The Passover
Leviticus 23:4-6
“These are the appointed times of the LORD, holy convocations which you shall proclaim at the times appointed for them. In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at twilight is the LORD'S Passover. Then on the fifteenth day of the same month there is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the LORD; for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread.”
The Feast of First Fruits
Leviticus 23:9-11
Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, "Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, 'When you enter the land which I am going to give to you and reap its harvest, then you shall bring in the sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest. He shall wave the sheaf before the LORD for you to be accepted; on the day after the sabbath the priest shall wave it.”
During the spring, right before Passover, the barley crop came to a place in its growth where it was declared Aviv. This meant that the barley was in the head but not quite ripe enough to eat. As soon as the barley was in Aviv, the children of Israel were instructed to look for the sliver of the new moon, which was called the rosh chodesh. At the sighting of the new moon, we were to declare the first day of the first month, called Aviv. This was how we were to set the calendar to mark the Biblical feasts. We had to look for the signs of the times.
We were to then count 10 days and choose a lamb for inspection to see if there was spot or blemish.This is the day Yeshua came into Jerusalem, the day that is called the triumphal entry. Yeshua is inspected for four days just like the Passover lamb. On the 14th of Aviv(four days later),we were to sacrifice that lamb. On the 15th of month at sundown began the Holy Day of Pesach (Passover) and the Feast of Unleavened Bread; after that came the feast of First Fruits, which is always on the day after the weekly Shabbat immediately after Passover.
Yeshua dies on the 14th of Aviv as the Passover lambs are being sacrificed; during that year it would have been on a Wednesday. He cries…
Matthew 27:46
About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACHTHANI?" that is, "MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?"
The ninth hour would have been 3:00 in the afternoon. Shortly after that He dies. 72 hours later He is risen from the dead on a late Saturday afternoon as the sun was going down on First Fruits, at which time His sacrifice is presented to the LORD as a first fruits offering of those who are resurrected from the dead so the rest of us can be raised.
1Corinthians 15:3-4
For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,
The Sign of Jonah
Matthew 12:38-40
Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You." But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet;for just as JONAH WAS THREE DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS IN THE BELLY OF THE SEA MONSTER, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
“According to the Scriptures” has to do with the prophesies in the Tenach (1st covenant). This includes the prophetic display of Passover and First Fruits.
1Corinthians 15:20-23
But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ's at His coming,
Rav Shaul (Paul) is not pulling this statement out of a hat. He knows Passover, he knows the prophecies. He understands that Yeshua’s resurrection is in totality linked to the Holy day of First Fruits.
Churchianity has Yeshua coming into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, dying five days later on a Friday, and rising a day and a half later on Sunday morning, totally ignoring the prophetic events in Passover and First Fruits. Above we showed that Yeshua came into Jerusalem on the 10th of Aviv and was sacrificed on the 14th of Aviv (4 days later) according to the prophetic display of the Passover.
It was during this time—between the Aviv barley, the sighting of the new moon, and the 14th of the month—that barley continued to ripen so it could be harvested. Once it was harvested the children of Israel were instructed to make an offering of that barley in gratitude before the Lord. They were not allowed to eat of the new crop before they made this offering.
Just as we had to offer the first fruits of the barley to the LORD as an offering before we could eat of it, Yeshua had to be a first fruits offering to the LORD before the rest of us could be raised. It is right in the text. This is not that complicated. Preachers and pastors who read the text should be able to discern this easily.
Here are some other Scriptures that you should read to understand that this was a very important Biblical concept and related to the resurrection. I didn’t just make this up.
Aviv appears in six verses of Torah:
Exodus 9:31, 13:4, 23:15, 34:18; Leviticus 2:14; Deuteronomy 16:1.
In most verses it is not translated, but rather says “Aviv” as in “the month of Aviv” as if that is the name of the month, although no other months had names, just numbers as in the fourth month, the seventh month, etc. I liken this to the days of the week only being numbered, except “the seventh day” which was also given the name “Sabbath”.
