The Feast of Tabernacles was considered the most joyous season of the entire year for YEHOVAH's people Israel. With all the electric anticipation along the caravan trails, the stirring religious ceremonies, the inspiring singing of hymns, and the Levitical choir and orchestra playing at the Temple, with lively singing, dancing, and feasting, the joy literally ran over the brim.

The Pouring Out of Water

One of Tabernacles’ most joyous observances was known as Simchat Beit Hashoeivah, the Celebration of the Water-Drawing. When the Temple stood in Jerusalem, every sacrifice included wine libations poured over the altar. During Tabernacles, water was also poured over the altar in a special ceremony. This ritual engendered such joy that it was celebrated with music, dancing and singing all night long.

Every morning of the Feast of Tabernacles, at daybreak, a group of Levites and priests went down to the Shiloach stream and drew three log (a Talmudic liquid measurement) of fresh water to be poured on the altar after the daily morning sacrifice. Their arrival at the Temple with the water was accompanied by trumpet blasts. (For the Sabbath, the water was collected before the onset of the Sabbath and stored in a golden vessel in the Temple.)

There were two holes in the altar into which liquid was poured. One hole was for the wine that accompanied every sacrifice, and a second, smaller one was reserved for the Tabernacles' water. The holes were different sizes to allow the wine and water, which have different consistencies, to drain at the same speed.

The nights of the Feast of Tabernacles were spent celebrating this once-a-year offering.

When the Temple of YEHOVAH God stood in Jerusalem, the water pouring ceremony was performed every day of the Feast of Tabernacles. The priests of the Most High God were divided into three divisions: one division for the Altar, one for the willows, and one for the waters. Writes Robin Main [1]:

"The first division was the priests on duty for that festival. They would slay the sacrifices found in Numbers 29. Prior to the first group’s ascension of the Altar, a second group of priests went out the Eastern Gate of the Temple and went to the Motzah Valley [2] (where the ashes of the red heifer were dumped at the beginning of the Sabbath). There they would cut willows. The willows had to be 25 feet in length. After this, they would form a line with all the priests holding a willow. About 25 or 30 feet behind this row of priests, allowing room for the willows, would be another row of priests with willows. So, there would be row after row of the willows.

"The whole road back to the Temple was lined with pilgrims as they went to Jerusalem to celebrate the festival as they were commanded by God to do. Sukkot [Tabernacles], along with Shavuot [Pentecost] and Pesach [Passover], were known as the pilgrimage festivals (Deuteronomy 16:16).

"There would be a signal and the priests would step out with their left foot, and then step to the right [cadence], swinging the willows back and forth. Meanwhile a third group of priests, headed by the High Priest, went out the gate known as the Water Gate. They had gone to the pool known as 'Siloam' (John 9:7, 11), which means 'gently flowing waters.' There the High Priest had a golden vase and drew the water known as the living water and held it in the vase. His assistant held a silver vase containing wine. Just as the priests in the valley of Motzah began to march toward Jerusalem, the willows made a swishing sound in the wind as they approached the city. The word wind and spirit in Hebrew are both Ruach. Therefore, this ceremony was symbolic or representative of the holy spirit of God coming upon the city of Jerusalem."

"As each of the party reached their respective gates," continues Robin Main, "a trumpet (shofar) was blown. Then one man would stand up and play the flute. The flute represents the Messiah. The flute player is called 'the pierced one.' The flute is pierced, and Yeshua was pierced during the crucifixion."

"The flute player led the procession. The pierced one blows the call for the wind and the water to enter the temple. The priests from [the valley of] Motzah walked in a cadence swishing the willows in order to come into the Temple. This group then circled the altar seven times. The priests that were slaying the sacrifices are now ascending the altar, and they begin to lay the sacrifices on the fires. The High Priest and his assistant ascend the altar and all the people of Israel are gathered into the courts around there. The people start singing, 'With joy we will draw water out of the well of salvation' (Isaiah 12:3)."

