Harvest Thanksgiving (Exodus 34:22)

In this verse we have mentioned two of the three compulsory festivals in Israel that every male Israelite was obligated to attend in Jerusalem. The first one mentioned here is better known as Pentecost because it occurred fifty days after the feast not mentioned in this verse, which was the Passover. And the third feast, that of Ingathering which is better known as the Feast of Tabernacles, was connected to harvest thanksgiving.

There was a common purpose connected to each of the feasts, which was that the Israelite males were to appear before their God, who is described here by three names. They were given a special promise of security from any invaders during the periods they went to Jerusalem.

This instruction was given to a redeemed people and a restored people. They had been redeemed by God from slavery in Egypt by blood and by power. Yet when they came to Mount Sinai, which is connected with the Feast of Pentecost, they had fallen badly when they worshipped the golden calf. God had threatened to disown them, but Moses had interceded for them and God listened to his petitions and renewed his covenant with the Israelites. 

The proximity of God

They are commanded to appear before God in Jerusalem. The meaning of ‘to appear’ is to come before the face of God. It suggests that God wants to look at them as they gather together. Obviously, he does not have a literal face that they can look at, but by faith they can recognise that he is turned towards them. Although he is the holy God, he has forgiven their sin, he has continued his goodness, and they can draw near and have fellowship with him. An encouragement to do so was the harvest because it indicated his favour.

It is also indicated in this description that they draw near together, that there is an expression of unity, and that would be an obvious expectancy because they all shared in the benefit of the harvest. There would be no need for disharmony because he had provided for all their needs. Therefore they could rejoice together about his goodness.

Did God make any special demands of his people as they gathered for the feast of ingathering? In verses 25 and 26, a particular item is connected to each of the three feasts. Passover cannot have any leaven, Pentecost must include the best of the samples, and Ingathering must not include boiling a young goat in its mother’s milk. Some ingenious suggestions have been made regarding the significance of this, but the ban seems to be quite straightforward - boiling a young goat in its mother’s milk was a pagan practice and the call here not to do it was a reminder to Israel that they had to be different from non-Israelites.

It is not difficult for us to see the relevance of this gathering for ourselves, even as far as our present meeting is concerned. We come to the holy God who has forgiven us, we come together in unity to the holy God who has forgiven us, and we come together in unity in a way that indicates we are very different from those who have not yet discovered that the Lord is gracious.

The praise of God (34:23)

Moses describes the Lord by using three different names for him. In our English versions we may not notice the differences: literally, it could be read as the sovereign, the Lord, the God of Israel. Combining his names is a way of indicating his greatness. As sovereign, he is in control of all things and is the master or owner of his people; as Yahweh, he is eternal and self-existent, and the covenant God of his people, and as the God of Israel he uses his power for their benefit. We can see how each of those names is connected to the significance of the three feasts. But since we are concerned with the harvest feast, we can observe how he governs all things to ensure a harvest will happen; he continues his commitment to Israel by giving a harvest; and he uses his power to ensure that they will have a harvest. 

There are numerous names of God in the Bible. He is the King, he is God Almighty or El Shaddai, he is the Shepherd, he is the Redeemer, he is the Justifier of his people, he is the Sanctifier of his people, he is the Glorifier of his people, he is the Keeper of his people, and other names are used of him as well, and they all enable us to appreciate to some extent the wonder of the God whom we know as the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

The providence of God

The obvious feature of a harvest is the providence of God. He has arranged for it to happen. Think of all the processes that are involved in the coming of a harvest. Life has to be given to seeds, and rain and sunshine are given by God to produce the crops. Every day God is involved in their development, although we do not know all the details. Here is the activity of the Creator working to meet the needs of his creatures. 

But that was not the only providence that he provided. He promised the Israelites that when they made their way to Jerusalem to keep those feasts to thank him for his goodness towards them he would ensure that no-one would try and take over the land. He even said that during those three weeks when the men were away from home, possible invaders would not even think about trying to take over the land. Humanly speaking, the time when the men were away would be the most likely time for the enemies to invade. God would ensure however while the enemies might think about invasion during the other forty-nine weeks they would not do so on those three weeks. What an incredible reminder that the providence of God extends beyond the external activities of people even to their thoughts.

The providence of God is an important topic for Christians to think about. It has been described as having two aspects. One is that God keeps everything in existence and the other is that God works in everything that happens to fulfil his plans, although his intention will often be very different from the intention of humans or other creatures in their actions. It is not possible for us to understand divine providence, but an event like harvest thanksgiving is a suitable opportunity to think about what God has arranged for us in life.

The provision of God

How much did God provide for his people at the Feast of Ingathering? It seems that it was held when the work of the various harvests that God sent in the previous few months was completed. Israel did not have a harvest once a year in the autumn, but they had different harvests throughout the year. According to one source that I read, the following harvests occurred: in early spring, barley was harvested; in early summer, wheat was harvested; later in the summer, various fruits were harvested, including almonds, figs and grapes. There was even a harvest after the Feast of Ingathering because the olive harvest took place in late October or November. 

Deuteronomy 11:13-14 mentions various stages in the agricultural life of Israel: ‘And if you will indeed obey my commandments that I command you today, to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, he will give the rain for your land in its season, the early rain and the later rain, that you may gather in your grain and your wine and your oil.’ In those verses, there is a reference to the grain harvests in spring and summer, to the fruit harvest in the late summer, and to the olive harvest that occurred later. Each of those harvests took several weeks to deal with, so it looks as if the Feast of Ingathering was a week-long celebration of everything God had given them in the previous year.

Is this not a reminder to us to take time to consider all that the Lord has done for us? The problem, if that is the right word, is that we will likely do it individually whereas God wanted his people to do it together, to take time to share what God has done. We can imagine how encouraging that feast would have been. Indeed it is worthwhile looking up one references to the Feast of Ingathering or Tabernacles (Nehemiah 8) and observe the great joy that accompanied it. Indeed, Nehemiah 8:17 indicates that the feast was neglected by many Israelites - sadly, it had not been held with the right spirit and attendance since the days of Joshua. How forgetful they had been! Numbers 28 and 29 indicate that it was the feast that required most sacrifices, and maybe that was the reason for its decline.

The picture story by God

The three feasts mentioned by God in this chapter in Exodus reveal God’s overall plan to take place in his kingdom. Passover was fulfilled when Jesus died on the cross, Pentecost was fulfilled when the Holy Spirit came, and we are waiting for the Feast of Ingathering to occur. It will be a wonderful day when all the spiritual harvests are over and we will be able to see what God has done.