The Purpose of this Project

Important To Note about the Hebrews' Lunar Calendar

The Hebrews' Lunar Calendar is Self-Correcting:

It is important to note that the Hebrews' Lunar Calendar system self-corrects any mistakes that might occur due to uncertain information, human error or a rigid computer program which cannot account for nuances which may be involved. Errors (or differences in choices made) could conceivably happen with extremely close calls when a New Moon Crecent may be just minutes away from the point of demarcation. Such as:

At the approaching Vernal Equinox, if there is an extremely close call between starting the New Year at the present New Moon, or to instead add the calendar's leap month before starting the New Year; and technically the wrong choice is made; the error will self-correct at the subsequent Vernal Equinox.
The same applies to very close calls on New Moons for beginning New Months. Any error which might occur will be self-corrected at the next New Moon.

The Temple's New Moon observers were numerous and covered a large area. It is well known that Temple officials were absolutely meticulous about their calendar and any such errors would have been minimal. Morover, any and all effects of the few errors which might arise, would be transient in nature and of limited duration.

   The purpose of this project has been to research, obtain and share as much information as possible on the topic of God's Seven-Millennium Plan For The World. Through His Word, God reveals to the believer much of what lies ahead for us in the future. This is not often stated plainly and succinctly, I think because doing so would lessen our need to Trust Him and to have Faith in our Creator and Redeemer. So the details aren't just "out there" for all to see. Nonetheless, I believe there are many clues in the Scriptures if we are simply willing to dig deep enough to find them, and then to use our God-given minds to put the pieces together in a logical way that makes sense. Will we be right all the time? If our motives are right and it's God's will ... can we really say "no"? God might even give us a little help along the way; and I honestly believe I have received some from time to time. Numerous problems - some of which seemed 'insurmountable' - have just vanished; sometimes after a quick prayer and sometimes after prayer and then waking up with a new perspective. But I wouldn't be so presumptuous as to say that everything you find here will be "right". If this project can get someone thinking deeply and honestly about this most important topic, that's good enough for me.

   The place to begin this project is to determine how Time is treated within the Bible. From the information we gather, a Biblical Timeline will be built. We will need to be accurate; as accurate as possible; using the most detailed information we can find. We will need to think like the Hebrews of biblical times; we will need to view time as they did; and most importantly we will need to understand their method of dating; we will need to understand the calendar which they used.

   The Bible's Calendar is based upon the movements of the Moon, in particular:   the Moon's Phases, the Lunar Month (about 29.5 days), and the Moon's Metonic Cycle (the period of time after which the phases of the moon recur on the same day of the year - almost exactly 19 years).   Of relevance to this project are the Moon's Phases, particularly its New Moon Phase; when the Moon is precisely aligned between the Earth and the Sun (180 degrees), and it's surface as viewed from Earth, is completely unlit and unseen.   As instructed by God, the Jewish people set the beginning of each New Month, not by the New Moon itself, but by the first Hebrew Day (beginning at Sunset) upon which the Crescent of the New Moon is visible before Sunrise (source). So those who would look into the past to find exactly when (upon which Day of the Week for example) a certain event occurred, do themselves and others a disservice when they do not properly account for the time lag between the Astronomical New Moon and the assigning of the First Day of the Month at the New Moon's Sliver-Crescent.

   The calendar used by the Hebrews in the Bible is fairly well understood and there are computer generated examples available online. But the more I researched about this Biblical Calendar, the more uncertain I became that any of these computer programs were incorporating all of the necessary methodology to truly create the authentic calendar. The Hebrew Calendar is Lunar based; meaning it determines the timing of its months based on the New Moon Phase (no visible light) of the Moon. The beginning of each new month is to coincide with the New Moon; or more precisely for the Hebrews: at the first visible crescent (or sliver) of the New Moon. Among the various unknowns, the biggest thing that is lacking (for me at least) in other biblical-calendar creators is their inability to incorporate the delay demanded, from the precise time of the New Moon, which science can now determine, until the appearing of the Hebrews' visible sliver-crescent of moonlight.

   Eventually I decided that there is only one way to be certain of getting the methodology correct: Complete my own Bible Calendar research to become completely familiar with it, and then write my own computer program incorporating all the parameters that need to be used. So that's what I've done. It was a huge undertaking but certainly worth the time and effort. I refer to it as the Biblical Hebrew Calendar Creator (BHCC). I'll get into more of its details shortly on another page. For now I want to outline which material I decided to include when creating this calendar.