• Exodus 9:31 – “And the flax and the barley were smitten: for the barley was in the ear and the flax was bolled.” (The Scriptures version translated “was in the head” for barley, and “was in the bud” for flax. Interlinear translated “was in the ear” for barley and “was in blossom” for flax.) This implies that Aviv is a stage of agricultural development.
(Strong’s 1392 was the word describing the flax, defined as “bolled”; in Webster’s the root “boll” is the pod or capsule of a plant.) This verse was comparing andcontrasting the agricultural stage of development of the two different crops.
• Exodus 13:4 – “This day came ye out in the month Aviv.”
• Exodus 23:15 – “Thou shalt keep [direct command] the feast of unleavened bread: (thoushalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of themonth Aviv; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before meempty;)” [parentheses in this text were supplied by the KJV, not me.]
In Hebrew, “in the time appointed of the month Aviv” comes from the three-word phrase, “moedchodesh abib”. The month of Aviv is called moed.
• Exodus 34:18 – “The feast of unleavened bread shalt thou keep [direct command]. Seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, as I commanded thee, in the time of the month Aviv: for in the month Aviv thou camest out from Egypt.” In Hebrew, “in the time of the month Aviv” comes from the same three-word phrase “moedchodesh aviv” that we just looked at in Exodus 23:15; so again, the month of Aviv is called moed.
• Leviticus 2:14 – “And if thou offer a meat offering of thy firstfruits unto the LORD, thou shalt offer for the meat offering of the firstfruits green ears of corn dried by the fire, even corn beaten out of full ears.” (Please note: KJV supplies the word “corn” as part of the translation. The Scriptures version says “green heads of grain” and the Interlinear says “fresh ears” without specifying the crop.)
• Deuteronomy 16:1 – “Observe [direct command] the month of Aviv, and keep [direct command]the Passover unto the LORD thy God: for in the month of Aviv the LORD thy Godbrought thee forth out of Egypt by night.”
Had the word Aviv been translated into English instead of left a transliteration of the Hebrew word, here is how these verses would read:
• Exodus 13:4 “This day came ye out in the month of the fresh young ears of barley.”
• Exodus 23:15 “Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed (moed) of the month of the fresh young ears of barley; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before me empty;)”
• Exodus 34:18 “The feast of unleavened bread shalt thou keep. Seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, as I commanded thee, in the time (moed) of the month of the fresh young ears of barley: for in the month of the fresh young ears of barley thou camest out from Egypt.”
• Deuteronomy 16:1 “Observe [direct command] the month of the fresh young ears of barley, and keep [direct command] the Passover unto the LORD thy God: for in the month of the fresh young ears of barley the LORD thy God brought thee forth out of Egypt by night.”
Everything about the date of Easter is an affront against the Biblical narrative of Passover. It goes directly against the Scriptural instructions on how to celebrate the death, burial, and resurrection of Yeshua and uses an arbitrary date made up by Constantine at his Council of Nicea. Lev 23 tells us that the Holydays are called Moedim, (appointed times and seasons). They are prophetic appointments that had to be kept by Yeshua to the last detail, not approximately. If Yeshua enters Jerusalem on Sunday, dies on Friday, and rises on Sunday morning, the prophetic nature of the triumphal entry, Passover and the Holy day of First Fruits is invalidated, they become insignificant. Hence, the statement that is made by the celebration of Easter to the Lord is, “We don’t need the prophecy that you have given us to prove that Yeshua is the Passover lamb and first fruits of the resurrection. We have our own formula we follow–Catholicism. Now you know the truth; what are you going to do with it? The one thing you can’t do is claim that your good intentions are enough to please the Lord.
Just as the Lord rebuked King Saul for his disobedience, He rebukes us for the same.
1Samuel 15:22-23
Samuel said, "Has the LORD as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of divination, and insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He has also rejected you from being king."
In other words, does the LORD respect our religious traditions over our obedience to His Word?
If you say you have good intentions and know the Scriptures and yet still disobey, then you don't have good intentions. Churchianity has invented holidays that aren't prescribed in the Word and ignored that which is prescribed.
