Verse (Click for Chapter) New International Version “Three times a year you are to celebrate a festival to me. New Living Translation “Each year you must celebrate three festivals in my honor. English Standard Version “Three times in the year you shall keep a feast to me. Berean Standard Bible Three times a year you are to celebrate a feast to Me. King James Bible Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year. New King James Version “Three times you shall keep a feast to Me in the year: New American Standard Bible “Three times a year you shall celebrate a feast to Me. NASB 1995 “Three times a year you shall celebrate a feast to Me. NASB 1977 “Three times a year you shall celebrate a feast to Me. Legacy Standard Bible “Three times a year you shall celebrate a feast to Me. Amplified Bible “Three times a year you shall celebrate a feast [dedicated] to Me. Christian Standard Bible “Celebrate a festival in my honor three times a year. Holman Christian Standard Bible Celebrate a festival in My honor three times a year. American Standard Version Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year. Contemporary English Version Celebrate three festivals each year in my honor. English Revised Version Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year. GOD'S WORD® Translation "Three times a year you must celebrate a pilgrimage festival in my honor. Good News Translation "Celebrate three festivals a year to honor me. International Standard Version "Three times a year you are to celebrate a festival for me. NET Bible "Three times in the year you must make a pilgrim feast to me. New Heart English Bible "You shall observe a feast to me three times a year. Webster's Bible Translation Three times thou shalt keep a feast to me in the year. Majority Text Translations Majority Standard BibleThree times a year you are to celebrate a feast to Me. World English Bible “You shall observe a feast to me three times a year. Literal Translations Literal Standard VersionYou keep a celebration to Me three times in a year: Young's Literal Translation 'Three times thou dost keep a feast to Me in a year; Smith's Literal Translation Three times thou shalt keep a festival to me in the year. Catholic Translations Douay-Rheims BibleThree times every year you shall celebrate feasts to me. Catholic Public Domain Version Three times in each year, you shall celebrate feasts to me. New American Bible Three times a year you shall celebrate a pilgrim feast to me. New Revised Standard Version Three times in the year you shall hold a festival for me. Translations from Aramaic Lamsa BibleThree times in the year you shall celebrate a festival for me. Peshitta Holy Bible Translated Make to me a feast three times in a year. OT Translations JPS Tanakh 1917Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto Me in the year. Brenton Septuagint Translation Keep ye a feast to me three times in the year. Additional Translations ... Audio Bible Context Three Yearly Feasts14Three times a year you are to celebrate a feast to Me. 15You are to keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread as I commanded you: At the appointed time in the month of Abib you are to eat unleavened bread for seven days, because that was the month you came out of Egypt. No one may appear before Me empty-handed.… Cross References Deuteronomy 16:16 Three times a year all your men are to appear before the LORD your God in the place He will choose: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Tabernacles. No one should appear before the LORD empty-handed. Leviticus 23:4-44 These are the LORD’s appointed feasts, the sacred assemblies you are to proclaim at their appointed times. / The Passover to the LORD begins at twilight on the fourteenth day of the first month. / On the fifteenth day of the same month begins the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the LORD. For seven days you must eat unleavened bread. ... 2 Chronicles 8:13 He observed the daily requirement for offerings according to the commandment of Moses for Sabbaths, New Moons, and the three annual appointed feasts—the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Tabernacles. Numbers 28:16-25 The fourteenth day of the first month is the LORD’s Passover. / On the fifteenth day of this month, there shall be a feast; for seven days unleavened bread is to be eaten. / On the first day there is to be a sacred assembly; you must not do any regular work. ... Numbers 29:12-40 On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, you are to hold a sacred assembly; you must not do any regular work, and you shall observe a feast to the LORD for seven days. / As a pleasing aroma to the LORD, you are to present a food offering, a burnt offering of thirteen young bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs a year old, all unblemished, / along with the grain offering of three-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil with each of the thirteen bulls, two-tenths of an ephah with each of the two rams, ... Deuteronomy 16:1-17 Observe the month of Abib and celebrate the Passover to the LORD your God, because in the month of Abib the LORD your God brought you out of Egypt by night. / You are to offer to the LORD your God the Passover sacrifice from the herd or flock in the place the LORD will choose as a dwelling for His Name. / You must not eat leavened bread with it; for seven days you are to eat with it unleavened bread, the bread of affliction, because you left the land of Egypt in haste—so that you may remember for the rest of your life the day you left the land of Egypt. ... 