Zechariah

In the early post-exilic period, the people ask the prophet Zechariah whether they should still fast to commemorate the destruction of the Temple now that it was being rebuilt. Zechariah, in a long collection of oracles, explains that the fasts will eventually be cancelled, once the people (7:9–10) “Execute true justice; deal loyally and compassionately with one another; do not defraud the widow, the orphan, the stranger, and the poor; and do not plot evil against one another.” So, did they ever cancel the fasts?

In biblical times, scraps of writing were stored together in jars, likely based on theme or topic, and these collections were combined and edited into our biblical books. Similarly, Talmudic pericopae began with collections of legal or wise sayings written on pitqi, “scraps,” and stored together in jars, or on a pinqas, wooden slats bound together.

The book of Zechariah envisions a time when all the nations will come to the Temple in Jerusalem on Sukkot. The festival’s eschatological significance in the Second Temple period is hinted at in the book of Enoch, in the book of Revelation, and on coins minted during the great rebellion and the Bar Kochba rebellion.

The Priestly Torah discusses the Tabernacle at extraordinary length, emphasizing its portability. Nothing in P ever says this structure was meant to be temporary. P’s Tabernacle was not foreshadowing the Temple, but was a polemic against Haggai and Zechariah’s agitation to build the Second Temple.

“May the All-Merciful One reestablish the fallen sukkah of [King] David” הרחמן הוא יקים לנו את סוכת דוד הנופלת — from the Grace after Meals of Sukkot.

The Significance of the Rabbinic Choice of Haftarah for Shabbat Chanukah

Biblical concepts about the Second Temple, its purification, and dedication strongly inform the development of Chanukah’s earliest customs and symbols.