of palm and ivy wreathed together, and they call it the feast of tabernacles;"" and then a few days after," saith he (referring I suppose to the last day * Buxtorf. cap. xx, p. 459. ↑ See Wolfii Cura Philolog. in Joh. vii, 37. + Patrick on Lev. xxiii, 40. § Macrob. Saturnal. lib. i, cap. x, p. 231, edit. Gronov. Lugd. Bat. 1670. || Plutarch. Sympos. lib. iv, prob. v, Oper. tom. ii, p. 671, edit. Francof. of the feast) "they kept another festivity, which openly shows it was dedicated to Bacchus; for they carried boughs of palms, &c., in their hands, with which they went into the temple, the Levites (who, he fancies, were so called from Evios, one of the names of Bacchus) going before with instruments of music, &c." Although only the first and last days of this feast were to be kept as sabbaths, there were, nevertheless, peculiar and extraordinary sacrifices appointed for every day of it, Numb. xxix, 12, et seq. On the first day, "thirteen young bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year," were sacrificed; whereas on the other festivals two bullocks sufficed, see Numb. xxviii, 11, 19, 27. The next day twelve bullocks were sacrificed, and so on, with the decrease of one bullock a day, till on the seventh day only seven bullocks were offered; which in all made seventy bullocks. The lambs and the rams also were in a double proportion to the number sacrificed at any other festival. The doctors give this reason for the daily diminution of the number of the bullocks; the whole number, say they, being seventy, was according to the languages of the seventy nations of the world; and the diminution of one every day signified, that there should be a gradual diminution of those nations till all things were brought under the government of the Messiah. Others suppose this diminution had a respect to the seventy years of man's age, which is daily decaying+. For the eighth day, though it was properly a distinct festival, and was to be kept with extraordinary solemnity, fewer sacrifices were appointed than for any of the foregoing seven. On every one of them two rams were offered and fourteen lambs; on this day there were but half as many; and whereas seven bullocks were the fewest that were offered on any of these days, on this there was only one, Numb. xxix, 36. By which, Dr. Patrick saith, God consulted perhaps the weakness of mankind, who naturally grow weary both of the charge and labour of such services, when they are long continued; and therefore he made them every day less toilsome and ex * R. Solomon in Numb. xxix, cited by Lightfoot in his Temple Service, chap. xvi, sect. i. + Abarbanel in Numb. xxix, cited by Lightfoot, ubi supra. |