John 7:1-9

Jesus Fulfils and Reinterprets the Jewish Festivals - 3

The Festival of Tabernacles

The festival of Tabernacles occurred in mid-autumn, about six months after the festival of Passover. It was a thanksgiving for the past harvest and a prayer for rain for the next season’s sowing, and was, perhaps, the most popular of the Festivals. Like the Passover, the festival looked back to the time when the Chosen People were in the wilderness of Sinai, after their liberation from Egyptian oppression and before their occupation of their Holy Land. While the Passover was a celebration of liberation, the festival of Tabernacles was more a celebration of journey and growth in intimacy with God. The people celebrated the gift of Torah – as they did at Passover.

Specifically, they recalled God’s slaking their ancestors’ thirst with water from the rock and leading them through the wilderness as a light by day and a cloud by night. During the festival, as a reminder of their ancestors’ wandering through the wilderness, the people would build temporary tents [tabernacles] of branches and live in them for the week of the festival. They would go in procession to the pool of Siloam each morning and return to the temple to pour water from the spring over the “rock” altar and around the temple precincts, causing water to gush out as in the past. During the evening they would light great candelabras and dance joyfully in the illuminated space surrounding it.

Scriptural Background for the Feast of Tabernacles

The following scriptural texts, read during the festival, gave background to the themes of light and water that would figure in the Discourse to follow. 

A reading from the Book of Exodus wrote of the Lord (YHWH) as a pillar of fire, giving light to the Israelites:

A second reading from the Book of Exodus recounted God’s providing water to quench the thirst of the escaping Israelites:

A reading from the prophecies of Zechariah spoke of the Lord (YHWH) as source both of light and of living water to his people:

A further reading from the prophecies of Ezekiel presented the image of life-giving water flowing from beneath the temple:

John 7:1-9     Not Yet the Hour for “Going Up”

The narrative’s theme resumed from where it had finished off when Jesus had last been in Jerusalem [chapter 5]. On that occasion, as the text had noted, Because of this the Jews were seeking even more to kill him – because he was not only relaxing the Sabbath but calling God his own Father, and making himself equal to God [5:16,18]. It is important that readers keep constantly in mind the constant threat under which Jesus lived. Though the hostility was not universal, it was real.

Why would respectable religious leaders not only strongly disagree with Jesus but feel perfectly justified in killing him? What was the dynamic at work? Jesus would explicitly address the issue of persecution in the discourse to follow. 

The Unbelief of Jesus’ Brothers

Jesus’ brothers were well aware of the works Jesus was doing, but, perhaps, because of their very familiarity with him, they were unable to see their point or draw the conclusion about his deepest identity. They did not believe in him, though they were apparently prepared to bask in his popularity. 

Ironically, Jesus would go to Judea that his works might be seen. But his work would be, pre-eminently, the saving work of his death and resurrection. 

Nor was Jesus interested in showing himself simply as a spectacular wonder worker. His glory, given him by his Father, would be visible in his vulnerability and brutal dehumanisation, both freely accepted as the price and expression of his love, and the love of his Father, for sinful humanity.

The brothers’ remarks on works and showing himself would serve to provide context for the reflections to follow, as would their lack of faith.

The focus of the narrative on the brothers’ lack of faith carried particular relevance for the community for which the Gospel was written. Like Jesus, the Christian community confronted the lack of faith of their former brothers and sisters, and the almost impossible struggle to bring them to faith. They knew at first hand the pain it entailed.

When addressing his mother on the occasion of his first sign, given at Cana, Jesus had told her that his hour had not yet come [2.4]. He was referring to the hour of his future death and resurrection. Jesus’ first use of the word hour on this occasion referred to that same moment, though he extended the reference to include also his unfolding life: his hour had not yet fully come. For his brothers, who were without faith, and not caught up in the unfolding mystery of the world’s redemption, time for them was simply history.

The murderous dynamic that would end with the eventual death of Jesus by crucifixion was situated precisely in the sinful power embedded in the world. The ways in which the world works are evil. By the term world, the author was referring to the human constructs of invariably partially-corrupted social, religious and cultural systems. In this instance, the group pressures of the religious system would lead otherwise respectable men to murder an innocent, but dissident, Jesus.

The problem was not unique to Pharisaism and temple priesthood. It is a problem of all non-redeemed social and religious groupings that see themselves as being different from, and superior to, others.

In stating that Jesus was not going up to this festival, the text used a word which, in other contexts, carried the reference both to the Son of Man’s ascending to heaven [1:51; 3:13; 6:62] and Jesus’ ascending to the Father after his resurrection: the consummation of all festivals [20:17].  At this precise stage of his life, Jesus would not yet be going up to his Father.

Next >> John 7:10-36