   Other biblical calendars tend to focus on the many and varied Hebrew customs and holidays; both religious and traditional; including both those which are important as well as many of lesser importance. That's fine for their purposes, but I have chosen to include only what was going to be helpful for our purpose: The timing and interpretation of prophecy. I believe the fewer unhelpful distractions the better, which means the inclusion of only the major observances and celebrations; the ones that God deemed important enough to receive special treatment in His Word; God's "Appointed Times" - God's Moedim. God's Moedim are of utmost significance, and prophetic events would surely be positioned relative to them.

You Need To Learn About GOD'S MOEDIM Before Proceeding.

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Leviticus, Chapter 23 - God's Moedim

1 The Lord spoke again to Moses, saying, 2 "Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, 'The Lord's appointed times [Heb: moedim] which you shall proclaim as holy convocations - My appointed times [My moedim] are these:
- Here is God's instruction concerning His "appointed times" - His moedim. To state it mildly: It would be shocking if this list from God was inaccurate, incomplete or lacking in any way. We will now consider this information in some detail.

ONE Weekly MOED - the 7th Day Sabbath
- The 7th day of every week is the weekly Sabbath - Marked by no work; rest:
3 'For six days work may be done, but on the seventh day there is a Sabbath of complete rest, a holy convocation. You shall not do any work; it is a Sabbath to the Lord in all your dwellings.
- The Weekly Moed - the Seventh-Day Sabbath - has been detailed. Now carrying on with Yearly Moedim:
4 'These are the appointed times of the Lord, holy convocations which you shall proclaim at the times appointed for them.
- Moedim that are termed "Holy Convocations" are Sabbaths of Rest - No Work is allowed. Verses 3, 7, 8, 21, 24-25 and 27-32 confirm this.

Spring Celebrations

FIRST Yearly Moed - Total Yearly Sabbaths = 0

Preparation for Passover - Nisan 14 (a Work Day for Preparation; not a Feast; not a Holy Convocation; not a Sabbath)

The subject of Passover is central to much associated, highly important information. We will begin the subject of Passover by viewing God's original description and instruction given at the very first Passover, in Exodus 12. Pertinent facts we note from Exodus 12 include:

The Passover Lamb is to be slain on the 14th Day of the First Month - Nisan 14. (vs1-6)
It is killed at "twilight". (v6) Literally: "between the two evenings". - NASB, footnote k This detail is important and will be explained as we move forward.
The Lamb is eaten "that same night." (v 8) This is Nisan 15, the night following the 14th's twilight when the Lamb was slain. Hebrew days begin at sunset.
The word "Passover" combines the words "pass" and "over", recounting how God passed over the Israelites and slew only the Egyptians' firstborn. (v13)
God Passed Over Israel (slaying Egypt's firstborn) "at midnight" (v29), still Nisan 15, and then, in the daytime, Israel left Egypt "on that very day." (vs30-50)
Passover is celebrated because "on this very day [Nisan 15] I (God) brought your multitudes out of the land of Egypt; therefore you shall keep this day." (v17)
Israel's memorial of Passover is the Feast of Unleavened Bread lasting 7 days, with a "holy assembly" (a Sabbath day) on the 1st and 7th days. (vs14-16)
The Feast lasts from the evening of Nisan 14 (the end of Nisan 14) until the evening of Nisan 21 (the end of Nisan 21) (vs18-19), Nisan 15 to 21 - 7 Days.

THIRD Yearly Moed - Total Yearly Sabbaths = 2

Offering of First Fruits (Reshit Katzir) - Date Varies (Not a Sabbath)
9 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 10 "Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, 'When you enter the land which I am going to give to you and you gather its harvest, then you shall bring in the sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest. 11 He shall wave the sheaf before the Lord for you to be accepted;
- The Sheaf is always waved on the first day of the week:
on the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it. 12 Now on the day when you wave the sheaf, you shall offer a male lamb one year old without defect as a burnt offering to the Lord. 13 Its grain offering shall then be two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil, an offering by fire to the Lord for a soothing aroma, with its drink offering, a fourth of a hin of wine. 14 Until this very day, until you have brought in the offering of your God, you shall eat neither bread nor roasted grain nor new produce. It is to be a permanent statute throughout your generations in all your dwelling places.
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   That the dates for First Fruits and Passover overlap is of course true. While the date of First Fruits varies, depending on the year and the circumstances these two Moedim can and do occur close together in time. As the fulfillment of Scripture required, this was the case in the year when Jesus died and rose again, becoming "the first fruits of those who are asleep":

          I Cor 15:20-23: But the fact is, Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. For since by a man death came, by a man
          also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits,
          after that those who are Christ's at His coming.

