Why the Original Days of Worship?
In the last chapter we saw that Yahweh gives us His Torah (instructions) for our good.
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 10:12-13
12 "And now, Israel, what does Yahweh your Elohim require of you, but to fear Yahweh your Elohim, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve Yahweh your Elohim with all your heart and with all your soul,
13 and to keep the commandments of Yahweh and His statutes, which I command you today for your good?”
As children, we do not always understand why our parents want us to do certain things. When we become teens, our wills get much stronger, and we can often rebel against our parents’ instructions. Even though the things our parents want us to do are for our own good, because we do not have enough experience, we can choose to disregard our parents’ instructions, deciding to substitute “instructions of our own” in their place. And so it is with many of us, and our Father Yahweh.
As this study progresses, we will see that Yahweh asks us to keep a peculiar kind of a calendar for some very important reasons. If we keep this calendar, it will work out very much for our own good. Yet we will see that a lot of His people decide to keep some other calendar instead, quite possibly because they do not understand the importance of keeping the calendar He asks us to keep, in His Torah.
When we have jobs in the world, we have to show up for work on the time schedule our boss sets, and we have to do what he says to do. It is also a really good idea if we arrive on time, and go to all of the company parties. This is all just part of being a good employee. This is all just part of giving our boss good service.
Scripture likens us to servants, and in Hebraic thought, a good servant does what his master asks him to do, to the best of his ability. So if we serve our earthly masters in this way, why should we give Yahweh any less? Why should we not show up for service, and for the parties and the “family re-unions” when He says? If we are His servants then we should be happy to do these things to the best of our ability.
The Jews have an ancient saying: whoever’s calendar you keep, that is whom you serve. This saying is true. For example, Hindus keep their calendar because they believe it is what their false elohim (false gods) want. The Muslims keep their calendar because they believe it pleases their false elohim. Sun worshippers typically also worship on important days of the solar cycle, in order to show reverence to the sun. In the language of Scripture, all of this shows “service.”
In one form or another, the calendar we keep is really a form of tribute (or “service”) to the one who created it. This is why we need to be careful to keep the calendar Yahweh said to keep, and not any other calendar, lest we incur Yahweh’s wrath (as with the golden calf).
Shemote (Exodus) 32:2-10
2 And Aharon (Aaron) said to them, "Break off the golden earrings which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me."
3 So all the people broke off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them to Aharon.
4 And he received the gold from their hand, and he fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made a molded calf. Then they said, "This is your elohim, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!"
5 So when Aharon saw it, he built an altar before it. And Aharon made a proclamation and said, "Tomorrow is a feast to Yahweh."
6 Then they rose early on the next day, offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.
7 And Yahweh said to Moshe, "Go, get down! For your people whom you brought out of the land of Egypt have corrupted themselves.
8 They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them. They have made themselves a molded calf, and worshiped it and sacrificed to it, and said, 'This is your elohim, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!'"
9 And Yahweh said to Moshe, "I have seen this people, and indeed it is a stiff-necked people!
10 Now therefore, let Me alone, that My wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them. And I will make of you a great nation."
Notice that Aharon did not tell Israel to worship another elohim. All he said was, “Tomorrow is a feast to Yahweh” (verse 5). Yet this act of making up his own day of worship enraged Yahweh so much that He was ready to wipe Israel out (and start over).
One of the main themes in all of Scripture is that we are not to add to Yahweh’s words. Rather, we are just supposed to realize that Yahweh’s word is perfect and pure, and obey it as it was given.
Mishle (Proverbs) 30:5-6
5 Every word of Elohim is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him.
6 Do not add to His words, lest He rebuke you, and you be found a liar.
Elohim is big on obedience to His commands, because obedience shows loyalty like nothing else really can. What is so ironic, then, is that even though Christians and Jews both claim to serve Yahweh (and be loyal to Him), most of them keep a calendar that Yahweh did not command. Just like in the incident with the golden calf, they keep a different calendar. They justify this in different ways, but in the end what it boils down to is a simple lack of loyalty to Him (and His instructions).
Most Christians keep the Roman Gregorian “Christian” Calendar, in which the day begins at midnight (i.e., the ‘witching hour’). We know this is an entirely different calendar than the one Scripture proscribes, because the calendar day in Scripture begins at evening.
B’reisheet (Genesis) 1:31b
31b So the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
Other references also tell us that the Hebrew day lasts from evening to evening. For example, Leviticus 23:32 tells us that the Sabbath (i.e., rest day) of Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonements) lasts from evening to evening.
