John 5

Erik mentioned that John’s gospel covers the final year of Jesus’s earthly ministry. Here are the references to the feasts found in John.

• Passover: “Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast…” (2:23)
• Shavuot (Pentecost): “After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.” (5:1)
• Sukkot (Booths/Tabernacles): “Now the Jews’ Feast of Booths was at hand.”(7:2)
• Hanukkah: “At that time the Feast of Dedication took place at Jerusalem.” (10:22)
• Passover: “Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and many went up from the country to Jerusalem before the Passover to purify themselves.” (11:55)

Of the four, only Hanukkah is not considered a pilgrimage feast (Heb. regal). All male Jews were supposed to go to Jerusalem for the three pilgrimage feasts, and Jesus seems to have observed all of them.