Selah
Shalom uvracha b’Yeshua
Rabbi Henry
Leviticus 23:4-6
“These are the appointed times of the LORD, holy convocations which you shall proclaim at the times appointed for them. In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at twilight is the LORD'S Passover. Then on the fifteenth day of the same month there is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the LORD; for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread.”
The Feast of First Fruits
Leviticus 23:9-11
Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, "Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, 'When you enter the land which I am going to give to you and reap its harvest, then you shall bring in the sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest. He shall wave the sheaf before the LORD for you to be accepted; on the day after the sabbath the priest shall wave it.”
During the spring, right before Passover, the barley crop came to a place in its growth where it was declared Aviv. This meant that the barley was in the head but not quite ripe enough to eat. As soon as the barley was in Aviv, the children of Israel were instructed to look for the sliver of the new moon, which was called the rosh chodesh. At the sighting of the new moon, we were to declare the first day of the first month, called Aviv. This was how we were to set the calendar to mark the Biblical feasts. We had to look for the signs of the times.
We were to then count 10 days and choose a lamb for inspection to see if there was spot or blemish.This is the day Yeshua came into Jerusalem, the day that is called the triumphal entry. Yeshua is inspected for four days just like the Passover lamb. On the 14th of Aviv(four days later),we were to sacrifice that lamb. On the 15th of month at sundown began the Holy Day of Pesach (Passover) and the Feast of Unleavened Bread; after that came the feast of First Fruits, which is always on the day after the weekly Shabbat immediately after Passover.
Yeshua dies on the 14th of Aviv as the Passover lambs are being sacrificed; during that year it would have been on a Wednesday. He cries…
Matthew 27:46
About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACHTHANI?" that is, "MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?"
The ninth hour would have been 3:00 in the afternoon. Shortly after that He dies. 72 hours later He is risen from the dead on a late Saturday afternoon as the sun was going down on First Fruits, at which time His sacrifice is presented to the LORD as a first fruits offering of those who are resurrected from the dead so the rest of us can be raised.
1Corinthians 15:3-4
For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,
The Sign of Jonah
Matthew 12:38-40
Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You." But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet;for just as JONAH WAS THREE DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS IN THE BELLY OF THE SEA MONSTER, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
“According to the Scriptures” has to do with the prophesies in the Tenach (1st covenant). This includes the prophetic display of Passover and First Fruits.
1Corinthians 15:20-23
But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ's at His coming,
Rav Shaul (Paul) is not pulling this statement out of a hat. He knows Passover, he knows the prophecies. He understands that Yeshua’s resurrection is in totality linked to the Holy day of First Fruits.
Churchianity has Yeshua coming into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, dying five days later on a Friday, and rising a day and a half later on Sunday morning, totally ignoring the prophetic events in Passover and First Fruits. Above we showed that Yeshua came into Jerusalem on the 10th of Aviv and was sacrificed on the 14th of Aviv (4 days later) according to the prophetic display of the Passover.
It was during this time—between the Aviv barley, the sighting of the new moon, and the 14th of the month—that barley continued to ripen so it could be harvested. Once it was harvested the children of Israel were instructed to make an offering of that barley in gratitude before the Lord. They were not allowed to eat of the new crop before they made this offering.
Just as we had to offer the first fruits of the barley to the LORD as an offering before we could eat of it, Yeshua had to be a first fruits offering to the LORD before the rest of us could be raised. It is right in the text. This is not that complicated. Preachers and pastors who read the text should be able to discern this easily.
Here are some other Scriptures that you should read to understand that this was a very important Biblical concept and related to the resurrection. I didn’t just make this up.
Aviv appears in six verses of Torah:
Exodus 9:31, 13:4, 23:15, 34:18; Leviticus 2:14; Deuteronomy 16:1.
In most verses it is not translated, but rather says “Aviv” as in “the month of Aviv” as if that is the name of the month, although no other months had names, just numbers as in the fourth month, the seventh month, etc. I liken this to the days of the week only being numbered, except “the seventh day” which was also given the name “Sabbath”.
