SHALOM!

 

Video: Dance With Me/Glory Come Down

 

When you are in a SUKKAH  / BOOTH, you are making yourself vulnerable to flooding, rain, etc for there is no roof and HEAVEN is the ceiling. In the same way, when you trust the covering of HEAVEN, YAH (a.k.a GOD) floods you with the water of HIS WORD bringing new growth / blessing.

Facts about the FEAST OF SUKKOT:

 

• Is the 7TH FEAST, it occurred during the 7TH MONTH, which would have been during the 7TH FULL MOON of the year and it was to be celebrated for 7 Days. There are 4 “7s” here which imply YAH’S FULL PERFECTION!
• Also know as the FEAST OF IN-GATHERING and SHELTERS.
• 7 Day long Feast (not 8 days) with the 8TH GREAT DAY!
• 7th and the Last Feast of the year.
• Begins 5 days after YOM KIPPUR / DAY OF ATONEMENT on the 15th of TISHREI
• It is a drastic change from the most solemn days of the year to the most joyous. There is no mixture of joy and sorrow like during the FEAST OF TRUMPETS/ YOM TERUAH / ROSH HA SHANAH.
• The word “SUKKOT” means “BOOTHS” and refers to the TEMPORARY DWELLINGS that the ISRAELITES used to commemorate the leaving of Egypt and having no permanent homes.
• The American THANKSGIVING originated from the FEAST OF SUKKOT.
• The FIRST DAY was to be a SABBATH as well as the 8TH DAY as seen in Leviticus 23:39.
• It commemorates the BUILDING OF THE FIRST TABERNACLE in the wilderness that TEMPORARILY housed the SPIRIT OF YAH (a.k.a GOD).
• Connected to the 7 Days of Creation.
• Connected to the 7000 years of mankind’s / earth’s history and future even into the MILLENIUM.
• Each Day of the Feast represents 1,000 years of Human History. It is the only FEAST DAY that encompasses all of the FEAST DAYS. It is the 7TH FEAST but also the 1ST FEAST. It is also a COMBINATION OF ALL THE FEAST DAYS.
• The 8TH GREAT DAY (SHEMINI ATZERET) is the NEW HEAVEN and NEW EARTH!
• 70 BULLS were Sacrificed during this time for the 70 Nations of the world.
• It is celebrated after the HARVEST and the GRAPES have been PRESSED into WINE. This is the “RAPTURE” and the WRATH of YAHUVEH/YAHWEH GOD.
• It speaks of A LIFE OF SIMPLICITY.
• It reminds us that YAH (a.k.a GOD) is our SHELTER and SUSTAINER OF LIFE in difficult times.
• It is connected to a WEDDING CEREMONY under the CHUPPAH. The CHUPPAH is like a SUKKAH. It is where YAHWEH meets HIS people (in the SUKKAH).

• In BIBLICAL TIMES, SUKKOT was considered the most important of all the holidays, referred to simply as “THE FEAST” (1 Kings 12:32). Everyone knew what you were talking about when you said, “THE FEAST”.

 

• Psalm 118 is usually read around this time. It is representative of both LIGHT and RAIN.

 

• It’s a MIRACLE. The MIRACLE is the SHELTERING PRESENCE OF YAH – not the booths themselves. The SUKKAH therefore functions as a sign that YAH loves us, that HE delights in our well-being, and that HE tenderly protects us from hardship. Were it nit fir YAH’S constant care, we would perish in the wilderness of this world….(Hebrew4Christians.com)

 

