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Leviticus 23:3

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Lev 23:3

At the head of these moadim stood the Sabbath, as the day which God had already sanctified as a day of rest for His people, by His own rest on the seventh creation-day (Gen 2:3, cf. Exo 20:8-11). On שׁבּתון שׁבּת, see at Exo 31:15 and Exo 16:33. As a weekly returning day of rest, the observance of which had its foundation in the creative work of God, the Sabbath was distinguished from the yearly feasts, in which Israel commemorated the facts connected with its elevation into a people of God, and which were generally called “feasts of Jehovah” in the stricter sense, and as such were distinguished from the Sabbath (Lev 23:37, Lev 23:38; Isa 1:13-14; 1Ch 23:31; 2Ch 31:3; Neh 10:34). This distinction is pointed out in the heading, “these are the feasts of Jehovah” (Lev 23:4).

In Num 28:11 the feast of new moon follows the Sabbath; but this is passed over here, because the new moon was not to be observed either with sabbatical rest or a holy meeting.

Lev 23:4 contains the special heading for the yearly feasts. בּמועדם at their appointed time.