Leviticus 23ESV
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Leviticus23

English Standard Version

1The Lord to , ,

2 to the of and to them, These are the of the Lord that you shall as ; they are my .

3 shall be , but on the is a of , a . You shall no . It is a to the Lord in all your .

4These are the of the Lord, the , which you shall at the for them.

5In the month, on the day of the at , is the Lord ’s .

6And on the of the same is the of to the Lord; for you shall .

7On the you shall have a ; you shall not any .

8But you shall a to the Lord for . On the is a ; you shall not any .

9And the Lord to , ,

10 to the of and to them, When you come the that I you and its , you shall the of the of your to the ,

11and he shall the the Lord, so that you may be . On the the the shall it.

12And on the when you the , you shall a male a as a to the Lord.

13And the with it shall be of an ephah of with , a to the Lord with a , and the with it shall be of , a of a .

14And you shall neither nor or this , you have the of your : it is a throughout your in all your .

15You shall from the after the , from the that you the of the .

16You shall the the . Then you shall a of to the Lord.

17You shall from your loaves of to be , made of of an ephah. They shall be of , and they shall be with , as to the Lord.

18And you shall with the a , and from the and . They shall be a to the Lord, with their and their , a with a to the Lord.

19And you shall for a , and a as a of .

20And the shall them with the of the as a the Lord, with the . They shall be to the Lord for the .

21And you shall on the . You shall hold a . You shall not any . It is a in all your throughout your .

22And when you the of your , you shall not your right up to its , shall the after your . You shall them for the and for the : I am the Lord your .

23And the Lord to , ,

24 to the of , , In the , on the day of the , you shall observe a day of , a proclaimed with of , a .

25You shall not any , and you shall a to the Lord.

26And the Lord to , ,

27 on the day of this is the of . It shall be for you a time of , and you shall and a to the Lord.

28And you shall not any on that , for it is a of , to for you the Lord your .

29For is not on that shall be from his .

30And any on that , that I will from his .

31You shall not any . It is a throughout your in all your .

32It shall be to you a of , and you shall . On the day of the beginning at , from shall you your .

33And the Lord to , ,

34 to the of , , On the of this and for is the of to the Lord.

35On the shall be a ; you shall not any .

36For you shall to the Lord. On the you shall hold a and a to the Lord. It is a ; you shall not any .

37These are the of the Lord, which you shall as times of , for to the Lord , and grain , and , on its ,

38 the Lord ’s and your and besides all your and all your , which you to the Lord.

39On the of the , when you have in the of the , you shall the of the Lord . On the shall be a , and on the shall be a .

40And you shall on the the of , of and of and of the , and you shall the Lord your .

41You shall it as a to the Lord for in the . It is a throughout your ; you shall it in the .

42You shall in for . All shall in ,

43that your may that I made the of in when I of the of : I am the Lord your .

44Thus to the of the of the Lord.

Study Guide

Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for Leviticus 23.

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Chapter Summary

In this chapter: The feasts of the Lord, The Sabbath. (1–3). The Passover, The offering of first-fruits. (4–14). The feast of Pentecost. (15–22). The feast of Trumpets, The day of atonement. (23–32). The feast of Tabernacles. (33–44).

vv1-3

In this chapter we have the institution of holy times; many of which have been mentioned before. Though the yearly feasts were made more remarkable by general attendance at the sanctuary, yet these must not be observed more than the sabbath. On that day they must withdraw from all business of the world. It is a sabbath of rest, typifying spiritual rest from sin, and rest in God. God's sabbaths are to be religiously observed in every private house, by every family apart, as well as by families together, in holy assemblies. The sabbath of the Lord in our dwellings will be their beauty, strength, and safety; it will sanctify, build up, and glorify them.

vv4-14

The feast of the Passover was to continue seven days; not idle days, spent in sport, as many that are called Christians spend their holy-days. Offerings were made to the Lord at his altar; and the people were taught to employ their time in prayer, and praise, and godly meditation. The sheaf of first-fruits was typical of the Lord Jesus, who is risen from the dead as the First-fruits of them that slept. Our Lord Jesus rose from the dead on the very day that the first-fruits were offered. We are taught by this law to honour the Lord with our substance, and with the first-fruits of all our increase, Pr 3:9. They were not to eat of their new corn, till God's part was offered to him out of it; and we must always begin with God: begin every day with him, begin every meal with him, begin every affair and business with him; seek first the kingdom of God.

vv15-22

The feast of Weeks was held in remembrance of the giving of the law, fifty days after the departure from Egypt; and looked forward to the outpouring of the Holy Ghost, fifty days after Christ our Passover was sacrificed for us. On that day the apostles presented the first-fruits of the Christian church to God. To the institution of the feast of Pentecost, is added a repetition of that law, by which they were required to leave the gleanings of their fields. Those who are truly sensible of the mercy they received from God, will show mercy to the poor without grudging.

