Let's begin by first of all looking at the different name or names for this feast. The Hebrew name for the feast is "The Feast of Shavu'ot." The Hebrew word "Sheva" means "seven;" "Shavu'ah means "week;" and Shavu'ot means "weeks." Hence this is the "Feast of Shavu'ot" or also known as the "Feast of Weeks." From the day of the "Feast of First Fruits," the Hebrews were to count off seven sabbaths. Then on the next day after the seventh sabbath,(that would be Sunday) they were to celebrate the Feast of Shavu'ot or as it is also known "The feast of Weeks." This then would be a period of fifty days from the "Feast of First Fruits" to the "Feast of Shavu'ot." Consequently, since the New Testament was written in Greek, the translators used the word "Pentecost," which means fifty, to describe this Jewish Feast. Hence that is how we have the different names of this feast. With that established, we can now move on to discover what this feast was all about and how you can personally experience it today! We will begin that process by looking at the two Old Testament backgrounds for this feast.
First, we will look at a momentous event that took place on Shavu'ot. That grand event was the giving of the 10 Commandments through Moses at Mt. Sinai. Rabbinic tradition says tht the Torah(10 Commandments) was given on the sixth of Sivan(third Hebrew month and late May or early June on the Gregorian Calendar). Exactly seven weeks after the Exodus from Egypt the children of Israel gathered at the base of Mt. Sinai where the Lord descended amidst thunder, lightning, billowing smoke, fire and the blast of the Shofar. The result of that Divine visitation was that the finger of God wrote the greatest moral code ever given to man on two stone tablets! So on the day of Shavu'ot, the Lord came down to man and gave him the 10 Commandents. And that is a very important foundation or background for the Feast of Shavu'ot/Pentecost as we will see shortly.
The second Old Testament background for Shavu'ot is agricultural. Just as a sample of the First Fruits barley harvest was waved before the Lord during the "Feast of First Fruits," so on the "Feast of Shavu'ot/Pentecost" a sample of the first of the wheat harvest was to be brought to the priests, baked into two loaves of LEAVENED BREAD and then waved before the altar(See Leviticus 23:15-21; Deuteronomy 16:9-11). Notice that the "Feast of Shavu'ot" stands in contrast to the "Feast of Passover," which required UNLEAVENED BREAD(matzah), whereas in this feast two loaves of wheat bread were to be used with leaven (chametz) before being waved before the Lord. I will explain why in just a moment. But now that you know the two Old Testament backgrounds for this feast, lets discover how Yeshua/Jesus fulfilled this feast.
In John's Gospel, chapter 1 and v.33 we read these words about Yeshua, "I (John the Baptist) myself did not know Him, but the One who sent me to baptize with water told me, 'The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.'" This is a prophecy about Yeshua the Messiah and how He would be the One who baptizes believers in the Holy Spirit. Fast forward to the Day of Shavu'ot/Pentecost. On the very day of the "Feast of Shavu'ot/Pentecost," Jews had come to Jerusalem from everywhere to celebrate and affirm their commitment to the covenant made through Moses at Mt. Sinai. And at the very same time that the priest was waving the two wheat loaves of leavened bread at the altar as thanksgiving to the Lord for the harvest, the resurrected and ascended Yeshua/Messiah was baptizing believers in the Holy Spirit at Mt. Zion in Jerusalem! Acts 2:33, "Exalted to the right hand of God, He has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear." What was happening? At Mt. Sinai, on the day of Shavu'ot/Pentecost, God wrote the law--the 10 Commandments--on stone, but now at Mt. Zion in Jerusalem, on the day of Shavu'ot/Pentecost, the Messiah was writing the new law of the Spirit on the hearts of believers(Jeremiah 31:33)! And as the priest was waving the two loaves of leavened bread before the Lord(the TWO loaves of LEAVEN being symbolic of Jew and Gentile--both being sinful), Yeshua, the UNLEAVENED BREAD of Heaven (the sinless one) was waving/beginning the harvest of His Church(those cleansed by His Divine and spotless blood as the Passover Lamb) through the outpouring of the Holy Spirt. And this outpouring, this harvest, would soon include the Gentiles (Acts 8,10,19). There is so much more to say, but I will conclude now with how you can experience the Feast of Shavu'ot/Pentecost.
Galatians 3:1-5 "You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you (led you astray)? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or BY BELIEVING WHAT YOU HEARD? Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal BY HUMAN EFFORT? V.5 Does God give you His Spirit and work miracles among you BECAUSE YOU OBSERVE THE LAW, OR BECAUSE YOU BELIEVE WHAT YOU HEARD?" There it is friends in plain language. The only way that you can receive and continually be filled with the Holy Spirit is by trusting completely and totally in Yeshua--Who He is and what He has done for you! No one ever gets "good enough to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." God dosn't give the Holy Spirit to those who are trying to earn it by "keeping the law." The Person of the Holy Spirit is a gift--given to those who humble themselves and realize that it is by God's grace through faith and not works or human effort. This is the truth about Shavu'ot/Pentecost. And the power of Shavu'ot/Pentecost is that as you continue to trust and depend totally on the Person of Yeshua, He will continually supply or fill you with the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit is the One who empowers you to live a life that is full and fully pleasing to the Lord. And it is this kind of life empowered by the Holy Spirit that makes us His witnesses. It is how we see others come to Yeshua and so become a part of His harvest!
So then what do you do to experience Shavu'ot/Pentecost for yourself? Trust in Yeshua as your Passover Lamb; as your Unleavened Bread from Heaven; as your First Fruits who rose from the dead; and as the One who baptizes you continually in and with the Holy Spirit.
I am a voice of one crying in the wilderness, prepare the way of the Lord, for the Kingdom of God is at hand.
Shalom
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