   Jesus' description here as the first fruits is no accident. Jesus fulfilled this Old Testament type (foreshadow) of His First Advent just as certainly as He fulfilled all of the springtime, Nisan Moedim. It was His Resurrection which was the antitype (fulfillment) of the First Fruits Moed; the ultimate and infinite "Wave Offering to the Lord". Just as certainly as His death occurred at precisely the foreordained time of Passover - the afternoon (Mt 27:46-50) of Nisan 14, shortly before the Seder meal begins after sunset, Nisan 15 - His resurrection occurred at precisely the foreordained time of the waving of the First Fruits offering - on the First Sunday after the first barley sheaf was brought into the Temple.

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Differing from the interrelated treatment given Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread, there is a definite break to a new and separate celebration when the subject changes to First Fruits (v9). This is only logical, because the celebrations of Passover and First Fruits are for completely different reasons and have completely different purposes. This definite break between untethered celebrations is consistent throughout Leviticus 23: see verses 23, 26, 33.
If one chooses to ignore this clear separation and continue tethering First Fruits with the preceding Unleavened Bread, "the Sabbath" in verse 11 would refer to the last Sabbath mentioned (v8), which is the second Sabbath of Unleavened Bread on Nisan 21. This would in turn require a date for First Fruits of Nisan 22, which is wholly untenable.
The Feast of Unleavened Bread, on Nisan 15, can vary by a full month on the solar-based Gregorian calendar; as early as March 25 or as late as April 241. Restricting barley's harvest-readiness, which can further vary by another two weeks, to the specific week before Nisan 16 (as early as late March or as late as late April) is untenable if God's instruction to wave the First of the Ripened Barley is to be followed.
The ripening of the barley is simply not going to comply with this large variability of the solar timing involved, and God is simply not going to accept any wave offering that is either unripe, or later than His specified first sheaf of the barley harvest, both of which would result if First Fruits were to be assigned a fixed date on the Hebrew Calendar.
As the True Passover, Jesus, like the lambs which foreshadowed Him, died on Nisan 14 as required in the Scriptures. Just as assuredly; as the True First Fruits, Jesus rose on the correct day. As revealed by the Biblical Hebrew Calendar Creator (BHCC), with Nisan 15 being a Friday, the day which followed this Yearly Sabbath is the weekly Sabbath, Saturday, when Jesus' body was still in the tomb. We know that Jesus didn't rise on Saturday; He rose three days after His death, on Sunday; the first Sunday following the harvesting of the first barley; the First Fruits. And we know that this Sunday was Nisan 17.
Verse 16 specifically says that the 50-day count which begins the day after "the Sabbath" in question, brings us "to the day after the seventh Sabbath". This seventh Sabbath can only refer to the seventh weekly Sabbath of the 50-day count; the day after which is always Sunday; the first day of the week; every year. This demands the 50-day count to always begin on a Sunday, which would most often not be the case when beginning the count at the preset date of Nisan 16, or any other preset date for that matter.
This 50-day count to Pentecost is completely unnecessary if First Fruits is given a fixed date. Pentecost would then also have a fixed date and, just as with all the dated celebrations, there is no counting of days to arrive at the correct date, when that date has already been assigned to the celebration.
If God had intended a specific date He would have included it in His specific instructions given in Leviticus 23, just as He did with all dated celebrations. He didn't do that and proponents of a fixed-date First Fruits must answer: Why Not?
For any reasonable person, all doubt should be removed by this statement from God, which precisely specifies this timing: "You shall count seven weeks for yourself; you shall begin to count seven weeks from the time you begin to put the sickle to the standing grain. Then you shall celebrate the Feast of Weeks [Pentecost] to the Lord your God...." - Deut 16:9-10

The harvest-sickle would not be put to the standing grain before the grain is ready to be harvested. Neither would the harvest be put on hold, potentially for weeks, past the time the grain is harvest-ready. God's statement is clear: The seven-week count to Pentecost begins with the first harvested barley, and has no association with the Passover Festival, or its Feast of Unleavened Bread. Do we really need more than this?

Note 1: Because we cannot know when the first fruits of the barley harvest would have been harvest-ready in any given year, we cannot program the First Fruits Moed into our computerized representation of the Hebrew Calendar in a way that will account for this uncertainty. So unfortunately we must anchor it in some other way.
We know that the barley harvest is generally ready in early April, about three weeks after the Vernal Equinox. Due to varying weather conditions in different years the exact date will also vary, but not usually too much earlier or later. We have opted therefore to place the First Fruits Moed relative to and subsequent to the Vernal Equinox, consistently in early April, and of course on a Sunday. From that Sunday, 50 days are then counted, determining the day of the Feast of Pentecost, which is also always on a Sunday. The two undated Moedim of First Fruits and Pentecost are the only ones which we will not always be able to place in the calendar on their exact dates with certainty.
Many think that this method is incorrect and that First Fruits should be strictly dated relative to other springtime celebrations. Supported by reasons given above, we will choose to go by what the Bible has to say. And as we saw above, the Bible connects First Fruits to barley ripeness and to the day after the weekly Sabbath, not a yearly one. On another related point, many (almost all) state that there are seven Feasts while, as we will now also see, the Bible clearly says there are three. We will follow the Bible in this case also.