• WATER LIBATION CEREMONY (more Information to be added soon)- was the pinnacle of all celebrations in Ancient Israel. It was powerful. (“Pouring of the water“) or Water Libation Ceremony. According to the Jewish History, Sukkot is the time of year in which YAH judges the world for rainfall; therefore this ceremony, like the taking of the Four Species, invokes YAH’S blessing for rain in its proper time. The water for the libation ceremony was drawn from the Pool of Siloam (Hebrew: Breikhat HaShiloah‎‎) in the City of David and carried up the Jerusalem pilgrim road to the Temple. The joy that accompanied this procedure was palpable.Afterwards, every night in the outer Temple courtyard, tens of thousands of spectators would gather to watch the Simchat Beit HaShoeivah (Rejoicing at the Place of the Water-Drawing), as the most pious members of the community danced and sang songs of praise to God. The dancers would carry lit torches, and were accompanied by the harps, lyres, cymbals and trumpets of the Levites. According to the Mishnah, (Tractate Sukkah), “He who has not seen the rejoicing at the Place of the Water-Drawing has never seen rejoicing in his life.” Throughout Sukkot, the city of Jerusalem teemed with Jewish families who came on the holiday pilgrimage and joined together for feasting and TORAH study. A partitionseparating men and women was erected for this occasion.Nowadays, this event is recalled via a Simchat Beit HaShoeivah gathering of music, dance, and refreshments. This event takes place in a central location such as a synagogue, yeshiva, or place of study. Refreshments are served in the adjoining sukkah. Live bands often accompany the dancers. The festivities usually begin late in the evening, and can last long into the night.

 

 

• The “LULAV” – We are commanded by YAHUVEH / YAHWEH GOD in Leviticus 23:40 to take for ourselves on the first day, the fruit of beautiful trees, branches of palm trees, the boughs of eafy trees and willows of the brook; and you shall rejoice before the LORD your GOD for 7 Days. You hold them together and wave them in the four directions of the earth (North, South, East and West) thereby signifying the Nations and the fact the YAH winks at us.

The “ETROG” signifies that we people are like TREES and are supposed to PRODUCE FRUIT. It is said that the “ETROG” is the HEART” This implies that we are produce FRUIT with our HEARTS (in the right place).

The “LULAV” is the PALM BRANCH. It looks like a SPINE which is similar to that in the Human Body. The SPINAL CORD is the BACK BONE / VERY CENTRE / FOUNDATION OF MAN must be connected or else it is not possible to produce the FRUIT OF THE TREE.

The “MARTYLE” TREE / BRANCHES which literally look like EYES, EYES OF MAN. They are connected to GENEROSITY. Note that what you see comes out of the HEART!  What we see with our eyes, we do!

The “WILLOWS” / WILLOW TREE is connected to and looks like the MOUTH of a Human, likes LIPS of a Human. The BIBLE says that the LIPS of a human speak volumes out of the abundance of the HEART. Out of the heart, the mouth speaks.

In summary, we have got THE SPINE which is likened to the TORAH / TANAKH (LAWS OF YAH) hence the FOUNDATION at the top, then the EYES of a man which are connected to GENEROSITY, then the LIPS of a man which are the only branch that is connected to the “ETROG” (HEART) hence the FRUIT OF A MAN’S LIPS COME FROM THE HEART! So if your heart is NOT right, then what you say will NOT be right. You can always tell a man’s real heart when he is pressed (James 3). Your behaviour matches the temperature / condition of your heart. You can’t say you love YAH and not love your neighbour!!!

Through the FOUR SPECIES, YAH is trying to pass a MESSAGE which is that: YAH wants us to LOVE HIM with our whole being, that is to say, OUR HEARTS, EYES, LIPS.  Remember in Deuteronomy 6 (THE SHEMA / SH’MA), YAHUVEH/YAHWEH commands us to love HIM with all our HEARTS, MIND, SOUL and STRENGTH!

HEART –

MIND – EYES

LIPS – SOUL

STRENGTH – BACKBONE

YAH adds that we should WAVE THE “LULAV” in the DIRECTION of the FOUR CORNERS OF THE EARTH implying that we SHOULD LOVE OUR NEIGHBOURS AS OURSELVES. If we don’t love our neighbours as ourselves, then we should not say we love YAH! When we do this, it will by default call out to the 4 corners of the earth. It is a SYMBOLIC GESTURE unto YAH that we are WITNESSES to YAH’S People all over the earth just like TZITZIT (Threads). The TZITZIT IMPLY that one is encircled by the COMMANDMENTS OF YAHUVEH / YAHWEH from the 4 corners of the one’s garments. The TZITZIT is like a WEDDING RING which signifies belonging to the ANCIENT COVENANT OF Abraham, Isaac and Jacob/Israel as well as being protected by the BLOOD OF YAHUSHUA. The BLUE LINEN in the TZITZIT actually connects one to the ARK OF THE COVENANT because the COVERING of THE ARK OF THE COVENANT had a BLUE COVERING. One is connected to the POWER OF ALMIGHTY YAH.

