We have already begun the spring moedim the Appointed Times of our ELOHIM and we just completed celebrating Pesach and The Feast of Unleavened Bread. Now coming up on April 17th will be First-Fruits. First-Fruits is NOT a shabbat where we are commanded to do no work as the first day and seventh day of Feast of Unleavened were, this is to inform everyone of the events moving forward.
Leviticus 23:9-16 (Aramaic)
“And YAHWEH spoke to Moses, saying, “speak to the children of Yisra’el, and you shall say to them, ‘When you come into the land which I give you, and shall reap its harvest, then you shall bring a sheaf of the first-fruits of your harvest to the priest; and he shall wave the sheaf before YAHWEH to be accepted for you; on the morrow the priest shall wave it. You shall offer that day when you wave the sheaf of a male lamb of the first year without blemish for a burnt offering to YAHWEH. And its meal offering shall be two tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil, an offering made by fire to YAHWEH for a sweet savor; and the drink offering thereof shall be of wine, a fourth part of a hin. And you shall eat neither bread nor parched wheat nor green ears until that same day, until the day when you have brought an offering to your ELOHIM; it shall be a statute forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings. And you shall count to you from the morrow, that is, from the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven Shabbats shall be complete; even to the morrow AFTER THE SEVENTH SHABBAT (The weekly 7th Day Shabbat) you shall count fifty days; and you shall offer a meal offering of a new wheat to YAHWEH.”
Aviv in Hebrew means the month of green ears of barley when the barley is ripening. The children of Yisra’el would take the first-fruits of the barley harvest which is the earliest and best of their crops and tie them into a bundle and bring it to the high priest. The high priest would then wave the sheaf (omer) before YAHWEH to accept the future crops and then begin the 50 day count to Shavuot. They were not allowed to put the sickle to grain nor eat any of the harvest until after this ceremony was completed. This reminded the children of Yisra’el that ELOHIM gave them this land and all the harvest belongs to Him. As we see barley is the crop that matures faster than the other crops:
Exodus 9:31-32 (Aramaic Peshitta)
“And the flax and the barley were lost; for the barley was in the ear and the flax was bolled. But the wheat and rye were not lost; for they were sown late.”
As for the offering, YESHUA is the Lamb of YAHWEH who takes away the sins of the world and offered Himself with His blood and not the blood of bulls and goats. It is important to see what YESHUA’s blood did for us being that we do not have to sacrifice animals for atonement today. YESHUA fulfills the animal offerings for us with His blood and is the sweet fragrance that YAHWEH mentions:
Ephesians 5:2
“And walk in love, as Mashiach (Messiah) also has loved us, and gave Himself for us, a gift and an offering to YAHWEH for a SWEET-SMELLING FRAGRANCE.”
YESHUA is the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:20 meaning that those who are in the grave that lived for YESHUA will be resurrected as He was.
1 Corinthians 15:20-22
“But now Messiah has been raised from the dead, and has become the first-fruits of those having fallen asleep. For since death is through a man, resurrection of the dead is also through a Man. For as all die in Adam, so also all shall be made alive in Messiah.”
2 Baruch 30:1-2
“And after these, when the time of the advent (the coming) of the Messiah will be fulfilled and He will return in esteem, then all those who have fallen asleep in HOPE OF HIM will rise. At that time, those reservoirs will be opened in which the number of the souls of the righteous have been preserved, and they will come out, and the abundance of the souls will appear in one assembly, of one mind. The first will rejoice, and the last will not be saddened, for they know that the time has arrived of which it is said that it is in the consummation of times.”
This is beautiful because Paul is using Old Testament terminology in the Torah as he always does, because he observed the Torah. As mentioned above first-fruits is when the earliest and best of the crops were brought to the priest to wave and then 50 days later would be the full harvest (Shavuot). Same applies with YESHUA, He is our first-fruits He is the best offering as He is the Son of YAHWEH, became flesh and died for our sins and rose on the third day, and in doing so we afterwards became the harvest ready for reaping, now we have to walk in Torah and believe in YESHUA and found to be wheat and not the tares.
