3/15 is named: “Feast of Weeks”, “Feast of First Fruits”, “Shavûot/Shawot”,
Also see: Shebo-Shebetôt / Pentacontad
Counting the Omer
Leviticus 23:15-16
“‘From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, count off seven full weeks. Count off fifty days up to the day after the seventh Sabbath, ….”
Temple Scrolls
“You [shall count] seven weeks from the day when you bring the new grain-offering to YHW[H], the bread of firstfruits.”
3/15: always on the first day of the week (Sunday):
MMT A (4Q394 1-2)
On the fifteenth of it (of the third month): Feast of Weeks.
Mishmarot A – Fr 4 iii & v
“On the third (day in the week of) Meoziah: the Passover.
On the 1st (day) [in (the week of) Jeda[iah]: the Waving of the [Sheaf].
On the 5th (day) in (the week of) Seorim: the [Second] Passover. vacat
On the 1st (day) in (the week of) Jeshua: the Feast of Weeks.
On the 4th (day) in (the week of) Meoziah: the Day of Memorial.
[On] the 6th (day) in Jeiarib: the Day of Atonement [in the] seventh [month].”
15/3: The Renewal of the Covenant for the people
(always a Sunday)
Jubilees 6:17-21
For this reason it is ordained and written on the heavenly tablets, that they should celebrate the feast of weeks in this month once a year, to renew the Covenant every year. And this whole festival was celebrated in heaven from the day of creation till the days of Noah -twenty-six jubilees and five weeks of years: and Noah and his sons observed it for seven jubilees and one week of years, till the day of Noah’s death, and from the day of Noah’s death his sons did away with (it) until the days of Abraham, and they eat blood. But Abraham observed it, and Isaac and Jacob and his children observed it up to thy days, and in thy days the children of Israel forgot it until ye celebrated it anew on this mountain.
20And do thou command the children of Israel to observe this festival in all their generations for a commandment unto them: one day in the year in this month (vs 1 ” on the new head of the third month“) they shall celebrate the festival. 21For it is the feast of weeks and the feast of first fruits: this feast is twofold and of a double nature: according to what is written and engraven concerning it, celebrate it.
Jubilees 15:1-2
"... in the third month, in the middle of the month (the 15th), Abram celebrated the feast of the first-fruits of the grain harvest.
15/1: The renewal of the Covenant for the Leaders
(always a Sunday)
Exodus 19:1-15 (Moses)
“In the third month, after the sons of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that very day (the 1st day), they came into the wilderness of Sinai. (…) Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice, and keep my את covenant, then you shall be my own possession from among all peoples; for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation. (…) YHWH said to Moses, “Go to the people, and sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments, and be ready against the third day; for on the third day, YHWH will come down in the sight of all the people on Mount Sinai. You shall set bounds to the את people all around, saying, ‘Be careful that you don’t go up onto the mountain, or touch its border. Whoever touches the mountain shall be surely put to death. No hand shall touch him, but he shall surely be stoned or shot through; whether it is animal or man, he shall not live.’ When the trumpet sounds long, they shall come up to the mountain. Moses went down from the mountain to the people, and sanctified the את people; and they washed their clothes. He said to the people, “Be ready by the third day. Don’t have sexual relations with a woman.”
Jubilees 6:1-4 (Noah)
"And on the head of the third month, he went forth from the ark, and built an altar on that mountain. And he made atonement for the earth, and took a kid and made atonement by its blood for all the guilt of the earth; for everything that had been on it had been destroyed, save those that were in the ark with Noah. (…) And the Lord smelt the goodly savour, and He made a covenant with him that there should not be any more a flood to destroy the earth; (…)"
Jubilees 14:1-6 (Abraham)
"After these things, in the fourth year of this week, on the head of the third month, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a dream, saying: ‘Fear not, Abram; I am thy defender, and thy reward will be exceeding great.’ And he said: ‘Lord, Lord, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go hence childless, and the son of Maseq, the son of my handmaid, is the Dammasek Eliezer: he will be my heir, and to me thou hast given no seed.’ And he said unto him: ‘This (man) will not be thy heir, but one that will come out of thine own bowels; he will be thine heir.’ And He brought him forth abroad, and said unto him: ‘Look toward heaven and number the stars if thou art able to number them.’ And he looked toward heaven, and beheld the stars. And He said unto him: ‘So shall thy seed be.’ And he believed in the Lord, and it was counted to him for righteousness."
