Biblical feasts in the Bible in Order of Appearance
- Feast of Purim
- Name Origin: Named after the "pur" (lot) cast by Haman to determine the day to annihilate the Jews.
- Year Started: Instituted in the 5th century B.C. after the events described in the Book of Esther.
- Role in Bible: Celebrates the deliverance of the Jewish people from Haman's plot during the Persian Empire as recounted in the Book of Esther.
- Description: Observed on the 14th day of Adar, this feast includes reading the Book of Esther, giving gifts to friends and the poor, and celebratory meals.
- Hanukkah (Feast of Dedication or Festival of Lights)
- Name Origin: "Hanukkah" means "dedication," commemorating the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem.
- Year Started: Instituted in the 2nd century B.C. after the Maccabean Revolt.
- Role in Bible: Not mentioned in the Hebrew Bible but referred to in the New Testament and detailed in the Books of Maccabees in the Apocrypha.
- Description: Celebrated for eight days starting on the 25th of Kislev, it involves lighting candles on a menorah nightly, playing with dreidels, and eating oil-based foods.
- The Fast of Gedaliah
- Name Origin: Named after Gedaliah, the Babylonian-appointed governor of Judah, whose assassination marked the final collapse of Jewish rule following the destruction of the First Temple.
- Year Started: Commenced after the assassination of Gedaliah.
- Role in Bible: Marks a day of mourning for the loss of Jewish autonomy after the Babylonian conquest.
- Description: A minor fast observed on the day following Rosh Hashanah, typically the 3rd of Tishrei.
- The Fast of the Tenth of Tevet
- Name Origin: Commemorates the siege of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon.
- Year Started: Began after the siege that led to the destruction of the First Temple.
- Role in Bible: A day of mourning for the beginning of the destruction of Jerusalem.
- Description: A minor fast observed on the 10th of Tevet.
- The Fast of the Seventeenth of Tammuz
- Name Origin: Marks the breach of Jerusalem's walls by the Babylonians before the destruction of the Second Temple.
- Year Started: Established after the events leading to the Temple's destruction.
- Role in Bible: Begins a period known as "The Three Weeks" of mourning leading up to Tisha B'Av.
- Description: A minor fast observed on the 17th of Tammuz.
- The Fast of Esther (Ta'anit Esther)
- Name Origin: Commemorates Queen Esther's three-day fast before approaching King Ahasuerus to plead for the Jewish people.
- Year Started: Based on the events described in the Book of Esther.
- Role in Bible: Part of the Purim story, emphasizing repentance and supplication.
- Description: Observed just before Purim, typically on the 13th of Adar.
- Tisha B'Av
- Name Origin: "Tisha B'Av" means the "Ninth of Av."
- Year Started: Established after the destruction of both the First and Second Temples.
- Role in Bible: A day of mourning and fasting to commemorate the destruction of both Temples in Jerusalem and other tragedies in Jewish history.
- Description: Observed on the 9th of Av, it involves fasting, lamentation, and reading the Book of Lamentations.
The biblical feasts and fasts occur throughout the year based on the Hebrew calendar. Here's the order as they are mentioned and observed according to the Hebrew Bible and traditional Jewish calendar:
- Passover (Pesach)
- Occurs on the 14th day of the Hebrew month of Nisan.
- Feast of Unleavened Bread (Chag HaMatzot)
- Starts on the 15th of Nisan, immediately following Passover, and lasts for seven days.
- Feast of Firstfruits (Yom HaBikkurim)
- Observed during the week of Unleavened Bread, on the day after the Sabbath (i.e., a Sunday).
- Feast of Weeks (Shavuot or Pentecost)
- Celebrated on the 50th day after the Feast of Firstfruits.
- Feast of Trumpets (Rosh Hashanah)
- Occurs on the 1st day of the Hebrew month of Tishrei.
- Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur)
- Observed on the 10th of Tishrei.
- Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot)
- Begins on the 15th of Tishrei and lasts for seven days.
- Hanukkah (Feast of Dedication or Festival of Lights)
- Begins on the 25th of Kislev and lasts for eight days.
- The Fast of the Tenth of Tevet
- Observed on the 10th of Tevet.
- The Fast of Esther (Ta'anit Esther)
- Observed on the 13th of Adar, just before Purim.
- Feast of Purim
- Celebrated on the 14th of Adar.
- The Fast of the Seventeenth of Tammuz
- Observed on the 17th of Tammuz.
- Tisha B'Av
- Observed on the 9th of Av.
- The Fast of Gedaliah
- Observed on the 3rd of Tishrei, the day after Rosh Hashanah.
This sequence follows the Jewish liturgical year and includes both the major f