Vayiqra (Leviticus) 23:32b
32b “On the ninth of the month at evening, from evening until evening you shall celebrate your Sabbath (i.e., rest day)."
The word Sabbath can refer generically to any day of rest, but usually it refers the weekly Sabbath, which Yeshua also kept.
Luqa (Luke) 4:16
16 So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.
Shaul (Paul) continued to go worship and witness in the synagogues on the Sabbath long after Yeshua’s resurrection.
Ma’asei (Acts) 13:14
14 But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day and sat down.
Yeshua’s loyalty and fealty led Him to keep Yahweh’s calendar perfectly. His perfect obedience is one of the reasons He says He “abode” in His Father’s love.
Yochanan (John) 15:10
10 “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love.”
Yeshua also tells us to keep His commandments, so that we may likewise abide in His love. However, this is where it starts to get interesting, because the Church tells us that Yeshua’s commandments differ from His Father’s commands. The Christian Church tells us that since Yeshua fulfilled the Law, we no longer need to keep the Sabbath and festivals, but that we should now keep Sunday, Christmas, and Easter instead. But why should we do this? Because men say so?
Where was it ever foretold that Yahweh would switch the calendar from the Sabbath and festivals to Sunday, Christmas, and Easter? And when did the prophets say Yahweh would switch the calendar day from evening to evening, to the Roman midnight to midnight calendar? Does Scripture say that anywhere?
Christian scholars often use Acts 20:7-11 as an alleged ‘proof text’ showing the disciples met on the (midnight to midnight) Roman Sunday. This might at first seem to make sense, but as we will see, it does not add up.
Ma’asei (Acts) 20:7-11
7 Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Shaul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued his message until midnight.
8 There were many lamps in the upper room where they were gathered together.
9 And in a window sat a certain young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep. He was overcome by sleep; and as Shaul continued speaking, he fell down from the third story and was taken up dead.
10 But Shaul went down, fell on him, and embracing him said, "Do not trouble yourselves, for his life is in him."
11 Now when he had come up, had broken bread and eaten, and talked a long while, even till daybreak, he departed.
Since first century Judea was under Roman control, it might seem to make sense that the disciples gathered together on “Sunday” morning and listened to Shaul for almost twenty-four hours. However, some things do not make sense. Why would there be so many lamps in the upper room if the disciples met on a Sunday morning? And why would they only eat one meal in a twenty-four hour period?
This passage makes more sense if we look at it with Hebraic eyes. Religious Jews are a tradition oriented people. They usually worship at the synagogue (or at the temple) on Sabbath, and then after the Sabbath is over they gather together at a friend or relative’s house to break bread and fellowship, to extend out the day of worship and rest as long as possible. While this is “the first day of the week,” it is not a new day of worship: it is simply a normal extension of the Sabbath. If we read Acts chapter 20 in this light, then it makes sense that the reason there were so many lamps in the upper room is that they initially met after sundown “Saturday night” (and then talked until daybreak on “Sunday morning”). That is also why they only ate one meal.
This same kind of ‘after Sabbath’ fellowship meeting is very common in Judaism, and it is also found in the Book of John, where we are told that the first day of the week was “the same day (Sabbath) at evening.”
Yochanan (John) 20:19
19 Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Yeshua came and stood in the midst, and said to them, "Peace be with you."
Yeshua was put to death at Passover, which is in the spring. Israel can already be hot at that time; and if it was hot, then the sensible thing would have been to leave the doors open into the night. However, since there was persecution, the disciples closed their doors. Therefore, the only really unusual thing here was that Yeshua showed up.
But if Sunday worship does not come from Yahweh, then from where does it come? The earliest reference to “Sunday” worship comes from the Christian apologist Justin Martyr, circa 150 CE, more than a hundred years after Yeshua’s ministry. Justin Martyr said that all of the people gathered together to worship on “the day called Sunday” (on the midnight to midnight Roman calendar).
And on the day called Sunday, all who live in cities or in the country gather together to one place….
[Justin Martyr, First Apology, Chapter 67 - Weekly Worship of the Christians, circa 150 CE, Biblesoft]
Scripture never calls the days of the week by names (Sunday, Monday, and etcetera). Rather, in Scripture, the days of the week are always called by numbers (the first day of the week, the second day of the week), while the Sabbath is just called “the Sabbath.” (The Sabbath means “the rest,” or “the abstention” (from doing our own will). But rather than obey the calendar Yahweh told His people to keep, Justin Martyr tells us the reason his assembly worshipped on Sunday (on the Roman Calendar) was that it was the day Elohim made the world, and that it was the day Yeshua first appeared to His disciples.
