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The '''Biblical calendar''' is the [[calendar]] most likely used in Biblical times, certainly by the ancient [[Hebrew]]s, and possibly by [[Great Flood|antediluvian]] [[Seth]]ites as well. [[Noah]] undoubtedly used that calendar to record key dates during the Flood—or [[God]] revealed those dates directly to [[Moses]].<ref name=Jones>[[Floyd Nolen Jones|Jones, Floyd N.]] ''[[The Chronology of the Old Testament]]'', 16th ed. Green Forest, AR: Master Books, 1993-2007 (ISBN 9780890514160), pp. 106-109</ref>
== History and Reconstruction ==
[[James Ussher]] assumed that the ancient Hebrews and Israelites used a variant of the calendar that the ancient [[Egypt]]ians used. This was a solar calendar consisting of twelve months of thirty days each, with five (or, every four years, six) days tacked on at the end. The start of this calendar was, supposedly, the Date of Creation.<ref name=Ussher>[[James Ussher]], ''[[The Annals of the World]]'', [[Larry Pierce]], ed., Green Forest, AR: Master Books, 2003 (ISBN 0890513600), p. 9</ref>{{cquote|It cannot be proven that the Hebrews used lunar months before the Babylonian captivity.}}
[[Sir Isaac Newton]] concluded something quite different when he tackled ancient [[chronology]] himself:{{cquote|The Ancient year of the ''Latines'' was also Luni-solar; for ''Plutarch'' [57] tells us, that the year of ''Numa'' consisted of twelve Lunar months, with intercalary months to make up what the twelve Lunar months wanted of the Solar year. The Ancient year of the ''Egyptians'' was also Luni-solar, and continued to be so 'till the days of ''Hyperion'', or ''Osiris'', a King of Egypt, the father of ''Helius'' and ''Selene'', or ''Orus'' and ''Bubaste'': For the ''Israelites'' brought this year out of ''Egypt''; and ''Diodorus'' tells [58] us that ''Ouranus'' the father of ''Hyperion'' used this year, and [59] that in the Temple of ''Osiris'' the Priests appointed thereunto filled 360 Milk Bowls every day: I think he means one Bowl every day, in all 360, to count the number of days in the Calendar year, and thereby to find out the difference between this and the true Solar year: for the year of 360 days was the year, to the end of which they added five days.
That the ''Israelites'' used the Luni-solar year is beyond question. Their months began with their new Moons. Their first month was called ''Abib'', from the earing of Corn in that month. Their Passover was kept upon the fourteenth day of the first month, the Moon being then in the full: and if the Corn was not then ripe enough for offering the first Fruits, the Festival was put off, by adding an intercalary month to the end of the year; and the harvest was got in before the Pentecost, and the other Fruits gathered before the Feast of the seventh month.
[57] Plutarch. in Numa.
[58] Diodor. l. 3. p. 133.
[59] Diodor. l. 1. p. 13.}}<ref name=newton>[[Isaac Newton|Newton, Sir Isaac]]. ''[http://www.gutenberg.org/files/15784/15784-h/15784-h.htm The Chronology of Ancient Kingdoms Amended].'' Reproduced by Project Gutenberg. Accessed April 3, 2008.</ref>
The references from Diodorus Siculus almost certainly post-date the [[Exodus of Israel]]. In summary, Newton confirms Ussher's deduction concerning the ancient Egyptian calendar, but rejects Ussher's apparent presumption that the ancient Hebrews used a solar calendar with strict thirty-day months.
[[Floyd Nolen Jones|Jones]] accepts Sir Isaac's statements about the Hebrew calendar and offers a detailed explanation. The Hebrew calendar has ''always'' been luni-solar in nature. Hillel II established his calculated luni-solar calendar with the nineteen-year cycle on or about 350 AD.
Earlier than that, and beginning with the destruction of the [[Temple of Jerusalem]] by [[Nebuchadnezzar II]], the Hebrews used an eight-year cycle, with an intercalary Adar I between Shevat and Adar II(VeAdar) inserted on the 3rd, 6th, and 8th year of the cycle. All the other months alternated without fail between 30 and 29 days, beginning with Abib (Nisan) (30) and Zif (Iyar) (29).<ref>''Abib'', ''Zif'', ''Ethanim'', and ''Bul'' are the Hebrew names. ''Nisan'', ''Iyar'', ''Tishrei'', and ''Marcheshvan'' are the [[Aramaic]] names.</ref>
But the original Biblical calendar was not calculated at all, but truly ''observed''. That is to say, it depended strictly on two things: the position of the [[moon]] and the ripening of the [[barley]] crop. It likely began with the month Eitamin (Tishrei) beginning with the new moon that immediately followed Creation Week.
