The next annual festival of YHVH (the LORD) as found in Lev 23:15-22
‘And you shall count for yourselves from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering: seven Sabbaths shall be completed. ‘Count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath; then you shall offer a new grain offering to the LORD. ‘You shall bring from your dwellings two wave loaves of two-tenths of an ephah. They shall be of fine flour; they shall be baked with leaven. They are the firstfruits to the LORD.
…‘The priest shall wave them with the bread of the firstfruits as a wave offering before the LORD, with the two lambs. They shall be holy to the LORD for the priest. ‘And you shall proclaim on the same day that it is a holy convocation to you. You shall do no customary work on it. It shall be a statute forever in all your dwellings throughout your generations. ‘When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not wholly reap the corners of your field when you reap, nor shall you gather any gleaning from your harvest. You shall leave them for the poor and for the stranger: I am the LORD your God.’" (Leviticus 23:15-22 NKJV throughout unless noted)
Feast of Weeks, or Pentecost (Hebrew, Shavuot) also called firstfruits
The period called "the omer" begins the day following the (weekly) Sabbath during Passover and continues until Pentecost. The Torah commanded that seven weeks be counted from the time of the offering of the omer, as it says in [Leviticus 23:15-17,21].
Because of this ritual of counting, the period between Passover and Pentecost came to be known as the omer.
The Ceremony of Counting the Omer
A sharp controversy exists between the rabbis and a variety of Jewish sects over the interpretation of the words "the day after the Sabbath" in the verse commanding the counting of the omer. According to the rabbis, the Sabbath refers not to the weekly Sabbath, but rather to the first festival day of the Passover. Various groups, beginning with the first-century Sadducees and continuing with the Karaites of the early Middle Ages, interpreted the word Sabbath to mean the weekly Sabbath during the Passover season. The implication of this interpretation is that Pentecost, which falls on the day after the omer count of 49 days, would always occur on a Sunday. An interesting point in this debate solidifies which method is correct. On all other commanded festivals a specific date of the year is given, except Pentecost. If you counted the omer starting with the day after the Sabbath of Nissan 15th then Pentecost would always fall on the same date 50 days later, there would be no need to count days, you would only have to know the date (the 6th of Sivan). In fact, Pentecost does not have a fixed calendar date in the Bible, but falls on the day after the completion of the omer count -- that is, the fiftieth day after the omer offering is brought.
HISTORICAL
Giving the Torah at Mount Sinai.
In the third month after the Jews left Egypt, they arrived in the Sinai desert and camped opposite Mount Sinai. Moses was then told by YHVH to gather the Israelites together to receive the Torah (Exodus 19:1-8). The Israelites answered, "All that the Lord has spoken we will do!" In Hebrew, it is Na'aseh V'Nishmah, which means, "We agree to do even before we have listened." Or before we understand.
Moses then gave the Israelites two days to cleanse themselves, wash their clothes, and prepare to receive the Torah (YHVH’s instruction) on the third day. At the same time, Moses told them not to come too near Mount Sinai. From early morning, dense clouds covered the peak of the mountain. Thunder and lightning were frequently seen and heard. The sound of the shofar (ram's horn) came very strong, and the top of the mountain was enveloped in fire and smoke. The Israelites at the foot of Mount Sinai stood in great awe (Exodus 19:9-19). Moses then went up alone on the mountain, and as he neared the top, a mighty voice announced the Ten Commandments (Exodus 19:20-25; 20:1-21).
It should be noted here that the Hebrew word Torah, commonly translated as "law" in English, does not mean "law," but "instruction or teaching". By understanding the meaning of the Hebrew word Torah, we can see that the Torah was never intended, nor should it ever be understood by non-Jewish people, to mean a code of do's and don'ts. Rather, it should be seen as YHVH's instruction and teaching to us so we can understand Him better.
MESSIANIC FULFILLMENT
Pouring out of the Holy Spirit.
Fifty days after the resurrection of Yeshua (Jesus), the Holy Spirit came to dwell in the hearts and lives of all the believers in Yeshua [Acts 1:8]; [Isaiah 44:3].
SPIRITUAL APPLICATION
Immersion in the Holy Spirit and growing in faith in God.
One of the most beautiful images of Pentecost is that of the marriage between God (the groom) and Israel (the bride).
In the biblical wedding service that God gave, marriage consisted of two stages. The first stage is betrothal, called erusin in Hebrew. You enter this first stage of marriage as soon as a betrothal contract is made between the two parties. The written contract is called a ketubah. During betrothal, you are legally married, but do not physically dwell with your mate. Betrothal is so legally binding that you cannot get out of it without a divorce, called a get in Hebrew.
The Bible tells us in Jeremiah 2:2 that at Mount Sinai, YHVH betrothed Himself to Israel, as it is written:
"Go and cry in the hearing of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD: "I remember you, The kindness of your youth, The love of your betrothal, When you went after Me in the wilderness, In a land not sown. Israel was holiness to the LORD, The firstfruits of His increase. All that devour him will offend; Disaster will come upon them," says the LORD.’"
(Jeremiah 2:2-3)What does the wedding mean in terms of the Messiah, and what is the personal application to us? Yeshua is the groom and the believers in the Messiah are the bride. When Yeshua came to the earth 2,000 years ago, He came so that whosoever would put their trust and confidence in Him would be wedded to Him forever. This would include both Jews and non-Jews [John 3:16]. Because Yeshua came as the suffering Messiah, during His first coming, He ascended to Heaven to be with God the Father until He returns during His second coming to be the King Messiah. Today, Yeshua does not physically dwell with those who trust in Him. Therefore, the believers in the Messiah are currently spiritually betrothed to Him. We will enter the full marriage and physically dwell with Him during the Messianic age known as the Millennium. However, before we can physically dwell with the Messiah during the Messianic age on earth, the wedding ceremony when the believers in the Messiah will be wedded to Him must take place.
The giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai involved the Aaronic priesthood, the sacrificial system, the tabernacle, the Sabbath days, the festivals, the civil and ceremonial laws, and the Ten Commandments. These things were given by God as a shadow of things to come [Hebrews 10:1] to teach us [Galatians 3:24] about the Messiah and the redemptive work of God. The things given at Mount Sinai were divine and from God, but shown in a physical way [Hebrews 9:1] to enable us to understand the spiritual truths that God wanted to communicate to us. So God gave Israel the covenant, the Torah, the services, the oracles of God, and the promises [Romans 9:4-5], which were divine [Hebrews 9:1], at Mount Sinai to teach us about the Messiah.
We have seen how the spring festivals are applicable in three dimensions. They are historic to the nation of Israel; they are fulfilled in the Messiah; and they describe how the individual believer is to walk and live his life before God. In other words, we can see that God has a plan for every individual to willingly come to Him. So the spring festivals were not only historic, but they were also our type and example (1 Corinthians 10:1-2, 11).
The Pentecost Festival pictures the firstfruits of the saints becoming one with Messiah, in spirit, until the reality at His Return.
Reference for this article, from the book.
The Seven Festivals of the Messiah
by Eddie Chumney