"The High Priest takes his golden vase and pours it contents on one of the corners of the altar where the horns are. There are two bowls built into the altar. Each bowl has a hole in it. The water and the wine are poured out over the altar, as the priests who had the willow start laying the willows against the altar, making a sukkah [tabernacle]. They set the willows upright on the side of the altar, forming a wedding canopy or chupah, which is a picture of the Mature Body of Christ coming together who are made up of organic matter. These individuals lay down their lives as living sacrifices of fire to form one body -- the dwelling place of God. The ceremony of the water drawing points to that day when, according to the prophet Joel, God will pour out His spirit upon all flesh [of Israel] (Joel 2:28-29)."

Though not explicitly mandated in the Old Testament, the water libation is part of the oral tradition passed down from Moses. For this reason, the Sadducees, who rejected the Oral Law, bitterly disputed the practice. Once the priest honored to do the libation was sympathetic to the Sadducees and, instead of pouring the water into the hole in the altar, he spilled it on his own feet. The onlookers were horrified and pelted him with their citrons. From that time on, whoever poured the water libation lifted the jug of water high in the air, so that all could see him perform the ceremony properly.

Why would this priest have poured the water out on his feet? The rabbinic literature fills in the details:

"For it once happened that a Boethesian [priest] poured [the water] on his feet, and the entire populace pelted him with their citrons" [3].

"It happened that a Sadducee [priest] poured [or: was pouring] [the water] on his feet, and the entire populace pelted him with their citrons" [4].

Although the two sources do not agree on the identity of the culprit (Boethesian or Sadducee), they both describe the "rogue priest" as being a sectarian who, according to rabbinic interpretation, did not believe that the water libation ritual was legitimate -- seemingly because it is never mentioned in the Torah, but is only part of the oral Torah.

In telling the story of the sabotaged water libation ceremony, the rabbis very likely made use of an older story about King Alexander Jannaeus (103-76 B.C.) as their template. This story appears twice in Josephus, once in the Wars of the Jews [5] and again in the Antiquities of the Jews. The similarity between the incident in Antiquities and the rabbinic story is striking -- notice:

"As to Alexander, his own people were seditious against him; for at a festival which was then celebrated, when he sttod upon the altar, and was going to sacrifice, the nation rose upon him, and pelted him with citrons [which they then had in their hands, because] the law of the Jews required that at the feast of Tabernacles every one should have branches of the palm tree and citron tree; which thing we have elsewhere related. They [the people] also reviled him, as derived from a captive, and so unworthy of his dignity and of sacrificing. At this he [Alexander] was in a rage, and slew of them about six thousand. He also built a partition-wall of wood round the altar and the temple, as far as that partition within which it was only lawful for the priests to enter, and by this means he obstructed the multitude from coming at him." [6]

This text concerns a regular sacrifice, not the water libation ceremony. According to Josephus, the Judeans are being seditious because they did not approve of Jannaeus and his government. moreover, they believed that he was unfit to be a priest since he was once a captive. Nevertheless, the similarities between Josephus' account and the rabbinic story suggest that the rabbis may have recast the incident found in Josephus about Jannaeus being pelted by citrons during the Feast of Tabernacles.

The deliriously happy celebration connected with the water drawing developed when the Pharisees (who believed in the Oral Tradition and interpretation of Torah and gave us the rabbinic Judaism we know today) triumphed over the Sadducees in the first century.

Based on Isaiah's promise "With joy shall you draw water out of the wells of salvation" (12:3), rejoicing began at the end of the first day and took place every night except the Sabbath. The Talmud recorded that "one who had never witnessed the Rejoicing of the Place of the Water Drawing has never seen true joy in his life." (Although the celebration was for the libation that would be made the next morning, it was named for the preparation for the ritual -- the water drawing -- which the rabbis said showed that getting ready was sometimes of greater merit than the ceremony itself because of its positive effect on the person doing it).

