The Passover Celebrated

And the king commanded all the people, “Keep the passover to the Lord your God, as it is written in this book of the covenant.”

and when she looked, there was the king standing by his pillar at the entrance, and the captains and the trumpeters beside the king, and all the people of the land rejoicing and blowing trumpets, and the singers with their musical instruments leading in the celebration. And Athali′ah rent her clothes, and cried, “Treason! Treason!”

Celebration of the Passover

Josi′ah kept a passover to the Lord in Jerusalem; and they killed the passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the first month.

And the people of Israel, the priests and the Levites, and the rest of the returned exiles, celebrated the dedication of this house of God with joy.

The Passover Celebrated

On the fourteenth day of the first month the returned exiles kept the passover.

The Festival of Booths Celebrated

On the second day the heads of fathers’ houses of all the people, with the priests and the Levites, came together to Ezra the scribe in order to study the words of the law.

Dedication of the City Wall

And at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought the Levites in all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication with gladness, with thanksgivings and with singing, with cymbals, harps, and lyres.

I will cause your name to be celebrated in all generations; therefore the peoples will praise you for ever and ever.

“In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, you shall celebrate the feast of the passover, and for seven days unleavened bread shall be eaten.

Let us, therefore, celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

The girl is also beautiful and sensible. Now listen to my plan. I will speak to her father, and as soon as we return from Rages we will celebrate the marriage. For I know that Rag′uel, according to the law of Moses, cannot give her to another man without incurring the penalty of death, because you rather than any other man are entitled to the inheritance.”

and Tobi′as’ marriage was celebrated for seven days with great festivity.

The Israelites Celebrate Their Victory

Then Jo′akim the high priest, and the senate of the people of Israel who lived at Jerusalem, came to witness the good things which the Lord had done for Israel, and to see Judith and to greet her.

For whether they kill children in their initiations, or celebrate secret mysteries, or hold frenzied revels with strange customs,

but the latter, after receiving them with festal celebrations, afflicted with terrible sufferings those who had already shared the same rights.

Fill Zion with the celebration of thy wondrous deeds, and thy temple with thy glory.

So they celebrated the dedication of the altar for eight days, and offered burnt offerings with gladness; they offered a sacrifice of deliverance and praise.

The people rejoiced greatly and celebrated that day as a day of great gladness.

And they decreed that this day should be celebrated each year on the thirteenth day of Adar.

After these things it was reported to Jonathan and Simon his brother, “The sons of Jambri are celebrating a great wedding, and are conducting the bride, a daughter of one of the great nobles of Canaan, from Nad′abath with a large escort.”

Alexander the king met him, and Ptol′emy gave him Cleopatra his daughter in marriage, and celebrated her wedding at Ptolema′is with great pomp, as kings do.

And Simon decreed that every year they should celebrate this day with rejoicing. He strengthened the fortifications of the temple hill alongside the citadel, and he and his men dwelt there.

Fire Consumes Nehemiah’s Sacrifice

Since on the twenty-fifth day of Chislev we shall celebrate the purification of the temple, we thought it necessary to notify you, in order that you also may celebrate the feast of booths and the feast of the fire given when Nehemi′ah, who built the temple and the altar, offered sacrifices.

Since, therefore, we are about to celebrate the purification, we write to you. Will you therefore please keep the days?

On the monthly celebration of the king’s birthday, the Jews were taken, under bitter constraint, to partake of the sacrifices; and when the feast of Diony′sus came, they were compelled to walk in the procession in honor of Diony′sus, wearing wreaths of ivy.