What are the date ranges of Biblical Holidays?
When I was in high school I had a math teacher named Mrs.
Gracie. Mrs. Gracie and I got along very well, but we did have one thing
that we would get into a light-hearted debate about.
Whenever I did homework or took a test, I would just right down the
answer. Mrs. Gracie did not like this and that would begin the
debate. The debate would generally go like this:
Mrs. Gracie would tell me that I needed to show my work to get
partial credit. I would respond with partial credit was only needed for
wrong answers.
I would then ask her if I had any wrong answers. She would
then say no, but I might have one someday.
This went on for four years and I never did need partial credit.
However, there was one case when she did convince me to show my
work. That was when I was solving a difficult problem that was beyond the
scope of the textbook.
Mrs. Gracie made a compelling argument that I could not help others
understand the process that I had to solve the problem if I just kept it in my
head. I had to write down what I did in my head so other people could
benefit from it.
I found when I started doing this that people often did not
understand my process initially. Mrs. Gracie suggested that I break the
complex calculations into smaller simpler calculations.
So, I did that. When I reduced the complexity enough, then
Mrs. Gracie would let me show the rest of the class the process to solve the
problem on the blackboard.
In the same way, for years I converted Biblical calendar dates to
Gregorian calendar dates in my head. I also would double check my work in
my head.
Part of this checking process was ensuring that each Biblical
holiday fell within the date range for it and that the day of the week that
each holiday started on was correct with respect to the day of the week of the
other holidays fell on during that calendar year.
I never needed to correct my work until I after had my gall bladder
removed. Apparently, I woke up during surgery and they had to give me
more anesthesia to put me back to sleep. This is not recommended.
My brain has not worked the same since then. I have been
crawling around on half the brain power that I am used to since that time.
For example, I had learned Greek in Greece and had taught myself
Hebrew before this. I used to dream in Hebrew, Greek, and Grebrew - a
language that combined Hebrew and Greek words to form a new language that
literally only existed in my head.
My wife said that I would talk in all three of these languages in
my sleep as well as English and occasionally French - which I had learned in
high school.
However, since then I have forgotten almost all my French and have
been having to relearn much of the Hebrew and Greek that I once knew.
Fortunately, English remained intact.
I also have had to use a calculator for calculations that I used to
instantly know the answers to without any sense of effort. I no longer
instantly know the Gregorian date for a Biblical holiday for any given
year. It takes some mental effort now.
Still, I somehow retained the ability to at least determine the
date ranges of Biblical holidays and be able to use the day of the week that
they fall on to check my work. I have just have never really explained
that process to others until I took the advice of Mrs. Gracie.
So, here is my process to determine the date ranges of Biblical
holidays as well as days of the week. I have reduced the complexity as
far as I can.
The relationship of the Sun, the Earth, and the Moon.
The Biblical calendar relies on the time of sunset, and the
position of the Earth relative to the Sun, and when the Moon can be seen again
to determine when days, months, and years begin. So, we have to begin with an
explanation of the relationship between the Sun, the Earth, and the Moon.
The Moon revolves around the Earth and reflects light from the
Sun. When the Moon is between the Earth
and the Sun then the surface of the Moon that is reflecting light from the Sun
away from the Earth.
When this happens the Moon cannot be seen on the Earth and appears
to have disappeared. This is called the
Astronomical New Moon.
As the Moon continues its rotation it eventually comes back into
view until it is fully visible from Earth and then once again seems to
disappear as the Astronomical New Moon once again. The time between each Astronomical New Moon
and the next one is called a lunation.
However, the Earth is also rotating around the Sun. So, the Moon also has to make up for the
distance that the Earth moved during each lunation.
If the rotation of the Earth around the Sun was circular then the
distance that the Earth moved during each rotation would be the same and each
lunation would take the same amount of time.
However, the rotation of the Earth around the Sun is elliptical.
So, the Earth starts moving a little faster each day after it has
reached the point when it is closest to the Sun about two weeks after the
Winter Solstice called the Perihelion.
Likewise, the Earth starts moving a little faster each day after it has
reached the point when it is furthest from the Sun about two weeks after the
Summer Solstice called the Aphelion.