 

 

 

Note that the FEASTS OF SUKKOT and HANUKKAH have something in common and that is that, they are both FEASTS OF LIGHT! Additionally, they are both observed for at least 8 days.

TORAH PORTION READING FOR THE FEAST:

• Psalm 113-118
• Ecclesiastes
• Matthew 1
• Luke 1-2
• John 1

 

The FEAST OF SUKKOTH is observed from the 15TH DAY OF THE HEBREW MONTH OF TISHRI for SEVEN DAYS until the 21ST DAY OF TISHRI plus an additional EIGHTH DAY when SHEMINI ATZERET / SIMCHAT TORAH is celebration. The seventh day of Sukkot is called Hoshanah Rabbah (“Great Salvation”). According to tradition, the verdict for the new year – which is written on Rosh Hashanah and sealed on Yom Kippur – is not handed down by the Heavenly Court until Hoshanah Rabbah. On this day we encircle the bimah (synagogue reading table) seven times while holding the Four Kinds and offering special prayers for prosperity during the upcoming year. During the course of the morning prayers it is also traditional to take a bundle of five willow branches and beat them against the ground five times.

On the preceding nights, women and girls light candles, reciting the appropriate blessings, and we enjoy nightly and daily festive meals, accompanied by the Kiddush.

 

DATES for 2017:

• Sukkot 2017 will begin in the evening of Wednesday 4 October and ends in the evening of Wednesday 11 October 2017.

 

Note that NO WORK IS TO BE DONE ON THE FIRST, SEVENTH and EIGHT DAYS OF THE FEAST!!!

THIS IS A TIME OF OUR JOY!

• Celebrations fill the streets with song and dance until the wee hours of the morning.
• We reaffirm our trust in His providence by dwelling in a sukkah.
• We recite the “HALLEL” literally meaning “PRAISE” (found in Psalm 113-118) during each day of SUKKOT (which is also the 14th set of the Passover Seder service)! 
• As it is HARVEST SEASON, We give OFFERINGS unto YAHUVEH GOD during this period as as a symbol of appreciation for completing our JOY!

• It is during this FEAST that the WEDDING /MARRIAGE SUPPER OF THE LAMB is to PROPHETICALLY take place in the future in HEAVEN. The END OF THIS FEAST (SHEMINI ATZERET / SIMCHAT TORAH) may be the beginning of the NEW EARTH and NEW HEAVENS!

 

As Messianic Jews, we celebrate four main things during this FEAST / FESTIVAL OF YAHUVEH GOD namely,

• YAH’S DIVINE PROVISION AND PROTECTION throughout our journey in this temporary dwelling / wilderness called earth as well as our fleshly body.
• THE BIRTH OF YAHUSHUA thereby YAH coming to TABERNACLE with us on earth in human form.
• We anticipate that time when YAH will TABERNACLE with and among HIS People (Israel) without any RESTRICTIONS / HINDRANCES, ETC particularly SIN. We look forward to enjoying the kind of INTERACTION which Adam and Eve had with YAH in the GARDEN OF EDEN (face-to-face).
• We look forward to the COMING OF YAHUSHUA, our BRIDEGROOM who will TABERNACLE WITH US AS HIS BRIDE & GUESTS. Note that the OPENING AT THE TOP OF THE SUKKAH (roof) is for a purpose, which is seen in the following HOLY SCRIPTURE:

Luke 21:28 King James Version (KJV)

²⁸ And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.

 

We celebrate by:

• DECORATING;
• MERRYING (eating, drinking, singing, dancing, partying) IN YAH
• GIVING OFFERINGS UNTO YAH as it is the Harvest Season
• Having KIDDUSH

 

Isaiah 9:5-8 Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)

 

Leviticus 23:40-42 Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)

⁴⁰ On the first day you are to take choice fruit, palm fronds, thick branches and river-willows, and celebrate in the presence of Adonai your God for seven days. ⁴¹ You are to observe it as a feast to Adonai seven days in the year; it is a permanent regulation, generation after generation; keep it in the seventh month. ⁴² You are to live in sukkot for seven days; every citizen of Isra’el is to live in a sukkah,

 

For forty years, as our ancestors traversed the Sinai Desert prior to their entry into the Holy Land, miraculous “clouds of glory” surrounded and hovered over them, shielding them from the dangers and discomforts of the desert. Ever since, we remember G‑d‘s kindness and reaffirm our trust in His providence by dwelling in a sukkah – a hut of temporary construction with a roof-covering of branches – for the duration of the autumn Sukkot festival. For seven days and nights, we eat all our meals in the sukkah – reciting a special blessing – and otherwise regard it as our home. Weather permitting, some even sleep there.

