To answer your good question, let’s read John 7:1-6, “After these things Jesus walked in Galilee: for he would not walk in Jewry, because the Jews sought to kill him. Now the Jews’ feast of tabernacles was at hand. His brethren therefore said unto him, Depart hence, and go into Judaea, that thy disciples also may see the works that thou doest. For there is no man that doeth any thing in secret, and he himself seeketh to be known openly. If thou do these things, shew thyself to the world. For neither did his brethren believe in him. Then Jesus said unto them, My time is not yet come: but your time is alway ready.”

There were seven feasts of Jehovah that the children of Israel were instructed to keep. The seven feasts were the Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits, Pentecost, Trumpets, Day of Atonement, and Tabernacles. These feasts are described in Leviticus 23. In that chapter, the details for the Feast of Tabernacles are described as a feast that takes place on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, lasting for seven days. It was also marked by a holy day or Sabbath on which no work could occur. Each day included offerings to the Lord, with the eighth day marking another holy day without work. During this time, those celebrating the feast would do so while living in tents, or booths, made from tree branches. The feast of Tabernacles, or Booths was the third and final feast that required the Lord’s people to gather together at His appointed place.  Deuteronomy 16:16 says, “Three times in a year doth every one of thy males appear before Jehovah thy God in the place which He doth choose–in the feast of unleavened things, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of booths; and they do not appear before Jehovah empty.”

At this point, the Lord Jesus was avoiding Judea because there were Jews there who were seeking to kill Him. (Read John 5:1-18).  In verses 3-4, the Lord’s natural brothers were advising Him to go to Judea.  Verse 5 tells us that the Lord’s brothers did not believe He was the Messiah at that time, so they were only tempting and ridiculing Him to go to Judea. 

Now, let’s look more closely at John 7:6, “Then Jesus said unto them, My time is not yet come: but your time is alway ready.”  It is probable the Lord Jesus meant no more than that, that he had some business to attend to before he could go to Jerusalem; but his brothers, having nothing to hinder them might take off to Judea immediately.

There is another thought that the Lord is speaking of His passion here.  His time of suffering had not yet come.  Earlier, in a marriage feast in Cana, Mary, the Lord’s mother came to the Lord and told Him there was no wine left at the feast.  The Lord responded to her in John 2:4, “Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come.”  At this point, it was not yet time for the Lord to manifest Himself to Israel.  All the activities of the Lord Jesus were directed by His Father, and He never moved apart from God’s direction.  In John 7, the Lord knew that if He traveled to Judea He would be killed.  He did not shun death, but there was an exact time for His death on the cross, and that time had not yet come.  The Lord once again said to His brothers in John 7:8, “Go ye up unto this feast: I go not up yet unto this feast; for my time is not yet full come.”

There was a time when it was the proper time for His death on the cross.  We read in Luke 9:51, “And it came to pass, when the time was come that he should be received up, he stedfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem.”  When the time had come, the Lord Jesus would not be deterred from going to the cross.  He “set his face”, which means He looked ahead to going to Jerusalem and would not be distracted or dissuaded from giving Himself on Calvary’s cross.  How thankful we should be that the Lord Jesus was “obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” (Philippians 2:8).  (CC)  (554.6)