So, the Moon has to make up a little less distance each lunation
after the Perihelion causing each lunation to be a little shorter. Likewise, the Moon has to make up a little
more distance each lunation after the Aphelion causing each lunation to be a
little longer.
The axis of the Earth also changes position slightly each day as it
revolves around the Sun. This causes the
amount of light received from the Sun to vary from one day to another. This causes the time of sunset to vary from
day to day.
So, when the North Pole of the Earth is at its maximum tilt away
from the Sun, then the Northern Hemisphere receives light from the Sun for the
shortest amount of time each year. This
is called the Winter Solstice.
Likewise, when the North Pole of the Earth is at its maximum tilt
towards the Sun, then the Northern Hemisphere receives light from the Sun for
the longest amount of time each year.
This is called the Summer Solstice.
When the tilt of the Earth has moved from the maximum tilt away
from the Sun to halfway to its maximum tilt towards the Sun it is the Spring
Equinox. It is called this because in
some parts of the Northern Hemisphere the amount of time with sunlight and
darkness are equal.
When the tilt of the Earth has moved from the maximum tilt towards
the Sun to halfway to its maximum tilt away from the Sun it is the Fall
Equinox.
How The Biblical Calendar works.
Now a brief explanation of how the Biblical
Calendar works can be given.
The first day of a Biblical calendar month is determined by two
things – the time when the Renewed Moon becomes see-able (21 hours and 15
minutes after the Astronomical New Moon) in Jerusalem and when the sun sets in
Jerusalem. If the Renewed Moon becomes
see-able before the sunset of the day following the day of the Astronomical New
Moon, then Biblical month will have 29 days.
Otherwise, it will have 30 days.
Most of the time, the Biblical calendar months follow a pattern of
a regular Biblical month of 30 days followed by a short Biblical month of 29
days due to variations in the time between Renewed Moons. So, two Biblical calendar months in a row
will normally consist of a regular Biblical month and a short Biblical month to
form a Biblical month couplet with 59 days.
However, the variation of lunations make it possible for there to
be two short months or two long months in a row. So, Biblical calendar months do not always
form convenient couplets like the Rabbinical Calendar months do for the twelve
months of the regular year.
(The leap month is always 30 days on the Rabbinical Calendar – but
not necessarily so on the Biblical Calendar.)
The Candidate Month.
Every year on the Biblical Calendar has at least twelve Biblical
months that are determined by the Renewed Moon and sunset. This is a Twelve-Month Gap.
A regular Twelve-Month Gap has six regular Biblical months and six
short Biblical months, which is the same number of days as six Biblical month
couplets. So, a regular Twelve-Month Gap
has 354 days (59 X 6 = 354).
Since each lunation in the last six Biblical calendar months of a
regular Biblical year are longer than in the first six Biblical calendar
months, it would seem to not be possible to have less than six regular Biblical
months in a regular Biblical year.
However, the first day of each Biblical calendar month is not
determined by just the time of the Astronomical New Moon, but also by the time
of sunset. This means that one Biblical
year can “steal” one day from the Biblical year that comes before it or follows
it.
So, a pair of regular Biblical years could have the same number of
days as two regular Twelve Month Gaps.
Yet, there could be one Twelve Month Gap that is one day longer than a
regular Twelve-Month Gap while the other Twelve-Month Gap is one day shorter
than a regular Twelve-Month Gap.
So, there can be a long Twelve-Month Gap with seven regular
Biblical months and five short Biblical months paired with a short Twelve-Month
Gap with five regular Biblical months and seven short Biblical months.
So, a long Twelve-Month Gap has 355 days, and a short Twelve-Month
Gap has 353 days.
However, the Gregorian Calendar is determined by the Sun. So, a regular Gregorian year has 365 days,
and a Gregorian leap year has 366 days.
This difference between the number of days in a Gregorian Year and
a Twelve-Month Gap creates a Calendar Gap each year. The Calendar Gap is the number of days in the
Gregorian Year minus the number of days in the Twelve-Month Gap.
A regular Calendar Gap is a regular Gregorian year minus a regular
Twelve-Month Gap giving 11 days (365 – 354 = 11).
Likewise, the shortest Calendar Gap is a regular Gregorian year
minus a long Twelve-Month Gap giving 10 days.