Isaiah 11:1-6 Names of God Bible (NOG)

The Lord’s Kingdom Will Be Ruled by a Shoot from Jesse’s Stump

 

John 1:1-4 Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)

1 In the beginning was the Word,
    and the Word was with God,

and the Word was God.
²     He was with God in the beginning.

³ All things came to be through him,
    and without him nothing made had being.

 

Matthew 1:18-2:23 Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)

¹⁸ Here is how the birth of Yeshua the Messiah took place. When his mother Miryam was engaged to Yosef, before they were married, she was found to be pregnant from the Ruach HaKodesh. ¹⁹ Her husband-to-be, Yosef, was a man who did what was right; so he made plans to break the engagement quietly, rather than put her to public shame. ²⁰ But while he was thinking about this, an angel of Adonai appeared to him in a dream and said, “Yosef, son of David, do not be afraid to take Miryam home with you as your wife; for what has been conceived in her is from the Ruach HaKodesh. ²¹ She will give birth to a son, and you are to name him Yeshua, [which means ‘Adonai saves,’] because he will save his people from their sins.”

²² All this happened in order to fulfill what Adonai had said through the prophet,

²³ “The virgin will conceive and bear a son,
and they will call him ‘Immanu El.”^[a]

(The name means, “God is with us.”)

²⁴ When Yosef awoke he did what the angel of Adonai had told him to do — he took Miryam home to be his wife, ²⁵ but he did not have sexual relations with her until she had given birth to a son, and he named him Yeshua.

2 After Yeshua was born in Beit-Lechem in the land of Y’hudah during the time when Herod was king, Magi from the east came to Yerushalayim ² and asked, “Where is the newborn King of the Jews? For we saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.”

³ When King Herod heard of this he became very agitated, and so did everyone else in Yerushalayim. ⁴ He called together all the head cohanimand Torah-teachers of the people and asked them, “Where will the Messiah be born?” ⁵ “In Beit-Lechem of Y’hudah,” they replied, “because the prophet wrote,

⁶ ‘And you, Beit-Lechem in the land of Y’hudah,
are by no means the least among the rulers of Y’hudah;
for from you will come a Ruler
who will shepherd my people Isra’el.’”^[b]

⁷ Herod summoned the Magi to meet with him privately and asked them exactly when the star had appeared. ⁸ Then he sent them to Beit-Lechem with these instructions: “Search carefully for the child; and when you find him, let me know, so that I too may go and worship him.”

⁹ After they had listened to the king, they went away; and the star which they had seen in the east went in front of them until it came and stopped over the place where the child was. ¹⁰ When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. ¹¹ Upon entering the house, they saw the child with his mother Miryam; and they prostrated themselves and worshipped him. Then they opened their bags and presented him gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. ¹² But they had been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, so they took another route back to their own country.

¹³ After they had gone, an angel of Adonai appeared to Yosef in a dream and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and escape to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you to leave. For Herod is going to look for the child in order to kill him.” ¹⁴ So he got up, took the child and his mother, and left during the night for Egypt, ¹⁵ where he stayed until Herod died. This happened in order to fulfill what Adonai had said through the prophet,

“Out of Egypt I called my son.”^[c]

¹⁶ Meanwhile, when Herod realized that the Magi had tricked him, he was furious and gave orders to kill all the boys in and around Beit-Lechem who were two years old or less, calculating from the time the Magi had told him. ¹⁷ In this way were fulfilled the words spoken through the prophet Yirmeyahu,

¹⁸ “A voice was heard in Ramah,
sobbing and lamenting loudly.
It was Rachel sobbing for her children
and refusing to be comforted,
because they are no longer alive.”^[d]

¹⁹ After Herod’s death, an angel of Adonai appeared in a dream to Yosef in Egypt ²⁰ and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to Eretz-Yisra’el, for those who wanted to kill the child are dead.” ²¹ So he got up, took the child and his mother, and went back to Eretz-Yisra’el. ²² However, when he heard that Archelaus had succeeded his father Herod as king of Y’hudah, he was afraid to go there. Warned in a dream, he withdrew to the Galil ²³ and settled in a town called Natzeret, so that what had been spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, that he will be called a Natzrati.

