a fast as the Day of Atonement;
eat, drink, be merry, and sacrifice peace-offerings thereon." The Bible
says, "Seven days unto the Lord"; therefore we should in all our
merriment devote a few serious thoughts to Him.

The Feast of Tabernacles is held in the autumn, after the fruits of the
field have been garnered in the storehouses, according to the words of
the Bible, "The Feast of Tabernacles shalt thou hold for thyself seven
days when thou hast gathered in the produce of thy thresh-floor and thy
wine-press."

This dwelling in booths is also to bring to mind the manner in which the
Israelites lived for forty years after they left Egypt. With merely
temporary walls to protect them from summer's heat and winter's cold,
from wind and storm. God was with them through all their generations,
and they were protected from all evil.

According to the opinion of some of the Rabbis, the Israelites did not
really dwell in booths in the wilderness, but were surrounded by
clouds--by seven clouds. Four clouds, one at each of the four sides; a
fifth, a shadow, to protect them from the hot rays of the sun; the
sixth, a pillar of fire to give them light by night (they being able to
see as clearly by night as by day); and the seventh, to precede their
journeying and direct their way.

The children of Israel departed from Egypt in _Nissan_ (April), and
obtained immediately these booths, which they made use of for forty
years. Thus they were in booths during the entire cycle of the year, and
we could as easily commemorate this fact in the spring as in the fall,
in the summer as in the winter. Why, then, has God made autumn, and
neither spring nor summer, the season of observance? Because if we dwelt
in booths in the summer, it would be a question whether we did so in
obedience to God's behest or for our own gratification; for many people
seek airy retreats during this season; but in the fall, when the trees
lose their leaves, and the air grows cold and chilling, and it is the
time to fix our houses for the winter, then by inhabiting these
temporary residences, we display our desire to do as our Creator has
bidden us.

The Feast of Tabernacles is also the Feast of Ingathering, when we
should thank God for the kindness shown us and the treasure with which
He has blessed us. When the Eternal has provided man with his
sustenance, in the long evenings which follow he should meditate and
study his Bible, and make this indeed a "feast to