Why was this ceremony called "The Water-Drawing Ceremony"? Alfred Edersheim gives us the emphatic reason, as understood by the rabbis. He writes:

"For though that ceremony was considered by the Rabbis as being a subordinate reference to the dispensation of the rain, the annual fall of which they they imagined was determined by God at that feast, its main and real application was to the future outpouring of the Holy Spirit, as predicted -- probably in allusion to this very rite -- by Isaiah the prophet. Thus the Talmud says distinctly: "Why is the name of it called, The drawing out of water? Because of the pouring out of the Holy Spirit, according to what is said: 'With joy shall ye draw waters out of the well of salvation.'" Hence, also, the feast and the peculiar joyousness of it, are alike designated as those of 'the drawing out of water'; for according to the same Rabbinical authorities, the Holy Spirit dwells in man [of Israel] only through joy." [7]

The Illumination of the Temple Ceremony

As a part of this fascinating ceremony, four immense menorahs were set in the Temple courtyard for the Feast of Tabernacles, 75 feet in height. Each menorah had four golden bowls and was reached by four ladders. Each bowl was capable of holding many gallons of oil. Four youths of priestly descent each held a pitcher of oil, which they used to fill the bowls. Wicks were made from the old, cast-off priestly garments and rags from worn-out vestments. When the menorahs were lit, they generated such intense and brilliant light, that not a courtyard in the whole city of Jerusalem failed to be illuminated by the blazing light. Notice Edersheim's description of it --

"At the close of the first day of the feast the worshippers descended to the Court of the Women, where great preparations had been made. Four golden candelabras [menorahs] were there, each with four golden bowls, and against them rested four ladders; and four youths of priestly descent held, each a pitcher of oil, capable of holding one hundred and twenty log, from which they filled each bowl. The old, worn breeches and girdles of the priests served for wicks to these lamps. There was not a court in Jerusalem that was not lit up by the light of 'the house of water-pouring'." [9]

The Babylonian Talmud also describes this incredible scene:

"At the conclusion of the first festival day of Tabernacles they descended to the Court of the Women where they had made a great enactment. There were there golden candlesticks [menorahs -- 75 feet tall] with four golden bowls on the top of each of them and four ladders to each, and four youths drawn from the priestly stock in whose hands were held jars of oil...there was not a courtyard in Jerusalem that was not illuminated by the light of the place of the water-drawing. Men of piety and good deeds used to dance before them [the huge menorahs] with lighted torches in their hands, and sing songs and praises. And Levites without number with harps, lyres, cymbals and trumpets and other musical instruments were there upon the fifteen steps leading down from the Court of the Israelites to the Court of the Women, corresponding to the fifteen songs of ascents in the psalms..." [10]

These huge candlesticks, or menorahs, were lit at night to also remind the people of Israel of the pillar of fire that guided them in their wilderness journey to the Promised Land. All night long the light from these menorahs illuminated the entire city of Jerusalem.

In celebration and anticipation, the holiest of Israel's men danced and sang psalms of joy and praise before YEHOVAH God. This festival was a reminder that YEHOVAH God had promised to send a light to a sin-darkened Israelite world. YEHOVAH promised to send the Messiah to renew Israel's glory, release them from bondage, and restore their joy. Imagine that you are in ancient Jerusalem during the Feast of Tabernacles. Visualize seeing these massive 75-foot-high menorahs giving out a tremendous amount of light. Now imagine the impact of the Messiah's words uttered in the Temple courtyard when he announced, "I am the Light of the world [of Israel]."

The Messiah reflects the light -- the holy spirit -- the source of illumination to bring the lost of YEHOVAH'S people Israel out of darkness. The Messiah declared himself to be the light of the world of Israel. It is not clear from the Bibilical text when this incident happened, but it was some time between the Feast of Tabernacles and the Feast of Dedication (Hanukkah); both of these celebrations focused on light.

