Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?
Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is? — The Seven Feasts of IsraeL
DOES ANYBODY REALLY KNOW WHAT TIME IT IS?
The Seven Feasts of Israel
A Prelude to the Book of Daniel | Beyond the Sermon — Study Guide (NIV)
Message Overview
Before we can understand a book like Daniel — with its prophecies measured in days, weeks, and years — we first have to understand that God is the author of time itself. From the very first chapter of Genesis, God set the sun, moon, and stars in place “to serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years” (Genesis 1:14). This message walks through the seven Feasts of the Lord given in Leviticus 23: four spring feasts already fulfilled in Christ, and three fall feasts still awaiting their fulfillment in His return. Along the way, we also meet the Shemitah — the biblical seven-year cycle — and trace its echoes through history.
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“And God said, ‘Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years.’” |
WORD STUDY
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מוֹעֵד / מוֹעֲדִים (moed / moedim) “Appointed time(s)”; a fixed meeting or appointment set in advance. The word translated “sacred times” in Genesis 1:14 is the same word used for the seven feasts in Leviticus 23 — God's calendar of appointments to meet with His people. Israel kept 52 weekly Sabbaths plus these seven feast appointments: 70 set meetings with God each year. |
The Seven Feasts of the Lord
Leviticus 23 sets out four spring feasts, already fulfilled in the first coming of Christ, and three fall feasts, which point forward to His return.
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Season |
Feast |
Fulfillment |
Scripture |
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Spring |
Passover |
Fulfilled — Christ's death, our redemption |
Exodus 12; Leviticus 23:5; 1 Cor. 5:7 |
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Spring |
Unleavened Bread |
Fulfilled — Christ's sinless burial |
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Spring |
First Fruits |
Fulfilled — Christ's resurrection |
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Spring |
Pentecost (Shavuot) |
Fulfilled — outpouring of the Holy Spirit |
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Fall |
Trumpets (Yom Teruah) |
Future — the call to gather / the rapture |
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Fall |
Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) |
Future — the return and judgment of the King |
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Fall |
Tabernacles (Sukkot) |
Future — Christ reigning among His people |
Colossians 2:16–17 describes these feasts as “a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.” Every feast, in some way, is about Him.
Historical Background: The Shemitah Cycle
The Shemitah is the seventh year of a biblical seven-year agricultural cycle (Leviticus 25), in which the land was to lie fallow and debts released — a rhythm of trust in God's provision. The sermon traces a pattern of global “shakings” that have historically fallen near Shemitah years:
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Shemitah Year |
Marker |
What Happened |
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1972–1973 |
Global shaking |
OPEC oil embargo; oil prices skyrocket; end of the muscle-car era |
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1979–1980 |
Economic reset |
Severe recession; runaway home prices and interest rates |
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1986–1987 |
Currency shaking |
U.S. dollar falls against the Deutsche mark and Japanese yen; market recession |
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1993–1994 |
Economic reset |
Another recession marks the cycle |
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2000–2001 |
National wake-up call |
September 11 attacks fall within the Ten Days of Awe (Trumpets to Atonement) |
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2007–2008 |
Global financial crisis |
Worst recession since the Great Depression |
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2021–2022 |
Present season |
A season of rebuilding and trust, at the tail end of the current cycle |
Israel's failure to observe the Shemitah over the centuries was tied to the 70 years of Babylonian captivity — the land finally “caught up” on its rest (2 Chronicles 36:21).
WORD STUDY
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שְׁמִטָּה (shemitah) “Release” or “remission”; the seventh-year sabbath of the land. Seven Shemitah cycles (49 years) brought Israel to the Year of Jubilee — the 50th year, when land returned to its original owners and debts were forgiven (Leviticus 25:8–13). Jesus applied this language of release and favor to Himself in Luke 4:18–19. |
Key Passages Referenced
- Genesis 1:14 — God establishes sacred times, days, and years
- Leviticus 23:2–4, 23–25 — the Lord's appointed festivals
- Leviticus 25:8–13 — the Shemitah and the Year of Jubilee
- 1 Thessalonians 4:16–5:1 — the trumpet call and “times and dates”
- 1 Corinthians 5:7–8 — Christ our Passover; keeping the feast in sincerity
- Colossians 2:16–17 — the feasts as a shadow of Christ
- Luke 4:18–19 — Jesus proclaims the “year of the Lord's favor”
Reflection Questions
1. Before this message, were you aware that God set up a fixed calendar of “appointments” (moedim) with His people? How does knowing this change the way you think about the rhythm of a year?
2. The spring feasts have already been fulfilled in Christ; the fall feasts are still future. How does looking back at fulfilled prophecy shape your confidence in what's still to come?
3. Colossians 2:16-17 calls the feasts “a shadow of the things that were to come.” What is one way you already participate in the reality behind one of these feasts (for example, through communion or celebrating the resurrection) without having thought of it in those terms before?
4. First Thessalonians 5:1 says believers have “no need” to be told about times and dates — implying they already knew. What practices or habits might help you stay similarly attentive to the season we're in?
5. The sermon notes that we cannot know “the day or the hour,” but we can know the season. What does it look like, practically, to live “ready at every moment” without falling into date-setting or speculation?
Further Study
- Read all of Leviticus 23 in one sitting and note which feasts you can already connect to an event in Christ's life.
- Compare Matthew 26:17–27, John 18:28, and 1 Corinthians 5:7 for how the New Testament writers connect Passover to the crucifixion.
- Read Luke 4:16–21 and consider how Jesus' words in His hometown synagogue connect to the Year of Jubilee.
- For a deeper look at the fall feasts specifically, read Zechariah 14 alongside Revelation 19–20.