Dearly Beloved in Yeshua,

Sukkot: The Final Moed

There are seven feasts (hagim) of Adonai (in addition to the weekly Sabbath), mentioned in Leviticus Chapter 23. God calls them holy convocations—Mikra Kodesh, appointed times, moadim  (moh-ah-DEEM)—”My Feasts” (not just the “Jewish Holidays”). My late husband Neil used to call them “God’s Parties” and always said that everyone is invited. You just have to accept the Lord’s invitation.

The Feast of Booths, Hag HaSukkot (HAHG ha-sooh-COHT), is not only one of the three Pilgrim Feasts, Shalosh Regalim (shah-LOHSH reh-gah-LEEM), when all Jewish males were required to go up to Jerusalem. It is also the last of the Fall Feasts occurring in the seventh month of the biblical calendar and lasts for seven days. The dates of Sukkot this year are Monday, October 6, (evening) until Monday, October 13, 2025.

From the Torah: “‘Also on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the fruit of the land, you shall keep the feast of the Lord for seven days; on the first day there shall be a sabbath-rest, and on the eighth day a sabbath-rest'” (Lev. 23:39).

In my opinion, Sukkot is the richest of all the Feasts of the Lord and also my favorite. Sukkot is celebrated throughout Israel but somewhat downplayed in the U.S. I have often wondered if the reason for this is that, following repentance on Yom Teruah and fasting on Yom Kippur, without assurance of a blood atonement, there is no compelling cause for joy and celebration among pre-believing Jewish people. Believers in Messiah, on the other hand, have great cause to rejoice at Sukkot, the final fall moed (moh-EHD), or appointment with God.

Sukkot: The Season of Our Joy

One of the names of Sukkot is Zeman Simchateinu  (zeh-MAHN seem-khah-tayNOO), the Season of our Rejoicing. It is the only feast of the Lord where God’s people are commanded to rejoice—three times. “…you shall rejoice in your feast…” (Deut. 16:14), “…you shall be altogether joyful” (Deut. 16:15), and “…you shall rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days” (Lev. 23:40). Rejoice in Hebrew is sameakh—(sah-MAY-akh).

This rejoicing should be easy and natural for a child of God since we have already repented of our sin, received forgiveness through the atoning blood of Yeshua, our New Covenant High Priest, and now rejoice that our names are written in heaven—in the Book of Life of the Lamb (Luke 10:20)— once for all time.

Every Sukkot, for the past 37 years, I have had a private lunch with Yeshua on the final day of the feast. It is my special time to express my love and joy of belonging to the Beloved. I thank Yeshua for His promise in John 15:11, that His joy would remain in us, and that our joy might be full.

Sukkot: The Transitory Nature of Life

One of the major themes of Sukkot is that we are “just passing through this life.” The feast looks back to Israel’s time in the wilderness on their way to the Promised Land. Dwelling in flimsy booths— sukkot (sooh-COHT)—was a way to remind God’s people that their life on earth was temporary. So were their physical bodies, like Sukkot. The Bible calls them “earthen vessels” (2 Cor. 4:7).

The command to dwell in temporary booths is found in Leviticus 23:42-43. “‘You shall dwell in booths for seven days. All who are native Israelites shall dwell in booths, that your generations may know that I made the children of Israel dwell in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.'” For this reason, one of the names of the feast is Hag HaSukkot.

The idea of the fragile nature of life and its brevity on earth is reinforced by a special megillah or scroll read at this feast: Kohelet (koh-HEH-leht) or Ecclesiastes, which says, “I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and indeed, all is vanity and grasping for the wind” (Ecc. 1:14). Ecclesiastes also reminds us of the futility of pursuing pleasure as opposed to the wisdom of fearing God and living for Him.

The roof of a sukkah is supposed to be covered with branches (i.e., palms) in such a way that the stars are visible at night to remind us of the One who never sleeps and watches over us. I have memories of sleeping in our sukkah with Jonathan, Jesse, and our beagle, Sport. (We tried to entice Neil but to no avail. The mosquitos loved him!) Sukkot is like the ultimate Jewish camping experience. Try it, if you can! And finally, consider the assurance of 2 Cor. 5:1, “For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.”