What did these four immense candelabrum or menorahs that lit up the whole city of Jerusalem symbolize? Edersheim explains:

"It seems clear that this illumination of the Temple was regarded as forming part of, and having the same symbolic meaning as, 'the pouring out of water.' The light shining out of the Temple into the darkness around, and lighting up every court in Jerusalem, must have been intended as A SYMBOL...OF THE SHECKINAH [GLORY] which once filled the Temple." [11] 

While Edersheim says that the Shekinah Glory "once filled the Temple," implying that It wasn't there during the Messiah's day, there is abundant evidence to show that YEHOVAH God's Shekinah Glory was indeed resident in the Second Temple during the time of the Messiah -- and up to just before the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 A.D.

When Yeshua the Messiah was crucified on the tree facing the Holy of Holies from the site of the Red Heifer sacrifice on the Mount of Olives, he cried out in Aramaic, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?," which is translated, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken me?" (Mark 15:34). He sensed that YEHOVAH God's Shekinah Glory in the Temple had turned away from him at that very moment, evoking the heart-wrenching cry that was followed by "'Father, into Your hands I commend my spirit.' And having said this, he breathed his last." (Luke 23:46) The Messiah knew that his Father's Shekinah Glory was present in the Holy of Holies of the Temple.

YEHOVAH's Shekinah Glory remained in the Temple all through the life and death of the Messiah and up to the year 66 A.D., when it was seen leaving the Temple and alighting on the Mount of Olives. Relates Ernest L. Martin:

"There is another reason why Christians in the first century were very interested in the Mount of Olives. This is because it was believed that the Shekinah Glory of God which...dwelt inside the Holy of Holies at the Temple left the sanctuary and went to the Mount of Olives and hovered over that spot at the time of the Roman/Jewish War which ended in A.D. 70." [12]

Eusebius, an early church father (260?-340?) wrote in his book Proof of the Gospel that

"...believers in Christ congregate from all parts of the world...that they may worship at the Mount of Olives opposite to the city, whither the glory [the Shekinah Glory] of the LORD [YEHOVAH, YHVH] migrated when it left the former city." [13]

According to Eusebius the Shekinah Glory left the Temple and hovered over the Mount of Olives during "the siege of Jerusalem" (66 A.D. to 70 A.D.). Also, a Jewish rabbi named Jonathan -- who was an eyewitness to the destruction of Jerusalem -- said that the Shekinah Glory left the Temple and for three and a half years,

"...abode on the Mount of Olives hoping that Israel would repent, but they did not; while a Bet Kol [a supernatural voice] issued forth announcing, Return, O backsliding children [Jeremiah 3:14]. Return unto Me, and I will return unto you [Malachi 3:7], when they did not repent, it said, I will return to My place [Hosea 5:15]." [14]

Josephus, 1st-century Jewish historian, mentioned that in the Spring of 66 A.D. some astonishing events took place within the Temple. He recorded three miracles associated with YEHOVAH's Shekinah Glory and the Temple -- and each one clearly showed that the Shekinah Glory of YEHOVAH God was departing from the Holy of Holies. In Wars VI, 290 he stated that "a great light shone over the altar for thirty minutes at 3 o'clock in the morning (a week before Passover in A.D. 66) and then it departed." He said the sacred scribes interpreted this sign as a bad omen for the Temple. It was like the Shekinah Glory moving away from the Tabernacle in the wilderness as a sign to disassemble the Tabernacle and transport it to another location.

The second miracle concerned the Temple gates: "...a few days later (during Passover itself) the enormous brass gates of Nicanor, requiring twenty men to open and close them, opened at midnight of their own accord. [15] Then, about one hundred days later, on Pentecost, the final sign was given that definitely showed that the Shekinah Glory was departing the Temple, as the other signs indicated. Notice!

"Moreover, at the festival which is called Pentecost, the priests on entering the inner court of the Temple at nightfall, as their custom was in accomplishment of their ministrations, stated that they first became aware of a commotion and a roar, and after that the voice of a great multitude saying 'We are departing hence'." [16]

When we couple all this information together it is quite apparent that YEHOVAH's Shekinah Glory was in residence in the Holy of Holies during at least the lifetime of the Messiah and up to within a few years of the Temple's destruction in 70 A.D.

