In Yerushalayim for Feast of Sukkot (Tabernacles) ~ Part 1

In our last post, we concluded our series on Yeshua’s Preparation of the Emissaries for the End. This post begins a new series on Yeshua’s journey to Yerushalayim for the Feast of Sukkot. To learn the background of this Feast, click HERE.

Introduction

It has been six months since the last Pesach (Passover), which Yeshua did not attend due to a threat to His life. However, Yeshua believes He can once again journey safely to Yerushalayim. However, He delays going with His step-brothers and goes separately. When He does arrive, He will spend time teaching and confronting the religious leaders who have assembled.

His Brothers, Taunt Yeshua

² But the festival of Sukkot in Y’hudah was near; ³ so his brothers said to Him, “Leave here and go into Y’hudah so that your talmidim can see the miracles you do; ⁴ for no one who wants to become known acts in secret. If you’re doing these things, show yourself to the world!” ⁵ (His brothers spoke this way because they had not put their trust in Him.) ⁶ Yeshua said to them, “My time has not yet come; but for you, any time is right. ⁷ The world can’t hate you, but it does hate Me because I keep telling it how wicked its ways are. ⁸ You, go on up to the festival; as for Me, I am not going up to this festival now because the right time for Me has not yet come.”

Yeshua’s brothers … had not put their trust in Him (v. 5). It is sometimes argued that if His brothers did not believe in Him, why should we? But one of them, Ya‛akov (James), not only came to trust in Him later but became the leader of the Messianic Jewish community in Yerushalayim (Acts 2:17; 15:13; 21:18; Galatians 1:19; 2:9, 12); and he is usually credited with authorship of the book of Ya‛akov. Likewise, another brother, Y’hudah (Jude), is thought to be the author of the Brit Hadashah book bearing his name.

Yeshua was not swayed by His brothers’ challenge, which seems to have stemmed from a reasonable and friendly – yet entirely human – motive, the desire to see their brother succeed and become famous. Yeshua had performed miracles in the Galil; His brothers apparently felt He should not delay in developing His reputation in Judea too and even gave a plausible argument (v. 4). But Yeshua had another plan. My time has not yet come (v. 6), either to go to the festival or to do miracles in Judea. Underlying the repeated mentioning of Yeshua’s “time” is the theme of His fundamental mission, to die for the sins of humankind; this was to take place precisely at God’s right moment and was not to be precipitated by any human challenge.

⁹ Having said this, He stayed on in the Galil. ^[1]

In our next post, we continue with our new series on Yeshua’s Journey to Yerushalayim for the Feast of Sukkot. In our next post, we learn that Yeshua does indeed Journey to Yerushalayim and Teaches in the Temple.

Click here for the PDF version.

^[1] Yochanan 7:2–9.