the eighth day marked a solemn close to the year’s cycle of festivals.—Ex. 34:22; Lev. 23:34-38.

The Festival of Booths actually marked the end of the agricultural year for Israel. It was, therefore, a time of rejoicing and thanksgiving for all the blessings Jehovah had given in the fruitage of all their crops. Also, the Day of Atonement having been observed just five days earlier, the people would have a sense of peace with Jehovah. While only the males were obligated to attend, whole families came. They were required to dwell in booths for the seven days of the festival. Usually one booth served for each family. (Ex. 34:23; Lev. 23:42) These were erected in the courts of the houses, on the roofs of the dwellings and in the courts of the temple, in the public squares and on roads within a sabbath-day’s journey of the city. (Neh. 8:16) The Israelites were to use “the fruit of splendid trees,” palm fronds, boughs of branchy trees and poplars. (Lev. 23:40) In the days of Ezra, olive and oil-tree leaves and myrtle (very fragrant) and palm leaves, as well as the branches of other trees, were used to build these temporary structures. The fact that all would dwell in booths, even eating their meals in them during the seven days, and that they were all made of the same materials taken from the hills and valleys of the country, by both rich and poor alike, would emphasize the equality of all in relation to the festival.

On the day before the festival, Ethanim 14, most, if not all the pilgrims, had arrived in Jerusalem. The fourteenth was the day of preparation, unless that day happened to be a weekly sabbath day, in which case preparations could be made earlier. The time of all was busily occupied in constructing the booths, in purification and in caring for the offerings each one had brought, as well as in joyful fellowship. The city of Jerusalem and surroundings provided a unique and picturesque appearance, with the booths located all over the town and in the roads and gardens around Jerusalem. Adding to the festive atmosphere was the colorful beauty of the fruits and the leaves, along with the fragrance of the myrtles. Everyone was in anticipation, awaiting the sound of the trumpet blast from the elevated location of the temple in the early autumn evening, announcing the advent of the festival.

During this festival the number of sacrifices offered was greater than at any other festival of the year. The national sacrifice, starting with thirteen bulls on the first day and diminishing one each day, totaled seventy bulls sacrificed, besides 119 lambs, rams and goats, and, in addition, the grain and wine offerings. During the week thousands of individual offerings would also be made by the attenders. (Num. 29:12-34, 39) On the eighth day, on which no laborious work could be done, a bull, a ram and seven male lambs a year old were presented as a burnt offering, along with grain and drink offerings and a goat as a sin offering. (Num. 29:35-38) During the festival the firstfruits of later crops of the year were also offered, for Pentecost, four months earlier, had marked the completion of the early harvest.

In sabbath years the Law was read to all the people during the festival. (Deut. 31:10-13) It is likely that the first of the twenty-four divisions of priests established by David began to serve at the temple after the Festival of Booths, inasmuch as the temple built by Solomon was inaugurated at the time of this festival in 1027 B.C.E.—1 Ki. 6:37, 38; 1 Chron. 24:1-18; 2 Chron. 5:3; 7:7-10.

The distinguishing mark of the Festival of Booths, the primary nature of it, was joyful thanksgiving. Jehovah’s desire was that his people should rejoice in him. “You must rejoice before Jehovah your God.” (Lev. 23:40) It was a festival of thanksgiving for the ingathering, especially in the fact that, not only the grain was now gathered in, but also the oil and the wine, which contributed much to the enjoyment of life. During this festival the Israelites could meditate in their hearts upon the fact that their prosperity and abundance of fine things did not come through their own power. No, it was the care of Jehovah their God for them that brought them into this prosperity. They were to think deeply upon these things, for fear, as Moses had said, that “your heart may indeed be lifted up and you may indeed forget Jehovah your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slaves.” Moses also declared: “And you must remember Jehovah your God, because he is the giver of power to you to make wealth; in order to carry out his covenant that he swore to your forefathers, as at this day.”—Deut. 8:14, 18.

Israel was commanded to live for one week in booths, “in order that your generations may know that it was in the booths that I made the sons of Israel to dwell when I was bringing them out of the land of Egypt. I am Jehovah your God.” (Lev. 23:42, 43) They could recall with joy and thankfulness God’s care for them in the wilderness when they were provided shelter by Jehovah, “who caused you to walk through the great and fear-inspiring wilderness, with poisonous serpents and scorpions and with thirsty ground that has no water; who brought forth water for you out of the flinty rock; who fed you with manna in the wilderness, which your fathers had not known.” (Deut. 8:15, 16) This would give them reason to rejoice over God’s continually increasing care and bounty toward them.