A Future Event

This being the case, the ceremony of lighting the four menorahs in the Court of the Women must point to some future event! What could this future event be? None other than the return of YEHOVAH God's Shekinah Glory to Jerusalem and the Temple! Edersheim records that "...according to Jewish tradition, the pillar of cloud by day and of fire by night [the Shekinah Glory of YEHOVAH God] had first appeared to Israel on the 15th of Tishri, the first day of the feast....[and] we know that the dedication of Solomon's Temple and the descent of the Shechinah took place at this feast." [17]

James D. Tabor writes that "...the Hebrew Prophets constantly emphasize the dramatic, awesome, earth-shaking, personal return of YHVH [YEHOVAH] Himself to this planet. They clearly intend to convey an actual, literal, historical event in the future, something that will be experienced by all the inhabitants of the earth." [18]

We read of this in Zechariah 14:1-4, 5, 9, 16:

"Behold, the day of YEHOVAH is coming, when the spoil taken from you will be divided in the midst of you. For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city shall be taken and the houses plundered and the women ravished; half of the city shall go into exile, but the rest of the people shall not be cut off from the city. Then YEHOVAH will go forth and fight against those nations as when he fights on a day of battle. On that day HIS FEET SHALL SHALL STAND ON THE MOUNT OF OLIVES which lies before Jerusalem on the east....

"Thus YEHOVAH my God will come, and all the saints [of Israel] with You....And YEHOVAH will become King over all the earth; on that day YEHOVAH will be one and His Name one....Then every one that survives of all the nations that have come against Jerusalem shall go up year after year to worship the King, YEHOVAH of Hosts, and to keep the feast of booths" (RSV).

This prophecy contains a number of remarkable features that emphasize the fact that YEHOVAH God Himself will directly intervene and become King over the entire earth. Writes Tabor:

"The entire focus of the text is upon YHVH [YEHOVAH] God. I emphasize this point, not to deny or even downplay the role of [the] Messiah, but rather to stress that Zechariah is able to offer this rather detailed scenario of the 'end of the age,' and the arrival of the Kingdom of God without once mentioning the role of the Davidic King [Yeshua the Messiah]. Also, despite any use of symbolic or metaphorical language (i.e., His feet standing on the Mt. of Olives), the passage is full of historical and geographical details. The prophet obviously intends to describe an actual, literal, historical event in the future history of Israel and Jerusalem. The language itself resists allegorical interpretation." [19]

Throughout the Old Testament the Prophets constantly make the point that YEHOVAH God Himself (in the form of His Shekinah Glory) will come down from Heaven and intervene in the affairs of this world, acting personally and directly, to punish the wicked and rule as KING over all nations. Many have assigned this role to the Messiah, a huge mistake that the churches of this world continue to promulgate. Following are some of the many verses in the Old Testament that underscore the role of YEHOVAH God on this earth in the very near future! Notice:

"Come my people, enter your chambers, and shut your doors behind you; hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment, until the indignation is past. For behold, YEHOVAH comes out of His place [Heaven] to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity; the earth will also disclose her blood, and will no more cover her slain" (Isaiah 26:20-21).

"Behold, YEHOVAH makes the earth empty and makes it waste, distorts its surface, and scatters abroad its inhabitants....They shall lift up their voice, they shall sing; for the majesty of YEHOVAH they shall cry aloud from the sea. Therefore glorify YEHOVAH in the dawning light, the name of YEHOVAH God of Israel in the coastlands of the sea....It shall come to pass on that day, that YEHOVAH will punish on high the host of exalted ones, and on the earth the kings of the earth....Then the moon will be disgraced and the sun ashamed, For YEHOVAH of Hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and before His elders gloriously" (Isaiah 24:1, 14-15, 21-23).