But Sunday is the day on which we all hold our common assembly, because it is the first day on which God, having wrought a change in the darkness and matter, made the world; and Jesus Christ our Saviour on the same day rose from the dead. For He was crucified on the day before that of Saturn (Saturday); and on the day after that of Saturn, which is the day of the Sun, having appeared to His apostles and disciples, He taught them these things, which we have submitted to you also for your consideration.
[Justin Martyr, First Apology, Chapter 67 - Weekly Worship of the Christians, circa 150 CE, Biblesoft]
Justin Martyr’s reasons for worshipping on the Roman calendar “Sunday” might sound good, except for the fact that neither the Messiah nor His apostles used the Roman calendar to reckon their days of worship. They always used the Hebrew calendar for that.
To switch away from the Hebrew calendar in favor of the Roman calendar for establishing the days of worship and rest is essentially replacement theology. As we saw in the last chapter, the Catholic Christian Papacy would later fulfill the prophecy over the spiritual “Little Horn,” who would intend to change the appointed festival times, and the Torah.
Daniel 7:25
25 He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, shall persecute the saints of the Most High, and shall intend to change (the festival) times and (the) Torah. And the saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time.
Even though Yahweh said to guard the Sabbath day forever, “in all our generations,” many Christians began resting on Sunday. They justified this change by taking Shaul’s words out of context, and “twisting” them to suggest that we can establish any day we want as a new “official” day of worship and rest.
Romim (Romans) 14:5
5 One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind.
Shaul probably realized that his letters were read by Christians (as well as Nazarenes). Even though he knew that the Christians got the days of worship (and the dietary laws, etcetera) wrong, he may have wanted to encourage the Christians, thinking that “half a loaf is better than none.” He may have felt it is better that he encourage them to worship the Messiah without the Torah, than that they not worship Him at all. One can argue the pros and cons of this kind of “glass half full” approach, so long as we remember that Yahweh hand-picked Shaul for the job (reference Acts 9:15).
For their part, however, the Christians continued to change all of the festivals, incorporating more and more sun-worship ceremonies and pagan traditions as they went. As we show in The Torah Calendar study, the Torah tells us to keep the Passover on the 14th of Aviv (aka “Nisan”), on the Hebrew calendar. However, many Christians began keeping it on the first Sunday after the Vernal Equinox (the Equinox being an important day on sun worship calendars. Eventually this change was made “official” by the Bishop of Rome (i.e., the Pope), and he began to enforce it among all of the assemblies.
In The Torah Calendar we show that the Passover can fall on any day of the week. However, the Christian historian Eusebius records that a great crisis called the ‘Quartodeciman (“14th”) Controversy’ erupted when Bishop Victor of Rome began to demand that all of the other assemblies keep the Passover on a Sunday, instead. The matter came to a head when the bishops of Asia insisted on keeping Passover on the 14th of Aviv (Nisan), as Yeshua and the rest of the apostles had done before them.
A question of no small importance arose at that time. For the parishes of all Asia, as from an older tradition, held that the fourteenth day of the moon, on which day the Jews were commanded to sacrifice the lamb, should be observed as the feast of the Saviour's passover...But it was not the custom of the churches in the rest of the world...But the bishops of Asia, led by Polycrates, decided to hold to the old custom handed down to them. He himself, in a letter which he addressed to Victor and the Church of Rome, set forth in the following words the tradition which had come down to him.
[Eusebius, Church History, Book V, Chapters 23, 25, circa 190-195 CE]
Eusebius also reproduces a letter that Polycrates, a major figure in Asia, personally wrote to Bishop Victor of Rome, protesting the decision to change the date of the Passover from the Hebrew calendar, to the Roman one. Polycrates points out that the tradition of keeping the Passover on the Hebrew calendar was passed down in Asia by the apostles Philip and John, and that the tradition had been kept over generations by a number of distinguished and devout families. He then rightly insisted that all believers should do as Elohim says, rather than keep man-made traditions.