• Exodus 9:31 – “And the flax and the barley were smitten: for the barley was in the ear and the flax was bolled.” (The Scriptures version translated “was in the head” for barley, and “was in the bud” for flax. Interlinear translated “was in the ear” for barley and “was in blossom” for flax.) This implies that Aviv is a stage of agricultural development.
(Strong’s 1392 was the word describing the flax, defined as “bolled”; in Webster’s the root “boll” is the pod or capsule of a plant.) This verse was comparing andcontrasting the agricultural stage of development of the two different crops.
• Exodus 13:4 – “This day came ye out in the month Aviv.”
• Exodus 23:15 – “Thou shalt keep [direct command] the feast of unleavened bread: (thoushalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of themonth Aviv; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before meempty;)” [parentheses in this text were supplied by the KJV, not me.]
In Hebrew, “in the time appointed of the month Aviv” comes from the three-word phrase, “moedchodesh abib”. The month of Aviv is called moed.
• Exodus 34:18 – “The feast of unleavened bread shalt thou keep [direct command]. Seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, as I commanded thee, in the time of the month Aviv: for in the month Aviv thou camest out from Egypt.” In Hebrew, “in the time of the month Aviv” comes from the same three-word phrase “moedchodesh aviv” that we just looked at in Exodus 23:15; so again, the month of Aviv is called moed.
• Leviticus 2:14 – “And if thou offer a meat offering of thy firstfruits unto the LORD, thou shalt offer for the meat offering of the firstfruits green ears of corn dried by the fire, even corn beaten out of full ears.” (Please note: KJV supplies the word “corn” as part of the translation. The Scriptures version says “green heads of grain” and the Interlinear says “fresh ears” without specifying the crop.)
• Deuteronomy 16:1 – “Observe [direct command] the month of Aviv, and keep [direct command]the Passover unto the LORD thy God: for in the month of Aviv the LORD thy Godbrought thee forth out of Egypt by night.”
Had the word Aviv been translated into English instead of left a transliteration of the Hebrew word, here is how these verses would read:
• Exodus 13:4 “This day came ye out in the month of the fresh young ears of barley.”
• Exodus 23:15 “Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed (moed) of the month of the fresh young ears of barley; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before me empty;)”
• Exodus 34:18 “The feast of unleavened bread shalt thou keep. Seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, as I commanded thee, in the time (moed) of the month of the fresh young ears of barley: for in the month of the fresh young ears of barley thou camest out from Egypt.”
• Deuteronomy 16:1 “Observe [direct command] the month of the fresh young ears of barley, and keep [direct command] the Passover unto the LORD thy God: for in the month of the fresh young ears of barley the LORD thy God brought thee forth out of Egypt by night.”
Everything about the date of Easter is an affront against the Biblical narrative of Passover. It goes directly against the Scriptural instructions on how to celebrate the death, burial, and resurrection of Yeshua and uses an arbitrary date made up by Constantine at his Council of Nicea. Lev 23 tells us that the Holydays are called Moedim, (appointed times and seasons). They are prophetic appointments that had to be kept by Yeshua to the last detail, not approximately. If Yeshua enters Jerusalem on Sunday, dies on Friday, and rises on Sunday morning, the prophetic nature of the triumphal entry, Passover and the Holy day of First Fruits is invalidated, they become insignificant. Hence, the statement that is made by the celebration of Easter to the Lord is, “We don’t need the prophecy that you have given us to prove that Yeshua is the Passover lamb and first fruits of the resurrection. We have our own formula we follow–Catholicism. Now you know the truth; what are you going to do with it? The one thing you can’t do is claim that your good intentions are enough to please the Lord.
Just as the Lord rebuked King Saul for his disobedience, He rebukes us for the same.
1Samuel 15:22-23
Samuel said, "Has the LORD as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of divination, and insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He has also rejected you from being king."
In other words, does the LORD respect our religious traditions over our obedience to His Word?
If you say you have good intentions and know the Scriptures and yet still disobey, then you don't have good intentions. Churchianity has invented holidays that aren't prescribed in the Word and ignored that which is prescribed.
Selah
Shalom uvracha b’Yeshua
Rabbi Henry
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