Do the Jewish Festivals of Passover, Hanukkah, and Tabernacles Bear Witness to the Messiah’s Birth?

Since their exodus in Egypt, Israel has held festivals and sacred memorials commemorating God’s intervention, provision, and covenant with His people (Leviticus 23:5-43). Each celebration carries a rich tapestry of meaning, reflecting the LORD’s character and His promises.

But while these festivals proclaim God’s faithfulness in their past or present, in their own way all of these festivals point to and have their ultimate fulfilment in the Messiah.

Perhaps the most famous examples of this are Passover and Yom Kippur and how their atoning sacrifices foreshadow the sacrifice of Jesus the Messiah who is “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the word” (John 1:29).

But do the festivals of Israel, in their divine orchestration, proclaim the coming Messiah’s birth?

The festivals of Passover, Hanukkah, and Tabernacles each tell their own story of redemption, light, and divine presence. At first glance, these stories may seem separate from the narrative of Jesus’s birth. But if we dig deeper, we see fascinating alignments with these three Jewish holidays surrounding the Son of God and the Messiah’s entrance into our world. 

Click here to see a Hebrew and Gregorian chart of the Jewish festivals.

These alignments are like masterstrokes of a magnificent painting. And when we step back and see these strokes together, we behold not only the divine landscape they depict, but more importantly, we glimpse the heart of the Divine Artist who brushed them in the fullness of time.

Luke, the most chronologically minded of the Gospel writers (Luke 1:3), provides the fullest account of Jesus’s birth. It is from Luke’s Gospel that we can date the year of Jesus’s birth (Luke 2:1-2) to around 6 B.C. to 4 B.C.

But the first clues as to when Jesus might have been born during those years comes from Luke 1, which describes the unusual circumstances of John the Baptist’s birth to his elderly parents—the priest Zacharias and his wife Elisabeth—and 1 Chronicles 24 which records the assigned services for the various priestly divisions in the temple.

1. Zacharias's Priestly Service

In Luke 1:5, Zacharias is identified as a priest of the division of Abijah, one of the 24 divisions established by King David for temple service (1 Chronicles 24:7-18). Each division served in the temple for one week, twice a year, with all divisions serving together during major festivals. The division of Abijah was the eighth division (1 Chronicles 24:10).

2. Timing of Zacharias’s Service

The Jewish calendar begins in the spring, with the first month (Nisan) aligned with Passover. There were two major festivals during the first two months of the Jewish year: Passover and Shavuot (Pentecost). These festivals lasted roughly 1 week each. Accounting for the priestly division’s overlapping service for Passover and Shavuot (Pentecost), the division of Abijah (Zacharias’s division) would have served in the temple shortly after these holy days during the 10th week (likely around late May to early June on a Gregorian calendar).

While serving in the temple, Zacharias encountered the angel Gabriel, who foretold the birth of his son, John the Baptist (Luke 1:8-23). After completing his service, Zacharias returned home, and Elizabeth conceived shortly thereafter (Luke 1:23-24).

3. John’s Birth and Passover

Assuming Elizabeth conceived in early June, John the Baptist would have been born approximately nine months later, placing his birth in March or April (Nisan), around the time of Passover.

This timing is significant, as John’s role as the forerunner of the Messiah aligns with Passover themes of deliverance and the anticipation of God’s redemptive work.

Moreover, the Jews associate the Messianic forerunner with the prophet Elijah because of Malachi 4:5-6. Jewish tradition holds that Elijah, the Messianic forerunner, will appear during Passover. To this day, when Jews celebrate the Passover Seder, they leave a cup of wine for Elijah in expectation of his arrival, and they have a child look out the door to see if Elijah has come.

John the Baptist was the promised Messianic forerunner to Jesus, the Messiah (Matthew 3:1-3, Mark 1:1-4, John 1:6-8). John came in the “spirit and power of Elijah” (Luke 1:17) and  figuratively served as Elijah, thus fulfilling the prophecy (Matthew 11:14, 17:10-13).