Sukkot: The Faithfulness of God

Sukkot: Protection Under God’s Wings

It is true that the Israelites were more secure in a temporary sukkah with God than in a palace (pyramid) without Him. The same can be said of us. The sukkah is a symbol of security—that dwelling in sukkot is a reminder that our security is in God. Not in our jobs. Not in our stuff. Not in our government. Not even in our families. In God. “I will say of the LORD, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress; my God, in Him I will trust'” (Ps. 91:2).

The sukkah, fragile in nature, reminded the Israelites that their lives were like a sojourn under God’s wings, and sukkot were like the Glory Clouds that protected them from the elements for forty years in the desert. Our lives as believers are hidden with the Messiah in God (Col. 3:3). He took on a human sukkah to come and live among us. Yeshua died for our sin so that, in spite of the most difficult circumstances, we can be safe. “For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion [ sukkah!]; in the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock” (Ps. 27:5).

Sukkot and the Presence of God

This theme is an important one since it has been the desire of God’s heart, since the Garden of Eden, to dwell among His People. He longs to be present and make His Presence known. God expressed this desire to Moses, “And they shall know that I am the LORD their God, who brought them up out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell [shakhan] among them. I am the LORD their God” (Ex. 29:46). While the Egyptians built monuments to their gods, the God of Israel desired to dwell with His people, restoring the relationship He created them for.

King Solomon chose the days of Sukkot as the timing of the dedication of the Temple—a temporary dwelling for the Presence of God. God’s desire, as mentioned in Glaser’s The Fall Feasts of Israel, was to fill the whole earth with the glory of His presence. Solomon expressed this himself in Psalm 72:19, “And blessed be His glorious name forever! And let the whole earth be filled with His glory. Amen and Amen.”

When, during Sukkot, Yeshua proclaimed in John 8:12,“…’I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life'” those present saw One who embodied the Shekinah. In Him dwelt the fullness of God (Col. 1:19). Yeshua was God tabernacling among men. “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth” (Jn. 1:14). Yeshua was the Presence of God dwelling in a temporary sukkah.

Sukkot and the Final Harvest

One of the names for Sukkot is Hag HaAsif— (HAHG ha-ah-SEEF), the Feast of Ingathering/ Harvest—since Sukkot falls during the time of the final harvest in Israel. It is, in essence, an agricultural festival, occurring right before the rainy season. Sukkot is a time of thanking God and rejoicing in His abundant provision as crops are brought in and is the origin of our American holiday of Thanksgiving.

The Torah commands, “‘You shall observe the Feast of Tabernacles [Sukkot] seven days, when you have gathered from your threshing floor and from your winepress'” (Deut. 16:13). And in Exodus, “…and the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year, when you have gathered in the fruit of your labors from the field” (Ex. 23:16).

The final harvest. There is a final harvest of souls happening right now, if we have eyes to see. Revival among the youth. But something else, as the Lord showed me recently. I received a phone call in late August from Michael, age 66, originally from Philadelphia. He called because he had found a seashell with my telephone number on it. When I asked Michael when he found the shell he said, “In 2010.” Shocked, I replied, “Fifteen years ago?” Where was it for all those years? It turns out that in packing to move, he found the seashell and decided to call the number. When I asked this former Catholic if he knew what the “Good News” or “Gospel” was, he said, “No.” After a simple Gospel presentation, Michael prayed with me to receive the Lord. My conclusion: God is digging deep. The harvest is upon us. God is “…not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Pet. 3:9).

The following evening, after receiving a call from a 78-year-old friend (who found my number after 40 years) and praying with him to receive the Lord, I believe I heard God say, “The age of the Gentiles is drawing to a close. I love them. I am reaching out to them now.” Don’t be surprised if you hear from people from your past. Share the Good News with them. God is probably sending them to YOU!

Sukkot and the Palm

The palm, lulav in Hebrew (looh-LAHV), plural: lulavim, plays a crucial role in the feast of Sukkot. I wrote an entire newsletter on this topic in September 2007. You can find it on our Jewish Jewels website under Newsletter Archives. God instructed His people to celebrate Sukkot with palms: “And you shall take for yourselves on the first day the fruit of beautiful trees, branches of palm trees, the boughs of leafy trees, and willows of the brook; and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God for seven days” (Lev. 23:40).

The temporary roof of many sukkot (including mine) are covered with palm branches. Jewish people not only eat and sleep under palm branches at Sukkot, they also wave them before the Lord as directed in Leviticus 23:40. The lulav bundle includes not only the palm, but myrtle and willow branches. These are used to worship the Lord, rejoice in Him, and proclaim His sovereignty over the entire world.

Palm branches are waved in processions within synagogues and sukkahs. Psalm 118:25 is chanted as the lulav is waved toward the heavens: “Save now, I pray, O Lord; O Lord, I pray, send now prosperity” (Ana Adonai, hoshiah na; Ana Adonai hatzlikha na). This is done seven times on the last or seventh day of Sukkot, “Hoshana Rabbah.” Worshippers cry out Hoshiana, “Save Now,” looking forward to the victorious coming of King Messiah. (Fulfilled by Yeshua on “Palm Sunday.”)

Palms are also waved as symbols of victory. Revelation 7 speaks of the final victory of the righteous, a multitude of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, who stand before the Lamb with palm branches—lulavim—in their hands. (Rev. 7:9)

Sukkot and Living Water

Water is a prominent Sukkot theme. In Bible times, on the final day of the Feast, there was a special water drawing ceremony held at the temple in Jerusalem. During the ceremony, the Levitical priests thanked God for the rain sent that year and prayed for the coming year. Rain meant life for Israel, an arid Middle Eastern country. Crowds, beseeching God, chanted Isaiah 12:3, “Therefore with joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.”

It was on this “Hoshanna Rabbah,” the day of the “Great Hosanna,” that Yeshua, in the midst of the ceremony, made an astounding proclamation, as recorded in John 7:37-39, “On the last day, that great day of the feast, Yeshua stood and cried out, saying, ‘If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Yeshua was not yet glorified.” [Read all of John 7 about Sukkot!]

Sukkot and the Nations

Sukkot is the only feast of the Lord that specifically includes the Gentiles and is considered to be inclusive and universal. At the dedication of the Temple, King Solomon prayed that God would have mercy on the Gentiles who turned to the God of Israel. (See I Kings 8:41-43.) At the time of Yeshua, seventy bulls were sacrificed during the seven days of celebration on behalf of the seventy nations of the known world at that time. These sacrifices looked forward to the conversion of the Gentiles to the God of Israel and their gathering under the Shekinah glory.

The Bible says that in the Millennium, when Yeshua rules and reigns on the earth from Jerusalem, all the nations of the earth will ascend to celebrate Sukkot in the City of the Great King. There is actually divine punishment if they don’t. “And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles [Sukkot]. And it shall be that whichever of the families of the earth do not come up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, on them there will be no rain” (Zech.14:16-17).

Sukkot and the Eternal Huppah

There will be a future sukkah, like a wedding canopy or huppah, that covers the Bride of Yeshua, the followers of the Lamb. This will no longer be a temporary dwelling, but a permanent, eternal sukkah that will never be taken down—foreshadowed perhaps in Isaiah 33:20, “Look upon Zion, the city of our appointed feasts; Your eyes will see Jerusalem, a quiet home, a tabernacle that will not be taken down; not one of its stakes will ever be removed, nor will any of its cords be broken.”

Consider Revelation 21:2-3, “Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, ‘Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.'”

Sukkot and the Incarnation

It is possible that the Word (Yeshua) became flesh and “tabernacled” among us during Sukkot. The booths (sukkot) that Jacob made for his livestock (Gen. 33:17) could have been like the “manger” that cradled the Lamb of God. There may have been no room at the inn, but room in a sukkah instead, during the crowded conditions of this last, great pilgrim feast of the Lord. Only God knows for sure, but I choose to celebrate God coming to dwell with us through Yeshua during the Season of our Joy!

Hag Sameach (Joyful Feast),