"A voice cries, 'Prepare the way for YEHOVAH in the wilderness; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted and every mountain and hill brought low; the crooked places shall be made straight and the rough places smooth; the [Shekinah] Glory of YEHOVAH will be revealed, and all flesh will see it together; for the mouth of YEHOVAH has spoken'" (Isaiah 40:3-5).

Then, in Isaiah 40:9-11:

"O Zion, you who bring good tidings, get up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, you who bring good tidings, lift up your voice with strength, lift up and be not afraid: Say to the cities of Judah, 'Behold your God!' Behold LORD YEHOVAH shall come with a strong hand, and His arm shall rule for Him; behold, His reward is with Him and His work before Him. He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom, and gently lead those who are with young.'"

"How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who proclaims peace, who brings glad tidings of good things, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, 'Your God reigns!' Your watchmen shall lift up their voices, with their voices they shall sing together; for they shall see eye to eye when YEHOVAH brings back Zion....YEHOVAH has made bare His holy arm in the sight of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God" (Isaiah 52:7-8, 10).

In an obvious fulfillment of the the Water-Drawing Ceremony, the prophet Ezekiel makes the following comment:

"For I [YEHOVAH God] will take you [modern Israelites] from among the nations, gather you out of all the countries, and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean...I will give you a new heart and out a new spirit within you...." (Ezekiel 36:25-26).

"And I will not hide my face from them anymore; for I shall have poured out My spirit on the house of Israel" (Ezekiel 39:29).

In Isaiah 63 we find imagery that is duplicated in the New Testament, leading us to a startling conclusion -- notice!

"Who is this who comes from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah, this One who is glorious in His apparel, traveling in the greatness of His strength? 'I who speak in righteousness, mighty to save.' Why is Your apparel red, and Your garments like one who treads in the winepress? 'I have trodden the wine press alone, and from the peoples no one was with Me. For I have trodden them in My anger, and trampled them in My fury; their blood is sprinkled on My garments, and I have stained all My robes. For the day of vengeance is in My heart, and the year of My redemption has come. I looked, and there was no one to help, and I wondered and there was no one to uphold; therefore My own arm brought salvation to Me; and My own fury, it sustained Me. I have trodden down the peoples in My anger, made them drunk in My fury, and brought down their strength to the earth'" (Isaiah 63:1-6).

Also, in Isaiah 66: 15-16:

"For behold, YEHOVAH will come with fire and with His chariots, like a whirlwind, to render His anger with fury, and His rebuke with flames of fire. For by fire and by His sword YEHOVAH will judge all flesh; and those slain by YEHOVAH will be many."

In Revelation 19 -- in the New Testament -- we find similar wording and imagery that clearly shows the Being on the white horse to be YEHOVAH God -- NOT the Messiah as millions have believed over the centuries! Compare!

"Then I heard what sounded like the roar of a huge crowd, like the sound of rushing waters, like loud peals of thunder, saying, 'Halleluyah! YEHOVAH, God of heaven's armies, has begun His reign!'....Then I saw heaven opened, and there before me was a white horse. Sitting on it was the One called Faithful and True, and it is in righteousness that He passes judgment and goes to battle. His eyes were like fiery flame, and on his head were many royal crowns. And He had a Name written which no one knew but Himself. He was wearing a robe that had been soaked in blood, and the Name by which He is called is, 'The Word of God.' The armies of heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and pure, were following Him on white horses. And out of His mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down nations -- 'He will rule them with a staff of iron.' It is He Who treads the winepress from which flows the wine of the furious rage of YEHOVAH, God of heaven's armies. And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written: 'KING of kings and LORD of lords'" (Revelation 19:6; 11-16, [20]).

