Leviticus 23:15-22 · Bible study
Leviticus 23:15-22 Commentary: Feast of Weeks
Hebrew · 9 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Feast of Weeks (Pentecost) in Leviticus 23:15-22: counting the omer, firstfruits offerings, and provision for the poor.
Research Summary
- Meaning: The Feast of Weeks (Pentecost) celebrates the wheat harvest with offerings, a holy convocation, and a command to provide for the poor.
- Key words: Count (ספר, H5608), Sabbath (שבת, H7676), wave offering (תנופה, H8573), firstfruits (בכורים, H1061), gleaning (לקט, H3951).
- Main debate: Does 'the Sabbath' in v.15 refer to the first day of Unleavened Bread or to a weekly Sabbath? This affects Pentecost’s date calculation.
- Theological theme: God’s provision in the harvest; worship expressed through offerings and social justice; the rhythm of sacred time.
- Best use: A resource for teaching about the Old Testament festivals and their fulfillment in Christ and the Spirit; preaching on generosity.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
15From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, you are to count off seven full weeks.
16You shall count off fifty days until the day after the seventh Sabbath, and then present an offering of new grain to the LORD.
17Bring two loaves of bread from your dwellings as a wave offering, each made from two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour, baked with leaven, as the firstfruits to the LORD.
18Along with the bread you are to present seven unblemished male lambs a year old, one young bull, and two rams. They will be a burnt offering to the LORD, together with their grain offerings and drink offerings—an offering made by fire, a pleasing aroma to the LORD.
19You shall also prepare one male goat as a sin offering and two male lambs a year old as a peace offering.
20The priest is to wave the lambs as a wave offering before the LORD, together with the bread of the firstfruits. The bread and the two lambs shall be holy to the LORD for the priest.
21On that same day you are to proclaim a sacred assembly, and you must not do any regular work. This is to be a permanent statute wherever you live for the generations to come.
22When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap all the way to the edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Leave them for the poor and the foreign resident. I am the LORD your God.’”
WEB World English Bible 2000
15“‘You shall count from the next day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering: seven Sabbaths shall be completed.
16The next day after the seventh Sabbath you shall count fifty days; and you shall offer a new meal offering to Yahweh.
17You shall bring out of your habitations two loaves of bread for a wave offering made of two tenths of an ephah of fine flour. They shall be baked with yeast, for first fruits to Yahweh.
18You shall present with the bread seven lambs without defect a year old, one young bull, and two rams. They shall be a burnt offering to Yahweh, with their meal offering and their drink offerings, even an offering made by fire, of a sweet aroma to Yahweh.
19You shall offer one male goat for a sin offering, and two male lambs a year old for a sacrifice of peace offerings.
20The priest shall wave them with the bread of the first fruits for a wave offering before Yahweh, with the two lambs. They shall be holy to Yahweh for the priest.
21You shall make proclamation on the same day that there shall be a holy convocation to you. You shall do no regular work. This is a statute forever in all your dwellings throughout your generations.
22“‘When you reap the harvest of your land, you must not wholly reap into the corners of your field. You must not gather the gleanings of your harvest. You must leave them for the poor and for the foreigner. I am Yahweh your God.’”
KJV King James Version 1769
15And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven sabbaths shall be complete:
16Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the Lord.
17Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deals: they shall be of fine flour; they shall be baken with leaven; they are the firstfruits unto the Lord.
18And ye shall offer with the bread seven lambs without blemish of the first year, and one young bullock, and two rams: they shall be for a burnt offering unto the Lord, with their meat offering, and their drink offerings, even an offering made by fire, of sweet savour unto the Lord.
19Then ye shall sacrifice one kid of the goats for a sin offering, and two lambs of the first year for a sacrifice of peace offerings.
20And the priest shall wave them with the bread of the firstfruits for a wave offering before the Lord, with the two lambs: they shall be holy to the Lord for the priest.
