During Israel’s 40 years of wilderness wandering, God’s people lived in temporary dwellings, or booths.
Today, Jewish people construct booths called Sukkot to remember how God provided for Israel and to remind themselves that life in this world is temporary. The booths are often decorated with fruits and vegetables as reminders of God’s goodness and provision.
Families build Sukkot in yards and patios, eat meals inside them, and sometimes even sleep in them. The booths remain standing for the seven days of Sukkot, the Feast of Tabernacles.
In 2026, Sukkot begins at sunset on Friday, September 25.
Sukkot is one of the appointed feasts God gave to Israel and the final feast on the biblical calendar. But for those who have trusted in Jesus, I believe it points beyond Israel’s past to God’s future purposes.
“Then it will come about that any who are left of all the nations that went against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to celebrate the Feast of Booths.”
—Zechariah 14:16
The Final Feast on God’s Calendar
Leviticus 23 gives the instructions for the Feast of Booths:
“Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘On the fifteenth of this seventh month is the Feast of Booths for seven days to the LORD.’”
—Leviticus 23:34
Sukkot began on the fifteenth day of Tishri, the seventh month. It followed two other important fall feasts:
Feast of Trumpets — the first day of Tishri
Day of Atonement — the tenth day
Feast of Booths — the fifteenth day
All three occurred within fifteen days.
There is a remarkable progression:
Repentance → Redemption → Rejoicing
The Feast of Trumpets calls attention to repentance.
The Day of Atonement points to redemption.
And Tabernacles is the feast of rejoicing.
Sukkot is often called “the season of our joy.”
Don’t miss the significance: the biblical cycle of the fall feasts ends with joy.
For the believer, that points toward our ultimate destiny. Whatever circumstances you may be experiencing today, if you belong to Christ, your final reality is not sorrow, suffering, or death.
Your final reality is joy in the presence of God.
Remembering What God Has Done
Why did God command Israel to live in booths?
“You shall live in booths for seven days; all the native-born in Israel shall live in booths, so that your generations may know that I had the sons of Israel live in booths when I brought them out from the land of Egypt. I am the LORD your God.”
—Leviticus 23:42–43
The booths reminded Israel of the wilderness.
For forty years, the Israelites lived as pilgrims without permanent homes. They depended upon God for food, water, protection, and provision.
So every year, Sukkot reminded them:
God took care of us.
That is something Christians need to hear as well.
We are remarkably good at remembering our problems and remarkably poor at remembering God’s faithfulness.
Sukkot teaches us to look backward with thanksgiving:
Remember where God has brought you.
Remember His provision.
Remember His protection.
Remember the prayers He answered.
Remember the times you could not see a way forward—and God provided one.
The God who was faithful then has not changed.
Rejoicing in What God Is Doing
Sukkot is not only about looking backward. It also coincides with the final harvest of the agricultural year.
The crops have been gathered. The work is finished. The harvest is in the storehouses.
Now it is time to rejoice.
Sukkot is therefore a celebration of God’s present provision.
The people could look at the harvest and say, in effect:
God has provided again.
This helps explain why the Feast of Tabernacles was a time of extraordinary joy. It was a national celebration of thanksgiving and one of Israel’s three great pilgrim feasts, along with Passover and the Feast of Weeks, or Pentecost.
Israelites traveled to Jerusalem for these celebrations, and the journey itself became an occasion for singing and worship.
There is something profoundly biblical about stopping to celebrate God’s goodness. We often live as though thanksgiving can wait until everything is perfect.
It cannot.
God has provided.
God is providing.
Therefore, rejoice.
The Water Ceremony and the Words of Jesus
There is another fascinating dimension to Sukkot as it was celebrated in the time of Jesus.
The feast took place at the beginning of the winter rainy season, so prayers for rain became an important part of the celebration.
Each morning, water was brought from the Pool of Siloam to the Temple in a joyful procession. The high priest carried a golden pitcher and returned through the southern gate, known as the Water Gate.
Silver trumpets sounded as he entered the Temple, and the people heard the words of Isaiah:
“Therefore you will joyously draw water from the springs of salvation.”
—Isaiah 12:3
The high priest poured out the water while the people worshiped. The Levites sang the Hallel, Psalms 113–118, and the priests marched around the altar with palm branches.
On the seventh and final day, the celebration reached its climax.
Then Jesus stood in the midst of the celebration and cried out:
“If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’”
—John 7:37–38
Think about the setting.
The people were praying for water. They were celebrating God’s provision of water. They were looking forward to the rains that would sustain the coming harvest.
And Jesus essentially said:
I am what you are looking for.
The One who satisfies your deepest thirst was standing among them.
Jesus was not merely offering temporary relief from physical thirst. He was offering the living water of salvation and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.
There is no circumstance in which Jesus is insufficient. He satisfies our deepest needs—for forgiveness, peace, joy, righteousness, and the presence of God.
The Feast of Ingathering
Sukkot also has another name: the Feast of Ingathering.
Its immediate meaning concerns the final agricultural harvest. The crops have been gathered, and the people rejoice over God’s provision.
But Scripture gives us reason to look beyond the agricultural harvest toward a future ingathering.
The Bible teaches that Jesus Christ will return and establish His kingdom on earth. Zechariah 14 describes a future time when the nations will come to Jerusalem to worship the King.
The Lord will gather the believing remnant of Israel back to the land He promised, and Gentiles who have placed their faith in Him will also worship the King.
“Then it will come about that any who are left of all the nations that went against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to celebrate the Feast of Booths.”
—Zechariah 14:16
The Feast of Ingathering therefore points toward God’s future work.
God has gathered a harvest before.
God is gathering people to Himself now.
And God will ultimately bring His purposes to completion.
What God has promised, He will do.
That gives us another reason to rejoice.
The Word Became Flesh and Tabernacled Among Us
There is an even more personal connection between Sukkot and Jesus.
“And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.”
—John 1:14
The word translated “dwelt” carries the idea of tabernacling among us.
What a beautiful picture.
The God who once manifested His presence among Israel in the tabernacle came into the world in the person of Jesus Christ.
He did not remain distant. He came into our world. He became flesh. He established a point of contact with us.
The eternal Son of God, who is infinite, entered His creation and took upon Himself genuine humanity. He did not cease to be who He was; He became what He had not previously been.
The God who dwelt among His people in the tabernacle ultimately came to dwell among us in human flesh.
We Are Living in Temporary Booths
Life in this world can be difficult.
Our bodies grow old. We experience pain, disappointment, temptation, sickness, grief, and loss.
Like the temporary booths of Sukkot, our earthly dwellings are not permanent.
But Jesus understands.
He Himself lived in this world and experienced hunger, thirst, weariness, rejection, sorrow, temptation, and suffering.
For approximately thirty-three years, the Son of God tabernacled among us. Throughout His earthly life, He looked to and depended upon His Father.
That gives us a pattern for how we should live.
The sukkah was deliberately temporary. Its construction reminded the worshiper that this was not a permanent home. Its roof was open enough to allow those inside to look through and see the sky.
What a fitting picture of the Christian life.
Look up.
Do not become so absorbed in your temporary dwelling that you forget the God who is above it.
Do not allow today’s circumstances to block your view of eternity.
Do not let suffering convince you that this world is all there is.
We are pilgrims.
Our present dwelling is temporary.
Our future home is eternal.
Looking up with you,
—Stuart
What a great lesson in how we, should join Israel and honor our gracious God in these celebrations. Why we don’t do and teach our families to love our savior by keeping these feasts is a mystery to me.
Thank you, Stuart!
So rich and beautifully said!
Treasured memories of serving in Israel together!
Diana Banks