Note 2: Fulfilling the Scriptures, Jesus died at Passover, Nisan 14, and resurrected three days later at First Fruits on Nisan 17, a Sunday, and so the day which begins the 50-day count to Pentecost. It is interesting that, because this was a Sunday, the Feast of Pentecost occurred precisely 50 days (representing One Jubilee) after His resurrection. If He had risen on any other day of the week this would not have been the case. Because Nisan 17 is a Sunday in 33AD, and it is not a Sunday in the nearby surrounding years, this is another evidence for 33AD as the year of crucifixion.
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Footnote:
1. https://jaysage.org/Passover_Dates.pdf

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FOURTH Yearly Moed - Total Yearly Sabbaths = 3

Feast (2) of Weeks / Pentecost (Shavuot) - Date Varies (Sabbath Day)
- Called the Feast of Weeks in Deut 16:10.
- This occurs after 7 complete weeks from First Fruits:
15 'You shall also count for yourselves from the day after the Sabbath, from the day when you brought in the sheaf of the wave offering; there shall be seven complete Sabbaths.
- The count of 50 days begins at First Fruits, the first Sunday after the first barley sheaf is brought to the Temple. This also places Pentecost always on the first day of the week:
16 You shall count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath; then you shall present a new grain offering to the Lord. 17 You shall bring in from your dwelling places two loaves of bread as a wave offering, made of two-tenths of an ephah; they shall be of a fine flour, baked with leaven as first fruits to the Lord. 18 Along with the bread you shall present seven one-year-old male lambs without defect, and a bull of the herd and two rams; they are to be a burnt offering to the Lord, with their grain offering and their drink offerings, an offering by fire of a soothing aroma to the Lord. 19 You shall also offer one male goat as a sin offering, and two male lambs one year old as a sacrifice of peace offerings. 20 The priest shall then wave them with the bread of the first fruits as a wave offering with two lambs before the Lord; they are to be holy to the Lord for the priest.
- As with all three feasts, this Feast is a Sabbath Day:
21 On this very day you shall make a proclamation as well; you are to have a holy convocation. You shall do no laborious work. It is to be a permanent statute in all your dwelling places throughout your generations.
22 'When you reap the harvest of your land, moreover, you shall not reap to the very edges of your field nor gather the gleaning of your harvest; you are to leave them for the needy and the stranger. I am the Lord your God.'"

God's Perfect 7

SEVENTH Yearly Moed - Total Yearly Sabbaths = 7

Feast (3) of Booths (Sukkot) - Tishrei 15 - 22 (8 days) (2 Sabbath Days - 15 & 22)
- aka Feast of Tabernacles; Feast of Ingathering
33 Again the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 34 "Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, 'On the fifteenth of this seventh month is the Feast of Booths for seven days to the Lord.
- Sabbath Day Tishrei 15:
35 On the first day is a holy convocation; you shall not do any laborious work. 36 For seven days you shall present an offering by fire to the Lord.
- Also: multiple offerings are to be made on each of the 8 days; - Num 29:1-6
- Sabbath Day Tishrei 22:
On the eighth day you shall have a holy convocation and present an offering by fire to the Lord; it is an assembly. You shall not do any laborious work. 37 'These are the appointed times of the Lord which you shall proclaim as holy convocations, to present offerings by fire to the Lord-burnt offerings and grain offerings, sacrifices and drink offerings, each day's matter on its own day- 38 besides those of the Sabbaths of the Lord, and besides your gifts and besides all your vowed and voluntary offerings, which you give to the Lord.
39 'On exactly the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the crops of the land, you shall celebrate the feast of the Lord for seven days, with a rest on the first day and a rest on the eighth day. 40 Now on the first day you shall take for yourselves the foliage of beautiful trees, palm branches and branches of trees with thick branches and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days. 41 So you shall celebrate it as a feast to the Lord for seven days in the year. It shall be a permanent statute throughout your generations; you shall celebrate it in the seventh month. 42 You shall live in booths for seven days; all the native-born in Israel shall live in booths, 43 so that your generations may know that I had the sons of Israel live in booths when I brought them out from the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.'" 44 So Moses declared to the sons of Israel the appointed times of the Lord.
- Again, Leviticus 23 has delineated "the appointed times [the moedim] of the Lord." These are the Times of highest significance and none would have been omitted. There are precisely God's Perfect-7 Moedim, incorporating precisely God's Perfect-7 Sabbaths, and three of these Moedim are Feasts.
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As Leviticus 23 has shown us . . .
In His Covenant with Israel, God instituted 7 Yearly Moedim which incorporate 7 Yearly Sabbaths.
Three especially significant Moedim were designated and celebrated as Feasts.
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More Information

There Are THREE Yearly Feasts, not Seven as Proclaimed by Many:

Exodus 23:14 "Three times a year you shall celebrate a feast to Me." - Case Closed.