The Jews were right. The Messianic forerunner, who came in the spirit and power of Elijah to prepare the way for the Messiah’s coming, came during Passover, as John the Baptist was born at this time.

John the Baptist’s (“Elijah’s”) birth at Passover is the first alignment of Jewish holy days divinely coinciding with Jesus the Messiah’s birth.

4. Timing of Jesus’s Conception

Luke 1:26-27 states that Gabriel visited Mary in the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy to announce the birth of Jesus. If Elizabeth conceived in June, the sixth month would be December (Kislev). This suggests that Jesus was conceived in December, around the time of Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights.

Hanukkah celebrates the rededication of the temple when the oil did not run out and the miracle of light. The Jews added the festival of Hanukkah during the intertestamental period and so it was not among the holy days proscribed in Leviticus.

Jesus’s conception during Hanukkah symbolically fulfills the theme of divine illumination and God’s presence dwelling among His people, much as the menorah symbolizes God’s enduring light. The celebration of Hanukkah resonates with the Gospel of John’s emphasis on Jesus as “the Light of the World” (John 8:12, 9:5) and the prologue of John which describes Jesus as "the Light of men” who “shines in the darkness” (John 1:4-5), and “the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man" (John 1:9).

The Light of the World’s human conception aligning with the Jewish festival of Hanukkah—the Festival of Lights—is the second correspondence of Jewish holy days aligning with the birth of Messiah.

5. Jesus’s Birth During Sukkot

Nine months after Jesus's conception would place His birth around September or October (Tishri), coinciding with the Jewish festival of Sukkot (Tabernacles).

Sukkot commemorates God’s provision and presence with Israel in the wilderness, marked by the Tabernacle, where the LORD’s glory was visibly present. Jesus’s birth as Immanuel, “God with us” (Matthew 1:23), mirrors this theme. Just as God’s presence guided and sustained Israel in the wilderness, Jesus comes as the Light of the World (John 8:12), guiding and sustaining humanity spiritually. The Son of God’s birth during Tabernacles would highlight the continuity of God’s desire to dwell with His people.

John 1:14 states, “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory.” The word translated as “dwelt” is the Greek term “eskēnōsen” (G4637) which literally means “tabernacled” or “pitched His tent.” This terminology would resonate strongly with the imagery of Sukkot, where God’s presence was celebrated as dwelling among His people in the Tabernacle.

Jesus’s birth occurring during the festival of Tabernacles is a profound fulfillment of this imagery, with God Himself coming to dwell physically among humanity. His tabernacling among us during the Festival of Tabernacles is the final alignment of Jewish holy days and the birth of God’s Son.

Summary of Timelines:

1. Zacharias serves in the temple in late May to early June (division of Abijah).

2. Elizabeth conceives shortly thereafter (June).

3. John the Baptist (“Elijah”) is born approximately nine months later, during Passover (March/April).

4. Jesus, “the Light of the World” is conceived in December during Hanukkah, six months into Elizabeth’s pregnancy.

5. Jesus is born and “tabernacles” among us nine months later, during the festival of Tabernacles (late September, early October).

This divine imagery of Jewish Festivals, the evidence of Biblical texts from the Gospel of Luke, and the priestly records of 1 Chronicles reveals not only the timing of Jesus’s birth, but displays the artistic fulfilment of His sovereign plan.

This correlation reveals a divine artistry that speaks to God’s sovereignty and eternal plan. Passover, Hanukkah, and Tabernacles are not merely religious observances rooted in tradition; they are divine brushstrokes, each painting a vivid element of the Messiah’s mission. Passover proclaims deliverance through the Lamb. Hanukkah radiates the light of God’s presence. Tabernacles celebrates God dwelling among His people. Together, they form a breathtaking masterpiece that points to Jesus as the fulfillment of God’s promises. These holy days remind us that the Messiah’s birth was not an isolated event but the culmination of a divine plan, masterfully brushed to life across centuries—an artwork that reveals the heart of God who longs to redeem, illuminate, and dwell among His people.

Have you ever wondered why we celebrate Jesus's birthday in December? Learn the history of this holiday in our article: "Why is Christmas Celebrated on December 25?"