It can be demonstrated that "THE WORD OF GOD" -- referred to in the above passage -- is none other than the Shekinah Glory of YEHOVAH God! See our article, The Return of YEHOVAH God and His Messiah! Also, the phrase "KING of kings and LORD of lords" can only refer to YEHOVAH God -- He is the ultimate KING and the ultimate LORD -- there is "none other above Me." Explains James Tabor:

"Too often Christians allow themselves to hastily run through such texts, all the while assuming that when the Prophets speak of YHVH [YEHOVAH] Himself acting in such decisive ways they actually refer to His Messiah. How often I have heard preachers say 'When Jesus returns, his feet will stand on the Mt. of Olives.' This is unfortunate and CARELESS EXEGESIS. As one can plainly see, through a careful reading of all these texts, the Prophets always maintain a clear distinction between [the] dramatic appearance of the LORD God (YHVH) and [the] Davidic rule of the Messiah." [21]

Continues Tabor:

"To understand this teaching of Scripture one has to make a distinction between the general presence of God, which is always with His creation, and this very specific, literal, awesome, visible, manifestation of the Divine Glory. In that sense God departed from this planet [just prior to the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D.], and in that sense the Prophets all tell of HIS RETURN. In other words, the Prophets predict a visible, awesome, literal, manifestation of the [Shekinah] Glory of YHVH [YEHOVAH] once again." [22]

This is what the lighting of the four immense menorahs on the first Holy Day of the Feast of Tabernacles points to! The fact that the Shekinah Glory of YEHOVAH God descended and filled Solomon's Temple at it's dedication on this day, and the fact that the pillar of cloud by day and of fire by night first appeared to the Israelites under Moses on the 15th of Tishri, clearly point to the return of YEHOVAH's Shekinah Glory on this same day in the near future! This is why the menorahs were lit at this time during the Water-Drawing Ceremony. When the Shekinah Glory returns there will be a future outpouring of the holy spirit upon those of Israel as predicted by this very rite.

This celebration was so brilliant that the people called it "The Light of the World." To the Israelites of the time the term "world" meant the world of Israel -- not the entire planet and all its people. Now let’s look at John 8:12: "Yeshua spoke to them again: 'I am the light of the world [of Israel]; whosoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light which gives life.'” [23] When the Messiah made this statement all the people knew exactly what he was referring to. The huge Temple menorahs were the light of the entire surrounding area. Even though the Messiah was away from Palestine for many years, it is evident that even from childhood Yeshua could clearly remember the spectacle of the lights of these huge menorahs. Who could forget it?

If we look in John 9:1-7 we will see how the Messiah not only talked about being the light of Israel, he actually gave the light of Israel to a blind man near the Temple gate. Records John 9:1-7:

"As Yeshua passed along, he saw a man blind from birth. His talmidim [disciples] asked him, 'Rabbi, who sinned -- this man or his parents -- to cause him to be born blind?' Yeshua answered, 'His blindness is due neither to his sin nor to that of his parents; it happened so that God's power might be seen at work in him. As long as it is day, we must keep doing the work of the One [YEHOVAH God] who sent me; the night is coming, when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.' Having said this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, put the mud on the man's eyes, and said to him, 'Go, wash off in the Pool of Shiloach [Siloam]! (The name means 'sent.') So he went and washed and came away seeing." [24]

Then, in James 1:17, we read: "Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.” The Messiah was not only the light of Israel, but he also gave light to a blind man on the Last Great Day, the 22nd, as revealed in John 9:14: "Now it was a Sabbath on the day when Yeshua made the clay, and opened his eyes."

The apostle Paul applies this to those of us of Israel when he said in Philippians 2:14-15: "Do all things without murmuring and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world...”

As the four mighty menorahs blazed in the night, we read:

"Pious and distinguished men danced before the people with lighted flambeaux in their hands, and sang hymns and lauds before them; and the Levites accompanied them with harps, psalteries, cymbals, and numberless musical instruments. On the fifteen steps which led into the women's court, corresponding with the fifteen songs of degrees, stood the Levites, with their musical instruments, and sang." [25]

"We do not imagine our distinguished sages as acrobats and tumblers, but they were often agile physically as well as mentally. Rabbi Simon ben Gamaliel juggled eight lighted torches and raised himself into a handstand on two fingers, a gymnastic feat no one else could master. Others juggled eight knives, eight glasses of wine, or eight eggs before leaders and dignitaries." [26] 

