Deuteronomy 16

16:1-8 The Passover (Hebrew pesakh) was the festival marking Israel’s deliverance from the tenth plague and from bondage in Egypt (see Exod 11–12; Lev 23:5-8). • The Exodus was such a significant event in Israel’s history that the month of Abib, when the Exodus took place, became the beginning of Israel’s annual calendar (see Exod 12:2).

16:2 the place . . . for his name to be honored: The Lord’s name represented the Lord himself. When he placed his name in the Tabernacle or Temple, he was effectively taking up residence there (see 12:5, 18).

16:3 Although yeast frequently symbolizes corruption (Lev 6:14-17; Matt 16:11-12), it was avoided at the original Passover because the Israelites had no time to wait for yeast bread to rise (see Exod 12:10-14). The elements of the yearly Passover celebration reminded the Israelites of what God had done for them.

16:10 The Festival of Harvest took place seven weeks after Passover to celebrate the wheat harvest (Exod 34:22; Lev 23:15-22).

16:13-17 The Festival of Shelters is called this because the people of Israel were instructed to camp out for a week in crude huts made of tree limbs as a memorial to their years of wilderness wandering (Lev 23:33-43). It was also a celebration of the fall harvests.

16:16 Participation in the festival was required of every man, but women and children could participate as well (16:11, 14; cp. Luke 2:41).

16:18–17:13 The community of Israel, like any political entity, needed leaders of different kinds to provide cohesion and guidance. The Lord directed Moses to establish an appropriate leadership structure. He also laid out the criteria for selecting the leaders and the responsibilities of each office.16:18 The combination of the words judges and officials might suggest that here the two terms are functionally synonymous. Usually officials is a generic title applied to any public leader, but here it seems to refer to an administrator of law and justice or something like police officers, as in modern Hebrew. • fairly: The idea was to measure up to an objective standard of equity that neither public nor private pressure could alter.

16:19 show partiality: See study note on 1:16-17.

16:21-22 Asherah pole . . . sacred pillars: See study note on 7:5; see also 12:3; Isa 27:8-9; Mic 5:13-15.