Leviticus 23:2 - God's purpose in Leviticus 23 was stated to Moses clearly in verse 2: "The Lord's appointed times which you shall proclaim as holy convocations - My appointed times are these." It wasn't "some of my appointed times"; it was "my appointed times". And did God then proceed to designate only three of what are actually seven Feasts? I don't believe so.

2 Chronicles 8:12 Then Solomon offered burnt offerings to the Lord on the altar of the Lord which he had built in front of the porch; 13 and he did so according to the daily rule, offering them up according to the commandment of Moses, for the Sabbaths, the new moons, and the three annual feasts - the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Booths.

Deuteronomy 16:16 Three times a year all your males shall appear before the Lord your God at the place which He chooses: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Booths; and they are not to appear before the Lord empty-handed.

1 Kings 9:25 Now three times a year Solomon offered burnt offerings and peace offerings on the altar which he had built for the Lord, burning incense with them on the altar which was before the Lord. So he finished the house. [the First Temple]

Calendar Months are Determined by the New Moon:

- In fact the Hebrew word "chodesh" means both "new moon" and "month":
1 Samuel 20:5 So David said to Jonathan, "Behold, tomorrow is the new moon, [chodesh] and I am obligated to sit down to eat with the king." ... 27 But it came about the next day, the second day of the new moon [chodesh; new moon or month; KJV translates this chodesh as month] ....

- New Moons are Sabbath Days:
Numbers 29:1 Now in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a holy assembly; you shall do no laborious work. ... 6 besides the burnt offering of the new moon and its grain offering....

- There are 3 types of Sabbath Days: weekly (7th day Sabbaths); monthly (New Moons); and annually (Feasts / Festivals). All are venerated:
2 Chronicles 31:3 He [Hezekiah] also appointed the king's portion of his property for the burnt offerings, namely, for the morning and evening burnt offerings, and the burnt offerings for the Sabbaths and for the new moons and for the appointed festivals, as it is written in the Law of the Lord.
Ezra 3:4 They also celebrated the Feast of Booths, as it is written, and offered the prescribed number of burnt offerings daily, according to the ordinance, as each day required; 5 and afterward there was a continual burnt offering, also for the new moons and for all the appointed festivals of the Lord that were consecrated, and from everyone who offered a voluntary offering to the Lord.
Ezekiel 46:1 'This is what the Lord God says: "The gate of the inner courtyard facing east shall be shut for the six working days; but it shall be opened on the [weekly] Sabbath day and opened on the day of the new moon. 2 ...Then the priests shall provide his burnt offering and his peace offerings, and he shall worship at the threshold of the gate and then go out; but the gate shall not be shut until the evening. 3 The people of the land shall also worship at the doorway of that gate before the Lord on the [weekly] Sabbaths and on the new moons. 4 The burnt offering which the prince shall offer to the Lord on the [weekly] Sabbath day shall be ... 6 On the day of the new moon he shall offer a ... 9 But when the people of the land come before the Lord at the appointed feasts ... 11 "At the festivals and the appointed feasts, ... he shall provide his burnt offering and his peace offerings as he does on the [weekly] Sabbath day.

- Although we can still learn much from the Feasts, Festivals, New Moons and Sabbaths - God's Moedim - they are Old Covenant constructs which we as Christians - followers of Christ under the New Covenant - are not bound to observe:
Colossians 2:16 Therefore, no one is to act as your judge in regard to food and drink, or in respect to a festival [annual Sabbath] or a new moon, [monthly Sabbath] or a Sabbath day [weekly Sabbath] - 17 things which are only a shadow [type] of what is to come; but the substance [antitype] belongs to Christ.
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The Hebrews' Calendar was Lunar Based:

   Of course any viable calendar must account for the length of the solar day and the solar year, and the Hebrews' Lunar-Based Calendar is no exception:
                ●    The day begins and ends at the Setting of the Sun.
                ●    The beginning of the New Year is guided by the Vernal Equinox. Equinox itself isn't discussed in the Bible, and this was actually a reliance upon
                        the (barley) growing season, which in turn relies directly upon the position of the planet relative to the Sun; specifically, at the equinox.