1 Thessalonians 4:16
“Because the Master Himself shall come down from the heavens with a shout, with the voice of a chief messenger/angel, and with the trumpet of ELOHIM, and the dead IN Mashiach shall rise first. Then we, the living who are left over, shall be caught in the clouds to meet the Master in the air…”
Enoch 49: 1-3
“For wisdom is poured out like water, and esteem failed not before Him for eternity. For He is mighty in all the secrets of righteousness, and unrighteousness shall disappear as a shadow, and have no continuance; because the ELECT ONE (YESHUA) stands before YAHWEH of hosts, and His esteem is forever and ever, and His might unto all generations. And in Him dwells the spirit of wisdom, and the spirit which gives insight, and the spirit of understanding and of might, and the spirit of THOSE WHO HAVE FALLEN ASLEEP IN RIGHTEOUSNESS.”
So do we observe first-fruits and the counting of the omer during the Feast of Unleavened Bread?
Leviticus 23 reveals that YAHWEH never overlapped or mixed the Feasts. YAHWEH separates them by saying “AND then YAHWEH spoke to Moshe”. Calendars today are lumping First-Fruits in with the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
This article will show that we are to begin counting on April 17th after The Feast of Unleavened Bread is completed to arrive at the 15th day of the THIRD MONTH which is June 5th on our Gregorian calendars. Keep the 15th day of the 3rd month in mind because the Scriptures below will show that is the day when Shavuot is to be celebrated.
The Appointed Times are separated and do not mix or overlap!
So, Passover is on the 14th day of 1st month (Abib), feast of unleavened bread is on the 15th-21st of 1st month (Abib). And First-Fruits is on the 26th day of the 1st month of (Abib) AFTER the Feast of Unleavened bread is completed; then that morrow after the Shabbat is first-fruits which is April 17th. First-Fruits is tied to Shavuot so it cannot overlap with The Feast of Unleavened Bread, because they are separate.
The problem is that many calendars have first-fruits fall on any day depending on what day they observed Passover, for example since the first day of Unleavened bread is a “High Shabbat” many interpret the next day after the first day of unleavened bread to be “Day after the Shabbat” and that is when they begin their count which could fall on the 3rd, 4th or 5th day of the week; whereas on the Zadok Priestly calendar it always falls on a Sunday after the completion of Unleavened Bread.
Leviticus 23:16 (Aramaic Peshitta)
“Even to the morrow AFTER THE SEVENTH SHABBAT (The weekly 7th Day Shabbat) you shall count fifty days; and you shall offer a meal offering of a new wheat to YAHWEH.”
The Aramaic Peshitta clarifies that first-fruits is AFTER the 7th day Shabbat which is a Sunday and no other day; and this is when we begin the 50-day count, which matches the Book of Jubilees.
Scriptural Timeline:
The Israelites left Egypt on 15th day of 1st month which is the first day of the feast of unleavened bread:
Exodus 12:17
“And you shall guard the Matzah (Feast of Unleavened Bread 15th Day of 1st Month), for on this SAME DAY I brought your divisions out of the land of Egypt. And you shall guard this day throughout your generations, an everlasting Law.”
And then almost exactly TWO MONTHS later on the 12th Day of the 3rd MONTH which was a Thursday the Israelites arrive at Sinai according the Zadok Priestly calendar.
Exodus 19:1
“In the THIRD MONTH after the children of Yisra’el had come out of the land of Egypt, on this day they came to the Wilderness of Sinai.” For they departed from Rephidim, and had come to the Wilderness of Sinai, and camped in the wilderness. So Yisra’el camped there before the mountain.”