A Feast that was observed then forgotten, then remembered again...
Jubilees 6:17-21
"And this whole Festival [of Weeks] was celebrated in heaven from the day of creation till the days of Noah, twenty-six jubilees and five weeks of years. And Noah and his sons observed it for seven jubilees and one week of years, till the day of Noah’s death, and from the day of Noah’s death his sons did away with (it) until the days of Abraham, and they eat blood. But Abraham observed it, and Isaac and Jacob and his children observed it up to thy days, and in thy days the children of Israel forgot it until ye celebrated it anew on this mountain."
The Agricultural Feast:
Leviticus 23:15-21
15 “‘From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, count off seven full weeks.
16 Count off fifty days up to the day after the seventh Sabbath, and then present an offering of new grain to the LORD.
17 From wherever you live, bring two loaves made of two-tenths of an ephah of the finest flour, baked with yeast, as a wave offering of firstfruits to the LORD.
18 Present with this bread seven male lambs, each a year old and without defect, one young bull and two rams. They will be a burnt offering to the LORD, together with their grain offerings and drink offerings–a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the LORD.
19 Then sacrifice one male goat for a sin offering and two lambs, each a year old, for a fellowship offering.
20 The priest is to wave the two lambs before the LORD as a wave offering, together with the bread of the firstfruits. They are a sacred offering to the LORD for the priest.
21 On that same day you are to proclaim a sacred assembly and do no regular work. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live.
Deuteronomy 16:9-12
9 Count off seven weeks from the time you begin to put the sickle to the standing grain.
10 Then celebrate the Festival of Weeks to the Lord your God by giving a freewill offering in proportion to the blessings the Lord your God has given you.
11 And rejoice before the Lord your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name—you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, the Levites in your towns, and the foreigners, the fatherless and the widows living among you.
12 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt, and follow carefully these decrees.
Numbers 28:26-31
26 Also in the day of the firstfruits, when you bring a new grain offering unto the LORD, in your Feast of Weeks, ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work: 27 But ye shall offer the burnt offering for a sweet savour unto the LORD; two young bullocks, one ram, seven lambs of the first year; 28 And their meat offering of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals unto one bullock, two tenth deals unto one ram, 29 A several tenth deal unto one lamb, throughout the seven lambs; 30 And one kid of the goats, to make an atonement for you. 31 Ye shall offer them beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, (they shall be unto you without blemish) and their drink offerings.
Jubilees 6:20-21
20And do thou command the children of Israel to observe this festival in all their generations for a commandment unto them: one day in the year in this month (vs 1 ” on the new head of the third month“) they shall celebrate the festival. 21For it is the feast of weeks and the feast of first fruits: this feast is twofold and of a double nature: according to what is written and engraven concerning it, celebrate it.
Exodus 34:22
“You shall celebrate the Feast of Weeks, that is, the first fruits of the wheat harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering at the turn of the year.
Exodus 23:16
“Celebrate the Festival of Ingathering at the turn of the year, when you gather in your crops from the field.
(Note: The feast of the ingathering Hag Ha-Acaph (the harvest) הָֽאָסִף֙ is mentionned only twice in biblical texts, & both times, it is associated to the end/turn בְּצֵ֣את of the year. The verb יָצָא is defined as “to go or come out”. Since Jubilees refers to the Feast of Weeks as a feast of twofolds ("Jub 6:21 For it is the feast of weeks and the feast of first fruits: this feast is twofold and of a double nature"), 3/15 is the Feast of the Renewal of the Covenant (the 1st fold) and also the agricultural feast of "in-gathering" for wheat (second fold).)
Temple Scrolls
XIX … their [grain-offerin]g and dr[ink-offering] according to the statute. The [priests] shall wave … [wave-offering with the bread of] the firstfruits. They shall b[elong to] the priests and they shall eat them in the [inner] court[yard], [as a ne]w [grain-offering], the bread of the firstfruits. Then … new bread from freshly ripened ears. [On this] da[y] there shall be [a holy gathering, an eter]nal [rule] for their generations. [They] shall [do] no work. It is the feast of Weeks and the feast of Firstfruits, an eterna[l] memorial.