Finally the longest Calendar Gap is a Gregorian leap year minus a short
Twelve-Month Gap giving 13 days.
Since the earliest that First Fruits can occur is determined by the
first Biblical day of Spring, then the earliest date of First Fruits is also
determined by the Sun. This creates the
necessity of adding a leap month some years to ensure that First Fruits is
never earlier than eleven days after the first Biblical day of Spring due to
the Calendar Gap.
So, the Biblical month after the twelfth month becomes the
Candidate Month. Each year the
fourteenth day of the Candidate Month falls on the date of Passover on the
previous year minus the Calendar Gap for the current year.
If the Sunday following the fourteenth day of the Candidate Month
is earlier than eleven days after the first Biblical day of Spring, then then
the Candidate Month is a Biblical leap month creating a Biblical leap year with
thirteen Biblical months.
Otherwise, the Candidate Month becomes the first Biblical calendar
month of the next Biblical year, and the current Biblical year remains a
regular Biblical year with twelve Biblical months.
The First Day Gap.
The first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread occurs on the
fifteenth day of the first Biblical calendar month and the first day of the
Feast of Tabernacle occurs on the fifteenth day of the seventh Biblical
calendar month to form the First Day Gap. So, the First Day Gap is a Six-Month
Gap.
A regular Six-Month Gap contains three regular Biblical months and
three short calendar in a regular year, which is the same as three Biblical
month couplets. So, there are 177 days
(3 x 59 = 177) in a regular Six-Month Gap.
Sometime there are four regular months and only two short months in
the Six-Month Gap due to the time between Renewed Moons not being the exact
same length each cycle. When this occurs
there are 178 days in a long Six-Month Gap.
Since the time of a lunation is shortest during the First Day Gap,
it is also possible that there could be only two regular months and four short
months in the First Day Gap. When this
occurs there are 176 days in a short Six-Month Gap.
(For example, the total elapsed time in the First Day Gap in 2035
will be 176 days, 2 hours, and 9 minutes.)
Using the First Day Gap to find the weekday of Biblical holidays.
Knowing the size of the First Day Gap allows us to determine the
weekday that the Biblical holiday on one end of the First Day Gap falls on - if
we know the weekday that the Biblical holiday on the other end of the First Day
Gap falls on.
Since a regular First Day Gap is 177 days, it contains 25 weeks and
two days (177 / 7 = 25 R 2). So, the
regular Weekday Adjustment is two days.
For a long First Day Gap, the long Weekday Adjustment is three
days. For a short First Day Gap, the
short Weekday Adjustment is one day.
For example, when there is a regular Weekday Adjustment then the
weekdays of the Biblical feasts on the ends of the First Day Gap can be
determined like this:
If the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread falls on a
Tuesday, then the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles will fall on a
Thursday. Likewise, if the first day of
the Feast of Tabernacles falls on a Friday, then the first day of the Feast of
Unleavened Bread will fall on a Wednesday.
Using the First Day Gap to find the Month Day Adjustment.
Knowing the size of the First Day Gap allows us to determine the
Gregorian calendar date that the Biblical holiday on one end of the First Day
Gap falls on - if we know the Gregorian calendar date that the Biblical holiday
on the other end of the First Day Gap falls on.
So, the day of the Gregorian calendar month on one end of the First
Day Gap can be used to determine day of the Gregorian calendar month on the
other end of the First Day Gap. The
difference between day of the Gregorian calendar month on both ends is the
Month Day Adjustment.
For each First Day Gap there is a long Month Day Adjustment and a
short Month Day Adjustment. The short
Month Day Adjustment is one day shorter than the long Month Day
Adjustment. This is due to March having
31 days, but September having only 30 days.
The days of the full Gregorian calendar months inside a First Day
Gap that begins in March can be summed together to find the Full Month
Total. The days in the months of April,
May, June, July, and August are added together to give 153 days (30 + 31 + 30 +
31 + 31 = 153) as the Full Month Total.
The Full Month Total can then be subtracted from the total days in
the First Day Gap to give the Total Available Days. The Total Available Days can then be
subtracted from the days in March to give the long Month Day Adjustment.