21And ye shall proclaim on the selfsame day, that it may be an holy convocation unto you: ye shall do no servile work therein: it shall be a statute for ever in all your dwellings throughout your generations.
22And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not make clean riddance of the corners of thy field when thou reapest, neither shalt thou gather any gleaning of thy harvest: thou shalt leave them unto the poor, and to the stranger: I am the Lord your God.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
15And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave-offering; seven sabbaths shall there be complete:
16even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meal-offering unto Jehovah.
17Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave-loaves of two tenth parts of an ephah: they shall be of fine flour, they shall be baken with leaven, for first-fruits unto Jehovah.
18And ye shall present with the bread seven lambs without blemish a year old, and one young bullock, and two rams: they shall be a burnt-offering unto Jehovah, with their meal-offering, and their drink-offerings, even an offering made by fire, of a sweet savor unto Jehovah.
19And ye shall offer one he-goat for a sin-offering, and two he-lambs a year old for a sacrifice of peace-offerings.
20And the priest shall wave them with the bread of the first-fruits for a wave-offering before Jehovah, with the two lambs: they shall be holy to Jehovah for the priest.
21And ye shall make proclamation on the selfsame day; there shall be a holy convocation unto you; ye shall do no servile work: it is a statute for ever in all your dwellings throughout your generations.
22And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not wholly reap the corners of thy field, neither shalt thou gather the gleaning of thy harvest: thou shalt leave them for the poor, and for the sojourner: I am Jehovah your God.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
15`And ye have numbered to you from the morrow of the sabbath, from the day of your bringing in the sheaf of the wave-offering: they are seven perfect sabbaths;
16unto the morrow of the seventh sabbath ye do number fifty days, and ye have brought near a new present to Jehovah;
17out of your dwellings ye bring in bread of a wave-offering, two loaves , of two tenth deals of flour they are, with yeast they are baken, first- fruits to Jehovah.
18`And ye have brought near, besides the bread, seven lambs, perfect ones, sons of a year, and one bullock, a son of the herd, and two rams; they are a burnt-offering to Jehovah, with their present and their libations, a fire-offering of sweet fragrance to Jehovah.
19`And ye have prepared one kid of the goats for a sin-offering, and two lambs, sons of a year, for a sacrifice of peace-offerings,
20and the priest hath waved them, besides the bread of the first- fruits --a wave-offering before Jehovah, besides the two lambs; they are holy to Jehovah for the priest;
21and ye have proclaimed on this self-same day: a holy convocation is to you, ye do no servile work--a statute age-during in all your dwellings, to your generations.
22`And in your reaping the harvest of your land thou dost not complete the corner of thy field in thy reaping, and the gleaning of thy harvest thou dost not gather, to the poor and to the sojourner thou dost leave them; I Jehovah am your God.'
Darby Darby Bible 1890
15And ye shall count from the morning after the sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave-offering, seven weeks; they shall be complete;
16even unto the morning after the seventh sabbath shall ye count fifty days; and ye shall present a new oblation to Jehovah.
17Out of your dwellings shall ye bring two wave-loaves, of two tenths of fine flour; with leaven shall they be baken; [as] first-fruits to Jehovah.
18And ye shall present with the bread seven he-lambs without blemish, yearlings, and one young bullock, and two rams: they shall be a burnt-offering to Jehovah with their oblation, and their drink-offerings, an offering by fire of a sweet odour to Jehovah.
19And ye shall sacrifice one buck of the goats for a sin-offering, and two he-lambs, yearlings, for a sacrifice of peace-offering.
20And the priest shall wave them with the bread of the first-fruits as a wave-offering before Jehovah, with the two he-lambs; they shall be holy to Jehovah, for the priest.
21And ye shall make proclamation on that same day — a holy convocation shall it be unto you: no manner of servile work shall ye do: [it is] an everlasting statute in all your dwellings throughout your generations.