 

Luke 2 Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)

2 Around this time, Emperor Augustus issued an order for a census to be taken throughout the Empire. ² This registration, the first of its kind, took place when Quirinius was governing in Syria. ³ Everyone went to be registered, each to his own town. ⁴ So Yosef, because he was a descendant of David, went up from the town of Natzeret in the Galil to the town of David, called Beit-Lechem, in Y’hudah, ⁵ to be registered, with Miryam, to whom he was engaged, and who was pregnant. ⁶ While they were there, the time came for her to give birth; ⁷ and she gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him in cloth and laid him down in a feeding trough, because there was no space for them in the living-quarters.

⁸ In the countryside nearby were some shepherds spending the night in the fields, guarding their flocks, ⁹ when an angel of Adonai appeared to them, and the Sh’khinah of Adonai shone around them. They were terrified; ¹⁰ but the angel said to them, “Don’t be afraid, because I am here announcing to you Good News that will bring great joy to all the people. ¹¹ This very day, in the town of David, there was born for you a Deliverer who is the Messiah, the Lord. ¹² Here is how you will know: you will find a baby wrapped in cloth and lying in a feeding trough.” ¹³ Suddenly, along with the angel was a vast army from heaven praising God:

¹⁴ “In the highest heaven, glory to God!
And on earth, peace among people of good will!”

¹⁵ No sooner had the angels left them and gone back into heaven than the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go over to Beit-Lechem and see this thing that has happened, that Adonai has told us about.” ¹⁶ Hurrying off, they came and found Miryam and Yosef, and the baby lying in the feeding trough. ¹⁷ Upon seeing this, they made known what they had been told about this child; ¹⁸ and all who heard were amazed by what the shepherds said to them. ¹⁹ Miryam treasured all these things and kept mulling them over in her heart. ²⁰ Meanwhile, the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for everything they had heard and seen; it had been just as they had been told.

²¹ On the eighth day, when it was time for his b’rit-milah, he was given the name Yeshua, which is what the angel had called him before his conception.

²² When the time came for their purification according to the Torah of Moshe, they took him up to Yerushalayim to present him to Adonai²³ (as it is written in the Torah of Adonai, “Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to Adonai”^[a]) ²⁴ and also to offer a sacrifice of a pair of doves or two young pigeons,^[b] as required by the Torah of Adonai.

²⁵ There was in Yerushalayim a man named Shim‘on. This man was a tzaddik, he was devout, he waited eagerly for God to comfort Isra’el, and the Ruach HaKodesh was upon him. ²⁶ It had been revealed to him by the Ruach HaKodesh that he would not die before he had seen the Messiah of Adonai. ²⁷ Prompted by the Spirit, he went into the Temple courts; and when the parents brought in the child Yeshua to do for him what the Torah required, ²⁸ Shim‘on took him in his arms, made a b’rakhah to God, and said,

²⁹ “Now, Adonai, according to your word,
    your servant is at peace as you let him go;
³⁰ for I have seen with my own eyes your yeshu‘ah,
³¹     which you prepared in the presence of all peoples —
³² a light that will bring revelation to the Goyim
    and glory to your people Isra’el.”

³³ Yeshua’s father and mother were marvelling at the things Shim‘on was saying about him. ³⁴ Shim‘on blessed them and said to the child’s mother, Miryam,

“This child will cause many in Isra’el to fall and to rise,
    he will become a sign whom people will speak against;
³⁵ moreover, a sword will pierce your own heart too.
    All this will happen in order to reveal many people’s inmost thoughts.”

³⁶ There was also a prophet named Hannah Bat-P’nu’el, of the tribe of Asher. She was a very old woman — she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage ³⁷ and had remained a widow ever since; now she was eighty-four. She never left the Temple grounds but worshipped there night and day, fasting and praying. ³⁸ She came by at that moment and began thanking God and speaking about the child to everyone who was waiting for Yerushalayim to be liberated.