Temple Scrolls
You [shall count] seven weeks from the day when you bring the new grain-offering to YHW [H], the bread of firstfruits.
Jubilees 15:1-2
And in the fifth year of the fourth week of this jubilee, in the third month, in the middle of the month, Abram celebrated the feast of the first-fruits of the grain harvest. And he offered new offerings on the altar, the first-fruits of the produce, unto the Lord, an heifer and a goat and a sheep on the altar as a burnt sacrifice unto the Lord; their fruit offerings and their drink offerings he offered upon the altar with frankincense.
Jubilees 13:25-27
For Abram, and for his seed, a tenth of the first fruits to the Lord, and the Lord ordained it as an ordinance for ever that they should give it to the priests who served before Him, that they should possess it for ever. And to this law there is no limit of days; for He hath ordained it for the generations for ever that they should give to the Lord the tenth of everything, of the seed and of the wine and of the oil and of the cattle and of the sheep. And He gave (it) unto His priests to eat and to drink with joy before Him.
The Covenant: the 10 Commandments
Exodus 20:1-17
"And God spoke all these words: “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
(1.) You shall have no other gods before Me.
(2.) You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in the heavens above, on the earth below, or in the waters beneath. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing loving devotion to a thousand generations of those who love Me and keep My commandments.
(3.) You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not leave anyone unpunished who takes His name in vain.
(4.) Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God, on which you must not do any work—neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant or livestock, nor the foreigner within your gates. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth and the sea and all that is in them, but on the seventh day He rested. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy.
(5.) Honor your father and mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.
(6.) You shall not murder.
(7.) You shall not commit adultery.
(8.) You shall not steal.
(9.) You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
(10.) You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant or maidservant, or his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”
(Summary of the 10 commandments)
Matthew 22:37-40
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
The Covenant: The Terms
Matthew 5:18
For verily I say unto you, Until the heaven and the earth pass away, one iota or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law till all come to pass.
Deuteronomy 28 (also see 29, 30 & Leviticus 25:18-22; Deuteronomy 4:1-14; Deuteronomy 11:1-7)
1And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of YHWH thy God, to take heed to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that YHWH thy God will set thee supreme above all nations of the earth; 2and all these blessings shall come on thee and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of YHWH thy God.
3Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field.
4Blessed shall be the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the offspring of thy kine, and the increase of thy sheep.
5Blessed shall be thy basket and thy kneading-trough.
6Blessed shalt thou be in thy coming in, and blessed shalt thou be in thy going out.
7YHWH will give up, smitten before thee, thine enemies that rise up against thee; they shall come out against thee one way, and by seven ways shall they flee before thee. 8YHWH will command blessing on thee in thy granaries, and in all the business of thy hand; and he will bless thee in the land which YHWH thy God giveth thee. 9YHWH will establish thee unto himself a holy people as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou keep the commandments of YHWH thy God, and walk in his ways. 10And all peoples of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of YHWH, and they shall be afraid of thee. 11And YHWH will give thee abundance of good, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, in the land that YHWH swore unto thy fathers to give thee. 12YHWH will open to thee his good treasure, the heavens, to give rain unto thy land in its season, and to bless all the work of thy hand; and thou shalt lend unto many nations, but thou shalt not borrow. 13And YHWH will make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if thou hearken unto the commandments of YHWH thy God, which I command thee this day, to keep and to do them, 14and if thou turn not aside from any of the words that I command thee this day, to the right hand or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.
The Curses of Disobedience
(Leviticus 20:1-9; Leviticus 26:14-39; 1 Samuel 15:1-9; 1 Kings 13:11-34)
15But it shall come to pass if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of YHWH thy God, to take heed to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day, that all these curses shall come upon thee and overtake thee.
16Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field.
17Cursed shall be thy basket and thy kneading-trough.
18Cursed shall be the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy ground, the offspring of thy kine, and the increase of thy sheep.
19Cursed shalt thou be in thy coming in, and cursed shalt thou be in thy going out.
