Deuteronomy 16:8

8. See introd. note. The incompatibility of this v. with the preceding is obvious unless we are to explain tents as the shelters which pilgrims to the central sanctuary pitched during the feast. But (as we have seen) tents means the people’s homes. The numbering of the days is not clear. If the Passover day itself is included there is no contradiction of Deu_16:3, for that was the first day of unleavened bread, and this v. may be interpreted as also fixing seven days for the eating of such bread; but distinguishing them as six plus a seventh on which in addition the solemn assembly was to be held. But if the Passover day was meant to be included it is strange that it is not mentioned. On the whole, and particularly because of the two expressions characteristic of P, a solemn assembly and thou shalt do no work (the latter however also in Deu_5:13), it is probable that Deu_16:8 is an addition by the compiler of the two once separate laws on the Passover and the Maṣṣôth.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Deu 16:8. Six days — That is, besides the first day on which the passover was killed. So that, in all, unleavened bread was eaten seven days.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Six days shalt thou eat unleavened bread,.... In other places it is ordered to be eaten seven days, Exo 12:15 and here it is not said six only; it was to be eaten on the seventh as on the other, though that is here distinguished from the six, because of special and peculiar service assigned to it, but not because of an exemption from eating unleavened bread on it. The Jews seem to understand this of different corn of which the bread was made, and not of different sort of bread; the Targum of Jonathan is, on the first day ye shall offer the sheaf (the firstfruits of the barley harvest), and on the six days which remain ye shall begin to eat the unleavened bread of the new fruits, and so Jarchi:

and on the seventh day shall be a solemn assembly to the Lord thy God; a holy convocation, devoted to religious exercises, and the people were restrained, according to the sense of the word, from all servile work, as follows:

thou shalt do no work therein; that is, the business of their callings, their trades and manufactories; they were obliged to abstain from all kind of work excepting what was necessary for the dressing of food, and in this it differed from a sabbath; see Exo 12:16.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Six days after the solemn day is ended, or in all seven (Exodus xiii. 7.; Calmet); or the seventh day is here remarkable for some particular distinction. (Menochius) --- Assembly. Hebrew, " the feast of prohibition, or of withholding," or rather the festival day, in which all must make their appearance, to do homage to their Lord, Leviticus xxiii. 36. (Calmet) --- Septuagint, "on the 7th is the dismission, (or termination) a feast to the Lord." (Haydock)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

Six days, to wit, besides the first day, on which the passover was killed; or rather besides the seventh and the last day, which is here mentioned apart, not as if leavened bread might be eaten then, for the contrary was evident from many places, but because there was something more to be done, to wit, a solemn assembly to be kept. So in all there were seven days, as it is said, Exo 12:15; Lev 23:6; Num 28:17.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

On the seventh day shall be a solemn assembly. This is not placed in antithesis to the injunction, six days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, as if the Feast of Unleavened Bread (mazzoth) lasted only for six days and the seventh was to be devoted to a service of a different kind; it simply prescribes that the seventh day of the festival was to be celebrated by an assembling of the whole of those who had come to the feast; the festival was to be wound up with a day of holy convocation, in which no work was to be done. (Lev_23:36) On all the days unleavened bread was to be eaten, and on the seventh there was besides to be a solemn assembly to the Lord (jwOjyl trx called inmi). (Lev_23:36, "a holy convocation (vdqo arq)

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Six days - Namely, besides the first day, on which the passover was killed.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

ששת ימים תאכל מצות SIX DAYS THOU SHALT EAT UNLEAVENED BREAD — But in another passage it states, (Exodus 12:15): “seven days [ye shall eat unleavened bread]’’! But the explanation is: seven days ye may eat Mazzoth prepared from the old produce and six days (out of the seven. i.e. the last six days, after the Omer has been offered and the new crop has become permitted as food) ye may eat Mazzoth prepared from the new crop (Sifrei Devarim 134:5). Another explanation is: It teaches regarding the eating of unleavened bread on the seventh day of Passover that it is not obligatory; and from here (from this law concerning the seventh day) you may derive the law for the other six days. For the seventh day was included in the general statement (“seven days, thou shalt eat unleavened bread’’), and in the text: “six days thou shall eat unleavened bread” it has left the general statement, to teach... eating unleavened bread on it is not obligatory but optional. Now, according to the well-known rule, it did not leave the general statement in order to teach this regarding itself alone but regarding everything that is included in the general statement. Now how is it with the seventh day? It is optional as regards the eating of unleavened bread (as explained in the earlier portion of this comment)! This, too, according to the rule, applies also to everything that was included in the general statement, and therefore all the other days are also optional in this respect, with the exception, however, of the first night of Passover, for which Scripture has fixed it (the eating of unleavened bread) as an obligation, as it is said, (Exodus 22:18) “at evening ye shall eat unleavened bread” (Pesachim 120a; cf. also Rashi on Exodus 12:15).

