Exodus 34:22

22 And you are to celebrate the Feast of Weeks ^[a] with the firstfruits of the wheat harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering ^[b] at the turn of the year.

Exodus 34:22 Meaning and Commentary

Exodus 34:22

And thou shalt observe the feast of weeks
The feast of Pentecost, called the feast of weeks, because seven sabbaths or weeks, or fifty days, were to be reckoned from the day in the passover feast, on which the sheaf of the wave offering was brought, ( Leviticus 23:15 Leviticus 23:16 ) and which was also called the feast

of the first fruits of wheat harvest,
to distinguish it from the barley harvest, at the time of the passover, when a sheaf of barley was the wave offering to the Lord; but at this two loaves or cakes of fine wheaten flour were brought as the first fruits of the wheat harvest, see ( Leviticus 23:17 )

and the feast of ingathering at the year's end;
which was the feast of tabernacles, called the feast of ingathering, because at this time all the fruits of the earth, the corn, wine, and oil, and all others were gathered in; and this was at the close of the old year, and at the beginning of the new, according to the ancient account, which made Tisri or September the first month in the year; (See Gill on Exodus 23:16).

Exodus 34:22 In-Context

20 You must redeem the firstborn of a donkey with a lamb; but if you do not redeem it, you are to break its neck. You must redeem all the firstborn of your sons. No one shall appear before Me empty-handed.

21 Six days you shall labor, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even in the seasons of plowing and harvesting, you must rest.

22 And you are to celebrate the Feast of Weeks with the firstfruits of the wheat harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering at the turn of the year.

23 Three times a year all your males are to appear before the Lord GOD, the God of Israel.

24 For I will drive out the nations before you and enlarge your borders, and no one will covet your land when you go up three times a year to appear before the LORD your God.

Footnotes

• [a]. That is, Shavuot, the late spring feast of pilgrimage to Jerusalem; it is also known as the Feast of Harvest (see Exodus 23:16) or the Feast of Pentecost (see Acts 2:1).
• [b]. That is, Sukkot, the autumn feast of pilgrimage to Jerusalem; it is later called the Feast of Tabernacles (or Booths or Shelters).