So, when there is a regular First Day Gap then the long Month Day
Adjustment is calculated as follows:
The Full Month Total is subtracted from the regular First Day Gap
to give 24 (177 – 153 = 24) as the Total Available Days. The Total Available Days to can be subtracted
from the days in March to give 7 as the long Month Day Adjustment (31 – 24 =
7).
Likewise, when there is a long First Day Gap then the long Month
Day Adjustment is calculated as follows:
The Full Month Total is subtracted from the long First Day Gap to
give 25 (178 – 153 = 25) as the Total Available Days. The Total Available Days to can be subtracted
from the days in March to give 6 as the long Month Day Adjustment (31 – 25 =
6).
Finally, when there is a short First Day Gap then the long Month
Day Adjustment is calculated as follows:
The Full Month Total is subtracted from the short First Day Gap to
give 23 (176 – 153 = 23) as the Total Available Days. The Total Available Days to can be subtracted
from the days in March to give 8 as the long Month Day Adjustment (31 – 23 =
8).
So, for a regular First Day Gap, the long Month Day Adjustment will
be seven days and the short Month Day Adjustment will be six days.
Likewise, for a long First Day Gap, the long Month Day Adjustment
will be six days and the short Month Day Adjustment will be five days.
Finally, for a short First Day Gap, the long Month Day Adjustment
will be eight days and the short Month Day Adjustment will be seven days.
Using the Month Day Adjustment to find the first day of the Feast
of Tabernacles.
When the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread falls on a day
in March, then the long Month Day Adjustment is subtracted from the day in
March to find the day in September that the first day of the Feast of
Tabernacles falls on.
For example, when there is a regular First Day Gap and the first
day of the Unleavened Bread falls on 31 MAR, then the first day of the Feast of
Tabernacles will fall on 24 SEP (31 – 7 = 24).
When the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread falls on a day
in April that is less than the long Month Day Adjustment, then the day in April
is subtracted from long Month Day Adjustment to find the September Adjustment. The September adjustment is then subtracted
from the days in March to find the day in September that the first day of the
Feast of Tabernacles falls on.
For example, when there is a regular First Day Gap and the first
day of the Unleavened Bread falls on 1 APR, then the September Adjustment is 6
(7 – 1). So, the first day of the Feast
of Tabernacles will fall on 25 SEP (31 – 6 = 25).
Likewise, when there is a regular First Day Gap and the first day
of the Unleavened Bread falls on 6 APR, then the September Adjustment is 1 (7 –
6). So, the first day of the Feast of
Tabernacles will fall on 30 SEP (31 – 1 = 30).
When the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread falls on a day
in April that is greater than the short Month Day Adjustment, then the short
Month Day Adjustment is subtracted from the day in April to find the day in
October that the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles falls on.
For example, when there is a regular First Day Gap and the first
day of the Unleavened Bread falls on 7 APR, then the first day of the Feast of
Tabernacles will fall on 1 OCT (7 – 6 = 1).
Using the Month Day Adjustment to find the first day of the Feast
of Unleavened Bread.
When the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles falls on a day in
September, then find the March Gap Day by subtracting the short Month Day
Adjustment from the days in March.
For example, when there is a regular First Day Gap, then the March
Gap Day is 25 (31 – 6).
Then find the March No Gap Day by subtracting 1 from the March Gap
Day.
For example, when the March Gap Day is 25, the March No Gap Day is
24 (25 – 1).
When the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles falls on a day in
September that is less than the March Gap Day, then the long Month Day
Adjustment is added to the day in September to find the day in March that the
first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread falls on.
For example, when there is a regular First Day Gap and the first
day of the Feast of Tabernacles falls on 24 SEP, then the first day of the
Feast of Unleavened Bread will fall on 31 MAR (24 + 7 = 31).
When the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles falls on a day in
September that is greater than the March No Gap Day, then the March No Gap Day
is subtracted from the day in September to find the day in April that the first
day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread falls on.
For example, when there is a regular First Day Gap and the first
day of the Feast of Tabernacles falls on 25 SEP, then the first day of the
Feast of Unleavened Bread will fall on 1 APR (25 - 24 = 1).
Likewise, when there is a regular First Day Gap and the first day
of the Feast of Tabernacles falls on 30 SEP, then the first day of the Feast of
Unleavened Bread will fall on 6 APR (30 - 24 = 6).