עצרת לה' אלהיך [AND ON THE SEVENTH DAY SHALL BE] A RESTRICTION IN HONOR OF THE LORD — i.e., restrict yourself from work (Chagigh 18a). — Another explanation is that עצרת denotes a gathering for eating and drinking (a banquet), like the expression used (Judges 13:15) “Let us detain (נעצרה) thee [that we may make ready a kid for thee]”.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.

Now he said, And on the seventh day [of Passover] shall be a solemn assembly to the Eternal thy G-d; thou shalt do no work therein. But he did not mention the prohibition of work on the first day [of Passover]; he likewise did not state such a prohibition for the Festival of Weeks, nor for Tabernacles, nor did he mention the commandment of the palm-branch [on the Festival of Tabernacles] and he likewise did not mention here the Day of Remembrance [i.e., the New Year] and the tenth of that month [i.e., the Day of Atonement] — the reason, as I have explained, is that now he came to mention only the [commandment to make an] appearance [in the Sanctuary] and the [commandment of] festivity, for all Israelites are obligated to make a pilgrimage on these three festivals to the place which G-d shall choose and celebrate there every man as he is able, according to the blessing of G-d which He hath given him, to rejoice before Him, to thank for all the good which He hath bestowed on us according to his compassions, and according to the multitude of His mercies. He [Moses] added, and on the seventh day shall be a solemn assembly meaning: Six days thou shalt eat unleavened bread and in addition to them is a solemn assembly on the seventh day, the purport being that they be further detained before Him to eat the unleavened bread. And because he said that [the seventh day] is Atzereth it might possibly mean that they be “restrained” only for the eating of the unleavened bread as on the [six] preceding days, therefore it was necessary to admonish [also in the same verse] that you are not to do work therein. Similarly He said with reference to the eighth day of the Festival of Tabernacles in the section on the festivals in the Book of Leviticus, Seven days ye shall bring an offering made by fire unto the Eternal; on the eighth day shall be a holy convocation unto you; and ye shall bring an offering made by fire unto the Eternal; it is a solemn assembly; ye shall do no manner of servile work, meaning that [the eighth day] is restrained in addition to the first [seven] days with respect to the bringing of a fire-offering, and it has a further prohibition against [doing therein any manner of] servile work, [a prohibition shared only by the first day of Tabernacles, but not by any of the intermediate days].And by way of the Truth, [the mystic teachings of the Cabala, the verse stating that the seventh day of Passover] Atzereth is “the congregation of Israel,” and the verse comes to teach us the secret of the day. But it is not like Atzereth of the eighth day of Tabernacles, for the eighth day is a separate festival and the offering brought then, is for the congregation of Israel, but it is unlike the offerings brought on the seven days [of the Tabernacles]. The seventh day of Passover, however, is part of the Festival [of Passover] and it is Atzereth, for, sometimes it is counted as the eighth (crown). See L’vush Ha’orah to Ricanti here. and sometimes it is included [as part of the seven]. Thus it is like the Sabbath in which there is the [commandment to] remember and [the commandment to] observe, the honor for the day and honor for the night. [Thus the offering on the seventh day of Passover is part of the festival], and therefore he said here, a solemn assembly to the Eternal thy G-d, while there [with reference to the eighth day of Tabernacles] it is said, and ye shall bring an offering made by fire unto the Eternal; it is a solemn assembly, meaning that the offering is the Atzereth and therefore “the meal” is small. The student learned in the mystic teachings of Cabala will understand.He [Moses] did not mention here the eighth day of the Festival of Tabernacles, because it has already been mentioned, and [because] there is no obligation that we go up in pilgrimage to the Sanctuary another time [in honor of the eighth day].

Ramban (Nachmanides) on the Tanakh — English translation: “Commentary on the Torah by Ramban (Nachmanides). Translated and annotated by Charles B. Chavel. New York, Shilo Pub. House, 1971-1976” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.