So basically, if we don’t start the count of First-Fruits on the 26th day of 1st month to get to the 15th day of the 3rd month, then Shavuot the beginning of the barley harvest will be celebrated too soon, before the Israelites even entered into Sinai. The Book of Jubilees confirms this:
By the Israelites arriving on the 12th day of the 3rd month would give them time to celebrate Shavuot on the 15th which is a Sunday, because YAHWEH spoke to Moses on the next day the 16th, which means that the tablets of stone were given to Moses on a Monday the second day of the week.
Jubilees 1:1
“And it happened in the first-year of the exodus of the children of Yisra’el out of Egypt, in the third month, on the SIXTEENTH DAY OF THE MONTH, that YAHWEH spoke to Moses, saying, “Come up to Me on the Mount, and I will give you two tablets of stone of the Torah and the command, which I have written, that you may teach them.”
Celebration of Shavuot on the 15th day of 3rd month:
Jubilees 15:1
“And in the fifth year of the fourth week of this Jubilee, in the THIRD MONTH, IN THE MIDDLE OF THE MONTH (15th Day) Abram celebrated the Festival of the First-Fruits (Shavuot) of the grain harvest.” The Book of Enoch says there are only 30 days in a month; therefore, the middle of the month is the 15th day.
Jubilees 16:13
“And she bore a son in the THIRD MONTH. And in the MIDDLE OF THE MONTH (15th Day) at the time of which YAHWEH had spoken to Abraham, on the Festival of the First-Fruits (Shavuot) of the Harvest, Isaac was born.”
So we see that Abraham celebrated Shavuot also known as First-Fruits in Jubilees because the two are connected by the 50 day counting of the omer, which is why it’s important not to start counting during the Feast of Unleavened Bread because they are separated.
The messenger/angel goes into great detail about the two-fold meaning of The Festival of Shavuot and First-Fruits together:
Jubilees 6:15-21
“And He gave to Noah and his sons a sign that there should not be a flood on the earth again. He placed a rainbow in the cloud for a sign of the everlasting Covenant that there should not be a flood again on the earth to destroy it all the days of the earth. For this reason it is ordained and written on the tablets of the heavens, that they should celebrate the FESTIVAL OF SHAVUOT IN THIS MONTH ONCE A YEAR to renew the Covenant every year.” Verse 19 “But Abraham observed it, and Isaac, and Jacob, and his children observed it up to your days, and in your days the children of Yisra’el forgot it until you celebrated it anew on this mountain. And you shall command the children of Yisra’el to observe this Festival in all their generations for a Command unto them; one day in the year in this month (3rd MONTH) they shall celebrate the Festival. For it is the Festival of Shavuot AND THE FEAST OF FIRST-FRUITS: This Feast is twofold and double nature: according to what is written and engraved concerning it, celebrate it.”
Again, we know that this Festival/Appointed Time is in the THIRD MONTH because the beginning of Jubilees 6 says:
Jubilees 6:1
“And on the new month of the THIRD MONTH he went out from the ark, and built an altar on the mountain.” And we have seen that Abraham celebrated Shavuot on the 15th day of the THIRD MONTH.
The Festival of Shavuot is the same festival Abraham celebrated and was called the Festival of First-Fruits because they are connected and twofold and we have to remember that we slaves in Egypt. Which I’ll cover as Shavuot approaches for us to celebrate, ELOHIM willing.
Jubilees 44:1-8
“And Yisra’el took his journey from Haran from his house on the new month of the THIRD MONTH, and he went on the way of Beersheba, and he offered an offering to the ELOHIM of his dad Isaac on the seventh of this month. And Jacob remembered the dream that he had seen at Beyth El, and he feared to go down to Egypt. And while he was thinking of sending word to Joseph to come to him, and that he would not go down, he remained there seven days, if it came to be he should see a vision as to whether he should remain or go down. And he celebrated the HARVEST FESTIVAL OF THE FIRST-FRUITS with old grain, for in all the land of Canaan there was not a handful of seed, for scarcity of food was over all the beasts and cattle and birds, and also over man.” And on the sixteenth (16th) YAHWEH appeared to him, and said to him, Jacob, Jacob.” YAHWEH spoke to Jacob on the 16th after he celebrated Shavuot on the 15th day of 3rd month.
