Moses Reviews Yearly Feasts and Appointment of Judges

Continuing a chronological Bible study:

(Deuteronomy 16:1) “Observe the month of Abib, and keep the Passover to the LORD your God, for in the month of Abib the LORD your God brought you forth out of Egypt by night."

Moses continued his repetition of God's laws.  He told the people now to observe the month of Abib, sometimes called Nissan, because it was in that month that the Lord brought them out of bondage from Egypt.  Abib translates into something like "new fruits", and was considered the first month of their year.  It falls in our March or April.  Moses told them to keep the Passover to the Lord which occurred in Abib.  The Passover was so called because the destroying angel had passed over the children of Israel who had sprinkled the blood of their sacrifice on their doorposts, and killed only the firstborn of the Egyptians.  The commentaries I study pointed out that the Israelites actually did not come out of Egypt at night, but morning, as they had been expressly told not to come out of their doors till morning.  However, it was at night that the Lord had done such a wonder that finally made Pharaoh let His people go.  Additionally, another meaning of the word that was translated as "night", "layil", is "adversity" or "gloom", and the people were definitely brought out from that.

(2) "You shall therefore sacrifice the Passover to the LORD your God, from the flock and the herd, in the place which the LORD shall choose to place His name there."

The people were to sacrifice their Passover feast animals from their flocks and herds in the place the Lord would later choose to put His name.

(3) “You shall eat no leavened bread with it; seven days you shall eat unleavened bread with it, the bread of affliction (for you came out of the land of Egypt in haste), that you may remember the day when you came out of the land of Egypt all the days of your life."

The people were commanded not to eat leavened bread with their Passover feast.  For seven days they were to eat only unleavened bread, called the bread of affliction, a reminder of the time they came out of Egypt in haste and had no time to leaven their dough.  This was to be a reminder all the days of their lives.

(4) "And there shall be no leavened bread seen with you in all your borders for seven days; neither shall any of the flesh which you sacrifice the first day at evening remain all night until the morning."

There was to be no leavened bread even among them in their territory for the seven day period.  Moses also reminded them of the command that none of the Passover meat that was sacrificed the first evening was to remain all night until morning.  Exodus 12:10 told us that if any of it did remain till morning, it must be burned with fire.

(5) “You may not sacrifice the Passover within any of your gates which the LORD your God gives you, (6) But at the place which the LORD your God shall choose to place His name in, there you shall sacrifice the Passover at evening at the going down of the sun, at the season that you came forth out of Egypt."

The Passover sacrifice was not to be sacrificed at home or in private or within any of their cities that the Lord had given them, but was only to be sacrificed in the place the Lord would choose to place His name.  Only there would they sacrifice the Passover in the evening, at the going down of the sun, at the same season they had come out of Egypt.

(7) “And you shall roast and eat it in the place which the LORD your God shall choose, and you shall turn in the morning, and go to your tents."

The people were to roast and eat their Passover sacrifices in the place the Lord would choose, but when the solemnity was over, they might turn and go back to their tents.

(8) “Six days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a solemn assembly to the LORD your God; you shall do no work in it."

The meaning must be either six more days, or for six days and also on the seventh day, when there was also a solemn assembly to the Lord.  We were told in Exodus 12:15 (and verse 3 above) that the people were to eat unleavened bread for seven days.  On the day of the solemn assembly, they were commanded to do no work.

(9) "Seven weeks shall you number to yourself; begin to number the seven weeks from such time as you begin to put the sickle to the corn."

According to Leviticus 23:15, this began the morning after the Passover.  The people were to number seven weeks, and that would be the time that they had begun to reap their grains. 

(10) "And you shall keep the Feast of Weeks to the LORD your God with a tribute of a freewill offering from your hand, which you shall give as the LORD your God has blessed you."

These seven weeks were called the Feast of Weeks or Pentecost.  The people were to keep this feast with freewill offerings from their hands which they were to give as the Lord had blessed them.  Although it was called a freewill offering, the people were required to pay this tribute to their Lord God from whom they received all their blessings.  However, it was not mandated what they should offer.  It was left to each person to determine what to offer in grateful acknowledgment and thanksgiving for that which the Lord had blessed him.

(11) "And you shall rejoice before the LORD your God, you and your son and your daughter, your manservant and your maidservant, and the Levite who is within your gates, and the stranger and the fatherless and the widow who are among you, in the place where the LORD your God has chosen to place His name there."

The people were to make a liberal feast and cheerfully rejoice before their Lord with their families, their servants, the neighboring Levites, and the poor and needy like orphans and widows, and strangers.  They were to celebrate this feast in the place the Lord would choose to place His name.

(12) “And you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and you shall observe and do these statutes."

The people were exhorted to always remember that they had once been slaves in Egypt, and therefore they should observe to cheerfully do these things, first in thanksgiving to their Lord who freed them, and in mercy and love to those less fortunate as they would have surely appreciated having done to them in their bondage.

(13) “You shall observe the Feast of Tabernacles seven days, after you have gathered in your corn and your wine."

The people were also to observe the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days after they had gathered in their corn and wine.  We were told in Leviticus 23:34 that was the fifteenth day of the seventh month, Tisri, about our September.

(14) “And you shall rejoice in your feast, you and your son and your daughter, and your manservant and your maidservant, and the Levite, and the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow who are within your gates."

Once again the people were told to rejoice and liberally share in their feasts with their families, their servants, Levites, strangers, and the poor and needy.

(15) “Seven days you shall keep a solemn feast to the LORD your God in the place which the LORD shall choose, because the LORD your God shall bless you in all your increase and in all the works of your hands; therefore you shall surely rejoice."

For seven days the people were to keep the Feast of Tabernacles to the Lord in the place He would choose, because their Lord would bless them in the increase of their fields and vineyards, etc., and also in the works of their hands in their trades and occupations, and therefore they should surely, heartily and sincerely, rejoice and celebrate and share with family, servants, friends, and others.

(16) “Three times a year all your males shall appear before the LORD your God in the place which He shall choose, at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Tabernacles; and they shall not appear before the LORD empty. (17) Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD your God which He has given you."

Three times a year the men were to appear before the Lord for feasts in the place the Lord Himself would designate, at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Tabernacles.  They were not to appear before the Lord empty-handed, but were to bring offerings of whatever they were able, according to the blessings they had received from their Lord.

(18) "Judges and officers shall you make you in all your gates, which the LORD your God gives you, throughout your tribes; and they shall judge the people with just judgment."

During Moses's lifetime, he had been the main judge of the people through inspiration by God, with the help of subordinates, but now Moses was leaving, and instructed the people that they would have to choose their own leaders to maintain order.  Throughout all the land the Lord was giving them, in each of their tribes, they were to select judges and officers who would judge the people justly.  Judges judged the cases brought before them; officers were akin to our police who moved among the people and brought cases to the judges.

(19) "You shall not wrest judgment; you shall not respect persons, neither take a gift, for a gift blinds the eyes of the wise, and perverts the words of the righteous."

The people were commanded not to twist or pervert justice.  They were to judge all people with equal justice, and not consider the statuses of people.  They were commanded to never accept gifts or bribes because that biased their minds and therefore perverted righteous judgment.

(20) "That which is altogether just shall you follow, that you may live and inherit the land which the LORD your God gives you."

Moses exhorted the people to do only what was completely just and right that they might live and continue in the land that the Lord was giving them.

(21) "You shall not plant yourself a grove of any trees near to the altar of the LORD your God, which you shall make you."

The word translated as "grove" is "asherah".  Groves of trees, or asherah poles, were planted and the trees stripped of their boughs and carved with emblems, in heathen worship of false gods.  God commanded no such groves near any altar that was built for Him.

(22) "Neither shall you set you up any image, which the LORD your God hates."

Statues or carved or engraved figures to honor God were forbidden.  The Lord hated such things because nothing in man's imagination could come close to God's perfection and glory, and man would be reduced to worshiping worthless idols of his own imagination.