³⁹ When Yosef and Miryam had finished doing everything required by the Torah of Adonai, they returned to the Galil, to their town Natzeret.

⁴⁰ The child grew and became strong and filled with wisdom — God’s favor was upon him.

⁴¹ Every year Yeshua’s parents went to Yerushalayim for the festival of Pesach. ⁴² When he was twelve years old, they went up for the festival, as custom required. ⁴³ But after the festival was over, when his parents returned, Yeshua remained in Yerushalayim. They didn’t realize this; ⁴⁴ supposing that he was somewhere in the caravan, they spent a whole day on the road before they began searching for him among their relatives and friends. ⁴⁵ Failing to find him, they returned to Yerushalayim to look for him. ⁴⁶ On the third day they found him — he was sitting in the Temple court among the rabbis, not only listening to them but questioning what they said; ⁴⁷ and everyone who heard him was astonished at his insight and his responses. ⁴⁸ When his parents saw him, they were shocked; and his mother said to him, “Son! Why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been terribly worried looking for you!” ⁴⁹ He said to them, “Why did you have to look for me? Didn’t you know that I had to be concerning myself with my Father’s affairs?” ⁵⁰ But they didn’t understand what he meant.

⁵¹ So he went with them to Natzeret and was obedient to them. But his mother stored up all these things in her heart.

⁵² And Yeshua grew both in wisdom and in stature, gaining favor both with other people and with God.

 

 

The Hebrew word sukkōt is the plural of sukkah, “booth” or “tabernacle”, which is a walled structure covered with s’chach (plant material such as overgrowth or palm leaves). A sukkah is the name of the temporary dwelling in which farmers would live during harvesting, a fact connecting to the agricultural significance of the holiday stressed by the Book of Exodus. As stated in Leviticus, it is also intended as a reminiscence of the type of fragile dwellings in which the Israelites dwelt during their 40 years of travel in the desert after the Exodus from slavery in Egypt. Throughout the holiday, meals are eaten inside the sukkah and many people sleep there as well.

 

On each day of the holiday it is mandatory to perform a waving ceremony with the Four Species.

The mitzvah of waving the four species derives from the Torah. In Leviticus, it states:

Leviticus 23:40 – And you shall take on the first day the fruit of splendid trees, branches of palm trees and boughs of leafy trees and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God for seven days.

In Leviticus 23:40 the Hebrew terms for the four plants are:

• ‘êṣ hāḏār (עֵץ הָדָר), magnificent/beautiful trees
• təmārîm (תְּמָרִים), palm trees
• ‘êṣ ‘āḇōṯ (עֵץ־עָבֹת), thick/leafy trees
• ‘arḇê-nāḥal (עַרְבֵי נַחַל), willows of the brook/valley

 

During the time of the Temple in Jerusalem, the waving ceremony (called na’anu’im – נענועים) was performed in the Holy Temple on all seven days of Sukkot, and elsewhere only on the first day. 

To prepare the species for the mitzvah, the lulav is first bound together with the hadass and aravah (this bundle is also referred to as “the lulav“) in the following manner: One lulav is placed in the center, two aravah branches are placed to the left, and three hadassboughs are placed to the right. (This order is the same for both right-handed and left-handed people.) The bundle may be bound with strips from another palm frond, or be placed in a special holder which is also woven from palm fronds.

Sephardic Jews place one aravah to the right of the lulav and the second aravah to its left, and cover them with the three hadassboughs—one on the right, the second on the left, and the third atop the lulav’s spine, leaning slightly to the right. The bundle is held together with rings made from strips of palm fronds. Many Hasidic Ashkenazi Jews follow this practice as well.

In all cases, all of the species must be placed in the direction in which they grew. (For the etrog, this means that the stem end should be on the bottom and the blossom end on top; this is the direction in which the etrog begins to grow, though as it matures on the tree it usually hangs in the opposite direction.)

 

N/B: In the narrower ethnic definition, a Sephardi Jew is a Jew descended from the Jews who lived in the Iberian Peninsula in the late 15th century, immediately prior to the issuance of the Alhambra Decree of 1492 by order of the Catholic Monarchs in Spain, and the decree of 1496 in Portugal by order of King Manuel I.

 

 

 

SOME SUKKOTH SONGS:

O COME O COME EMMANUEL

 

 

What is SUKKOTH all about?

