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http://gracethrufaith.com/topical-studies/holidays-and-holy-days/the-feast-of-pentecost/#more-131

Thanks Tom D.,

This is an excellent article by Jack Kelley, well worth reading all of it.

Here's a small taste of it below, read at link for the complete article.

The Feast Of Pentecost

Saturday, May 23rd, 2015ChurchFeasts of IsraelFeaturedProphecy
A Bible Study by Jack Kelley

Pentecost comes in the early summer (mid May-mid June). It’s the only Levitical Feast Day between the 3 spring feasts (Passover, Unleavened Bread, and First Fruits) and the 3 in the fall (Rosh Hashanna, Yom Kippur, and Tabernacles). The Hebrew name for this Day is Shavuot, which means weeks, so in Israel it’s often called the Feast of Weeks.

This is because it’s supposed to occur 7 weeks after the Feast of First Fruits (Lev. 23:15-16). Deut. 16:9 confirms this. “Count off seven weeks from the time you begin to put the sickle to the standing grain.” The first cutting of the grain took place on the Feast of First Fruits. Since First Fruits was the first day after the Sabbath that follows Passover, it was always observed on a Sunday. Shavuot, being 7 weeks later, was always on a Sunday, too, and celebrated the beginning of the summer harvest.

But in 140 AD, following the final defeat of the Jewish nation after the bar Kochba revolt of 135 AD, the Sanhedrin changed the focus of Shavuot from the summer harvest to the giving of the Law. They did this because Shavuot was one of the three feasts all Jews were required to observe (Exodus 23:14-17 tells us Unleavened Bread and Tabernacles were the other two) and the defeated and dispersed nation would no longer have any national harvests to celebrate. From that time on, the count down began from the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the day the Israelites left Egypt. So now Shavuot can come any day of the week and takes place on the 6th day of the Hebrew month called Sivan, which is the traditional day Moses received the Law from the Lord. Making this change placed the giving of the Law at Mt. Sinai exactly seven weeks after the Exodus from Egypt and preserved the Feast of Weeks in Jewish life.

Christians call this day by its Greek name, Pentecost. Pentecost comes from a word that means “50 days”. That’s because there were 50 days from the Sabbath that followed Passover to Shavuot (Pentecost).

Early Christians also changed the way the various dates are determined, although we’ve retained the Sunday requirement for Pentecost. Christians now start counting on the day we call Easter Sunday, which is officially the first Sunday after the first full moon that follows the Spring Equinox. We count Easter Sunday as day one, so Pentecost is always 49 days after Easter and always comes on a Sunday. By counting Easter Sunday on both ends of the span we can arrive at 50 days (Pentecost) and still keep the celebration on the 7th Sunday after Easter.

I know all this is really confusing, but the bottom line is that in 2015, the observance of Shavuot (Pentecost) will take place for Jews in Israel on Sunday May 24 and for Jews outside of Israel on Sunday and Monday May 24-25. Christians will also celebrate it on Sunday May 24. Because of the differences between the Hebrew and western calendars, this does not happen very often.

Read more at:
http://gracethrufaith.com/topical-studies/holidays-and-holy-days/the-feast-of-pentecost/#more-131


Important Snippet at the end:

Neither we, nor the unbelieving world, will have received any advance warning of the timing for this event; it will have come totally by surprise. Maybe it will happen on Pentecost, maybe not. But one thing is certain, when it does happen, none of us will care one bit whether we had predicted it’s timing accurately. We will only express in unimaginable joy our gratitude for being there. For it is by grace you have been saved through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast. (Ephe. 2:8-9)

As it is written: No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him – but God has revealed it to us by His Spirit (1 Cor. 2:9-10). You can almost hear the footsteps of the Messiah. 05-23-15.