Good day LGW,
I hope to address some of your concerns below.You said:
The topic of the Feast of firstfruit can be a little confusing for many because there are actually two harvest Feasts and sometime they have been referred to by the same name so this can get a little confusing. What your referring to above is the 2nd harvest feast while missing the first but lets give some background and of course provide the scriptures so this discussion may be a helpful and friendly one.
You are correct that this topic can be confusing and you have addressed issues that have caused much debate over time.For example the issue of which Sabbath is meant by:
"And he shall wave the sheaf before the LORD, to be accepted for you: on the morrow after the sabbath the priest shall wave it."(Leviticus 23:11)
What is the reference point to this statement?Most say it is the first Sabbath of the feast of unleavened bread or the seventh day Sabbath following.From the passage however it seems clear the reference point is:
"Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them,
When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and
shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest unto the priest:"(Leviticus 23:10)
It is dependent on when the harvest is reaped and not on the feast mentioned before.
With this in mind,note also how a feast is described:
"Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, Concerning
the feasts of the LORD, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, even these are my feasts."(Leviticus 23:2)
That which is described in Leviticus 23:11,is not a feast but an offering made during a feast.Unless the feast is no longer the feast of unleavened bread? The feast is properly recorded in Leviticus 23:15-21,and could be called firstfruits since the offerings so described were offered on that day which was a holy convocation.
This is why some refer to the event of Leviticus 23:11,as the Day of the Firstfruits rather than a feast.
Finally there is
no scripture that says Jesus had to be a full literal 72 hours in the grave that interpretation is reading into the scriptures what the scriptures do not say. That is also not how Hebrew reckoning of a day works. There are many scripture examples of "
part days" being referred to as "
a day".
In
Matthew 12:40 for example “three days and nights” is considered to be Hebrew figure of speech referring to any part of three days and nights. This is quite a common practice used within the scriptures.
For example in
Esther 4:16;
Esther 5:1 “three days and three nights” does not mean 72 hours. For, although they fasted three days and nights (4:16) between the time they started and the time she appeared before the king, the passage states that Esther appeared before the king “on the third day” (5:1). If they began on Friday, then the third day would be Sunday. Hence, “three days and nights” must mean any part of three days and nights.
Also you may want to consider Jesus used the phrase “
on the third day” to describe the time of His resurrection after His crucifixion (
Matthew 16:21; 17:23; 20:19; cf. 26:61). But, “on the third day” cannot mean “after three days” which 72 hours demands. On the other hand, the phrase “on the third day” or “three days and nights” can be understood to mean within three days and nights. If you follow the timings through Jesus perfectly fulfilled the prophecy as he died on Nissan 14, rested in the grave on Nissan 15 and rose sometime on Nissan 16 (first day of the week).
The statement in Matthew 12:40,was not three days and nights but a precise three days and three nights.Jesus himself determined by His statement in John 11:9,the consideration of a 24 hour day.Esther's statement does not say this and is not the same.There is no reading into scripture here.
It is also possible for the Sabbath afternoon of His resurrection to be the third day if we exclude the day(wednesday)of His crucifixion.
Apart from this,one thing is certain;there is no scripture which describes Jesus as being raised on the first day.All descriptions show an empty tomb at the arrival of the disciples and your reckoning ignores the Sabbaths of different administration during the crucifixion and resurrection period.