Besides beginning on the full moon of the 15th day of the month, other factors link the seven days of unleavened bread to the seventh month’s seven-day feast. Each seven-day period has an outer one-day festival attached to it. The spring harvest begins the day after the weekly Sabbath within the seven days of unleavened bread, and the fall harvest is celebrated throughout the Feast of Tabernacles. On both occasions, eating is emphasized as a way of turning to God in worship. The seven-day flight of Israel out of Egypt across the wilderness highway of the Sinai Peninsula was during the days of unleavened bread. At the Festival of Tabernacles, YHWH commanded Israel to dwell in “booths” for seven days made of olive branches, branches of oil trees, myrtle branches, palm branches, and branches of leafy trees from the mountain and willows from the brook (Lev. 23:40; Neh. 8:15) “that your generations may know that I made the children of Israel dwell in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am YHWH your God” (Lev. 23:43). The flight and passage to an Edenic garden, in spring and autumn, involved living in temporary abodes in the presence of YHWH.

The exodus involves two stages: 1) the conquering of an oppressive, enslaving system of evil, and 2) the wilderness journey following YHWH to His holy mountain. By the Passover lamb, YHWH conquered Egypt. YHWH covenanted with Israel that He would be with them to lead them to His holy mountain and dwell among them (Hag. 2:5; Exo. 29:45). His presence defines the purpose of the booth, or in Hebrew, sukkah (Strong’s H5521). The root of sukkah is sakak (Strong’s H5526), meaning to entwine as a screen; by implication, to fence in, cover over, protect; translated as cover, defense, defend, hedge in, join together, set, shut up. The two seven-day periods in the spring and the fall involved coming out of exile under YHWH’s presence to eat before Him. When the holy YHWH is living in His mountain-garden city with a holy humanity, He can only be known to us as the God of the Exodus.

When Abram left Ur, he left behind the known world culture to go to a place YHWH would show him. Israel did the same, as they fled the civilization of Egypt to go to a place to worship God. During their travel time, they dwelt in booths in the sight of YHWH’s presence. When the Father calls us to Himself, we are to leave all that we know behind, forsake every defining element of our lives, sacrifice our past and ourselves to follow YHWH and serve only Him. When we walk by faith in the providence of His light, overcoming the enemy without and within us, we become who we were individually created to be. Essentially, we die to all we have been to become a new creation in Christ. And when we prevail in His blessing, we become true Israelites, like the full moon’s light in the darkness on the fifteenth of Abib and Tishri.

Takeaway:
Humanity’s journey out of exile back to God’s Edenic mountain garden involves staying in temporary sukkot for an interval of seven. The flight necessitates seven days of eating in the Presence of YHWH, resulting in our turning to Him, leaving our exilic way of life behind to embrace a new life with Him in His garden home. The seven-day crossing of tabernacling with YHWH transforms us from death to holiness so that we might live and rule with YHWH forever.

Fun Factors:
Leviticus 23 has three places mentioning the number 15, one associated with the first Day of Unleavened Bread, and two connected with the Feast of Tabernacles. When we add these three verses, an amazing number configuration appears.

Lev. 23:6: 48 letters, 12 words, 3819 letter sum (1^st day of Unleavened Bread)

Lev. 23:34: 61 letters, 16 words, 4278 letter sum (Feast of Tabernacles in the seventh month)

Lev. 23:39: 91 letters, 22 words, 7792 letter sum (Feast of Tabernacles in the seventh month)

Total sums: 200 letters, 50 words, 15889 letter sum

The number 200 or 20 × 10 expresses expectancy in the face of insufficiency; 50 marks the Jubilee by the trumpet blown on the Day of Atonements; and 15,889 is the sum of two squares 108² + 65², 108 is chi (life) in its complete state, the first and eighth signs/holydays. And 65, 5 × 13, beholds mercy to Israel and humanity. Adding 15889 to the product of its digits (1 × 5 × 8 × 8 × 9 = 2880) equals 18769 = 137², the number associated with the Day of Atonements squared, the universal constant of how light interacts with matter, the Spirit of God interacting with humans (Behold, I AM, Appendix 2).

Numbers 28 and 29 also list YHWH’s holy convocations and the two 15^th days chiastically linked (Blog 11).

Num. 28:17: 37 letters, 10 words, 2826 letter sum (Feast of Unleavened Bread in the first month)

Num. 29:12: 73 letters, 19 words, 5416 letter sum (Feast of Tabernacles in the seventh month)

The 37 and 73 take us back to Genesis 1:1’s letter sum 2701 or 37 × 73 and God speaking 10 times. Nineteen is the completion of a lunar time cycle, and the letter sums added equal 8242, the sum of two squares 81² + 41². The number 81, which is 3 × 27, represents a transition from physical to spiritual on the 8-1 day of the week (Blog 46), and 41 × 10 is the value of mishkan, the tabernacle of God with us.