So if we count the 50 days starting on April 17th (on our Gregorian calendar) which is the 26th day of the 1st month on YAHWEH’s calendar, then we will arrive in the middle of the 3rd MONTH (15th Day) when Abraham, Noah, and their sons celebrated it. So, Shavuot will be observed this year on June 5th a NO WORK day. It is important to get the exact days of YAHWEH’s appointed times because this is what the messenger/angel says concerning the days of YAHWEH:
Jubilees 6:32-35
“And you shall command the children of Yisra’el that they observe the years according to this reckoning: THREE HUNDRED AND SIXTY-FOUR DAYS (364 days), and these shall constitute a complete year, and they shall not disturb its time from its days and from its Festivals; for all shall fall out in them according to their witness, and they shall not leave out any day nor disturb ANY FESTIVALS. But if they neglect and do not observe them according to His Command, then they shall disturb all their seasons, and the years shall be dislodged from this order; and they shall NEGLECT THEIR LAWS. And all the children of Yisra’el shall forget, and shall not find the path of the years, and shall forget the new moons, and seasons, and Sabbaths, and they shall go astray as to all the order of the years. For I know, and from this time on I shall declare it to you, and it is not of my own devising; for the Book is written before me. And on the tablets of the heavens the division of days is ordained, lest they forget the FESTIVALS OF THE COVENANT and WALK ACCORDING TO THE FESTIVAL OF THE GENTILES after their straying and after their ignorance."
Enoch 74:12-14
“And the sun and the stars bring in all the years exactly, so that they do not advance or delay their position by a single day unto everlasting; but complete the years with PERFECT JUSTICE IN THREE HUNDRED AND SIXTY-FOUR DAYS. In three years there are one thousand and ninety-two days ( 1,092 days divided by 3= 364), and in five years; one thousand eight hundred and twenty days 1, 820 days divided by 5=364), so that in eight years there are two thousand nine hundred and twelve days ( 2, 912 days divided by 8=364.)
What are we to do on it First Fruits?
As we read in Leviticus 23 that the Israelites were not to eat any grain of the new harvest until they brought their initial crops (first-fruits) and bring the barley sheaf to the priest so he could wave it before YAHWEH to accept the future crops and begin counting down the 50 days to the next Appointed Time which is The Festival of Shavuot aka The Festival of First Fruits aka Pentecost (50 in Greek).
Leviticus 23:14
“And you do not eat bread or roasted grain or fresh grain until the same day that you have brought AN OFFERING to your ELOHIM.”
We know that YESHUA gave Himself up once and for all with His own blood and not the blood of bulls and goats. This is what Paul says about how we can also apply this by living holy lives and being obedient to our ELOHIM!
Romans 12:1
“I call upon you, therefore, brothers, through the compassion of ELOHIM, to present your bodies a LIVING OFFERING-holy, well pleasing to ELOHIM-your reasonable worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you prove what is that good and well-pleasing and perfect desire of ELOHIM.”
This means to die to self, to die to sin, and live righteously by faith in YESHUA and keeping the commandments of Torah, and distancing yourself from the world.
1 Peter 2:4-5
“Drawing near to Him, a living Stone-rejected indeed by men, but chosen by YAHWEH and precious-you also, as living stones, are being built up, A SPIRTUAL HOUSE, a holy priesthood, to OFFER UP SPIRITUAL SLAUGHTER OFFERINGS acceptable to YAHWEH through YESHUA HA’MASHIACH.”
Other than that we all we need to do is count down the 50 days to get to Shavuot which is on June 5th this year.
As always may our Father YAHWEH bless you in YESHUA’s Name!