1 Kings 9:25 Three times a year Solomon offered burnt offerings and peace offerings on the altar he had built for the LORD, burning incense with them before the LORD. So he completed the temple. 2 Chronicles 30:21-23 The Israelites who were present in Jerusalem celebrated the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days with great joy, and the Levites and priests praised the LORD day after day, accompanied by loud instruments of praise to the LORD. / And Hezekiah encouraged all the Levites who performed skillfully before the LORD. For seven days they ate their assigned portion, sacrificing peace offerings and giving thanks to the LORD, the God of their fathers. / The whole assembly agreed to observe seven more days, so they observed seven days with joy. 2 Chronicles 35:17-19 The Israelites who were present also observed the Passover at that time, as well as the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days. / No such Passover had been observed in Israel since the days of Samuel the prophet. None of the kings of Israel ever observed a Passover like the one that Josiah observed with the priests, the Levites, all Judah, the Israelites who were present, and the people of Jerusalem. / In the eighteenth year of Josiah’s reign, this Passover was observed. Ezra 6:19-22 On the fourteenth day of the first month, the exiles kept the Passover. / All the priests and Levites had purified themselves and were ceremonially clean. And the Levites slaughtered the Passover lamb for all the exiles, for their priestly brothers, and for themselves. / The Israelites who had returned from exile ate it, together with all who had separated themselves from the uncleanness of the peoples of the land to seek the LORD, the God of Israel. ... Matthew 26:17-19 On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Where do You want us to prepare for You to eat the Passover?” / He answered, “Go into the city to a certain man and tell him that the Teacher says, ‘My time is near. I will keep the Passover with My disciples at your house.’” / So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and prepared the Passover. Mark 14:12-16 On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover lamb was to be sacrificed, Jesus’ disciples asked Him, “Where do You want us to prepare for You to eat the Passover?” / So He sent two of His disciples and told them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jug of water will meet you. Follow him, / and whichever house he enters, say to the owner, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is My guest room, where I may eat the Passover with My disciples?’ ... Luke 22:7-13 Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb was to be sacrificed. / Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover.” / “Where do You want us to prepare it?” they asked. ... John 2:13-23 When the Jewish Passover was near, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. / In the temple courts He found men selling cattle, sheep, and doves, and money changers seated at their tables. / So He made a whip out of cords and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle. He poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. ... John 6:4 Now the Jewish Feast of the Passover was near. Treasury of Scripture Three times you shall keep a feast to me in the year. Exodus 34:22 And thou shalt observe the feast of weeks, of the firstfruits of wheat harvest, and the feast of ingathering at the year's end. Leviticus 23:5,16,34 In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the LORD'S passover… Deuteronomy 16:16 Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles: and they shall not appear before the LORD empty: Jump to Previous Celebrate Feast Festival Observe Three Thrice TimesJump to Next Celebrate Feast Festival Observe Three Thrice TimesExodus 23 1. Of slander, false witness, and partiality4. Of charitableness 6. Of justice in judgment 8. Of taking bribes 9. Of oppressing a stranger 10. Of the year of rest 12. Of the Sabbath 13. Of idolatry 14. Of the three feasts 18. Of the blood and the fat of the sacrifice 20. An angel is promised, with a blessing, if they obey him Three times a year This phrase refers to the three major pilgrimage festivals in ancient Israel, which were central to the religious life of the Israelites. These festivals are Passover (Pesach), the Feast of Weeks (Shavuot), and the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot). Each of these festivals corresponds to significant agricultural and historical events. The number three often symbolizes completeness and divine perfection in the Bible, indicating the comprehensive nature of worship and dedication required from the Israelites. you are to celebrate a feast to Me Persons / Places / Events 1. God (Yahweh)The speaker of the command, emphasizing His desire for His people to worship and celebrate in His presence. 