22And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not in thy harvest entirely reap the corners of thy field, and the gleaning of thy harvest shalt thou not gather: thou shalt leave them unto the poor and to the stranger: I am Jehovah your God.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
15You shall count therefore from the morrow after the sabbath, wherein you offered the sheaf of firstfruits, seven full weeks.
16Even unto the morrow after the seventh week be expired, that is to say, fifty days: and so you shall offer a new sacrifice to the Lord.
17Out of all your dwellings, two loaves of the firstfruits, of two tenths of flour leavened, which you shall bake for the firstfruits of the Lord.
18And you shall offer with the loaves seven lambs without blemish of the first year, and one calf from the herd, and they shall be for a holocaust with their two rams: and they shall be for a holocaust with their libations for a most sweet odour to the Lord.
19You shall offer also a buck goat for sin, and two lambs of the first year for sacrifices of peace offerings.
20And when the priest hath lifted them up with the loaves of the firstfruits before the Lord, they shall fall to his use.
21And you shall call this day most solemn, and most holy. You shall do no servile work therein. It shall be an everlasting ordinance in all your dwellings and generations.
22And when you reap the corn of your land, you shall not cut it to the very ground: neither shall you gather the ears that remain. But you shall leave them for the poor and for the strangers. I am the Lord your God.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Leviticus 23:15
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Scholars agree these verses institute the Feast of Weeks (Pentecost), an agricultural festival fifty days after the wave sheaf offering. The counting phrase 'seven Sabbaths' establishes a period of forty-nine days from 'the morrow after the Sabbath' (v.15). Commentators like Gill and Jamieson-Fausset-Brown interpret this Sabbath as the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, a rest day. Others argue for the weekly Sabbath during Passover. Either way, the fiftieth day is marked by a holy convocation and no servile work (v.21). The offerings are specific: two leavened loaves as firstfruits, accompanied by burnt offerings, a sin offering, and peace offerings. The passage closes by repeating the law of gleaning (v.22), linking worship with care for the poor. Keil and Delitzsch note the close connection between Passover and Pentecost. The consensus is that Pentecost celebrates the completion of the wheat harvest and functions as a thanksgiving feast.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Sabbath as first day of Unleavened Bread: The Feast of Unleavened Bread includes a sabbath rest (Lev 23:7); counting from that day gives a fixed date for Pentecost (Sivan 6).
- Sabbath as weekly Sabbath: The term 'Sabbath' is never used of a festival day elsewhere in Leviticus 23; the weekly Sabbath is meant, making Pentecost always fall on a Sunday.
What is clear: The passage commands a seven-week count leading to a holy convocation on the fiftieth day, celebrating the firstfruits of the wheat harvest with offerings and concern for the poor.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| The identity of 'the Sabbath' in v.15 | Jews and Christians agree the count starts on the day after a rest day during Passover week, leading to Pentecost. | Some hold it is the first day of Unleavened Bread (a sabbath); others argue for the weekly Sabbath. The calculation then differs: Pentecost on a fixed day versus always on a Sunday. |
| The significance of the leavened loaves | All agree the loaves are an unusual offering containing leaven, representing the firstfruits of the ordinary grain harvest. | Some see leaven as a symbol of sin, yet God accepts it; others see it as simply a normal part of bread, emphasizing that God receives our everyday life. |
| The command to help the poor (v.22) | Christians across traditions agree this reflects God’s care for the marginalized and is binding on believers. | Debate exists about whether this law directly applies today or is a principle adapted to different economies. |
Historical & Cultural Context
Leviticus 23, often called the 'calendar of holy times,' prescribes the annual festivals of Israel. The Feast of Weeks (Exodus 34:22; Deuteronomy 16:9-10) is the second major pilgrimage festival, occurring at the end of the grain harvest. The barley harvest began with Passover and the wave sheaf offering (Leviticus 23:10-14); then a fifty-day count led to the wheat harvest.
