I have a question for you. What calendar do you use when interpreting the Bible’s prophetic record? Do you see “time” in the Bible through an Evangelical, Messianic, Hebrew Roots, Adventist, Catholic or some other denominational perspective? Can you give a reasonable explanation for your interpretational bias?
In my opinion the mechanics of “time” in the Biblical record is one of the most neglected aspects of Bible prophecy. It doesn’t matter whether you are one of today’s bestselling authors on Bible prophecy, a local pastor, or a layman like myself, few today can articulate a clear or reasonable understanding of how the Bible reckons “time” as it relates to the Bible’s prophetic record.
Some say the prophecies of the Bible should be interpreted using a solar year, others a lunar year and still others lunar/solar. Even more disconcerting is the fact that many prophecy teachers today use multiple and often conflicting calendars when interpreting the Bible’s prophetic record.
None of us like to miss appointments and as we draw closer to the Messiah’s return we need to ensure that we are reading our calendars correctly. Even if you believe you’re not going to be here for the final events of this age what about the people you leave behind? Will the calendar you have hanging on your wall provide them with an accurate understanding of the final prophetic events leading up to the Messiah’s return?
Today, I’d like to make an effort to bring a little bit of clarity to the calendar confusion. Hopefully by the time we are done you’ll have a more congruent understanding of Biblical “time” and how that “time” applies to the Bible’s prophetic record.
The Basics of Biblical Time
To get us headed in the right direction Continue reading →
Long after the critics of Mark Biltz’s book, Blood Moons have been forgotten, the premise of his book will be changing how people view the Bible’s calendar. To be sure Biltz was not the first to show the religious calendar of the Bible must be understood within its Biblical context but it was his research that was the catalyst which raised awareness of the subject to the point where it can no longer be ignored.
In his book, Mark Biltz showed that our Creator set out “divine appointments” which he codified in the religious calendar given to Israel. Mr. Biltz demonstrated the early church’s belief that several of these divine appointments were fulfilled in Yeshua’s (Jesus’) death and resurrection. He went on to make a strong case for a future fulfillment of those Biblical holy days in events related to the 2nd coming of Yeshua.
Now I have read Biltz’s book on the Blood Moons and contrary to the assertions of some, he has not claimed the blood moons are a specific sign of the 2nd coming of Christ in 2014/2015. What he does claim is the blood moons are an important reminder to our generation that we should understand how our Creator reckons time. For those willing to listen, the blood moons remind us that the Biblical calendar is based upon both the cycles of the sun and moon. It is this lunar/solar interaction which makes our Creator’s calendar so unique.
Let me tell you why I believe Biltz’s premise concerning a Biblical calendar is controversial to so many. Simply put, it represents a fundamental shift in how we view Biblical “time”.
I’ll try to explain. If you pulled back the cover on your expensive wrist watch you’ll find different sized gears which allow your watch to keep track of seconds, minutes, days, weeks, months, and years. Each gear is a specific size which allows it to precisely measure “time”.
Our Creator’s watch works the same way only His gears are the Sun, Moon, Earth and Stars. This cosmic Rolex, if you will, measures time according to a standard He set in motion at creation. (Gen. 1:14) Our Earth in its orbit around the sun is the gear which gives us our year of 365.24 days. The moon is the gear which gives us a month of 29.53 days. The rotation of the earth is the gear which gives us our day of 24 hours.
Here is what makes the Biblical calendar extraordinary. 12 lunar cycles (months) of 29.53 days equals 354.36 days. This makes the Biblical lunar/solar “year” about 11 days shorter than each solar cycle of 365.24 days. If the Biblical calendar was not corrected every few years the months would “wander” causing them to move through the seasons. A good example of this type of wandering calendar is the lunar calendar of Islam.
If Nisan (the 1st Biblical month beginning in March or April) was not fixed to the solar/agricultural cycle it would continue to move 11 days away from its starting point every year. In only eighteen years time Nisan would be celebrated in the fall. YHWH in his infinite wisdom did not intend for this to happen so when Israel left Egypt He instructed Moses to begin each new year in the month of the “Abib”. Abib is a term for barley when it is forming its ears of grain. Not to get lost in details but by linking the Biblical calendar to the solar/agricultural cycle of Abib, YHWH provided the Israelites a means to synchronize the lunar cycle of 29.53 days with the solar year of 365.24 days, thus preventing it from wandering in the solar cycle. In practical terms this synchronization was accomplished by adding a 13th month approximately every 3 years. In modern terms we call this an intercalation. (For a Biblical example see my article Ezekiel’s 13th Month)
Here is another way to look at it: The Biblical calendar can be divided into two parts. One part, as it relates to mankind’s day to day activity, is governed by the rising and setting of the sun. According to the Biblical example (first set by YHWH at creation) this day to day cycle is also grouped into 6 days of labor and 1 day of rest.
The other part of the Biblical calendar, as Mark Biltz so wonderfully demonstrates in his book Blood Moons, is governed by the cycle of the moon. Specific days in these lunar months are designated as “divine appointments”. When we look up into the night sky after a hard days work the lunar cycle is there to remind us of our Creator’s plan of reconciliation for all mankind through Yeshua. In the first month on Passover, Yeshua became the “lamb of God which takes away the sins of the world.” Not many days later he rose from the grave and became, “the firstfruits” of them that slept. If YHWH had not fixed the Biblical calendar to the solar/agricultural cycle Yeshua would not have fulfilled these Divine appointments.