When the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles falls on a day in
October, then the short Month Day Adjustment is added to the day in October to
find the day in April that the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread falls
on.
For example, when there is a regular First Day Gap and the first
day of the Feast of Tabernacles falls on 1 OCT, then the first day of the Feast
of Unleavened Bread will fall on 7 APR (1 + 6 = 7).
THE EARLIEST POSSIBLE FEAST DATES
The earliest date of First Fruits.
The first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR some years and 21 MAR on
others.
The earliest date that First Fruits can fall is eleven days after
the first Biblical day of Spring. This
is the earliest that the barley will be ready for hand harvesting in Israel.
So, the earliest date of First Fruits is 31 MAR when the first
Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 1 APR when the first Biblical day of
Spring is 21 MAR.
The earliest date of the last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
The earliest date of the last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread
is when the earliest date of First Fruits falls on of the Feast of Unleavened
Bread. Therefore, the earliest date of
the last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is 31 MAR.
So, the earliest date of last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is
31 MAR when the first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 1 APR when the first
Biblical day of Spring is 21 MAR.
The earliest date of the first day of the Feast of Unleavened
Bread.
The earliest date of the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread
occurs when the earliest First Fruits falls on the last day of the Feast of
Unleavened Bread. So, the earliest date
of the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is six days before the date
of the earliest last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Therefore, the earliest date of the first day
of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is 25 MAR (31 – 6 = 25).
So, the earliest date of first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread
is 25 MAR when the first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 26 MAR when the
first Biblical day of Spring is 21 MAR.
The earliest date of Passover.
Passover is the fourteenth day of the first Biblical calendar
month, so it will always be on the day before the first day of the Feast of
Unleavened. So, the earliest date of
Passover is one day before the earliest date of the first day of the Feast of
Unleavened Bread. Therefore, the
earliest date of Passover is 24 MAR (25 – 1 = 24).
So, the earliest date of Passover is 24 MAR when the first Biblical
day of Spring is 20 MAR and 25 MAR when the first Biblical day of Spring is 21
MAR.
The earliest date of Rosh Hashanah.
Rosh Hashanah means “The head of the year”. The Rabbis teach that it occurs on the first
day of the seventh month. However, the
Book of Truth calls the first day of the seventh month “The Feast of Trumpets”
(Leviticus 23:24).
The phrase "Rosh Hashanah" appears only one time in the
Book of Truth. It is the fifth and sixth
words of Ezekiel 40:1 in the Hebrew
text. (Remember that Hebrew is read
right to left.)
However, "Rosh Hashanah" here is correctly translated as “the
first of the year”. It is not the first
day of the seventh month, but the first day of first month as clarified later
in the same passage (Ezekiel 45:18-21).
Since Rosh Hashanah is the first day of the first Biblical calendar
month, it will be fourteen days before the first day of the Feast of Unleavened
Bread. So, the earliest date of Rosh
Hashanah is fourteen days before the earliest date of the first day of the
Feast of Unleavened Bread. Therefore,
the earliest date of Rosh Hashanah is 11 MAR (25 – 14 = 11).
So, the earliest date of Rosh Hashanah is 11 MAR when the first
Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 12 MAR when the first Biblical day of
Spring is 21 MAR.
The Make-Up Holidays.
The Biblical holidays associated with Passover have official
make-up holidays in the next Biblical calendar month if they cannot be observed
at the normal time (Numbers 9:9-12). So, the earliest and latest dates of these
make-up Biblical holidays is based off the Biblical holidays that they are
making up for.
The earliest date of Make-Up Passover.
Since Make-Up Passover is one Biblical month after Passover, then
the earliest date for it will be one short Biblical month after the earliest
date of Passover. Therefore, the
earliest date of Make-Up Passover is 22 APR (24 + 29 = 53 MAR; 53 – 31 (Days in
MAR) = 22 APR).
So, the earliest date of Make-Up Passover is 22 APR when the first
Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 23 APR when the first Biblical day of
Spring is 21 MAR.
The earliest date of the first day of the Make-Up Feast of
Unleavened Bread.
The Make-Up first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is the day
after Make-Up Passover. So, the earliest
date of the Make-Up first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is 23 APR.
