09/24/2026
The day after Yom Kippur, it began…
The construction of temporary “tents”
outside homes
and on apartment balconies
all over Israel, and here at the Pasture
And it’s happening all over the world as well ~
homes, synagogues, schools,
community centers, restaurants,
wherever Jewish people gather.
The individual “tent” or “tabernacle”
is called a “sukkah,”
and the holiday of Sukkot
(the plural of sukkah)
is just around the corner.
And this isn’t merely symbolic decoration.
The traditional practice is actually to eat one’s meals
in the sukkah during Sukkot,
treating it as a temporary dwelling.
The sukkah must stand beneath the open sky,
its roof made from natural vegetation
such as branches, reeds, or bamboo,
with enough openness
to glimpse the sky above ~
a beautiful reminder
of God over them.
Within a matter of days,
thousands upon thousands
of temporary little dwellings
appear under the open sky across the globe,
all recalling the same wilderness journey.
Five days after Yom Kippur,
the most holy, solemn day
of the Jewish calendar ~
the seven-day festival of Sukkot begins,
one of the most joyful celebrations
of the Jewish year!
What’s all the excitement
about this festival?
Sukkot celebrates
God’s presence with us ~
“Tabernacling” among His people
those forty years in the wilderness,
His Presence giving them
direction,
rest,
and safety.
And what do the Jewish people
do during Sukkot?
They feast in their tents
for seven days!
So much so that in Scripture
it is sometimes simply called
“The Feast” ~
the Feast of Tabernacles.
God commanded this holy time
for His people ~
instructing them to live in sukkot
for seven days
as they remember the faithfulness
of His presence
in those wilderness years.
(Leviticus 23:42-43)
For a child growing up
in an observant Jewish family,
this may well be
a favorite holiday of all ~
Building a tent with their family,
eating festive meals
in their little tent-home
with friends and family,
even sleeping in the tent
some nights!
Sukkot is a reminder
of God’s past faithfulness,
which is why it is called
“The Season of our Rejoicing”
or simply
“The Season of our Joy.”
And perhaps the deepest joy
Sukkot brings
is the reminder that He ~
the God of the Universe ~
dwells among His people.
He “tabernacles” among
those called by His Name,
just as He did in the wilderness
for forty years.
And for Christians,
Sukkot offers a beautiful,
ancient foreshadowing
of Jesus coming
to dwell among us…
Some even believe
this may have been the season
when the Son of God
took on human flesh
and was born in Bethlehem.
When John introduced Jesus,
he wrote…
“…the Word became flesh,
and dwelt among us,
and we saw His glory,
glory as of the only begotten from the Father,
full of grace and truth.”
(John 1:14)
And that word “dwelt”
carries a remarkable picture ~
to pitch one’s tent,
to tabernacle.
“The Word became flesh
and tabernacled among us…”
And now His Spirit
dwells within us.
Emmanuel…
“God with us.”