The celebration of the Water-drawing was a highlight of the Feast. It was a happy, even ecstatic occasion, with a torchlight parade, including musicians, jugglers, and dancers, marching to the Temple at night, as the whole city of Jerusalem was lit up by giant torches and the light of the four giant menorahs. As the lyres, drums, cymbals, trumpets, drums, and horns played, the Rabbis entertained and clowned, adding to the joy. Not one day of the Feast of Tabernacles passed without joyous festivities that celebrated the happiness of the harvest and the joy of community.

As the dawn of each day approached, the priests descended the steps to the Women's Court, with trumpets blaring. They marched in procession to the Eastern Gate of the Temple, then turned their faces toward the Temple (to the west) and proclaimed, "Our fathers who were in this place stood with their backs to the Temple and their faces eastward and worshipped the sun. but our eyes are unto the LORD" (based on Ezekiel 8:16). We should follow this example today.

[1] Robin Main, Sapphire Throne Ministries.

[2] Motzah (Motsa) Valley: Located at the western edge of Jerusalem in the Judean Hills.

[3] Tesefta Sukkah 3:16.

[4] Bavli Sukkah 48b.

[5] "Wars of the Jews," The Complete Works of Josephus, translated by William Whiston, Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids, MI 1981. Book 1, Chapter 4:3.

[6] "Antiquities of the Jews," The Complete Works of Josephus, translated by William Whiston, Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids, MI 1981. Book 13, Chapter 13:5.

[7] Alfred Edersheim, The Temple: Its Ministry and Services as They Were at the Time of Jesus Christ, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, MI 1987, pp. 279-280.

[8] John 7:37-38, NKJV.

[9] Alfred Edersheim, The Temple: Its Ministry and Services as They Were at the Time of Jesus Christ, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, MI 1987, p. 283.

[10] Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Sukkah 51a and 51b.

[11] Alfred Edersheim, The Temple: Its Ministry and Services as They Were at the Time of Jesus Christ, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, MI 1987, p.285.

[12] Ernest L. Martin, Secrets of Golgotha: The Forgotten History of Christ's Crucifixion, ASK Publications, Alhambra, CA 1988, p.83.

[13] Eusebius Pamphill, The Proof of the Gospel, translated and edited by W. J. Ferrar, Wipf & Stock Publishers, Eugene, OR 2001, Book VI, Chapter 18 (288).

[14] Midrash Rabbah, Lamentations 2:11.

[15] "Wars of the Jews,"  The Complete Works of Josephus, translated by William Whiston, Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids, MI 1981. Book 6, Chapter 5:3.

[16] Ibid., Book 6, Chapter 5:3.

[17] Alfred Edersheim, The Temple: Its Ministry and Services as They Were at the Time of Jesus Christ, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, MI 1987, p. 286.

[18] Dr. James D. Tabor, Restoring Abrahamic Faith, Genesis 2000, Charlotte, NC 1993, pp. 70-71).

[19] Ibid., p. 71.

[20] David H. Stern, Jewish New Testament: A Translation of the New Testament That Expresses Its Jewishness, Jewish New Testament Publications, Jerusalem, Israel & Clarksville, MD. 1994.

[21] Dr. James D. Tabor, Restoring Abrahamic Faith, Genesis 2000, Charlotte, NC 1993, pp. 74.

[22] Ibid., p. 75.

[23] David H. Stern, Jewish New Testament: A Translation of the New Testament That Expresses Its Jewishness, Jewish New Testament Publications, Jerusalem, Israel & Clarksville, MD. 1994.

[24] Ibid.

[25] Babylonian Talmud, Mishnah, Sukkah 5

[26] The Water-Drawing Festival, myjewishlearning.com

Hope of Israel Ministries P.O. Box 853 Azusa, CA 91702, U.S.A. www.hope-of-israel.org

Scan with your Smartphone for more information