2. Israelites The recipients of the command, God's chosen people who are to observe these feasts. 3. Feasts Specific times of celebration and worship, which include the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering, as detailed in the surrounding verses. 4. Promised Land The destination where these feasts are to be celebrated, symbolizing God's provision and faithfulness. 5. Covenant Relationship The underlying context of the command, highlighting the covenant between God and Israel. Teaching Points Importance of Regular WorshipThe command to celebrate feasts three times a year underscores the importance of regular, intentional worship in the life of believers. Community and Fellowship These feasts were communal events, highlighting the importance of fellowship and unity among God's people. Remembrance and Thanksgiving The feasts served as a time to remember God's past deliverance and provision, encouraging believers to cultivate a heart of gratitude. Holiness and Consecration The feasts required preparation and consecration, reminding believers of the need for holiness in approaching God. Christ as Fulfillment Understanding these feasts in light of the New Testament reveals how Christ fulfills the symbolism and purpose of these celebrations. Bible Study Questions and Answers 1. What is the meaning of Exodus 23:14?2. How can we observe the "three times a year" festivals in modern life? 3. What significance do these festivals hold for understanding God's covenant with Israel? 4. How does Exodus 23:14 connect to New Testament teachings on worship? 5. What principles from these festivals can guide our worship practices today? 6. How can we ensure our celebrations honor God as instructed in Exodus 23:14? 7. What is the significance of the three annual feasts in Exodus 23:14? 8. How do the feasts in Exodus 23:14 relate to modern Christian practices? 9. Why does God command these specific feasts in Exodus 23:14? 10. What are the top 10 Lessons from Exodus 23? 11. What does Carnival celebrate? 12. What are the Jewish feasts and festivals in the Bible? 13. What does spiritual harvest mean? 14. What is the meaning of Psalm 121:1? What Does Exodus 23:14 Mean Three times a year“Three times” underscores an unchanging rhythm God built into Israel’s calendar (Exodus 34:23; Deuteronomy 16:16). By fixing a tri-annual pattern, the Lord literally required His people to stop normal routines, travel to the sanctuary, and remember His works. This cadence: • guarded them from spiritual drift; • visually distinguished them from surrounding nations who offered impromptu, fear-driven rites; • anticipated the believer’s ongoing need for regular, God-appointed worship (Hebrews 10:24-25). a year The phrase “a year” grounds the command in real time. It was not a vague ideal but an annual obligation anchored to Israel’s agricultural cycle—spring barley, early summer wheat, and autumn ingathering (Exodus 23:16). Each visit corresponded with God’s material provision, reminding them that every harvest came from His hand (Psalm 65:9-13). you are to celebrate “To celebrate” invites joy, not mere duty. The people were to appear “with rejoicing” (Deuteronomy 16:11). Celebration involved: • corporate worship—singing, Scripture, sacrifice (Leviticus 23:4); • family participation—sons, daughters, servants (Joshua 24:15); • practical generosity—sharing portions with the Levite, the stranger, the orphan, and the widow (Deuteronomy 16:14). The pattern foreshadows New-Covenant worship, where believers gather gladly around Christ’s finished sacrifice (Acts 2:46-47). a feast Old Testament “feast” means an appointed time. In context, the three primary feasts were Unleavened Bread, Weeks, and Ingathering (Exodus 23:15-16). Each proclaimed God’s salvation story: • Unleavened Bread marked deliverance from Egypt (Exodus 12:17). • Weeks celebrated the giving of the Law and the firstfruits harvest (Leviticus 23:15-17). • Ingathering (Tabernacles) recalled wilderness provision and pointed to final rest (Leviticus 23:33-36). The New Testament shows these feasts ultimately fulfilled in Christ—our Passover (1 Corinthians 5:7), the giver of the Spirit at Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4), and the coming King who will “tabernacle” with His people forever (Revelation 21:3). to Me The directive centers every celebration on the Lord Himself: “to Me.” Worship was not human-focused