If you’ve read my article on the The Messiah Factors you know it is no accident that lunar/solar cycles of the Biblical calendar are reconciled by a 13th month. This 13th month is the bridge which connects the side of the Biblical calendar which governs mankind’s struggle to survive under the curse of sin, with the side of the calendar which offers hope through the promised Redeemer.
For many today, Biltz’s book Blood Moons is an uncomfortable reminder that our way of looking at “time” has wandered from its Biblical foundations. Think of the implications this has for how we understand many of the prophetic passages in the Scripture. Have you ever wondered why the prophecies in the book of Daniel and the book of Revelation do not use the term “years” to designate the shorter time frames? It makes perfect sense if you realize the Biblical calendar “year” varies between 12 & 13 months. Remember years in a Biblical sense are based upon a certain number of lunar cycles. Those lunar cycles are then recalibrated every few years to synchronize them with the solar/agricultural cycle.
This explains why a 7 “year” or a 3.5 “year” tribulation period is never specifically mentioned in relation to the prophecies of the Bible. A “year” in the strictest Biblical sense is not 365.24 days but rather 12 or 13 lunar cycles. This is the reason the books of Daniel and Revelation so often use days and months instead of “years” to described specific end time events. So next time you’re reading a prophetic passage in the Scripture consider it in terms of our Creator’s calendar, you might be surprised at the insights you find.
I leave you with a final thought. No matter what you believe about the Blood Moons they are, at the very least, a spectacular reminder for us to look at Biblical “time” in terms of our Creator’s calendar not a poor man-made imitation.
In the words of king David:
The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. 2 Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. 3 There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. 4 Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun, {line: or, rule, or, direction} 5 Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. 6 His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof. Psalm 19:1-6
Authors Note:
For those Berean’s interested in digging into this further the following chart shows the prophecies of Daniel & Revelation using a Biblical reckoning of time.
(Click on image to enlarge)
Book 1
Book I - Description
The 13th Enumeration
"A book that will change how you look at the Bible's Messianic Symbolism."
The Jubilee Code -
"A book that will show you real Biblical evidence for Yahweh's guiding in hand history bringing about His redemptive plan for mankind."
Living in a world which no longer keeps time according to a Biblical standard we sometimes inadvertently assume our own concept of timekeeping when interpreting certain passages of Scripture. In this article I would like to look at one of the most basic concepts of Biblical time. What is the definition of a “day” according to a Biblical reckoning of time? I’ve found that once I understood a Biblical “day” I was able to see some of the great events of the Bible from a different perspective.
Today you and I understand a “day” as a period of 24 hours beginning at 12:00:01 am (midnight). This is the point when our calendar day changes. A Biblical day on the other hand begins at “even”. In the Bible the first definition of a day is found in Genesis 1:5.
Genesis 1:5 5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.
Notice how the “first day” is ordered: “…the evening and the morning”. Evening is mentioned first. The word “evening” used in this text represents the Hebrew word ereb. It means evening, night, or sunset. Traditionally, it is understood that this means the day begins at sundown. Granted, Genesis 1:5 is not the most concrete definition of a day one might like to find, but it does provide at least a glimpse of how a “day” is ordered in the Scripture. To get a more conclusive definition of a day we must turn to Leviticus 23. Here a very special day is described and delimited.
Leviticus 23:27-32 27 Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto YHWH. 28 And ye shall do no work in that same day: for it is a day of atonement, to make an atonement for you before YHWH your God. 29 For whatsoever soul it be that shall not be afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from among his people. 30 And whatsoever soul it be that doeth any work in that same day, the same soul will I destroy from among his people. 31 Ye shall do no manner of work: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings. 32 It shall be unto you a sabbath of rest, and ye shall afflict your souls: in the ninth day of the month at even, from even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath.
The passage above gives specific instructions for celebrating the Day of Atonement also known as Yom Kippur. Notice verse 27 clearly states this day is to be observed on the 10th day of the 7th month. Verse 32 goes on to say this day was to be a “Sabbath of rest”. Further it defines this special day as beginning on the 9th day at “even”, “from even unto even”. This confirms for us that a “day” does indeed begin at ereb or sundown as first indicated in Genesis 1:5. Further the text shows us that when “even” is used in connection with a Biblical calendar day it designates the end of the day mentioned and the start of the next day. The ninth day “at even”, in this case, clearly refers to the start of the 10th day.
The chart below gives a visual of the above information. Click on Image to enlarge.
Book 1
Book I - Description
The 13th Enumeration
"A book that will change how you look at the Bible's Messianic Symbolism."
The Jubilee Code -
"A book that will show you real Biblical evidence for Yahweh's guiding in hand history bringing about His redemptive plan for mankind."
I have a question for you. What calendar do you use when interpreting the Bible’s prophetic record? Do you see “time” in the Bible through an Evangelical, Messianic, Hebrew Roots, Adventist, Catholic or some other denominational perspective? Can you give a reasonable explanation for your interpretational bias?
