The ten days starting with Rosh Hashanah and ending with “Yom Kippur” are commonly known as the Days of Awe or the Days of Repentance. This is a time for serious introspection, a time to consider the sins of the previous year and repent before Yom Kippur.

The name “Yom Kippur” means “Day of Atonement,” and that pretty much explains what the holiday is. It is a day set aside to “afflict the soul,” to atone for the sins of the past year. To “atone” for sins against another person, you must first seek reconciliation with that person, righting the wrongs you committed against them if possible.

The “Day of Atonement” is the English phrase for “Yom Kippur”. The word “Kippur” is from kafar, which means “ransom”. This word is parallel to the word “redeem” (Psalms 49:7) and means “to atone by offering a substitute”. the life blood of the sacrificial animal was required in exchange for the life blood of worshipper (the symbolic expression of innocent life given for guilty life) – Leviticus 17:11.

What is the message here? God is holy that we must also be holy as well. This means first of all being conscious of the “distinction” between the sacred and the profane, the clean and unclean. Just as God separated the light from darkness, so we are called to discern between the holy and the profane, sacred
and common, and clean and unclean. And followed by drawing near to holy God.

Yom Kippur is the time when all profane work is set aside so the soul could focus on the holiness of the Lord. This is the time for rest. Those who trust in God’s salvation understand our ultimate “rest” is given to us in Yeshua, who presented his own blood to make atonement “at-one-moment” for our souls before God.

After we observe Yom Kippur, comes the feast of Sukkot (of Feast of Tabernacles). This feast is observed in the fall from the 15h to 22nd of Tishri (during New Year). During this time many Jewish families construct a “sukkah” – a small hut in which meals are eaten throughout the festival. This sukkah is used to remember the huts Israel lived in during their 40 year sojourn in the desert after the exodus from Egypt. This also reminds them that all provision for their lives came from the Almighty God. And later when Israel entered the land of Promise, Sukkot was associated with the fall harvest and came to be known as the Festival of Ingathering (of the harvest) – a time for rejoicing. A total joy will come after we seek the Lord with all our hearts. This also corresponds to the joy of knowing and experiencing God’s miraculous provision and care after the deliverance from bondage in Egypt (Lev 23:43).