entertainment or mere cultural heritage. It was covenant allegiance to the God who redeemed them (Exodus 20:2). By traveling to the sanctuary, Israel acknowledged God’s ownership of their time, harvest, and future (Leviticus 23:2). For believers today, gatherings remain “to Him” (Romans 12:1; Colossians 3:17), with Christ personally present where two or three meet in His name (Matthew 18:20). summary Exodus 23:14 lays down a concrete, yearly rhythm—three divinely appointed feasts—that compelled Israel to interrupt ordinary life, rejoice together, and honor the Lord as their Redeemer and Provider. Literally practiced by the nation, these celebrations also anticipate the church’s joyful, Christ-centered worship until He gathers His people to the ultimate feast in His kingdom. (14-17) The first great festival--the Passover festival--had been already instituted (Exodus 12:3-20; Exodus 13:3-10). It pleased the Divine Legislator at this time to add to that festival two others, and to make all three equally obligatory. There is some reason to suppose that, in germ, the "feast of harvest" and the "feast of ingathering" already existed. All nations, from the earliest time to which history reaches back, had festival seasons of a religious character; and no seasons are more suitable for such festivities than the conclusion of the grain-harvest, and the final completion of the entire harvest of the year. At any rate, whatever the previous practice, these three festival-seasons were now laid down as essential parts of the Law, and continued--supplemented by two others--the national festivals so long as Israel was a nation. In other countries such seasons were more common. Herodotus says that the Egyptians had six great yearly festival-times (ii. 59); and in Greece and Rome there was never a month without some notable religious festivity. Such institutions exerted a political as well as a religious influence, and helped towards national unity. This was more especially the case when, as in the present instance, they were expressly made gatherings of the whole nation to a single centre. What the great Greek panegyries, Olympic, Pythian, &c., were to Hellas, that the three great annual gatherings to the place where God had fixed His name were to Israel--a means of drawing closer the national bond, and counteracting those separatist tendencies which a nation split into tribes almost necessarily developed.Verses 14-17. - Law of Festivals. "The sanctification of days and times," says Richard Hooker, "is a token of that thankfulness and a part of that public honour which we owe to God for admirable benefits, whereof it doth not suffice that we keep a secret calendar, taking thereby our private occasions as we list ourselves to think how much God hath done for all men; but the days which are chosen out to serve as public memorials of such his mercies ought to be clothed with those outward robes of holiness whereby their difference from other days may be made sensible" (Eccles. Pol. 5:70, § 1). All ancient religions had solemn festival seasons, when particular mercies of God were specially commemorated, and when men, meeting together in large numbers, mutually cheered and excited each other to a warmer devotion and a more hearty pouring forth of thanks than human weakness made possible at other times. In Egypt such festivals were frequent, and held a high place in the religion (Herod. 2:58-64:). Abraham's family had probably had observances of the kind in their Mesopotamian home. God's providence saw good now to give supernatural sanction to the natural piety which had been accustomed thus to express itself. Three great feasts were appointed, of which the most remarkable features were -1. That they were at once agricultural and historical - connected with the regularly recurrent course of the seasons, and connected also with great events in the life of the nation; 2. That they could be kept only at one spot, that namely where the tabernacle was at the time located; 3. That they were to be attended by the whole male population. The three festivals are here called - . . . Hebrew Threeשָׁלֹ֣שׁ (šā·lōš) Number - feminine singular Strong's 7969: Three, third, thrice times רְגָלִ֔ים (rə·ḡā·lîm) Noun - feminine plural Strong's 7272: A foot, a step, the pudenda a year בַּשָּׁנָֽה׃ (baš·šā·nāh) Preposition-b, Article | Noun - feminine singular Strong's 8141: A year you are to celebrate a feast תָּחֹ֥ג (tā·ḥōḡ) Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine singular Strong's 2287: To make a pilgrimage, keep a pilgrim feast to Me. לִ֖י (lî) Preposition | first person common singular Strong's Hebrew Links Exodus 23:14 NIVExodus 23:14 NLT Exodus 23:14 ESV Exodus 23:14 NASB Exodus 23:14 KJV Exodus 23:14 BibleApps.com Exodus 23:14 Biblia Paralela Exodus 23:14 Chinese Bible Exodus 23:14 French Bible Exodus 23:14 Catholic Bible OT Law: Exodus 23:14 You shall observe a feast to me (Exo. Ex) |
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