FEATURES ADDED LATER

A custom that came to be practiced later, possibly alluded to in the Christian Greek Scriptures (John 7:37, 38) but not in the Hebrew Scriptures, was the drawing of water from the pool of Siloam and pouring it, along with wine, on the altar at the time of the morning sacrifice. According to most authorities, this occurred on seven days of the festival but not on the eighth. The priest would go to the pool of Siloam with a golden pitcher (except on the opening day of the festival, a sabbath, when the water was taken from a golden vessel in the temple, to which it had been carried from Siloam on the preceding day). He would time himself so as to return from Siloam with the water just as the priests in the temple were ready to lay the pieces of the sacrifice on the altar. As he entered by the Water Gate he was announced by a threefold blast from the priests’ trumpets. The water was then poured out into a basin leading to the base of the altar, at the same time that wine was being poured into a basin. Then the temple music accompanied the singing of the Hallel (Psalms 113-118), during which time the worshipers waved their palm branches toward the altar. This ceremony was understood as reminding the Israelites of God’s having provided water out of a rock in the wilderness and was a petition to God to provide rain for the next year’s crops, some of which were soon to be sown.—Ex. 17:6; Num. 20:8-11; Deut. 8:15.

Another ceremony somewhat similar was that each day of the seven days of the festival the priests, in procession, would walk around the altar, singing, “Ah now, Jehovah, do save, please! Ah, now, Jehovah, do grant success, please!” (Ps. 118:25) On the seventh day, however, they made the circuit seven times.

According to rabbinical sources, there was also another outstanding feature of this festival that, like the bringing in of the water of Siloam, was carried out in the time when Jesus was on earth. This ceremony began at the close of the fifteenth of Tishri, the first day of the festival, actually in the beginning of the sixteenth, the festival’s second day, and was carried on for the five succeeding nights. Preparations were made in the Court of the Women. Four great golden lampstands stood in the court, each having four golden bowls. Four youths of priestly descent would climb ladders with large pitchers of oil, filling the bowls. The old clothing of the priests was used as wicks for the lamps. Jewish writers say these lamps made a brilliant light that could be seen at a considerable distance, lighting up the courts of the houses in Jerusalem. Certain men, including some of the elders, danced with flaming torches in their hands and sang songs of praise, accompanied by musical instruments.

An interesting sidelight is that Jeroboam, who broke away from Solomon’s son Rehoboam and became king over the ten northern tribes, carried on (in the eighth month, not the seventh) an imitation of the Festival of Booths, apparently to hold the tribes away from Jerusalem. But, of course, the sacrifices were made to the golden calves that he had set up contrary to Jehovah’s command.—1 Ki. 12:31-33.

Jesus probably alluded to the spiritual significance of the Festival of Booths and perhaps to the ceremony with the water of Siloam when “on the last day, the great day of the festival, Jesus was standing up and he cried out, saying: ‘If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. He that puts faith in me, just as the Scripture has said, “Out from his inmost part streams of living water will flow.”’” (John 7:37, 38) Also, he may have alluded to the lighting up of Jerusalem by the lamps and torches in the temple area at the festival when he said a little later to the Jews: “I am the light of the world. He that follows me will by no means walk in darkness, but will possess the light of life.” (John 8:12) Shortly after his discussion with the Jews, Jesus may have connected Siloam with the festival and its lights when he encountered a man who had been born blind. After stating to his disciples, “I am the world’s light,” he spit on the ground and made a clay with the saliva, put this clay upon the man’s eyes and said to him: “Go wash in the pool of Siloam.”—John 9:1-7.

The waving of palm branches by the people at this festival reminds us also of the crowds that waved palm branches during Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem just before his death, although this did not occur at the time of the Festival of Booths but, rather, prior to the Passover. (John 12:12, 13) Again, the apostle John, who saw in vision 144,000 of God’s slaves sealed in their foreheads, tells us: “After these things I saw, and look! a great crowd, which no man was able to number, out of all nations and tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, dressed in white robes; and there were palm branches in their hands. And they keep on crying with a loud voice, saying: ‘Salvation we owe to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb.’”—Rev. 7:1-10.

Certainly the Festival of Booths was a fitting conclusion for the agricultural year and to the cycle of festivals for the year. Everything connected with it breathes joy, bountiful blessings from Jehovah’s hand, refreshment and life.

