Sukkos
Feast of Tabernacles
and
Shmini Atzeres and Simchas Torah
Tishrei 15–23, 5785
October 17–25, 2024
Begins 18 minutes before sundown, Wed. Oct. 16
Ends at sundown as Shabbos begins, Fri. Oct. 25
Readings
(Diaspora)
Lev. 22:26–23:44
Num. 29:12-16
Zech. 14:1-21
Lev. 22:26–23:44
Num. 29:12-16
1 Kings 8:2-21
Ex. 33:12–34:26
Num. 29:17-22
Ezek. 38:18–39:16
Book of Ecclesiastes
Num. 29:20-28
Num. 29:23-31
Num. 29:26-34
Num. 29:26-34
Deut. 15:19–16:17
Num. 29:35–30:1
1 Kings 8:54–66
Deut. 33:1–34:12,
and Gen. 1:1–2:3
Num. 29:35–30:1
Josh. 1:1-18
“... On the fifteenth day of this seventh month is the Festival of Sukkos, seven days for Hashem... On the first day, you will take for yourselves a fruit of a Hadar tree, palm branches, twigs of a braided tree and brook-willows, and you will rejoice before Hashem your G-d for seven days... For a seven-day period you shall live in sukkos [booths]. Every native in Israel shall live in sukkos, in order that your generations should know that I had the children of Israel live in sukkos when I took them out of the land of Egypt. I am Hashem your G‑d..."
Leviticus 23:34,40,42
What is Sukkos?
Sukkos is the last of the three pilgrimage festivals. Like "Pesach" (Passover) and "Shavu'os" (the Feast of Weeks / Pentecost), Sukkos has a triple significance: Commemoration of the Historical (our past), celebration of the Agricultural (our present) and faith / belief in the Prophetic (our future), when the festivals will be fully realized for us and for all the nations of the world in the "Acharis HaYamim" (End of Days).
The Past: Living in a Sukkah
Historically, Sukkos commemorates the forty-year period during which the children of Israel were traveling in the desert, living in temporary shelters. At that time, they were sheltered from the burning sun by the cloud of G-d's glory overhead. According to our rabbis, clouds surrounded them like walls as well, protecting them from danger, and these clouds of glory, above and on each side, formed a nation-wide sukkah.
The Present: Building a Sukkah
Ever since those days, we remember G-d's kindness and reaffirm our trust in His providence by constructing and dwelling in a sukkah - a temporary three-walled (at least) shelter with a "s'chach" (a see-through roof of branches) - for the duration of the Sukkos festival, seven days and nights. We eat all our meals in the sukkah, sleep in it (if we live in Israel), invite guests to it and treat it as our home. Agriculturally, Sukkos is a festival celebrating the end of the harvest season, and it is sometimes referred to as "Chag Ha-Asif" (the Festival of Ingathering). The Scriptural passages read on Sukkos typically have recurring themes of water, dew and rain, which are interpreted both literally (as we ask G-d for rain during the winter rainy season in Israel) and also as metaphorical references to His return in the time to come.
"Arba Minim" (The Four Species)
Another practice during Sukkos involves four plants, which are commonly known as the "Lulav and Esrog". We are commanded (Leviticus 23:40) to take these four plants and use them to "rejoice before Hashem." The four species in question are an "Esrog" (a citron - a citrus fruit similar to a lemon, native to Israel), a "Lulav" (palm branch), two "Aravos" (willow branches) and three "Hadassim" (myrtle branches). On the first day of Sukkos, the six branches are bound together and held in the right hand and are nicknamed collectively, "the Lulav", while the seventh component, ("the Esrog") is held separately in the left hand with the stem facing toward the heavens. After reciting a blessing, the left hand brings the esrog, turning the stem earthward, together with the right hand’s lulav. With these four species joined together, one rejoices by "waving" the species (a custom derived from Leviticus 23:9-11) in all six directions (east, south, west, north, up and down), symbolizing the fact that G-d is sovereign over all creation. For the remaining days of Sukkos, the blessing is said while holding the lulav and before picking up the esrog.