   The clarity of Scripture demonstrates that the Calendar of the biblical Hebrews was lunar-based, and it determined the months of the year by the New Moon phase of the Moon. Perhaps a brief synopsis is in order. Since there can be no doubt about any of the following, the Lunar Calendar is the Correct calendar of the Bible:
                ●    Every month had its beginning at the NEW MOON.
                ●    The Hebrew word "chodesh" means both "month" and "new moon". The two expressions are interchangeable in the Old Testament.
                         - Genesis 7:11 In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month....
                         - Genesis 29:14 And he stayed with him a month.
                         - Exodus 12:2 This month shall be the beginning of months for you; it is to be the first month of the year for you.
                         - Leviticus 23:5 In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month....
                         - Numbers 10:10 ... at your appointed feasts, and on the first days of your months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings
                         - Numbers 28:14 ... this is the burnt offering of each month throughout the months of the year.
                         - Numbers 29:6 ... besides the burnt offering of the new moon and its grain offering....
                         - 1 Samuel 20:5 So David said to Jonathan, "Behold, tomorrow is the new moon, and I am obligated to sit down to eat with the king.
                         - 1 Chronicles 23:31 ... to offer all burnt offerings to the Lord, on the Sabbaths, the new moons and the appointed festivals....
                         - 1 Chronicles 27:1 ... which came in and went out month by month throughout the months of the year....
                         - 2 Chronicles 2:4 ... to offer burnt offerings morning and evening, on Sabbaths, on new moons, and on the appointed feasts of the Lord our God.
                         - 2 Chronicles 5:3 All the men of Israel assembled themselves before the king at the feast, that is in the seventh month.
                         - 2 Chronicles 8:13 ... offering them up according to the commandment of Moses, for the Sabbaths, the new moons, and the three annual feasts....
                         - 2 Chronicles 31:3 ... the burnt offerings for the Sabbaths and for the new moons and for the appointed festivals....
                         - Ezra 3:5 ... a continual burnt offering, also for the new moons and for all the appointed festivals of the Lord....
                         - and on and on with hundreds more examples.

The Solar "Enochian" Calendar Promoted by Ken Johnson and Others

Overview: The details of this calendar are quite nebulous and undeveloped. Ken Johnson seems very uncertain and I could even say lost at times.

Quotes from Ken Johnson, spoken at the video times noted:

8:40 (5:50) - "They [the Essenes] said that the Saducees and the Pharisees basically apostatized and so the Essenes pulled away from them. ... The Essenes would say the Messiah was prophesied to come - on our calendar it would be 32 AD, on their calendar it was the end of the first shemitah after the ninth Jubilee of their age. So - and it ends up being 32 AD. So, again, give or take a year; but these things are amazing. Point being that they kept saying that the Pharisees and the Saducees changed things. ... The Essenes tell us that they [Saducees and Pharisees] did the same thing [made changes] with the calendar."
- This is not demonstrating much confidence in the calendar's precision: Apparently, in addition to 32 AD, Messiah could have come in 31 AD; or 33 AD.

10:45 (7:45) - "It's something that's not quite understandable, as far as the documentation that we have, but we're getting close to understanding I think. Or at least I am - still not too sure."
- Documentation is absolutely critical. If you're going to fill in the blanks to suit your own purposes you don't have a true "prophetic" calendar at all.

13:00 (9:36) - "Festivals all come on the same dates."
- As most of them do with the Hebrew Lunar Calendar; but Johnson meant they always occur on the same date on the calendar as well, which clearly would not be the case with any calendar based upon biblical information.

13:20 (10:00) - "We have to have some sort of a leap something. And most of us are thinking that there is a leap week every so many years. ... This is a leap week - most likely. The only other way to do it - it's a possibility that this could be done this way - Enoch always said that the year starts and ends with the ... spring equinox."
- Lack of documentation; very unsure. Engineering the details of this calendar to suit your goals is anything but a biblical calendar.
- If Enoch is the expert source on this calendar (stated at 22:10) and he said it is dependent upon the spring equinox, then I would suggest that's how it should be handled. Enoch's dependence upon the equinox is exactly as the Hebrew Lunar Calendar functions.

14:15 (10:45) - Showing a slide sample of a calendar: "[This sample] might be a little better: Here's another Hebrew calendar with the same basic idea here. You see the spring in the upper right corner, and you can see we have Nisan, Iyar and Sivan; those are the three [spring] months; those would be 30 days apiece."
- Yet they are actually shown in the chart Johnson is displaying, to be both 30 and 29 days, again the same as the Hebrew Lunar Calendar.

