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BUILDING A BOOTH

Lev 23:40 And ye shall take you on the first day the boughs of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and ye shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days.
Rejoice samcach -The passion or emotion excited by the acquisition or expectation of success

Lev 23:41 And ye shall keep it a feast unto the LORD seven days in the year. It shall be a statute for ever in your generations: ye shall celebrate it in the seventh month. Celebrate - khaw-gag' properly to move in a circle, that is, (specifically) to march in a sacred procession, to observe a festival; to be giddy: - celebrate, dance, , reel to and fro. Lev 23:42 Ye shall dwell in booths seven days; all that are Israelites born shall dwell in booths: Booths sookaw- to entwine as a screen; to fence in, cover over, (figuratively) protect: - cover, defence, defend, hedge in, join together, set, shut up. Lev 23:43 That your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God. Lev 23:44 And Moses declared unto the children of Israel the feasts of the LORD. The greatest opposition you will ever face will not be from a neighbor, family member, satan, govt. or what someone thinks about you. The greatest opposition you will face is what you think about what you are facing and what you think about you.

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Philo says two things: He says that it's a pleasure for a prosperous person to remember the "bad old days." But he goes one step further; he says that sitting in the sukkah reminds us how far we have come and leads us to praise and thank God for all the kindness He has bestowed upon us. There was a time when Israel dwelt in tents and then came a time when they lived in permanent buildings. This reminds us that the tabernacle that we dwell in is a temporary dwelling, but one day it is going to be permanent. Now they are called to live in a flimsy dwelling in a garden or on a roof. A Lesson in Humility The Rashbam, R. Shemuel Ben Meir, lived in France in the 12th century. He was one of Rashi's brilliant grandsons and is known for his Talmud and bible commentaries. In his commentary to the verse from Leviticus quoted above (23:43), he gives still another reason for sitting in the sukkah: "Why do I command you to do this? Do not say in your hearts, 'My own power and the might of my own hand have won this wealth for me. Remember that it is the Lord your God who gives you the power to get wealth' (Deuteronomy 8:17-18). Therefore, the people leave houses filled with good at the harvest season and they dwell in sukkot as a reminder that they had no property in the desert or homes to inhabit. This is why God designated Sukkot at the harvest season, so that a person's heart should not grow

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haughty because of houses filled with everything good, lest they say: 'Our hands made all of this wealth for us.'" In simple English, the Rashbam is saying: The sukkah is a lesson in humility; it comes to prevent a swelled head. God commanded us to sit in the sukkah precisely at the harvest season when we are congratulating ourselves for our successful harvest and our fancy homes. The humble sukkah reminds us: Everything you eat and everything you own comes from God. The Rambam [Maimonides], incidentally, combines the reasons given by Philo and the Rashbam. In his Guide to the Perplexed (3:43), he says that sitting in the sukkah teaches Jews "to remember his evil days in his day of prosperity. He will thereby be induced to thank God repeatedly and to lead a modest and humble life." Thus, according to Maimonides, the sukkah is meant to induce both a feeling of gratitude and a feeling of humility. Increasing Our Faith Rabbi Yitzhak Aboab lived in Spain in the 15th century. In his classic book of Jewish ethics, Menorat Hamaor, he gives still another explanation for sitting in the sukkah (Ner 3, Kelal 4, Part 6, Chapter 1, ed. Mossad Harav Kuk, p. 315): "When the Sages said in the Tractate of Sukkah (fol. 2a): 'Go out from your permanent dwellings and live in a temporary dwelling,' they meant that the commandment to dwell in the sukkah teaches us that a man must not put his trust in the size or strength or conveniences of his house, even though it be filled with the best of everything; nor should he rely upon the help of any man, even though he be the lord of the land. But let him put his trust in Him

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whose word called the universe into being, for He alone is mighty and faithful, and He does not retract what He promises." This explanation is the subtlest of all we have seen thus far. R. Yitzhak Aboab thinks that the main point of living in the sukkah for seven days is to increase our faith in God. When we live in a sturdy house, we are protected from the elements; rain and cold and heat do not harm us. As a result, we begin to have faith in our homes, not in God. Likewise, we tend to place all of our trust in men, especially influential rulers and leaders. By living in a flimsy sukkah for seven days, exposed once again to the elements, we realize that ultimately we must put our trust in God who rules over our houses, the elements, and all human rulers. And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles. And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain (Zech. 14:1617). Rain will come on those who will rejoice in the simplicity of Jesus. 2Co 11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds (perception, purpose) should be corrupted (shrivel, wither, spoil, ruin) from the simplicity that is in Christ.

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hap-lot'-ace simplicity singleness, sincerity (without dishonesty or self seeking), or generosity - bountifulness, liberal (-ity), simplicity, singleness. A union, to be folded together Hab 3:17 Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: Hab 3:18 Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation. Hab 3:19 The LORD God is my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds' feet, and he will make me to walk upon mine high places. To the chief singer on my stringed instruments.