Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Sukkot: The name of the holiday

Vayikra 23:34 refers to the holiday as Sukkot since this section records the law of living in the sukkah, Vayikra 23:42. On the other hand, Shemot 23:16, 34:22 refers to this same holiday as the holiday of the gathering of the crops. In Shemot the holiday could not have been referred to as Sukkot because the law of being in a sukkah was not yet recorded. However, in 23:34, the Torah uses the word Sukkot since it is about to mention the laws of Sukkot, 23:42,43. Once the holiday is designated as Sukkot, then this name is used in the remainder of the Torah, Devarim 16:13,16 and 31:10. Note, the holiday could not have been named after the other law of the holiday the taking of the four species, arba minim, since in the Torah that was only done for one day, 23:40.

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