So, the earliest date of the Make-Up first day of the Feast of
Unleavened Bread is 23 APR when the first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 24
APR when the first Biblical day of Spring is 21 MAR.
The earliest date of Make-Up First Fruits.
Make-Up First Fruits is the Sunday after Make-Up Passover.
Since the earliest last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is on
a Sunday, then the earliest first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is
always on a Monday. The earliest first day of the Make-Up Feast of Unleavened
Bread will be one day later (29 (days in a short month) – 28 (days in four
weeks) = 1 day) than the earliest last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
So, the earliest first day of the Make-Up Feast of Unleavened Bread will be on
a Tuesday.
So, the earliest Make-Up First Fruits will be five days later than the
earliest first day of the Make-Up Feast of Unleavened Bread. Therefore, the earliest Make-Up First Fruits is
28 APR.
So, the earliest date of Make-Up First Fruits is 28 APR when the
first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 29 APR when the first Biblical day
of Spring is 21 MAR.
The earliest date of the last day of the Make-Up Feast of
Unleavened Bread.
The Make-Up last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is seven days
after Make-Up Passover. So, the earliest
date of the Make-Up last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is 29 APR.
So, the earliest date of the Make-Up last day of the Feast of
Unleavened Bread is 29 APR when the first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 30
APR when the first Biblical day of Spring is 21 MAR.
The earliest date of Pentecost.
Pentecost is always forty-nine days after First Fruits. So, the earliest date of Pentecost is forty-nine
days after the earliest date of First Fruits.
Therefore, the earliest date of Pentecost is 9 MAY (31 + 49 = 70 MAR; 70
– 31 (Days in MAR) = 39 APR; 39 – 30 (Days in APR) = 9 MAY).
So, the earliest date that Pentecost can fall on is 9 MAY when the
first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 10 MAY when the first Biblical day
of Spring is 21 MAR.
The earliest date of the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles.
The earliest date of the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles is
the short Six-Month Gap after the earliest first day of the Feast of Unleavened
Bread. Therefore, the earliest first day
of the Feast of Tabernacles is 17 SEP (25 MAR + 176 = 201 MAR; 201 MAR – 31
(days in MAR) = 170 APR; 170 APR – 153 (days in APR through AUG) = 17 SEP).
(The first Biblical day of Fall is 22 SEP in some years and 23 SEP
in others. Therefore, the earliest that
the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles can fall is six days before the first
Biblical day of Fall. This is the earliest that grape harvest will end in
Israel.)
So, the earliest date of the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles
is 17 SEP when the first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 18 SEP when the
first Biblical day of Spring is 21 MAR.
The earliest date of the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles.
Since the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles is the fifteenth
day of the seventh month and the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles is the
twenty-second day of the seventh month, it always occurs seven days after the
first day of the Feast of Tabernacles.
This allows us to determine the earliest date of the last day of the
Feast of Tabernacles based on the earliest date of the first day of the Feast
of Tabernacles.
The earliest date of the last day of the Feast of Trumpets is 24
SEP when the first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 25 SEP when the first
Biblical day of Spring is 21 MAR.
The earliest date of the Feast of Trumpets.
Since the Feast of Trumpets is the first day of the seventh month
and the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles is the fifteenth day of the
seventh month, it always occurs fourteen days before the first day of the Feast
of Tabernacles. This allows us to
determine the earliest date of the Feast of Trumpets based on the earliest date
of the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles.
The earliest date of the Feast of Trumpets is 3 SEP when the first
Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 4 SEP when the first Biblical day of Spring
is 21 MAR.
The earliest date of the Day of Atonement.
Since the Feast of Trumpets is the first day of the seventh month
and the Day of Atonement is the tenth day of the seventh month, it always
occurs nine days after the Feast of Trumpets.
This allows us to determine the earliest date of the Day of Atonement
based on the earliest date of the Feast of Trumpets.
The earliest date of the Day of Atonement is 12 SEP when the first
Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 13 SEP when the first Biblical day of Spring
is 21 MAR.
THE LATEST POSSIBLE FEAST DATES
The latest date of the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
If the date of the Candidate first day of the Feast of Unleavened
Bread (the fifteenth day of the Twelfth Month) is the day before the earliest
date of First Fruits and Candidate First Fruits falls on it, then the date of
the first day of the Feast of Unleavened will fall one Biblical month later.