FESTIVAL OF DEDICATION

[Heb., hhanuk·kahʹ, initiation, dedication].

This observance commemorates the recovery of Jewish independence from Syro-Grecian domination and the rededication to Jehovah of the temple at Jerusalem, which had been desecrated by Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who called himself The·osʹ E·pi·pha·nesʹ (“God Manifest”). He built an altar on top of the great altar on which the daily burnt offering had formerly been offered. (1 Maccabees 1:54-59, AT) On this occasion (Chislev 25, 168 B.C.E.) he sacrificed swine on the altar and had a broth made of some of the flesh and had it sprinkled all over the temple to show his hatred and contempt for Jehovah, the God of the Jews, and to defile His temple to the utmost. He burned the temple gates, pulled down the priests’ chambers and carried away the golden altar, the table of showbread and the golden lampstand. Later, the temple of Zerubbabel was rededicated to the pagan god Zeus of Olympus.

Two years later Judas Maccabaeus recaptured the city and the temple. The sanctuary was desolate; weeds were growing in the temple courts. Judas tore down the old defiled altar and built a new altar of unhewn stones. Judas had temple vessels made and brought into the temple the altar of incense, the table of showbread and the lampstand. After the temple was purged of defilement the rededication took place on Chislev 25, 165 B.C.E., exactly three years to the day after Antiochus had made his sacrifice on the altar in worship of the pagan god. The daily or continual burnt offerings were renewed.—1 Maccabees 4:36-54; 2 Maccabees 10:1-9, AT.

FESTIVAL CUSTOMS

The very nature of the festival made it a time of great rejoicing. There is some resemblance to the Festival of Booths in the manner of its observance. The celebration lasted eight days from Chislev 25 onward. (1 Maccabees 4:59) There was a great blaze of light in the courts of the temple and all private dwellings were lighted up with decorative lamps. The Talmud refers to it as the “Feast of Illumination.” Later on, some had the practice of displaying eight lamps on the first night and reducing the number on each night by one, others starting with one and increasing to eight. The objective was not solely to illuminate the house within, but so that all on the outside would see the light, for the lamps were placed near doors leading to the street. Accompanying the lighting of the lamps was the singing of songs extolling God the Deliverer of Israel. Josephus says about the initiation of the festival: “They were so very glad at the revival of their customs, when, after a long time of intermission, they unexpectedly had regained the freedom of their worship, that they made it a law for their posterity, that they should keep a festival, on account of the restoration of their temple worship, for eight days. And from that time to this we celebrate this festival, and call it Lights. I suppose the reason was, because this liberty beyond our hopes appeared to us; and that thence was the name given to that festival.” (Antiquities of the Jews, Book XII, chap. VII, par. 7) Laborious work was allowed, as it was not considered a sabbath.

There were two former temple dedications, that of the first temple by Solomon and of the second built by Zerubbabel, that were solemnly celebrated at the time. But there was no anniversary festival in commemoration afterward, as there was of this rededication of the second temple by Judas Maccabaeus. Unlike the three great festivals, which all males were obligated to attend at Jerusalem, the Festival of Dedication could be celebrated in their various cities, as was the case with the Festival of Purim. (Ex. 23:14-17; Esther 9:18-32) Throughout the land they assembled in their synagogues with singing and jubilation, carrying branches of trees, while the synagogues and the private homes were illuminated by the many lights. The Jews celebrate this festival to the present day.

SIGNIFICANCE FOR CHRISTIANS

Jesus visited the temple at the time of the Festival of Dedication during the last winter of his ministry, in 32 C.E. The account reads: “At that time the festival of dedication took place in Jerusalem. It was wintertime, and Jesus was walking in the temple in the colonnade of Solomon.” (John 10:22, 23) Chislev, the ninth month, corresponds to November-December of the Gregorian calendar. It was, of course, common knowledge among the Jews that this festival occurred during wintertime. Consequently, the mention of winter here may have reference to the state of the weather rather than the season as a reason for Jesus’ choice of a sheltered place for his teaching, in the “colonnade of Solomon.” This covered colonnade was on the E side of the outer court of the Gentiles, where many people would gather.—Acts 3:11; 5:12.

There is no direct statement in the inspired Scriptures that Jehovah gave Judas victory and directed his repair of the temple, its refurnishing, the making of utensils, and finally its rededication. Yet, for the prophecies regarding Jesus and his ministry to be fulfilled, and for the Levitical sacrifices to continue until the great sacrifice of God’s Son would be accomplished,