== Calendar rules ==
The names of the months of the Biblical calendar are as follows:<ref name=Jones2>[[Floyd Nolen Jones|Jones]], ''op. cit.'', Appendix E, p. 277</ref>
{| border="1" cellpadding="2"
! Name
! Reference
! Aramaic
! Crops
! Climate
! Special days
|-
| Abib (barley, head)
| {{Bible ref|book=Exodus|chap=23|verses=15}}
| Nisan<ref>{{Bible ref|book=Nehemiah|chap=2|verses=1}}</ref>
| [[Barley]] harvest, [[lentil]]s
| Latter rains
| 14 - Passover<br/>15-21 - Unleavened bread<br/>17 - Firstfruits
|-
| Zif
| {{Bible ref|book=I_Kings|chap=6|verses=1}}
| Iyar, Iyyar
| General harvest
| Latter rains
| None
|-
| "Wheat harvest"
| {{Bible ref|book=Esther|chap=8|verses=9}}
| Sivan
| [[Wheat]] harvest
| Dry
| 7 - Feast of Weeks (Pentecost)
|-
| (Not found)
| (Not attested)
| Tammuz
| [[Vine]] tending
| Dry
| None
|-
| (Not found)
| (Not attested)
| Ab
| First [[grape]]s, [[fig]]s, [[olive]]s
| Dry
| None
|-
| Elul
| {{Bible ref|book=Nehemiah|chap=6|verses=15}}
| Elul
| Grapes, [[date]]s
| Dry
| None
|-
| Ethanim or Tishrei
| {{Bible ref|book=I_Kings|chap=8|verses=2}}
| Tishrei
| Vintage, plowing
| Dry to early rains
| 1 - Feast of Trumpets<br/>10 - Atonement<br/>15-21 - Feast of Tabernacles
|-
| Bul
| {{Bible ref|book=I_Kings|chap=6|verses=38}}
| Marchesvan, Cheshvan
| Wheat, barley, seed sowing
| Early rains
| None
|-
| Chisleu
| {{Bible ref|book=Zechariah|chap=7:verses=1}}
| Kislev
| None
| Cool, rain
| 25 - Feast of Dedication begins<ref>Also known as Feast of Lights, or ''Chanukkah''.</ref>
|-
| Tebeth
| {{Bible ref|book=Esther|chap=2|verses=16}}
| (same)
| None
| Cold, rain
| 1-2 or 1-3 - Feast of Dedication ends
|-
| Shebat
| {{Bible ref|book=Zechariah|chap=1|verses=7}}
| (same)
| Winter figs, [[citrus]] harvest
| Rain
| None
|-
| Adar ([[Iron]], strength)
| {{Bible ref|book=Esther|chap=3|verses=7}}<br/>{{Bible ref|book=Ezra|chap=6|verses=15}}
| (same)
| [[Almond]]s blossom, [[flax]] harvest
| Rain
| 13 - Fast of Esther<br/>14-15 - Purim
|}
A month in the Biblical calendar ends on the day that the new [[moon]] is sighted at sunset, and the next month begins on the next day. Given the length of the synodic month, a Biblical month could run either 29 or 30 days. When weather conditions make a new-moon sighting problematic, the ranking authority (presumably the patriarch of the family, and later a council appointed among the Levites) would declare that the month would last for thirty days, and no longer (except possibly for Adar; see below). The first reliably sighted new moon would begin another month, and so this calendar could correct itself automatically from any missed cycles.
The first month of [[spring]], called Abib or Aviv<ref>''Abib'' and ''Aviv'' are the same word. In Semitic languages, "b" and "v" are the same sound; the distinction between the plosive "b" and the fricative "v" is of no moment.</ref>is a special case. It begins on a new moon, but only when the [[barley]] has turned green and will likely ripen before the Feast of Firstfruits, which must take place on the Sunday (actually called simply "first day (of the week)") following Passover. If this has not happened, then the new moon is not declared and Adar runs longer than the usual 29 or 30 days.
The best approximation from astronomy would be to begin Abib on the new moon ''nearest'' the vernal equinox. At least one authority suggests adding five to six days to make sure that day and night will be equal in length ''in the latitude of Jerusalem'', not at the equator,<ref>Tippie, Robert. "[http://www.bnaiavraham.net/guest_articles/ripe_barley.pdf The Barley is Ripe in Israel: Implications for the Dating of the Passover Celebration]." ''[http://www.bnaiavraham.net/newpage/index2.html B'nai Avraham Nazarine Yisroelite Synagogue]''. Accessed April 3, 2008</ref> but this is not proved. No such month as VeAdar is named in the Bible, nor is its use proved or suspected until after the captivity begins.<ref name=Jones/>
The first day of this calendar likely began on the new moon that exactly followed [[Days of creation|Creation Week]]. In that year, Abib must have begun no sooner than six lunar cycles after Eitamin (to account for the one-month-late beginning of the year after Creation).
The very notion of using the vernal equinox to predict the beginning of Abib, and hence Passover, is in sharp dispute. Many authorities hold that the only predictor of Abib in ancient times was the status of the barley crop in the Land of Israel.<ref name=yrm>"[http://www.yrm.org/equinox_or_barley.htm The Calendar: Equinox or Barley]?" ''Yahweh Restoration Ministries''. Accessed April 3, 2008.</ref><ref name=karaite>"[http://www.karaite-korner.org/abib_faq.shtml Abib FAQ]." ''Karaite Korner'', December 8, 2003. Accessed April 3, 2008.</ref> Others hold that Abib ought to begin on the new moon immediately following the vernal equinox, without fail.<ref name=truth>"[http://www.truthofyahweh.org/barl2002a.html Choose Your Barley, Part 2: The Barley/Equinox Question]." ''Truth of Yahweh''. Accessed April 3, 2008.</ref> At least one commentator holds that fixing Abib to begin on the new moon nearest the equinox is the best estimator of when the barley is likely to come to a green head in Israel.<ref name=Arnow>Arnow, David. "[http://www.livelyseders.com/id76.html Passover and Barley]?" <http://livelyseders.com>. Accessed April 3, 2008. This reference also gives directions for planting an indoor barley crop to provide barley for Passover Seder.</ref><ref>This is why the [[Type:Historical date|Historical date]] datatype, developed specially for CreationWiki, uses this method to fix the beginning of Abib in the AM implementation.</ref>
== Symbolism and specific Bible history ==
The month Ethanim (Tishri) was originally called "the first month," and all the other months were numbered from that month, as one can see in the account of the [[Great Flood]]. This rule changed in {{Bible ref|book=Exodus|chap=23|verses=15}}, wherein [[God]] commanded the Israelites to observe Abib, not Ethanim, as the first month.<ref name=Jones/>
Furthermore, the selection of the almond as the basis of the seven-member lampstand({{Bible ref|book=Exodus|chap=25|verses=31-40}}, {{Bible ref|book=Exodus|chap=37|verses=17-34}}) is telling. When the almonds bloomed, the Israelites used that as a sign to watch the barley crop for the first signs of ripening. This rule was the same even during Sabbath or Jubilee years, and was observable because barley will grow even if uncultivated, and probably grew in sufficient profusion for the Israelites to "harvest" it even when they had not planted it.<ref name=karaite/>
== Further development ==
The [[Babylonia]]n Captivity (586 BC) severed the tie that the [[Israel]]ites (or to be more specific, the [[Southern Kingdom|Jews]]) had to the land. Living in exile in Babylonia, they came under the influence of Babylonia's [[astronomy|astronomers]] and learned their ways. At this time they developed a calculated calendar, with alternating 30 and 29-day months, and intercalated 30-day months every third, sixth, and eighth year. This solution served them well until about 350 AD, when they must have realized that the calendar had begun to drift. Hillel II devised the nineteen-year cycle that the Jews use today.