We observe the exact day; neither adding, nor taking away. For in Asia also great lights have fallen asleep, which shall rise again on the day of the Lord's coming, when he shall come with glory from heaven, and shall seek out all the saints. Among these are Philip, one of the twelve apostles, who fell asleep in Hierapolis; and his two aged virgin daughters, and another daughter, who lived in the Holy Spirit and now rests at Ephesus; and, moreover, John, who was both a witness and a teacher, who reclined upon the bosom of the Lord, and, being a priest, wore the sacerdotal plate. He fell asleep at Ephesus. And Polycarp in Smyrna, who was a bishop and martyr; and Thraseas, bishop and martyr from Eumenia, who fell asleep in Smyrna. Why need I mention the bishop and martyr Sagaris who fell asleep in Laodicea, or the blessed Papirius, or Melito, the Eunuch who lived altogether in the Holy Spirit, and who lies in Sardis, awaiting the episcopate from heaven, when he shall rise from the dead? All these observed the fourteenth day of the Passover according to the Gospel, deviating in no respect, but following the rule of faith. And I also, Polycrates, the least of you all, do according to the tradition of my relatives, some of whom I have closely followed. For seven of my relatives were bishops; and I am the eighth. And my relatives always observed the day when the people put away the leaven. I, therefore, brethren, who have lived sixty-five years in the Lord, and have met with the brethren throughout the world, and have gone through every Holy Scripture, am not affrighted by terrifying words. For those greater than I have said 'We ought to obey God rather than man'.
[Eusebius, Church History, Book V, Chapter 24. Translated by Arthur Cushman McGiffert. Excerpted from Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series Two, Volume 1.]
Although the apostles Philip and John had personally taught those in Asia to keep the Passover on the 14th of Nisan/Aviv, Bishop Victor excommunicated any group that chose not to keep Passover on a Sunday. While this greatly displeased many of the other bishops (who knew that what Polycrates had said was true), Bishop Victor won the argument. Although unity was preserved in the church, it was not preserved on the basis of loyal obedience to Yahweh’s word (but on the basis of loyal obedience to the Roman bishop).
After the date of the Passover had been changed, the name was then changed to Easter. This word “Easter” is the same as the Biblical Ishtar (Ashtoreth and/or Asherah), which the Tanach (“Old” Covenant) forbids us to worship. Ishtar/Easter is a pagan fertility goddess who wants to be worshipped on or about the Vernal Equinox with ceremonies involving bunnies (because they breed rapidly), and also with eggs dipped in human children’s blood. As a general rule, Yahweh does not want us to worship Him in the same way as these false elohim are worshipped.
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 12:4
4 “You shall not worship Yahweh your Elohim with such things.”
We are not to worship on the Vernal Equinox, for this is not a date Yahweh said to observe. We are also told to “take heed” not to worship the sun, the moon, the stars, or any of the “host of the heaven.”
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 4:19
19 “And take heed, lest you lift your eyes to heaven, and when you see the sun, the moon, and the stars, all the host of heaven, you feel driven to worship them and serve them, which Yahweh your Elohim has given to all the peoples under the whole heaven as a heritage.”
In Yahweh’s sight there is always a reason for human behavior. If we do only that which Yahweh asks us to do, then Yahweh considers that we are serving Him properly. However, if we rest and worship on days that are determined by the movements of the sun, the moon and the stars (i.e., Sunday, Vernal Equinox, Christmas, etcetera) then Yahweh considers that we are “serving” the sun, the moon and the stars, because the flight paths of those celestial bodies is the reason we have chosen to rest on those days. As we show in The Torah Calendar, even birthdays are pagan, because Yahweh never commanded us to observe them. Many believers find this to be “too much to ask,” but if we are dead to our flesh it should not be a burden at all.
Yochanan Aleph (1st) John 5:2-4
2 By this we know that we love the children of Elohim, when we love Elohim and keep His commandments.
3 For this is the love of Elohim, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.
The only reason the word "Easter" appears in the King James Version is that it was a mistranslation of the Greek word Pascha (pa,sca), meaning Passover. This error has been corrected in almost every other major translation since the King James Version, and yet, ironically, many Christians still keep Easter. Why do they do this? The apostles did not reference Easter, but the Passover.
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Acts 12:4
4 So when he had arrested him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four squads of soldiers to keep him, intending to bring him before the people after Passover.