20YHWH will send upon thee cursing, confusion, and rebuke, in all the business of thy hand which thou doest, until thou be destroyed and until thou perish quickly, because of the wickedness of thy doings, whereby thou hast forsaken me. 21YHWH will make the pestilence cleave unto thee, until he have consumed thee from off the land whither thou goest to possess it. 22YHWH will smite thee with consumption, and with fever, and with inflammation, and with burning ague, and with drought, and with blight, and with mildew, and they shall pursue thee until thou perish. 23And thy heavens which are over thy head shall be brass, and the earth which is under thee, iron. 24YHWH will give as the rain of thy land powder and dust; from the heavens shall it come down upon thee until thou be destroyed.
25YHWH will give thee up smitten before thine enemies; thou shalt go out against them one way, and by seven ways shalt thou flee before them; and thou shalt be driven hither and thither into all the kingdoms of the earth. 26And thy carcase shall be meat unto all the fowl of the air, and unto the beasts of the earth, and there shall be no man to scare them away.
27YHWH will smite thee with the ulcers of Egypt, and with boils, and with the scab, and with the itch, whereof thou canst not be healed. 28YHWH will smite thee with madness, and with blindness, and with astonishment of heart; 29and thou shalt grope at noonday, as the blind gropeth in darkness, and thou shalt not prosper in thy ways; and thou shalt be only oppressed and spoiled continually, and there shall be none to save. 30Thou shalt betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her; thou shalt build a house, and thou shalt not dwell therein; thou shalt plant a vineyard, and shalt not eat of it. 31Thine ox shall be slaughtered before thine eyes, and thou shalt not eat thereof; thine ass shall be snatched away from before thy face, and shall not return to thee; thy sheep shall be given unto thine enemies, and thou shalt have none to recover them. 32Thy sons and thy daughters shall be given unto another people, and thine eyes shall look, and languish for them all the day long; and there shall be no power in thy hand [to help it]. 33The fruit of thy ground and all thy labour, shall a people that thou knowest not eat up; and thou shalt be only oppressed and crushed continually. 34And thou shalt be mad through the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see. 35YHWH will smite thee in the knees and in the legs with evil ulcers, whereof thou canst not be healed, from the sole of thy foot unto the top of thy head. 36YHWH will bring thee, and thy king whom thou shalt set over thee, unto a nation that neither thou nor thy fathers have known, and there shalt thou serve other gods, wood and stone. 37And thou shalt become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all the peoples whither YHWH shall lead thee.
38Thou shalt carry much seed out into the field, and shalt gather little in; for the locust shall devour it. 39Thou shalt plant and till vineyards, but shalt drink no wine, nor gather [the fruit]; for the worms shall eat it. 40Olive-trees shalt thou have throughout all thy borders, but thou shalt not anoint thyself with oil; for thine olive-tree shall cast its fruit. 41Sons and daughters shalt thou beget, but thou shalt not have them [to be with thee]; for they shall go into captivity. 42All thy trees and the fruit of thy ground shall the locust possess. 43The sojourner that is in thy midst shall rise above thee higher and higher, and thou shalt sink down lower and lower. 44He shall lend to thee, but thou shalt not lend to him: he shall be the head, and thou shalt be the tail.
45And all these curses shall come upon thee, and shall pursue thee, and overtake thee, until thou be destroyed; because thou hearkenedst not unto the voice of YHWH thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which he commanded thee. 46And they shall be upon thee for a sign and for a wonder, and upon thy seed for ever.
47Because thou servedst not YHWH thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of everything, 48thou shalt serve thine enemies whom YHWH will send against thee, in hunger, and in thirst, and in nakedness, and in want of everything; and he shall put a yoke of iron upon thy neck, until he have destroyed thee.