Speculation on what sort of calendar [[Jesus Christ]] will decree when He returns to [[earth]] to rule it directly<ref>{{Bible ref|book=Revelation|chap=19-20}}</ref> is probably vain. Nevertheless this Biblical calendar is the best candidate for that honor, primarily on account of the detailed and strict instructions that God gave for its observance.
== References ==
{{reflist|2}}
== See also ==
* [[Hebrew Calendar]]
[[Category:Dating Systems]]
== History and Reconstruction ==
[[James Ussher]] assumed that the ancient Hebrews and Israelites used a variant of the calendar that the ancient [[Egypt]]ians used. This was a solar calendar consisting of twelve months of thirty days each, with five (or, every four years, six) days tacked on at the end. The start of this calendar was, supposedly, the Date of Creation.<ref name=Ussher>[[James Ussher]], ''[[The Annals of the World]]'', [[Larry Pierce]], ed., Green Forest, AR: Master Books, 2003 (ISBN 0890513600), p. 9</ref>{{cquote|It cannot be proven that the Hebrews used lunar months before the Babylonian captivity.}}
[[Sir Isaac Newton]] concluded something quite different when he tackled ancient [[chronology]] himself:{{cquote|The Ancient year of the ''Latines'' was also Luni-solar; for ''Plutarch'' [57] tells us, that the year of ''Numa'' consisted of twelve Lunar months, with intercalary months to make up what the twelve Lunar months wanted of the Solar year. The Ancient year of the ''Egyptians'' was also Luni-solar, and continued to be so 'till the days of ''Hyperion'', or ''Osiris'', a King of Egypt, the father of ''Helius'' and ''Selene'', or ''Orus'' and ''Bubaste'': For the ''Israelites'' brought this year out of ''Egypt''; and ''Diodorus'' tells [58] us that ''Ouranus'' the father of ''Hyperion'' used this year, and [59] that in the Temple of ''Osiris'' the Priests appointed thereunto filled 360 Milk Bowls every day: I think he means one Bowl every day, in all 360, to count the number of days in the Calendar year, and thereby to find out the difference between this and the true Solar year: for the year of 360 days was the year, to the end of which they added five days.
That the ''Israelites'' used the Luni-solar year is beyond question. Their months began with their new Moons. Their first month was called ''Abib'', from the earing of Corn in that month. Their Passover was kept upon the fourteenth day of the first month, the Moon being then in the full: and if the Corn was not then ripe enough for offering the first Fruits, the Festival was put off, by adding an intercalary month to the end of the year; and the harvest was got in before the Pentecost, and the other Fruits gathered before the Feast of the seventh month.
[57] Plutarch. in Numa.
[58] Diodor. l. 3. p. 133.
[59] Diodor. l. 1. p. 13.}}<ref name=newton>[[Isaac Newton|Newton, Sir Isaac]]. ''[http://www.gutenberg.org/files/15784/15784-h/15784-h.htm The Chronology of Ancient Kingdoms Amended].'' Reproduced by Project Gutenberg. Accessed April 3, 2008.</ref>
The references from Diodorus Siculus almost certainly post-date the [[Exodus of Israel]]. In summary, Newton confirms Ussher's deduction concerning the ancient Egyptian calendar, but rejects Ussher's apparent presumption that the ancient Hebrews used a solar calendar with strict thirty-day months.
[[Floyd Nolen Jones|Jones]] accepts Sir Isaac's statements about the Hebrew calendar and offers a detailed explanation. The Hebrew calendar has ''always'' been luni-solar in nature. Hillel II established his calculated luni-solar calendar with the nineteen-year cycle on or about 350 AD.
Earlier than that, and beginning with the destruction of the [[Temple of Jerusalem]] by [[Nebuchadnezzar II]], the Hebrews used an eight-year cycle, with an intercalary Adar I between Shevat and Adar II(VeAdar) inserted on the 3rd, 6th, and 8th year of the cycle. All the other months alternated without fail between 30 and 29 days, beginning with Abib (Nisan) (30) and Zif (Iyar) (29).<ref>''Abib'', ''Zif'', ''Ethanim'', and ''Bul'' are the Hebrew names. ''Nisan'', ''Iyar'', ''Tishrei'', and ''Marcheshvan'' are the [[Aramaic]] names.</ref>
But the original Biblical calendar was not calculated at all, but truly ''observed''. That is to say, it depended strictly on two things: the position of the [[moon]] and the ripening of the [[barley]] crop. It likely began with the month Eitamin (Tishrei) beginning with the new moon that immediately followed Creation Week.