Cross References

Leviticus 23

The wave-sheaf of firstfruits directly typifies Christ risen from the dead as the firstfruits of believers.

Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB

v15Acts 2:1fulfillment

Pentecost (fifty days after the sheaf offering) is fulfilled by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v24Numbers 29:1-6thematic

Gives the detailed sacrificial offerings prescribed for the Feast of Trumpets on the first of the seventh month.

Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole

v27Numbers 29:7-11thematic

Specifies the precise sacrificial offerings for the Day of Atonement alongside the self-affliction.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v42Nehemiah 8:14-17allusion

Direct historical fulfillment where post-exilic Israel restored this specific command to construct and dwell in booths.

Supported by Matthew Henry

Christ is our ultimate Passover sacrificed for us, fulfilling the redemption memorialized here.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v10Deuteronomy 16:9thematic

Parallels the instruction on counting weeks from the time Israel begins to put the sickle to the corn.

Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB

v27Leviticus 16:29thematic

Establishment of the tenth day of the seventh month for afflicting souls and resting.

Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole

v34Nehemiah 8:14thematic

The post-exilic community discovers and acts upon the command to dwell in booths during this feast.

Supported by Matthew Henry

Details the joyful celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles after gathering the corn and wine.

Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB

v40Nehemiah 8:15allusion

Specifically lists the gathering of olive, pine, myrtle, and palm branches to make booths.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v42Hebrews 11:13-16typology

Typified the patriarchs living in temporary dwellings as strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

Supported by Matthew Henry

Parallel Deuteronomic legislation concerning the observation of the Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread.

Supported by John Calvin

Spiritual fulfillment of eating unleavened bread, representing sincerity and truth.

Supported by JFB

v7Exodus 12:16thematic

Establishes the first and seventh days of Unleavened Bread as holy convocations with no servile work.

Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB

v10Proverbs 3:9thematic

Exhorts honoring the Lord with the firstfruits of all increase before consuming the rest.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v10Romans 11:16typology

If the firstfruit is holy, the lump is also holy; the wave-sheaf sanctified the harvest.

Supported by JFB

Expands the gleaning laws for the poor, stranger, fatherless, and widow.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v24Numbers 10:10thematic

Commandment to blow the trumpets over sacrifices and on the beginnings of months.

Supported by Matthew Poole

v34Zechariah 14:16thematic

Prophetic requirement for all nations to worship God by keeping the Feast of Tabernacles.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v36John 7:37thematic

Jesus stands and cries out on the eighth, 'that great day of the feast.'

Supported by Matthew Henry

v41Nehemiah 8:18thematic

Records the literal implementation of keeping the feast for seven days, following the Levitical mandate.

Supported by Matthew Henry

Mandated reading the Law at the Feast of Tabernacles so succeeding generations would learn to fear God.

Supported by JFB

v7Numbers 28:18thematic

Specifies the offerings and the prohibition of servile work on the first day of Unleavened Bread.

Supported by Matthew Poole

v10Leviticus 2:14thematic

Details the preparation of the meat offering of firstfruits as green ears of corn dried.

Supported by Matthew Poole

v10James 1:18typology

Believers are begotten by the word of truth to be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v15Numbers 28:26thematic

Further sacrificial regulations for the day of the firstfruits at the Feast of Weeks.

Supported by Matthew Poole

v22Leviticus 19:9thematic

Verbatim parallel command to not clean reap corners of fields or gather gleanings.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v24Psalms 81:3allusion

Exhortation to blow the trumpet in the new moon and at the solemn feast day.

Supported by JFB

v36Numbers 29:35thematic

Identifies the eighth day of the festival as a solemn assembly with no servile work.

Supported by Matthew Poole

v41Numbers 29:12thematic

Provides the specific sacrificial regulations for this seven-day feast of the seventh month.

Supported by Matthew Poole

v43Psalms 78:5-6thematic

Reinforces the obligation to teach future generations the historical saving acts of God.

Supported by JFB

v2Numbers 10:10thematic

Commandment to blow the trumpets over sacrifices and during solemn feasts and new moons.

Supported by Matthew Poole

v3Colossians 2:16thematic

New Testament instruction regarding the shadow of things to come, including sabbaths and holy days.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v32Hebrews 4:3typology

Connects the physical sabbaths of rest to the spiritual rest believers enter through faith.

Supported by Matthew Henry

v44Leviticus 23:2thematic

Frames the conclusion of the chapter, echoing the opening charge to declare the feasts of the Lord.

Supported by Matthew Poole, Calvin