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BGT Acts 12:4 o]n kai. pia,saj e;qeto eivj fulakh.n paradou.j te,ssarsin tetradi,oij stratiwtw/n fula,ssein auvto,n( boulo,menoj meta. to. pa,sca avnagagei/n auvto.n tw/| law/|
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Further, Shaul does not tell us to keep Easter, but rather to celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread (which is basically a continuation of the Passover).
Qorintim Aleph (1st Corinthians) 5:8
8 Therefore let us keep the feast (of unleavened bread) not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
Acts 20:6 shows us that the disciples were still keeping the Days of Unleavened Bread (and not Easter) many years after Yeshua’s resurrection.
Ma’asei (Acts) 20:6
6 But we sailed from Philippi after the days of Unleavened Bread….
In Acts 27:9 the disciples kept the Day of Atonement, here called ‘the Fast’ because it is often observed by fasting. (The reason the voyage was “now dangerous” was that the Day of Atonement takes place in the fall. Boat travel on the Mediterranean can be stormy after that time.)
Ma’asei (Acts) 27:9-10
9 Now when much time had been spent, and sailing was now dangerous because the Fast was already over, Shaul advised them,
10 saying, "Men, I perceive that this voyage will end with disaster and much loss, not only of the cargo and ship, but also our lives."
Shaul also continued to observe the Pentecost (on the Hebrew calendar).
Qorintim Aleph (1st Corinthians) 16:8
8 But I will remain in Ephesus until Pentecost….
We know Shaul kept the Pentecost on the Hebrew Calendar because he went up to Jerusalem (rather than Rome).
Ma’asei (Acts) 20:16
16 For Shaul had decided to sail past Ephesus, so that he would not have to spend time in Asia; for he was hurrying to be at Jerusalem, if possible, on the Day of Pentecost.
If the apostles kept the Hebrew calendar, then why would we want to do anything else? Let us remember that the apostles received the Spirit because they were keeping Yahweh’s festivals as He commanded.
Ma’asei (Acts) 2:1-2
1 When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.
2 And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.
It is important to keep the calendar as commanded. In Colossians 2:16-17, Shaul tells us that the Sabbath, festivals, and new moon days are all prophetic shadow pictures of things “still to come.” What this means is that just as Yahweh poured out blessings on those who kept His festivals in the past, He will again pour out blessings on those who keep His festival days in the future. However, Scripture’s true meaning is lost in most major versions, including the King James Version, which inverts the meaning of the passage by adding two words– “days” and “is.”
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Colossians 2:16-17, KJV
16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holy day, or of the new moons, or of the sabbath days:
17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.
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BGT Colossians 2:16 ¶ Mh. ou=n tij u`ma/j krine,tw evn brw,sei kai. evn po,sei h' evn me,rei e`orth/j h' neomhni,aj h' sabba,twn\
BGT Colossians 2:17 a[ evstin skia. tw/n mello,ntwn( to. de. sw/ma tou/ Cristou/Å
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These two supplied words (“days” and “is”) lead the KJV reader to conclude that we should not let anyone tell us what to eat, what to drink, or what days of worship to keep. If we accept these added words at their face value we can easily conclude that it makes no difference whether we keep the Sabbath and the festival days, or whether we worship on Sunday, Christmas, Easter, the Chinese New Year, Ramadan, or even no festival days at all. Other translations make similar alterations to the text, which also promote the idea that Yeshua came to abolish the Torah and the prophets, even though it is the opposite of what He said at Matthew 5:17-19.
Since Scripture is clear that we are not to add anything to Scripture, or take anything away, once we realize that the supplied words "days" and "is" do not appear in the source texts, we should take them back out of the English translations. Here is the exact same passage from the King James, but with the supplied words “days” and “is” removed:
Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holy day, or of the new moons, or of the Sabbath; which are a shadow of things to come; but the Body of Christ.
There are three main ideas here (1-2-3):
1. Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holy day, or of the new moons, or of the Sabbath;
2. which are a (prophetic) shadow of things (still) to come;
3. but the Body of [Messiah].
To paraphrase, the Apostle Shaul is telling us (1-2-3):
1. Let no man judge you with regards to the meat you eat, what you drink, or what religious festival days you keep;
2. Because these foods, liquids and festival days are all prophetic shadows of things still to come;
3. Therefore, let only the Body of Messiah tell you what to eat, what to drink, and what festival days to keep!
If we rearrange the clauses to make the English read better (3-1-2), we might surmise that what Shaul was actually saying was not to let those who are not part of Nazarene Israel judge you with regards to what you eat, what you drink, and what days of worship you keep, because these are all prophetic shadow pictures of blessings still to be poured out.
