The Passover was designed to commemorate Israel’s deliverance from Egypt as well as to remind the children of Israel that God spared their first born. This festival begins at twilight on the 14th day of the first month, but the lamb of every household was chosen prior on the 10th day. The lamb was without blemish just as the lamb of God was without blemish.The sacrificial lamb was killed in the afternoon of the 14th day and it’s blood was sprinkled on the doorposts. The blood must be personally placed on the doorpost because the lambs death is not enough.This represents Jesus’s blood bringing mercy. They must apply the blood just like we must accept the blood of Jesus to be saved. The sprinkling of the blood was just as important as the death of the lamb just as our acceptance of Jesus is just as important as his death. Next the lamb was roasted and eaten on the same night accompanied by strictly unleavened bread and bitter herbs. The lamb is eaten just like Jesus tells his disciples to eat his flesh.They were not to break the lambs bones just as Jesus’ remained intact through his death. This feast also foreshadows the death of Jesus since he died at Passover time. It was also necessary for the Israelites to abstain from leaven and to eat the entire lamb. This signifies the importance of abstaining from sin and fully accepting (fully eating) Jesus. Anything the Israelites left had to be burned.
The Feast of Unleavened Bread served to commemorate the hardships of Israel’s flight from Egypt and to symbolize consecration and devotion to God, the sanctification of Israel The unleavened bread signified the hurried retreat from Egypt. Leaven went on to symbolize malice and wickedness. This took place on the 15th day of the first month, immediately following the Passover. On the first and last day no one would work. For 7 days they would eat bread without yeast, and present food offerings to the Lord.
The Day of First Fruits was a festival that signified Resurrection of Israel as a free people as well as signified the first fruits of Christs resurrection. It’s purpose was to dedicate and consecrate the firstfruits of the barley harvest. People would bring the priest the first sheaf harvested from any new land given to them every time there is a harvest. The priest will then wave it around on the day after Sabbath. On that same day he would then offer a perfect 1 year old lamb along with a grain offering which was 2/10 of a ephah of flour and olive oil, and a ¼ of a hin of wine. They were commanded not to eat any bread or roasted grain until these offerings were given to God.
The Feast of the Pentecost also known as the Festival of Weeks served to dedicate and consecrate the firstfruits of the wheat harvest. It signified the origination of Israel as the covenant people of Yahweh as well as the outpouring of the spirit. There are 50 days between the first wave offering and the loaf offering just like there was 50 days between the resurrection and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The people who ascended to heaven with Jesus were first fruits of the resurrection presented to the father. Seven weeks after the day after the Sabbath when the sheaf was offered (50 days later), they were to present an offering of new grain to God. This marked the end of the harvest season. Afterwards a sacred assembly is held and no regular work is done. At the end they were commanded to leave all scraps from the harvest for the poor.
The Day of Trumpets served to consecrate the seventh month as the sabbatical month and alerted Israel that the next nine days would be spent preparing for the day of atonement. What this festival accomplished was calling Israel to judgment. On the first day of the seventh month they were commanded to have a sabbath rest with no regular work, give a food offering to God, and celebrate with trumpet blasts.
The Day of Atonement was a very elaborate, symbolically important yearly holiday. It had many purposes which included making atonement for the sins of the priest and the people annually as well as making atonement for the tabernacle of meeting. Typically this signified the atonement of the Covenant people. The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of Aaron’s two sons who died when they approached the Lord. The Lord said to Moses that Aaron is to not approach the Most Holy Place behind the curtain in front of the atonement cover on the ark whenever he wants or else he would die because the Lord appears as a cloud over the atonement cover and is to pure for a human to behold. Aaron must follow these steps to enter the Most Holy Place. After the typical morning rituals, he must bring a young bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. He is to put on the sacred linen tunic, with linen undergarments and he is to tie a linen sash around him and put on a linen turban.These are sacred so he has to bathe himself before he puts them on. From the Israelite community he is to take two male goats for a sin offering and a ram burnt offering. Aaron is to sacrifice the bull for his own suffering to make atonement for himself and his household. Then he is to present the two goats before the Lord at the entrance of the tent of meeting. He is to cast lots for the two goats. One lot is for the Lord and the other for the scapegoat. Aaron is to bring the goat chosen by lot to the Lord and sacrifice it. The other goat chosen to be a scapegoat will be presented alive before the Lord to be used for making atonement by sending it into the wild. Aaron will then bring the bull to offer to make atonement for the sin he and his household committed. Next Aaron will then take a censer of incense filled with coals from the altar of sacrifice and bring two handfuls of finely ground incense behind the curtain, into to the holy place. He then puts the coals on the altar of incense and places the handfuls of incense on the coals and the sweet aroma goes up and over the veil representing the prayers of Israel. The priest then goes into the Most Holy place and sprinkles the blood of the bull onto the mercy seat and then seven times on the ground in front of the mercy seat. He will then go back out (and rinse in the laver every time he enters and leaves the tabernacle) and slaughter the goat chosen by God to be the offering for the people’s sin. He takes its blood into the most holy place and repeat the same ceremonies performed with the bulls blood. This process cleanses the cumulative sin and evil done by Israel that has collected in the most holy place during a year of sin offerings. He also does this for the holy place. During the time in which Aaron is making atonement for himself, his family, and Israel inside the most holy place, no one is allowed to enter the holy place. He then comes out again and cleanses the altar of burnt offering by putting bull blood on the horns of the altar. He sprinkles the altar with his fingers seven times to cleanse it from Israel’s sin that was built up over the last year in the Holy place. When Aaron finishes cleansing the Most Holy place, Holy place and altar he gets the remaining goat and puts his hands on its head while confessing the sins of Israel, thereby transferring the sin to the goat. He puts the blood of the bull and the goat on the head of the scapegoat. The goat is then sent away into the wilderness with someone whose job it was to lead the goat and the goat would take the sin deep into the wilderness. Aaron then goes back into the tent of meeting where he removes his linen garments and leaves them there never to be worn again. He then goes back to the courtyard and puts on regular clothing. Then he sacrifices his burnt offering and the burnt offering for the people. He also burns the fat for the sin offering on the altar. The guy who takes the goat to the wilderness has to wash his clothes and bathe with water only then can he come back to the camp. The bull and goat the provided the blood get taken outside the camp and burned. The guy who takes care of that washes his clothes and body before coming back to camp. Other restrictions on the Day of Atonement include the command not to work on the tenth day of the seventh month. Specifically, this was the only day besides the weekly Sabbath on which no work was permitted. Additionally they were forbidden to have sex. The high priest’s son replaced the current high priest in the line of succession. Israelites were required to ponder their guilt (afflict their souls) on pain of being cut off from the people.
The Feast of Tabernacles was celebrated to commemorate God’s deliverance and protection during the wilderness wandering. It also served as a day of rejoicing in the completion of the harvest. It symbolized God's presence with His Covenant people and how his people looked forward to the coming of the Messiah. The feast starts on the fifteenth day of the seventh month and it lasts for seven days.On the first day, they were ordered to take branches from Palms, Willows, and other leafy trees and use them to make temporary shelters to live in for the next seven days. The first day and the 8th day are special assemblies and work was forbidden. For seven days after the first day, they were to make burnt offerings to God.