The Hebrew verb for counting (ספר, H5608) emphasizes deliberate, communal reckoning. The phrase 'seven Sabbaths' uses shabbatot (H7676), which can refer to weeks or sabbatical days; the context points to weeks. The 'new meal offering' (minchah chadashah) was made from wheat, the first crop of the later harvest.
Unlike the unleavened bread of Passover, the two loaves baked with leaven represented normal daily bread. Their leaven probably symbolized the imperfections of ordinary life, yet they were offered as 'first fruits to Yahweh' (v.17). The accompanying animal sacrifices included seven lambs, one bull, two rams (burnt offerings), a goat (sin offering), and two lambs (peace offerings). The priest waved them before the Lord, and the loaves and lambs became holy for the priest (v.20).
The repetition of the gleaning law from Leviticus 19:9 (v.22) is striking. As Gill notes, the Feast of Weeks is the time of firstfruits, so the command to leave the edges of the field for the poor and foreigner is placed here to remind Israel that generosity belongs to worship. The self-identification 'I am Yahweh your God' seals the social command with divine authority.
In later Judaism, the counting period is known as Sefirat HaOmer, a season of semi-mourning and anticipation, linked to the giving of the Torah at Sinai. For the early church, Pentecost became the day of the Spirit's outpouring (Acts 2:1).
Textual Notes
The text of Leviticus 23:15-22 is well-preserved across the major manuscripts (Masoretic Text, Septuagint, Dead Sea Scrolls). The consulted sources note no significant variants that affect interpretation. Some minor differences in spelling between the Masoretic and Samaritan Pentateuch do not change the meaning.
Reception History
This passage has shaped both Jewish and Christian worship. In Judaism, the counting of the Omer developed into a season of spiritual preparation, eventually linked to the giving of the Torah at Sinai. The Feast of Weeks (Shavuot) involved nighttime study and the reading of Ruth, emphasizing harvest and conversion. In Christianity, the feast was transformed into Pentecost, celebrating the outpouring of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2). Early church fathers such as Tertullian and Augustine saw the two leavened loaves as a type of the church composed of Jews and Gentiles, sanctified by the Spirit. The gleaning law was often cited as a mandate for Christian charity. Throughout church history, Pentecost was a major day for baptisms and confirming new believers. Today, the passage reminds readers that creation, covenant, and compassion belong together in God’s redemptive plan.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- Count the days, trust God's timing. God sets a precise period of seven weeks. The discipline of counting reminds Israel that harvest comes by God’s provision, not human effort.
- Bring the first and the best. The offerings required the finest flour, the first fruits, and unblemished animals. Worship costs something; it gives God the priority of our labor.
- Worship and social justice belong together. The repeated command to leave gleanings for the poor directly follows the festival instructions. True worship issues in generosity.
Five-point outline
- The counting (vv.15-16): From the wave sheaf to the fiftieth day. A sustained season of awareness.
- The loaves (v.17): Two leavened loaves of fine flour, the ordinary made holy.
- The sacrifices (vv.18-19): Burnt, sin, and peace offerings. Comprehensive atonement and fellowship.
- The convocation (vv.20-21): A holy assembly, rest from labor, a perpetual statute.
- The gleaning (v.22): The poor and the foreigner share in the harvest. The land is the Lord’s.
Illustration hooks
- The school calendar: students finish one grade and count the days until the next. Israel counted from Passover to Pentecost, from deliverance to covenant.
- A sports championship: the victory parade includes both the team and the community that supports them. Pentecost’s firstfruits involve both the worshiper and the needy neighbor.
- Harvest season today: farmers know the tension between getting the crop in and leaving some for wildlife or food banks. The gleaning law values margin for others.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Does the church still observe Pentecost as a holy day? How does the Old Testament feast relate to the New Testament event?
- What does it mean to offer 'first fruits' to God today? Is it about money, time, or something else?
- How can our community practice 'gleaning', sharing resources with the poor, in a way that honors God?