== Calendar rules ==
The names of the months of the Biblical calendar are as follows:<ref name=Jones2>[[Floyd Nolen Jones|Jones]], ''op. cit.'', Appendix E, p. 277</ref>
{| border="1" cellpadding="2"
! Name
! Reference
! Aramaic
! Crops
! Climate
! Special days
|-
| Abib (barley, head)
| {{Bible ref|book=Exodus|chap=23|verses=15}}
| Nisan<ref>{{Bible ref|book=Nehemiah|chap=2|verses=1}}</ref>
| [[Barley]] harvest, [[lentil]]s
| Latter rains
| 14 - Passover<br/>15-21 - Unleavened bread<br/>17 - Firstfruits
|-
| Zif
| {{Bible ref|book=I_Kings|chap=6|verses=1}}
| Iyar, Iyyar
| General harvest
| Latter rains
| None
|-
| "Wheat harvest"
| {{Bible ref|book=Esther|chap=8|verses=9}}
| Sivan
| [[Wheat]] harvest
| Dry
| 7 - Feast of Weeks (Pentecost)
|-
| (Not found)
| (Not attested)
| Tammuz
| [[Vine]] tending
| Dry
| None
|-
| (Not found)
| (Not attested)
| Ab
| First [[grape]]s, [[fig]]s, [[olive]]s
| Dry
| None
|-
| Elul
| {{Bible ref|book=Nehemiah|chap=6|verses=15}}
| Elul
| Grapes, [[date]]s
| Dry
| None
|-
| Ethanim or Tishrei
| {{Bible ref|book=I_Kings|chap=8|verses=2}}
| Tishrei
| Vintage, plowing
| Dry to early rains
| 1 - Feast of Trumpets<br/>10 - Atonement<br/>15-21 - Feast of Tabernacles
|-
| Bul
| {{Bible ref|book=I_Kings|chap=6|verses=38}}
| Marchesvan, Cheshvan
| Wheat, barley, seed sowing
| Early rains
| None
|-
| Chisleu
| {{Bible ref|book=Zechariah|chap=7:verses=1}}
| Kislev
| None
| Cool, rain
| 25 - Feast of Dedication begins<ref>Also known as Feast of Lights, or ''Chanukkah''.</ref>
|-
| Tebeth
| {{Bible ref|book=Esther|chap=2|verses=16}}
| (same)
| None
| Cold, rain
| 1-2 or 1-3 - Feast of Dedication ends
|-
| Shebat
| {{Bible ref|book=Zechariah|chap=1|verses=7}}
| (same)
| Winter figs, [[citrus]] harvest
| Rain
| None
|-
| Adar ([[Iron]], strength)
| {{Bible ref|book=Esther|chap=3|verses=7}}<br/>{{Bible ref|book=Ezra|chap=6|verses=15}}
| (same)
| [[Almond]]s blossom, [[flax]] harvest
| Rain
| 13 - Fast of Esther<br/>14-15 - Purim
|}
A month in the Biblical calendar ends on the day that the new [[moon]] is sighted at sunset, and the next month begins on the next day. Given the length of the synodic month, a Biblical month could run either 29 or 30 days. When weather conditions make a new-moon sighting problematic, the ranking authority (presumably the patriarch of the family, and later a council appointed among the Levites) would declare that the month would last for thirty days, and no longer (except possibly for Adar; see below). The first reliably sighted new moon would begin another month, and so this calendar could correct itself automatically from any missed cycles.
The first month of [[spring]], called Abib or Aviv<ref>''Abib'' and ''Aviv'' are the same word. In Semitic languages, "b" and "v" are the same sound; the distinction between the plosive "b" and the fricative "v" is of no moment.</ref>is a special case. It begins on a new moon, but only when the [[barley]] has turned green and will likely ripen before the Feast of Firstfruits, which must take place on the Sunday (actually called simply "first day (of the week)") following Passover. If this has not happened, then the new moon is not declared and Adar runs longer than the usual 29 or 30 days.
