Question:
Why were the new moons kept anciently? Why are they not now observed? And why will they be celebrated in the new earth according to Isaiah 66?
Answer:
The Hebrew word for “new moon” was chôdesh (pronounced kho’-desh), meaning a month or monthly. The feasts of new moons anciently were designed to keep monthly remembrance of the Giver of all blessings, as it was from the moon that the yearly feast seasons were reckoned. (See Numbers 28:11-15). A nation could keep such a feast much better than individuals scattered worldwide, under all kinds of limitations, as Christians have always been. The sacrifices of that day, too, like all others, met their fulfillment in the fullness of our Lord. (See Colossians 2:16, 17). The Scriptures do not say that a new moon festival will be held on the new earth. The Bible says, “And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD.” Isaiah 66:23. That verse could rightly be rendered, “From one month to the next, and from one Sabbath to the next.” There will simply be the monthly gatherings for worship marked by the new moon when the tree of life yields its various fruits (Compare Revelation 22:2).
One of the best and easiest answers for the observance of ancient feasts in the present dispensation is that nowhere in the Scriptures does the Lord require it. As a matter of fact, such adherence in the New Testament was referred to as “weak and beggarly” by the Apostle Paul. In Galatians 4, he says, “But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage? Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years. I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain.” (Galatians 4:9-11). When one compares Galatians 4:10 with other scriptures such as 2 Chronicles 31:3 or 23:31, it is clear that the “days, and months, and times, and years” refer to the “morning and evening burnt offerings,” “the sabbaths,” “new moons,” and “set feasts.” Some will seize on the word “sabbaths” and conclude that the weekly Sabbath of the Lord is included therein, but those “sabbaths” in the context of the verses are referring to the feast day sabbaths. The Lord clearly distinguishes them from the weekly Sabbath in Leviticus 23. (See vv. 1-4 specifically). Albert Barnes, in his commentary on the Bible, said the following regarding Galatian 4:10:
“It is not a fair interpretation of this to suppose that the apostle refers to the Sabbath, properly so called, for this was a part of the Decalogue; and was observed by the Saviour himself, and by the apostles also. It is a fair interpretation to apply it to all those days which are not commanded to be kept holy in the Scriptures. . . such observances are as inconsistent now with the freedom of the gospel as they were in the time of Paul. We should observe as seasons of holy time what it can be proved God has commanded us, and no more.”
Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Whole Bible
For further understanding , see our posts “Paul Proves That We Have Nothing To Do With The Law” and “The Seventh-Day Sabbath Was Simply One Of The Ceremonial Sabbaths.”
