Leviticus 23:9-14 meaning

God declares the Feast of First Fruits to be His appointed time.

God admonishes the people that when you enter the land which I am going to give to you and reap its harvest, to give offerings from the first fruits (i.e. best) of the harvest. The specific crop they were harvesting in the spring would be barley. The statement, “When you enter the land” indicates this only applies to crops harvested in the land of Israel. The fact that the priest was waving the offering before the LORD indicated the tabernacle (or later the temple) was in operation.

Next it is commanded that he (the priest) shall wave the sheaf before the LORD for you to be accepted. This is called a wave offering. The priest would elevate the sheaf of grain up and down in a vertical motion, then side-to-side in a horizontal motion. It has been noted that this motion creates a shape of a cross. A sheaf (“Omer” in Hebrew) is a bundle of barley or wheat that was usually bound with a rope in the middle.

In addition to the wave offering was the first fruits offering. The first fruits was the first part of the bounty of the harvest. Each Israelite was to also bring a male lamb one year old without defect, a grain offering of two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil, and also a drink offering, a fourth of a hin of wine (about 1.4 liters). An ephah, a dry measurement, was a little over a bushel and weighed approximately 40 pounds. So, two-tenths of an ephah would have been about eight pounds of fine flour. All these were to be given as offerings of the first fruits of the harvest. The wave offering of the First Fruits always takes place on the day after the sabbath following Passover. In other words, on a Sunday. Jesus Christ resurrected on the Feast of First Fruits. Knowing this, the apostle Paul said:

“But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.”
(1 Corinthians 15:20)

This means that the Bible is teaching that there will be many others who will be resurrected as Jesus was (1 Corinthians 15:42).

Next God declares the following statute, until this same day, until you have brought in the offering of your God, you shall eat neither bread nor roasted grain nor new growth. Until God received the wave offering of the first fruits on the Feast of First Fruits, Israelites could not eat bread nor roasted grain nor new growth that had emerged since winter. This meant that the very first part of each harvest was to be dedicated to God. This teaches that we are to put God first in all aspects of our life. Paul was likely thinking of this principle when he instructed the church at Corinth to “put aside and save” some money for an offering to God “on the first day of every week” (1 Corinthians 16:2).

The feast of First Fruits is declared to be a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all your dwelling places. This means this appointed time was to continue for the entire age, and apply no matter where they dwelt.

Biblical Text

9 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 10 “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. 11 He shall wave the sheaf before the LORD for you to be accepted; on the day after the sabbath the priest shall wave it. 12 Now on the day when you wave the sheaf, you shall offer a male lamb one year old without defect for a burnt offering to the LORD. 13 Its grain offering shall then be two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil, an offering by fire to the LORD for a soothing aroma, with its drink offering, a fourth of a hin of wine. 14 Until this same day, until you have brought in the offering of your God, you shall eat neither bread nor roasted grain nor new growth. It is to be a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all your dwelling places.

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Additional Resources

Book Theme

Leviticus is largely about directions for sacrificial ceremonies and worship, and might seem hard for the modern reader to relate to. However, the New Testament reveals the great extent to which the entire Tabernacle enterprise symbolizes eternal truths that are as relevant to the New Testament believer as to the Old.

In particular, the New Testament book of Hebrews says that all the Tabernacle items are copies of the real thing in heaven. It further discusses the meaning of the priesthood and sacrifices, all of which look forward to Jesus Christ’s ministry on behalf of a fallen race.

Chapter Context

Chapter 23 of Leviticus outlines God’s appointed times also known as the Feasts of Israel. Each of God’s appointed times has a literal or historical context as well as a prophetic or messianic fulfillment to which it is pointing—like a shadow reflects the real thing. The Apostle Paul speaks of this messianic fulfillment in the following manner:

“Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day, things which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ.” (Colossians 2:16-17)

It is important not to confuse a shadow for the object casting it. Shadows are useful as a representation of something real. Leviticus 23 provides a convenient list of God’s appointed times in chronological order, however it does leave out certain details that are given elsewhere in the five books of Moses. For instance, Exodus 12 gives additional details for Passover and Numbers 29 gives additional details for the fall feasts.

Chapter 23 begins with the only weekly appointed time, the sabbath day, and then moves on to the yearly recurring appointments. The Lord’s yearly recurring appointments are typically divided into two parts:

The spring feasts—Passover, Unleavened Bread, First Fruits, and Weeks
The fall feasts—Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, and the Feast of Tabernacles

It seems clear from the New Testament that Jesus fulfilled the spring feasts in His first coming. Fulfilled prophecy that occurred in the past is easier to look back upon and see God’s plan. The fall feasts, many believe, will be fulfilled in His second coming. Future prophecy, no matter how detailed in the scripture, is difficult to see clearly. While we are interpreting the fall feasts to point to specific messianic events yet to be fulfilled, and will speculate on their nature, it is wise to hold all interpretations of future prophecy with an open hand. The Pharisees knew and believed the Bible, but missed Jesus in part because He did not fit their mental model of His coming.

God places the fall feasts in the seventh month. Seven is a number signifying completeness in the Bible. This fits with the idea that the fall festivals represent events that will complete the predicted events that will wrap up the current age. Paul and the 1^st century Jewish believers continued to practice God’s appointed times taking place in the daily temple worship and being “zealous for the law” (Acts 21:20). The festivals were a constant reminder to keep the law. The main way we are to obey the law is by loving and serving our neighbor. New Testament believers can learn from the principles found in these festivals and apply them to “the substance” of the underlying principles “that belongs to Christ,” as Paul stated in Colossians.

These feasts are presented as appointments for times to fellowship with God as well as fellow neighbors. The three pilgrimage feasts (Passover, Weeks, and Tabernacles) were like big barbecues for God’s people to rejoice in His presence. Later in Leviticus we will see the Jubilee appointed time which occurs every fifty years and the sabbatical seventh year in which the land had an appointment to rest. All of God’s “appointed times” are called “perpetual statutes” that are to be observed “in all your dwelling places throughout your generations.” Human memories are brief, and we need constant reminders of what is important.

Leviticus 23:9-14 meaning

Check out our other commentaries:

Revelation 2:12-13 meaning

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Deuteronomy 22:6-7 meaning

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Additional Resources

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The Bible Project - Leviticus Summary

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