The best approximation from astronomy would be to begin Abib on the new moon ''nearest'' the vernal equinox. At least one authority suggests adding five to six days to make sure that day and night will be equal in length ''in the latitude of Jerusalem'', not at the equator,<ref>Tippie, Robert. "[http://www.bnaiavraham.net/guest_articles/ripe_barley.pdf The Barley is Ripe in Israel: Implications for the Dating of the Passover Celebration]." ''[http://www.bnaiavraham.net/newpage/index2.html B'nai Avraham Nazarine Yisroelite Synagogue]''. Accessed April 3, 2008</ref> but this is not proved. No such month as VeAdar is named in the Bible, nor is its use proved or suspected until after the captivity begins.<ref name=Jones/>
The first day of this calendar likely began on the new moon that exactly followed [[Days of creation|Creation Week]]. In that year, Abib must have begun no sooner than six lunar cycles after Eitamin (to account for the one-month-late beginning of the year after Creation).
The very notion of using the vernal equinox to predict the beginning of Abib, and hence Passover, is in sharp dispute. Many authorities hold that the only predictor of Abib in ancient times was the status of the barley crop in the Land of Israel.<ref name=yrm>"[http://www.yrm.org/equinox_or_barley.htm The Calendar: Equinox or Barley]?" ''Yahweh Restoration Ministries''. Accessed April 3, 2008.</ref><ref name=karaite>"[http://www.karaite-korner.org/abib_faq.shtml Abib FAQ]." ''Karaite Korner'', December 8, 2003. Accessed April 3, 2008.</ref> Others hold that Abib ought to begin on the new moon immediately following the vernal equinox, without fail.<ref name=truth>"[http://www.truthofyahweh.org/barl2002a.html Choose Your Barley, Part 2: The Barley/Equinox Question]." ''Truth of Yahweh''. Accessed April 3, 2008.</ref> At least one commentator holds that fixing Abib to begin on the new moon nearest the equinox is the best estimator of when the barley is likely to come to a green head in Israel.<ref name=Arnow>Arnow, David. "[http://www.livelyseders.com/id76.html Passover and Barley]?" <http://livelyseders.com>. Accessed April 3, 2008. This reference also gives directions for planting an indoor barley crop to provide barley for Passover Seder.</ref><ref>This is why the [[Type:Historical date|Historical date]] datatype, developed specially for CreationWiki, uses this method to fix the beginning of Abib in the AM implementation.</ref>
== Symbolism and specific Bible history ==
The month Ethanim (Tishri) was originally called "the first month," and all the other months were numbered from that month, as one can see in the account of the [[Great Flood]]. This rule changed in {{Bible ref|book=Exodus|chap=23|verses=15}}, wherein [[God]] commanded the Israelites to observe Abib, not Ethanim, as the first month.<ref name=Jones/>
Furthermore, the selection of the almond as the basis of the seven-member lampstand({{Bible ref|book=Exodus|chap=25|verses=31-40}}, {{Bible ref|book=Exodus|chap=37|verses=17-34}}) is telling. When the almonds bloomed, the Israelites used that as a sign to watch the barley crop for the first signs of ripening. This rule was the same even during Sabbath or Jubilee years, and was observable because barley will grow even if uncultivated, and probably grew in sufficient profusion for the Israelites to "harvest" it even when they had not planted it.<ref name=karaite/>
== Further development ==
The [[Babylonia]]n Captivity (586 BC) severed the tie that the [[Israel]]ites (or to be more specific, the [[Southern Kingdom|Jews]]) had to the land. Living in exile in Babylonia, they came under the influence of Babylonia's [[astronomy|astronomers]] and learned their ways. At this time they developed a calculated calendar, with alternating 30 and 29-day months, and intercalated 30-day months every third, sixth, and eighth year. This solution served them well until about 350 AD, when they must have realized that the calendar had begun to drift. Hillel II devised the nineteen-year cycle that the Jews use today.
Speculation on what sort of calendar [[Jesus Christ]] will decree when He returns to [[earth]] to rule it directly<ref>{{Bible ref|book=Revelation|chap=19-20}}</ref> is probably vain. Nevertheless this Biblical calendar is the best candidate for that honor, primarily on account of the detailed and strict instructions that God gave for its observance.
== References ==
{{reflist|2}}
== See also ==
* [[Hebrew Calendar]]
[[Category:Dating Systems]]