The four species are also held and waved during the special "Hallel" (Praise) prayer in religious services, and are held during processions around the "Bimah" (the pedestal where the Torah is read) each day during the holiday. These processions commemorate similar processions around the altar of the ancient Temple in Jerusalem. This part of the service is known as "Hoshanos" (salvations), because while the procession is made, we recite a prayer with the refrain, "Hoshiah Nah!" (please save us!). On the seventh day of Sukkos, known as "Hoshanah Rabbah" (the Great Salvation), seven circuits are made.
The Future: The Nations Dwelling in Sukkos
Prophetically, the season of Sukkos is associated with the Messianic Kingdom, the time of resurrection (Isaiah 26:19, Ezekiel 37:1-14) and of global homage to G-d, when all the nations will be required to go up to Jerusalem to keep the festival of Sukkos, under penalty of rain being withheld from them (Zechariah 14:16-17). At that time, G-d will come to us like the rain (Hosea 6:3), and will "tabernacle" among His people again (Leviticus 26:6, Ezekiel 37:27).
"… For the earth will be brimming full with the knowledge of the glory of Hashem in the same way that the waters cover the sea…"
“We shake the lulav to show our yearning for the messianic age and to remind G-d of His promise. This is one of the reasons why Sukkot is called in rabbinical literature “ha-chag”, (the festival), because it not only reminds us of our history, when little ramshackle huts protected our ancestors from the buffeting of the elements, but it foreshadows our future, when all mankind will sit in unity in G-d’s universal sukkah and call upon the One Eternal G-d, and every part of the universe will acclaim the grandeur and power of its King.”
“After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle (sukkah) of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again its ruins, and I will set it up; that the residue of men might seek after the L-rd, and all the Gentiles upon whom my name is called, says the L-rd, who does all these things.”
“Thus says the L-rd Hashem; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the nations, where they have gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land. And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all. … I will save them out of all their dwelling-places, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their G-d. And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them. And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein – they, and their children, and their children’s children forever: and my servant David shall be their prince forever. Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will set them in place, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. My tabernacle (dwelling-place) also shall be with them: and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And the nations shall know that I Hashem do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.”
“And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of G-d is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and G-d himself shall be with them, and be their G-d.”
Holiday Audio Learning Downloads
Sukkot
Feast of Tabernacles
Series: The Jewish Roots of the Christian Faith
Lesson: 10 of 16
Length: 1 hr, 31 min
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Another Counterfeit Feast?
Series: The Jewish Roots of the Christian Faith
Lesson: 11 of 16
Length: 1 hr, 6 min
Audio Download
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By downloading this product, you agree that it licenses you to burn one set of this series onto the medium of your choice and additionally to keep one copy on your hard drive as a backup. Additional copies are not permitted without written authorization. Unauthorized reproduction and/or distribution is a violation of the eighth commandment.
Sukkot
and the Birth of the Messiah
Recorded: October 2017
Length: 2 hrs
This lesson delves into the nuts and bolts of whether we can know exactly what day in the calendar year the Messiah was born.
- Why does Luke begin with a description of Zechariah's priestly service?
- Can traditional Jewish liturgy provide a glimpse into Biblical truth?
- What does the New Year for Trees have to do with all of this?
This learning also includes supplemental notes in a PDF document, to be read along with the audio.
Audio Download
and Supplemental PDF
DOWNLOAD LICENSE
By downloading this product, you agree that it licenses you to burn one set of this series onto the medium of your choice and additionally to keep one copy on your hard drive as a backup. Additional copies are not permitted without written authorization. Unauthorized reproduction and/or distribution is a violation of the eighth commandment.
Ecclesiastes
and the Sukkah
Length: 7 pages
This article explores the concepts of permanence and security and how they can be found in Solomon's most perplexing writings. A closer look at a misunderstood book.
PDF Download
DOWNLOAD LICENSE
By downloading this product, you agree that it licenses you to burn one set of this series onto the medium of your choice and additionally to keep one copy on your hard drive as a backup. Additional copies are not permitted without written authorization. Unauthorized reproduction and/or distribution is a violation of the eighth commandment.