[Colossians 2:16-17, reordered 3-1-2]
Let no man (but the Body of Messiah) judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holy day, or of the new moons, or of the Sabbath; for the festivals are shadows of things (still) to come.
Shaul’s true meaning is not reflected in the NIV at all. Rather, the NIV makes it seem like we can do whatever we want (since the Messiah allegedly came to do away with the law and the prophets).
[Colossians 2:16-17, NIV]
16 Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a sabbath day.
17 These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.
The King James, the NIV, and most of the mainstream Christian versions suggest that so long as you think Yeshua is the Messiah, then it makes no difference what days of worship you keep, because the festivals are merely shadows of the things that “were” to come. (However, this is the opposite of what Shaul said.)
Western Greco-Roman thought is fairly linear, and it tends to be “checklist oriented.” Western minds often assume that the prophecies can be organized as a “checklist”, such that they only need to be fulfilled one time (and then they are done). However, this is very different from Hebraic thought, which is more cyclical. In Hebraic thought, prophecies can have more than one fulfillment (and often have several). We can see this in how Scripture shows us there will be many fulfillments of the Feast of Tabernacles.
Many Christians believe that Yeshua was born on December the 25th. However, Yeshua could not have been born that late in the year because Luke 2:8 shows us that the shepherds were keeping watch over their flocks at night, which is only done while the flocks are still out grazing.
Luqa (Luke) 2:8
7 And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
8 Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.
In the winter, flocks in Israel are typically penned up in the middle of winter. In other words, these flocks would not be out in December. From a prophetic standpoint it makes more sense that Yeshua would be born on the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles, because that would be a prophetic fulfillment of the first day of the festival. This is likely why Yochanan (John) tells us that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.
Yochanan (John) 1:14
14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us….
The word "dwelt" is the Greek word skenoo, Strong’s NT4637, meaning "to tabernacle."
NT:4637 skenoo (skay-no'-o); from NT:4636; to tent or encamp, i.e. (figuratively) to occupy (as a mansion) or (specifically) to reside (as God did in the Tabernacle of old, a symbol of protection and communion):
What Yochanan (John) really said, then, was that Yeshua became flesh and tabernacled among us.
Yochanan (John) 1:14 [interpreted]
14 And the Word became flesh and tabernacled among us….
Leviticus 23 tells all native born Israelites who live in the land of Israel to go up to Jerusalem three times a year. One of these three annual pilgrimages is the Feast of Tabernacles. During this festival all Israel must dwell in tabernacles (temporary dwellings) for seven days. In Hebrew these temporary dwellings are called sukkot. (In English they are often called booths.)
Vayiqra (Leviticus) 23:42
42 You shall dwell in booths for seven days. All who are native Israelites shall dwell in booths (tabernacles)….
The rabbinical ruling is that anyone who is either sick, old, or pregnant does not actually have to live in a tabernacle, but may rent a room in an inn. However, even though Miriam (Mary) was pregnant, there was no room at the inn. Therefore Joseph and Miriam had to stay in a temporary dwelling (and in this case a booth, or a manger), such that Yeshua’s birth fulfilled Leviticus 23 prophetically.
Sometimes Christian scholars argue that since Yeshua already fulfilled the Feast of Tabernacles, we no longer need to obey that part of the Torah; yet we know that Yahweh does not consider that part of the Torah to be “done away with,” as Zechariah 14 speaks of another fulfillment.
Zechariah 14:16-17
16 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, Yahweh of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.
17 And it shall be that whichever of the families of the earth do not come up to Jerusalem to worship the King, Yahweh of hosts, on them there will be no rain.
And if that is not enough proof that the festivals are prophetic shadow pictures of things still to come, there is yet another prophesied fulfillment in the book of the Revelation.
Hitgalut (Revelation) 21:3
3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of Elohim is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and Elohim Himself will be among them,
4 and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away."
As Yahweh’s children, we may not always understand why Yahweh wants us to keep the festival days that He said to keep, rather than making up our own festival days in honor of Him. However, Shaul told us not to let anyone but the Body of Messiah tell us what days of worship to keep, because he knew that those who keep Yahweh’s festivals get blessed (and he wanted us to receive our blessings).
Our Father Yahweh gives us His instructions for our good, so that when we obey them, we can receive our blessings. So if we get blessed when we keep His calendar, why would anyone not want to do that?