Leading a Discussion
This passage shows how Israel marked the transition from the barley harvest to the wheat harvest with a fifty-day count, special offerings, and a command to leave food for the poor. The Feast of Weeks is both a celebration of God’s provision and a call to imitate His generosity. As you discuss, notice how worship and justice intertwine.
Discussion questions
- Read verses 15-16. What is the significance of counting exactly fifty days? Why might God want Israel to count?
- Verse 17 mentions loaves baked with leaven. Why do you think leaven, which often symbolizes sin elsewhere, is included in this offering to the Lord?
- Look at the variety of offerings in verses 18-20: burnt offering, sin offering, peace offering. What do these different types of sacrifices teach about approaching God?
- Verse 21 describes a 'holy convocation' and a ban on regular work. Why is rest and assembly so central to this feast?
- Verse 22 returns to a social command from Leviticus 19. Why do you think this commandment is placed right after the instructions for the festival?
- How does the principle of leaving the edges of the field for the poor and foreigner apply in your context today? What are the 'edges' of your resources?
- The New Testament sees Pentecost as the day the Holy Spirit filled the church (Acts 2). How does understanding the Old Testament feast deepen your appreciation of that event?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Exodus 34:22 | “You shall observe the feast of weeks with the first fruits of wheat harvest, and the feast of harvest at the year’s end. |
| Leviticus 23:10 | “Speak to the children of Israel, and tell them, ‘When you have come into the land which I give to you, and shall reap its harvest, then you shall bring the sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest. |
| Leviticus 23:11 | He shall wave the sheaf before Yahweh, to be accepted for you. On the next day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it. |
| Leviticus 25:8 | “‘You shall count off seven Sabbaths of years, seven times seven years; and there shall be to you the days of seven Sabbaths of years, even forty-nine years. |
| Numbers 28:26 | “‘Also in the day of the first fruits, when you offer a new meal offering to Yahweh in your feast of weeks, you shall have a holy convocation. You shall do no regular work; |
| Deuteronomy 16:9 | You shall count for yourselves seven weeks. From the time you begin to put the sickle to the standing grain you shall begin to count seven weeks. |
| Deuteronomy 16:10 | You shall keep the feast of weeks to Yahweh your God with a tribute of a free will offering of your hand, which you shall give according to how Yahweh your God blesses you. |
| Acts 2:1 | Now when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all with one accord in one place. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
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What the Commentators Say
6 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke explains the precise method for counting the seven weeks: starting from the sixteenth day of the first month and ending on the sixth day of the third month, completing a full forty-nine days. The fiftieth day is what the Septuagint calls Pentecost, and he also refers to the law about leaving gleanings for the poor.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill clarifies the precise starting point for counting the Omer: the day after the first holy convocation of Passover, not the weekly Sabbath. He then details the exact offerings required on Pentecost, including the two leavened wave loaves, and notes that Jewish tradition ties this feast to the giving of the law, while Christians see its fulfillment in the outpouring of the Spirit at Pentecost.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
JFB explains that the two leavened loaves at Pentecost differ from Passover's unleavened bread because one commemorates hasty departure while the other gives thanks for ordinary daily food. The repeated command about leaving field corners for the poor likely came because priests used the first-fruits presentation to urge both piety toward God and charity toward the needy.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil-Delitzsch argue that the term "Sabbath" in the counting refers to whole weeks, not Sabbath days, because the description "complete" fits weeks but not half-Sabbaths. The leavened wave-loaves represent ordinary daily bread offered as thanksgiving, not sacred bread, and each household presented loaves made for daily food, not specially prepared holy bread.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange sees the number seven as the organizing principle behind Israel’s entire festal calendar. From
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry notes that the feast of Pentecost marked the completion of the grain harvest, just as the wave sheaf offering had opened it. He presents this feast as a solemn conclusion to the period of reaping, a time to celebrate the finished harvest before the Lord.