The opening article referred to the feast of tabernacles as a kingdom celebration of mankind.

The observances of this feast recorded in the Bible seem to support this. The Old Testament speaks of three such observances, and all were at times which represent the time of kingdom blessing opening to mankind.

(1) After the dedication of Solomon’s Temple. (1 Kings 8:1, 2; 2 Chronicles 7:8-11) As Solomon’s Temple represents the Church in their glorified condition, its completion and dedication for use brings us to the end of the Gospel Age [1]. That is the time for mankind to begin observing the feast of tabernacles.

(2) After the walls of Jerusalem had been rebuilt, following the 70 years’ desolation of the land by Babylon. (Nehemiah 7:1, 8:14-18) We think the building of those walls represented the building of the walls of New Jerusalem. Revelation 21:14,17 indicate that the walls of New Jerusalem symbolize the Church. Therefore the building of Jerusalem’s walls in Nehemiah’s time are a picture of developing the Church “in troublous times,” (Daniel 9:25) the Gospel age.

(3) The third case is not an historical record, but a reference in Nehemiah 8:17 to a preceding observance in the time of Joshua.

“And all the congregation of them that were come again out of the captivity made booths, and sat under the booths: [a part of the feast ceremonies] for since the days of Jeshua [sic] the son of Nun unto that day had not the children of Israel done “

This also fits the pattern. Joshua represents Christ leading mankind to conquer their enemies in the kingdom. That puts the observance of the feast in Joshua’s day in a kingdom setting.

[1] We are looking at the general picture. We do not mean to infer anything about detailed time points of this picture, which sometimes enter a discussion of the timing of the seven last plagues.

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