21:15 (17:05) - "Question is: When is the 14th of Nisan this year? It's one day on a Jewish calendar; it may be off a few days. This may explain; How could Jesus have celebrated the Passover with the disciples; and then went out and died on Passover?"
- This historical problem goes away with the understanding that the Jews in Jesus' time, celebrated Two Consective Passovers.
- The point to be taken here regarding the timing of Jesus' death is that: Since we can be certain that, one, Jesus didn't die on the wrong day; and two, that He died at the Passover being celebrated by the Pharisees and the Saducees, this again confirms the Hebrew Lunar Calendar; the calendar which, as Ken Johnson himself confirms, these two groups were following.

21:40 (17:50) - "People say: Well the prophecy goes back but, if you're thinking like I've always taught, based on the prophecies the Messiah died in April 6 ... 32 AD; somebody will come along and say: Well that's not a Sabbath; or that's not a Friday.... It may not be on the current calendar; it may have been on the one they were using then. So there's a lot of things we don't understand."
- He's right about the weekdays and dates of 32 AD being completely out of line with the biblical narative. The BHCC shows this very clearly, and it also shows that the weekdays and dates work out perfectly when scrutinizing the year 33 AD.

22:20 (18:30) - "We need to take this as history of a sect ... doesn't necessarily mean everything that they do is right or everything they do is wrong. So there could be errors in the Dead Sea Scrolls. I haven't really found any yet but; or odd cultic things...."
- An honest assessment; Dead Sea Scrolls aren't Scripture; more uncertainty.

25:00 (20:20) - Speaking of a sample version of his calendar: "This is my best guess of a Enoch calendar.... It'll show you what the day is if we have it figured out right. And there's three or four different theories on how to (calculate it)."
- Again, creating a calendar with whatever works best for your own purposes is not creating a biblical calendar. Kindly stated: This is putting the cart before the horse.

25:25 (20:45) - "Every [individual yearly sabbath day] of the year, every year, is going to be on the same day [the same number of days into the year]. The month always starts on a Wednesday, the fourth day of the week."
- By what he has already told us, this is not possible: Johnson has previously stated that every month has thirty days (11:15). If we accept this, and if Nisan begins on a Wednesday, as Johnson here says all months do, the 2nd month would necessarily begin on a Friday, and the 3rd month would necessarily begin on a Sunday.

When I first heard this, I thought I must have misunderstood something. A child of ten would soon realize that 7 doesn't divide evenly into 30. So I went to the two statements in the video and re-listened; and re-listened again. Yes, Ken Johnson makes both of these statements.

26:45 (22:05) - "It's not complete. It's my best guess. It's a very well-working calendar based on Excel so; but give us some time to do that [figure it out]; so."

This is the point in the video where I stopped watching. Obviously this "Enochian Calendar" is based on very limited original documentation and will require much honing (dare I say manipulation?) before it can produce the timeline Ken Johnson and others are looking for. This calendar is clearly being created on the fly.
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SIXTH Yearly Moed - Total Yearly Sabbaths = 5

Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) - Tishrei 10 (Sabbath Day)
- This is a Sabbath Day:
26 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 27 "On exactly the tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement; it shall be a holy convocation for you, and you shall humble yourselves and present an offering by fire to the Lord. 28 You shall not do any work on this very day, for it is a Day of Atonement, to make atonement on your behalf before the Lord your God. 29 If there is any person who does not humble himself on this very day, he shall be cut off from his people. 30 As for any person who does any work on this very day, that person I will eliminate from among his people. 31 You shall not do any work. It is to be a permanent statute throughout your generations in all your dwelling places. 32 It is to be a Sabbath of complete rest for you, and you shall humble yourselves; on the ninth of the month at evening, ["ereb" twilight] from evening ["ereb" twilight] until evening, ["ereb" twilight] you shall keep your Sabbath."
- If these "erebs" are understood as "evening" and not "twilight" (as they are described above), verse 32 has just placed Yom Kippur on the 9th of Tishrei, contradicting verse 27. Correctly understanding these "erebs" to be "twilights", the ending of the Hebrew day, does not create this contradiction.
- Multiple offerings are also to be given on this Day of Atonement; - Num 29:7-11

   In spite of all this, there are some who now wish to suggest that this is not the correct calendar to be using because, as best I can understand them ... they can't get biblical prophecy to work out well when they use it. They want us to instead be using a solar calendar which, they say, was used by both the patriarch Enoch and the Essenes; a Jewish sect which was active before and at the time of Christ.

   Obviously I very much disagree that the Hebrew Lunar Calendar is not useful for prophecy. In-depth research was required to determine the calendar's correct attributes, which of course is essential. I then incorporated these attributes into the Biblical Hebrew Calendar Creator software, and the results have been nothing short of amazing. On occasion my jaw has literally dropped open.