Sukkot commemorates the years that the Jews spent in the desert on their way to the Promised Land, and celebrates the way in which YAH protected them under difficult desert conditions.

Sukkot is also known as the Feast of Tabernacles, or the Feast of Booths.

The word sukkot means huts (some translations of the bible use the word booths), and building a hut is the most obvious way in which Jews celebrate the festival.

Every Jewish family will build an open air structure in which to live during the holiday. The essential thing about the hut is that it should have a roof of branches and leaves, through which those inside can see the sky, and that it should be a temporary and flimsy thing.

The Sukkot ritual is to take four types of plant material: an etrog (a citron fruit), a palm branch, a myrtle branch, and a willow branch, and rejoice with them. (Leviticus 23: 39-40.) People rejoice with them by waving them or shaking them about.

 

Meanings

Most people nowadays live in houses or apartments with strong walls and a decent roof. Spending time in a fragile hut in the garden, or under a roof of leaves rigged up on a balcony gives them the experience of living exposed to the world, without a nice comfy shell around them. It reminds them that there is only one real source of security and protection, and that is God.

Similarly, the holes in the roof reveal the sky, and metaphorically, YAH’Sheaven, the only source of security.

Another meaning goes along with this: a Jew can be in YAH’S presence anywhere. The idea here is that the person, having abandoned all the non-natural protections from the elements has only YAH to protect them – and since YAH does protect them this shows that YAH is there.

A sukkah must also have at least two walls and part of a third wall. The roof must be made of plant materials (but they must have been cut from the plant, so you can’t use a tree as the roof).

 

Health warning

Jews don’t live in these huts too completely; it depends on the climate where they live. People in cold countries can satisfy the obligation by simply taking their meals in the huts, but in warmer countries, Jewish people will often sleep out in their huts.

What Jewish law requires is that the hut should be a person’s principal residence.

 

 

On this day, we are required by YAH not to sleep too comfortably every night as a reminder that this earthly world is TEMPORARY as well as this earthly flesh body is a TEMPORARY HOUSE for our SPIRITUAL BODY. It is also a time to reflect on the CHILDREN OF ISRAEL travelling through the WILDERNESS towards the PROMISED LAND as they slept in BOOTHS / SUKKOTH /TENTS.

We are expected to build TENTS outside our houses (in our gardens) and sleep there for 7 (seven) days. If you have no garden, then you are to sleep on the floor in your house.

We eat, celebrate, sleep in the BOOTHS / SUKKOTH / TENTS for the period of 7 days.

The FIRST and SEVENTH DAYS are HIGH SABBATHS.

Additionally, on the EIGHTH DAY, we celebrate SSHEMINI ATZERET / SIMCHAT TORAH (END and BEGINNING OF TORAH READING CYCLE). This is a HIGH SABBATH as well. A new TORAH READING CYCLE starts on this day.

 

 

 

IT WAS DURING THE FEAST OF SUKKOT / FEAST OF TABERNACLES THAT YAHUSHUA OUR MESSIAH & SAVIOUR WAS BORN INTO THIS EARTHLY REALM AS A HUMAN BEING!

YAH came to tabernacle with us through HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, YAHUSHUA HA MASHIACH!!!

The Feast of Sukkot / Tabernacles is therefore very crucial just like all other feasts. It is during this feast, we are to celebrate Christmas, play Christmas songs, give gifts if desired.

The December Christmas Feast is a  PAGAN FEAST created by the Roman Catholic Church System! The same goes for the January New Year’s Day and Easter.

 

Please also watch the videos below as they bear useful information:

JEWISH SUKKOT – JESUS’ TRUE BIRTH, Not Christmas (Also A Teaching On Hanukkah)!

 

 

 

REMEMBER:

During, this feast, we are to set up tents outside our houses and sleep in them as well as celebrate in them as a reminder of the way the Israelites of old lived in the desert when they were travelling to the Promised Land. Additionally, it symbolic of the fact that this earthly realm is a temporary home for us all as human beings. Our fleshly body is also a temporary home. All these earthly things will pass away one day!

Also click here for more information on SHEMINI ATZERET & SIMCHAT TORAH.

YAH’S PROPHETIC WORDS FOR SUKKOT:

 

 

 

 

Additional useful teaching: