Page 30 - The Messiah Beyond a Shadow of Doubt

The Messiah: Beyond a Shadow of Doubt

Moed – Appointed Time

The Hebrew word that is translated
as Appointed Time is MOED. This word has
several meanings, and it occurs outside of
the context of the Appointed Times; there
is nothing mystical about the word itself. MOED
Moed has multiple meanings, including a
place of meeting, a signal, an appointed
sign or time, a place of solemn assembly, a
congregation, a feast, or even a synagogue.
Terminology

There is one more item that I should mention about the Appointed Times. People
frequently refer to them as the Jewish Festivals, which is not a completely accurate description.
In order to clarify the terms for our study, you should know that only three of the Appointed
Times are festivals: the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks (aka Pentecost), and the
Feast of Booths (aka. the Feast of Tabernacles). The word feast in the name indicates that it is a
festival.

The other Appointed Times are not actually feasts or festivals. For example, First Fruits
is a “day,” and the Day of Atonement is also a “day;” neither of these are feasts or festivals.
Referring to the Day of Atonement as a feast would be a serious misrepresentation of the
solemn nature of the ceremony. Sometimes, for the sake of convenience, we might refer to the
Appointed Times as the Jewish feasts or festivals, but we should at least be aware that this is a
misnomer—they are more accurately called the Appointed Times.

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