   But of course I did want to know more about this so-called Enochian Solar Calendar so I looked into it. I went to the website of probably the biggest promoter of this calendar, Ken Johnson. The website's written explanation wasn't very informative, so I found and viewed a video in which Johnson speaks about this calendar in some detail. Here are the notes I took:

[Note: The linked video has been taken down from youtube, but I found an edited version here. The video times in red pertain to this shortened video.
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5 In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at twilight is the Lord's Passover.

   The work of preparing the sacrificial lamb and preparing for the Seder meal to follow, is done on Nisan 14, prior to the Passover Celebration beginning at "twilight". Passover's Seder Meal will then begin the seven-day Feast of Unleavened Bread, and occurs at the start of Nisan 15. Being a day of preparation work, Nisan 14 Is Not A Sabbath, and God never gives any indication to the contrary. So then what is Passover? This has been a source of confusion which we will deal with here.

   Passover is often mistakenly thought of as a Day of Passover - Passover all day long - when it is in fact a commemoration of an original brief event - the Passover - which took place at midnight, about six hours into Nisan 15. (Ex 12:29) God's Angel "Passed Over" the Israelites in the middle of the night on Nisan 15; with the Hebrews safe from the Destroying Angel, gathered in their protected homes, having brushed their doorposts and lintels with the blood of the sacrificial lamb.

   Verse 5's "at twilight" refers to the time of interchange between Nisan 14 and the following day, Nisan 15 which begins at sunset - a time which could not be predetermined with precision. Similar treatment is found regarding the Day of Atonement in verses 26-32.

   How "twilight", "evening" and "even" are treated in scripture can be confusing, and I will try to explain as best I can. These words all derive from the Hebrew "ereb" which generally refers to the evening hours of the 24-hour day; at the start of a New Hebrew Day at Sunset. The "evening" understanding of "ereb" occurs at the start of the Hebrew day. But "ereb" also has a second meaning which refers to the short stretch of time during the transition from daytime to nighttime; when the present Hebrew day is drawing to a close, with a new day about to begin. We saw this exampled in the Exodus 12 passage above. In order to distinguish between these two related but very different meanings, the NASB sometimes uses "twilight" to convey the latter meaning of "ereb" - the day drawing to a close. This isn't done consistently however, and the reader must take care to gain the correct understanding.

   So how can we know whether "ereb" is indicating "evening", the first part of the Hebrew Day, or "twilight", the transition at the end of the Hebrew Day? This can only be done through comparison of scripture, while considering the context of the passage being read.

   An example where this could be confusing is this verse 5 of Leviticus 23: "In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at 'ereb' is the Lord's Passover." Taking this verse in isolation and assuming the first, more common "evening" meaning of "ereb", the verse would be telling the reader that the Lord's Passover Celebration begins at the beginning of Nisan 14, not at its end. From other scriptures we know that Passover begins at the end of the 14th, and that it is then immediately celebrated by the Seder meal, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, at the start of Nisan 15. And so "twilight" is the correct understanding of "ereb" in verse 5.

   There is a good example of the "twilight" meaning of "ereb" just a little further on in Leviticus 23. Read verses 26 to 32 which speak of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, occurring in the 7th month, Tishrei. The passage is clear that this is on the 10th day of the month, and then verse 32 tells us this holy day extends from "... the ninth of the month at "ereb", from "ereb" until "ereb" you shall keep your Sabbath." Certainly, verse 32's meaning of "ereb" is "twilight", the transition at the end of the day. To understand it to mean "evening" which begins the day, would be to have verse 32 tell us that the Day of Atonement is on Tishrei 9, when the passage has just made it clear that it's on Tishrei 10.

   The New Testament also contains an excellent example of the two Hebrew meanings of "evening". Read John chapter 20. Here are the cliffsnotes:

Remember that the Hebrews' day begins and ends at sunset, and the "evening" is at the start of the day.
Jesus resurrected on the First Day of the Week, almost half way through the day, shortly before sunrise and well after the "evening" start of the day - John 20:1
"Now when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week ... Jesus came and stood in their midst, and said to them, "Peace be to you."" - John 20:19
Clearly the "evening" in verse 19 must be understood to be at the day's ending - the "twilight" - of the first day of the week. If we understand it as the "evening" start of the day, we are left with Jesus meeting with His disciples prior to His resurrection.

The Passover's Preparation Day and the Feast of Unleavened Bread are Related but Separate. Nisan 14 - the Preparation Day - is the working day to get ready for the the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the seven-day event of Passover-Celebration. The seven-day celebration begins with reverence at Nisan 14's "twilight" at the end of the day, and with the Seder Meal at Nisan 15's "evening", the start of the day. The Holy Convocation (Sabbath) of the Seder Meal begins the seven-day Feast which ends with another Holy Convocation on Nisan 21: