God will put a trial on the nations who do not come to the Great Ingathering, i.e., the Feast of Sukkot (Tabernacles). God told Israel to bring in their laborers to Sukkot — even the “stranger,” or foreigner. So this among God’s appointments with mankind is not just for the House of Yehudah (Judah) or the House of Israel. God wants to “harvest” the peoples of the world into a new reality without sin and death.
There’s a common theme occurring throughout the Hebrew Roots/Messianic community recently — separation and regrouping. We also see in Scripture the recurring symbol of “cutting off” in an agricultural sense to talk about God’s action in improving the health of the “vine” of Israel. It’s OK when God cuts off parts of the vine to promote growth. It’s OK if there is a time of not producing fruit.
Some read about the “Sabbath-rest” in Hebrews 4 and conclude that the teaching is that the remembrance of the seventh-day rest, the Sabbath, has been transferred to the Messiah, Yeshua. Yet the context of the passage and the quotations in it relating to a pivotal event in the Torah point to the fuller meaning of personal peace and real “rest” that God provides.
The sacrifices of the day of Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles) are not about the animals but about the Messiah and the people they represent. There’s so much beauty and hope in Sukkot. All 70 nations that came into being after the Flood, represented by the 70 bulls sacrificed during the entire feast, will be brought back to God.
Yom haKippurim (literally, Day of Coverings) is a day that wears many people out, because we’re focused on, When are we going to eat? Yet, we are to supposed to focus upon what the Son of God — the ultimate High Priest and fulfillment of the two goats of the day — did for us. He went through a tremendous affliction for us. The Day of Atonement is not about us and what we do but about the High Priest and what He does. It’s all about how God brings us to Himself. We are only drawn to God if He draws us to Himself.
Many grow pale when reading Heb. 10:26 because they think their struggles with sin leave them in a place where not even Yeshua (Jesus) can atone for them. A closer look at the context of this passage and the letter to the Hebrews itself will help us get a better picture of the annual memorial of Yom haKippurim (Day of Atonement), Yeshua’s continuing role in it and the danger of acting as if His role as High Priest isn’t God’s intent.
God looks at us through His Son. That is how we will be reconciled and have atonement — at-one-ment, reconciled, brought back together — with God. The High Priest does all the heavy lifting on Yom haKippurim (Day of Atonement). We can not take away our own sins. We need Someone more powerful, more capable than ourselves to remove our sin. Yeshua is the true High Priest — and the truth behind the two goats of the Day of Atonement.