The Greek that is translated as “the Festival of Booths was near” or similar in English is translated in the German New Testament translation by Berger / Nord (publ. 1999) as das Laubhüttenfest stand vor der Tür or “the Festival of Booths was just around the corner” (lit: “right in front of the door”). This idiomatic translation plays on semantic parallels between the “booths” and “doors.”