49YHWH will bring a nation against thee from afar, from the end of the earth, like as the eagle flieth, a nation whose tongue thou understandest not; 50a nation of fierce countenance, which regardeth not the person of the old, nor is kind to the young; 51and he shall eat the fruit of thy cattle, and the fruit of thy ground, until thou be destroyed; for he shall not leave thee corn, new wine, or oil, offspring of thy kine, or increase of thy sheep, until he have destroyed thee. 52And he shall besiege thee in all thy gates, until thy high and strong walls wherein thou trustedst come down, throughout all thy land; and he shall besiege thee in all thy gates in all thy land, which YHWH thy God hath given thee. 53And in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee, thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters whom YHWH thy God hath given thee. 54The eye of the man in thy midst that is tender and very luxurious shall be evil towards his brother, and the wife of his bosom, and the residue of his children which he hath left; 55so that he will not give to any of them of the flesh of his children that he eateth, because he hath nothing left him in the siege and in the straitness wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee in all thy gates. 56The eye of the tender and luxurious woman in thy midst who would not attempt to set the sole of her foot upon the ground from luxuriousness and from tenderness, shall be evil toward the husband of her bosom, and her son, and her daughter, 57because of her afterbirth which hath come out between her feet, and her children whom she shall bear; for she shall secretly eat them for want of everything in the siege and in the straitness wherewith thine enemy shall distress thee in thy gates.
58If thou wilt not take heed to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, to fear this glorious and fearful name, YHWH THY GOD; 59then YHWH will make thy plagues wonderful, and the plagues of thy seed, great and persistent plagues and evil and persistent sicknesses; 60and he will bring upon thee all the diseases of Egypt which thou art afraid of, and they shall cleave unto thee. 61Also every sickness and every plague which is not written in the book of this law, them will YHWH bring upon thee, until thou be destroyed. 62And ye shall be left a small company, whereas ye were as the stars of heaven for multitude; because thou hast not hearkened to the voice of YHWH thy God. 63And it shall come to pass, that as YHWH rejoiced over you to do you good and to multiply you, so YHWH will rejoice over you to cause you to perish, and to destroy you; and ye shall be plucked from off the land whereunto thou goest to possess it. 64And YHWH will scatter thee among all peoples, from one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth; and thou shalt there serve other gods, whom thou hast not known, neither thou nor thy fathers, wood and stone. 65And among these nations shalt thou have no rest, neither shall the sole of thy foot have a resting-place, and YHWH shall give thee there a trembling heart, languishing of the eyes, and pining of the soul. 66And thy life shall hang in suspense before thee; and thou shalt be in terror day and night and shalt be afraid of thy life. 67In the morning thou shalt say, Would that it were even! and in the evening thou shalt say, Would that it were morning! through the fright of thy heart wherewith thou shalt be in terror, and through the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see. 68And YHWH will bring thee into Egypt again with ships, by the way whereof I said unto thee, Thou shalt see it again no more; and there ye shall be sold unto your enemies for bondmen and bondwomen, and there shall be no man to buy [you].
The 7 biblical Shebo-Shebetôt (pentacontads):
שבע-שבתות
# Feast of First Fruits Biblical Month Gregorian Month Biblical Date
1 Barley; Waving of Sheaf 1st biblical month Apr 1/26
2 Wheat; “Weeks” 3rd biblical month May 1/26 + 50 = 3/15
3 New Wine / Pentecost 5th biblical month July-Aug 3/15 + 50 = 5/3
4 Oil & Wood 6th biblical month Sept 5/3 + 50 = 6/22
5 (…) 8th biblical month Oct-Nov 6/22 + 50 = 8/10
6 (…) 9th biblical month Dec 8/10 + 50 = 9/29
7 (…) 11th bibl. month Feb 9/29 + 50 = 11/17
(49 days + 49 days + 49 days + 49 days + 49 days + 49 days + 70 days = 364 days)
((7 x 7) x 7) + (3 x 7) = 364 days
Pentacost
Pentekoste πεντηκοστή (from 4002 /pénte, “five”) – properly fiftieth, referring to the festival of Pentecost – assumed to be the one day festival celebrated at the end of the barley harvest. The favored relationship of Pentecost to Shavuot is assumed rather than established.
Acts 2:1-13
1On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place. (…) Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”
Acts 2:1-12
1On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place. 2Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. 3Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. 4And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability. 5 Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven.
Deut 16:16 " "Three times a year all your men must appear before the LORD your God at the place he will choose: at the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Weeks and the Festival of Tabernacles."
Acts 4:31
After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.
Acts 1-5 "Three times a year all your men must appear before the LORD your God at the place he will choose: at the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Weeks and the Festival of Tabernacles."
For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”