Yom HaBikkurim (Day of Firstfruits)

(Today is the Day of Firstfruits. I originally wrote and posted this to my previous blog on 04/08/2007.)

Readings:

Shemot (Exodus) 23:19
Debarim (Deuteronomy) 26:1-11
Hitgalut (Revelation) 15:1-4

Exo 23:19 "Bring the first of the first-fruits of your land into the House of YHWH your Elohim. Do not cook a young goat in its mother's milk.

Today is the day after the weekly Sabbath, and during the week of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, this is the day when the firstfruits of the harvest are brought to YHWH. This is also the day Yeshua Messiah was offered as the firstfruits of the dead:

1Co 15:20 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.

He rose after being in the heart of the earth for 3 days and 3 nights, thus fulfilling the sign of Yonah:

Mat 12:39 But He answering, said to them, "A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Yonah.
Mat 12:40 "For as Yonah was three days and three nights in the stomach of the great fish, so shall the Son of Adam be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

Since Yeshua states that this is the only sign given to prove to the wicked and adulterous that He is who He says He is, we need to learn to count to 3.

Yeshua was crucified on the afternoon of Passover, the 14th day of the 1st month, which that year according to the Scriptures had to have been on Yom Revi'i (the 4th day of the week, known on the Roman calendar as "Wednesday"). He was slaughtered by the Romans on Golgotha at the same time the Passover lambs were slaughtered by the priests in the temple.

He was put into the grave by sunset, which began the first day of Unleavened Bread, which is a High Sabbath. Yeshua had to be buried by sunset in order to be obedient to Torah:

Deu 21:23 "Let his body not remain overnight on the tree, for you shall certainly bury him the same day - for he who is hanged is accursed of Elohim - so that you do not defile the land which YHWH your Elohim is giving you as an inheritance.

These consecutive verses show us the correct timeline:

Mar 15:42 And when evening had come, because it was the Preparation Day, that is, the day before the Sabbath,
Mar 15:43 Yoseph of Ramathayim, a prominent council member, who was himself waiting for the reign of Elohim, came, boldly went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Yeshua.
Mar 15:44 But Pilate wondered whether He was already dead, so summoning the captain, he asked him if He was already dead.
Mar 15:45 And when he learned this from the captain, he gave the body to Yoseph.
Mar 15:46 And he, having bought fine linen, took Him down, and wrapped Him in the linen. And he laid Him in a tomb which had been hewn out of the rock, and rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb.
Mar 15:47 And Miryam from Magdala, and Miryam the mother of Yoseph, saw where He was laid.

As stated, this day was Preparation Day, but it was not the regular weekly Preparation Day. It was Passover, which is the Preparation Day for the annual High Sabbath of the first day of Unleavened Bread. This is the day the Passover lambs are slaughtered in preparation for the Passover meal to be eaten that evening. We have to look at the Scriptural calendar in order to know which day is which.

The 1st night and day of the 3 nights and days Yeshua was in the grave was the High Sabbath of the first day of Unleavened Bread. That year it was on Yom Khamishi (the 5th day of the week, known on the Roman calendar as "Thursday").

Mar 16:1 And when the Sabbath was past, Miryam from Magdala, and Miryam the mother of Ya'aqob, and Shelomah bought spices, to go and anoint Him.

The following day was a non-Sabbath day since the women were able to buy spices. There is no buying or selling on Sabbath days--not on the weekly Sabbath and not on the annual Sabbaths.

The 2nd night and day of the 3 nights and days Yeshua was in the grave was the regular weekly Preparation Day, the day before the weekly Sabbath, which is always on Yom Shishi (the 6th day of the week, known on the Roman calendar as "Friday").

Mar 16:2 And very early on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen.
Mar 16:3 And they said among themselves, "Who shall roll away the stone from the entrance of the tomb for us?"
Mar 16:4 And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away, for it was extremely large.
Mar 16:5 And having entered into the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right, wearing a white robe, and they were greatly astonished.
Mar 16:6 And he said to them, "Do not be much astonished. You seek Yeshua of Natsareth, who was impaled. He was raised - He is not here! See the place where they laid Him.

They did not go to the tomb until the first day of the week, after the weekly Sabbath, and by the time they got there, He had already arisen.

Thus, the 3rd night and day of the 3 nights and days Yeshua was in the grave was Yom Shabbat, the weekly Sabbath (known on the Roman calendar as "Saturday").

Yeshua rose from the dead and came out of the heart of the earth as the sun was setting for the 4th time since he was laid there, which marked the end of Yom Shabbat and the beginning of Yom Rishon (the 1st day of the week, known on the Roman calendar as "Sunday"). It was still dark (before sunrise) when Miryam discovered the empty tomb:

Joh 20:1 And on the first day of the week Miryam from Magdala came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb.

Mar 16:9 And having risen early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Miryam from Magdala, from whom He had cast out seven demons.

"Early on the first day of the week" would have been at sunset, since that is when one Scriptural day ends and the next begins:

Gen 1:5 And Elohim called the light 'day' and the darkness He called 'night.' And there came to be evening and there came to be morning, the first day.

Now we can easily count the 3 days and 3 nights Yeshua was in the grave:

1. Evening and morning of Yom Khamishi ("Thursday"), which that year was the High Sabbath of the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.


2. Evening and morning of Yom Shishi ("Friday), the weekly Preparation Day.


3. Evening and morning of Yom Shabbat ("Saturday"), the weekly Sabbath.

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Rev 15:2 And I saw like a sea of glass mixed with fire, and those overcoming the beast and his image and his mark and the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, holding harps of Elohim.
Rev 15:3 And they sing the song of Mosheh the servant of Elohim, and the song of the Lamb, saying, "Great and marvellous are Your works, YHWH El Shaddai! Righteous and true are Your ways, O Sovereign of the set-apart ones!

Another important Scriptural truth is that those who overcome are those who sing the song of Mosheh (Torah) AND the song of the Lamb (Yeshua Messiah). This message is revealed seven times in the book of Revelation. The saints always have been and always will be those who hear and obey His Voice (keep His Torah) AND testify that Yeshua is Messiah.

HalleluYah--He is risen! Yom HaBikkurim Sameach (Happy Day of Firstfruits)!