From the website: Inplainsite.org
The Word “Sabbath” comes from the Hebrew Shabbat .. to cease, to end, or to rest. It . It was the only ritual observance instituted in the Ten Commandment and, even in modern Judaism, is considered one of the most important rituals, being a day of not only rest, but of prayer and spiritual enrichment. The Sabbath was (and is) observed every week from sundown on Friday to sundown on Saturday, and had a two-fold significance. It was both a remembrance of creation and a remembrance of the nation’s deliverance from the bondage of Egypt. The Israelites were to imitate God’s example and rest on the seventh day, as the Lord rested on the seventh day of creation. Also, remembering that they were once slaves in Egypt, they were to rest themselves and allow their bond-servants to rest, both of which were radical concepts in ancient times. No work was done, nor did anyone fast on the Sabbath, since it was considered a day of joy. Meals were often more elaborate and eaten more leisurely.
High Sabbaths There were seven annual or High Sabbath days, which did not necessarily fall on the weekly Sabbath, but were related to the annual feast days as listed in Leviticus 23. Neither the Passover nor the Feast of First Fruits were High Sabbath days, but the first and last days of the seven day Feast of Unleavened Bread, and the seven day Feast of Tabernacles were both High Sabbaths.
Overview of The Seven Feasts of Israel: God introduced the Seven Feasts of Israel as the children of Israel were encamped at Mount Sinai. Although these seven holidays are referred to in several places in the Bible, it is only in Leviticus 23 that all seven holidays are listed in chronological order. They are called “the feasts of the Lord” which simply means that they were instituted by the Lord Himself, a fact that lends them much solemnity and importance. They were “holy convocations” that took place at “appointed times”.
Note: The feasts are celebrated on the same day of the Jewish calendar every year, but since the Jewish year is not the same length as a solar year on the Gregorian calendar used by most of the western world, the date shifts on the Gregorian calendar.
Perhaps one of the most fascinating Biblical studies is the historic and prophetic significance of these special days. While believers are not required to keep these feasts, every believer should be very familiar with them, as they not only celebrate a historical event in Israel’s past but are, at the same time, a prophecy of future events… or a type. In Christian theology, a type is a factual happening in history, which is a glimpse of one or more actual events yet to come… a significance that is not always apparent at the original occurrence. The subsequent happenings are called the antitype, which usually are more intense, and/or more important than the original type. Western ideas of prophecy involve prediction and fulfillment. The Hebrew idea of prophecy is a pattern that is repeated one or more times… multiple fulfillments with one ultimate fulfillment. Each fulfillment is both a type of, and a lesson on, the ultimate fulfillment.
God’s plan of salvation for mankind is summed up in these feasts, which were related to Israel’s agricultural seasons, and therefore fall into three clusters. The Spring and Summer Feasts typify the inauguration of redemption, while the Fall Feasts its consummation.
“The first three feasts Passover, Unleavened Bread, and First Fruits occur in rapid succession in the spring of the year over a period of eight days. They came to be referred to collectively as “Passover.”
The fourth feast, Harvest, occurs fifty days later, at the beginning of the summer. By New Testament times this feast had come to be known by its Greek name, Pentecost, a word meaning fifty.
The last three feasts Trumpets, Atonement, and Tabernacles extend over a period of twenty-one days in the fall of the year. They came to be known collectively as Tabernacles.” (The Feasts of Israel A Study in Symbolic Prophecy by Dr. David R. Reagan)
The first four feasts have already been fulfilled, the first two by Jesus Christ on the actual feast days according to the Hebrew calendar… He was sacrificed on Passover, and resurrected on the Feast of First Fruits. The third Feast of Unleavened Bread carried great significance in light of His sacrifice, while the Fourth Feast Shavuot, or the Festival of Weeks was again fulfilled on the exact day on what we now call Pentecost.
While we certainly do not know exactly how the other three feasts will be fulfilled, it is perhaps reasonable to surmise that they will be fulfilled in the same manner… on the actual feast day.
However it is important to note that the Feasts that symbolize a sequence of events, were given by God in a set chronological order. Therefore the events that they symbolize will take place in the same exact order. I have read way too many interpretations of the Feasts that jump backwards and forwards between them in an effort to make them fit into pre-conceived end time scenarios. What we need to do is make the order of the Feasts our guideline to coming events, instead of scrambling them to fit our ideas.
– See more at: http://www.inplainsite.org/html/seven_feasts_of_israel.html#FOI-08