Since the date of the Candidate first day of the Feast of
Unleavened Bread is one day before the earliest date of First Fruits, then the
latest date of the first day of the Feast of Unleavened will be twenty-nine
days after the earliest date of First Fruits (30 – 1 = 29).
The date of the first day of the Feast of Unleavened is APR 1 when
the first Biblical day of Spring is 21 MAR.
So, the latest date of the first day of the Feast of Unleavened will be
30 APR (1 APR + 29 = 30 APR).
So, the latest date that the last day of the Feast of Unleavened
can fall on is 29 APR when the first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 30
APR when the first Biblical day of Spring is 21 MAR.
The latest date of Passover.
Passover is the fourteenth day of the first Biblical calendar
month, so it will always be on the day before the first day of the Feast of
Unleavened.
So, the latest date that Passover can fall on is 28 APR when the
first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 29 APR when the first Biblical day
of Spring is 21 MAR.
The latest date of the last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
The last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is six days after the
first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. So, the latest date of the last day
of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is six days after the latest date of the first
day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
Therefore, the latest date of the last day of the Feast of Unleavened
Bread is 6 MAY.
So, the latest date that the last day of the Feast of Unleavened
can fall on is 5 MAY when the first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 6 MAY
when the first Biblical day of Spring is 21 MAR.
The latest date of First Fruits.
First Fruits always falls on the day of the Feast of Unleavened
Bread that is a Sunday. Since First
Fruits had to fall on the Candidate first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread
for the latest first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, then the latest first
day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread will always be two weekdays later on a
Tuesday (30 (days in a regular month) – 28 (days in four weeks) = 2 days).
So, the Sunday following the latest first day of the Feast of
Unleavened Bread is always five days later.
Therefore, the latest First Fruits is 5 MAY.
So, the latest date that First Fruits can fall on is 4 MAY when the
first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 5 MAY when the first Biblical day of
Spring is 21 MAR.
The latest date of Make-Up Passover.
Since Make-Up Passover is one Biblical month after Passover, then
the latest date for it will be one regular Biblical month after the latest date
of Passover. Therefore, the latest date
of Make-Up Passover is 29 MAY (29 APR + 30 = 59 APR; 59 APR – 30 (days in APR)
= 29 MAY).
So, the latest date that Make-Up Passover can fall on is 28 MAY
when the first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 29 MAY when the first
Biblical day of Spring is 21 MAR.
The latest date of the Make-Up first day of the Feast of Unleavened
Bread.
The Make-Up first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is the day
after Make-Up Passover.
So, the latest date that Make-Up first day of the Feast of
Unleavened Bread can fall on is 29 MAY when the first Biblical day of Spring is
20 MAR and 30 MAY when the first Biblical day of Spring is 21 MAR.
The latest date of the Make-Up last day of the Feast of Unleavened
Bread.
The Make-Up last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is seven days
after Make-Up Passover. Therefore the
latest Make-Up last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is 5 JUN (29 MAY + 7 =
36 MAY; 36 MAY – 31 (days in May) = 5 JUN).
So, the latest date that Make-Up last day of the Feast of
Unleavened Bread can fall on is 4 JUN when the first Biblical day of Spring is
20 MAR and 5 JUN when the first Biblical day of Spring is 21 MAR.
The latest date of Make-Up First Fruits.
Make-Up First Fruits always falls on the day of the Make-Up Feast
of Unleavened Bread that is a Sunday. Since
the latest first day of the Feast of Unleavened is always on a Tuesday, then
the latest first day of the Make-Up Feast of Unleavened is always on a Thursday
(30 (days in a regular month) – 28 (days in four weeks) = 2 days).
Therefore the latest Make-Up First Fruits will be three days after
the latest first day of the Make-Up Feast of Unleavened. So, the latest Make-Up First Fruits is 2 JUN
(30 MAY + 3 = 33 MAY; 33 MAY – 31 (days in MAY) = 2 JUN).
So, the latest date that Make-Up First Fruits can fall on is 1 JUN
when the first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 2 JUN when the first
Biblical day of Spring is 21 MAR.
The latest date of Pentecost.
Pentecost is always forty-nine days after First Fruits. So, the latest date of Pentecost is a
forty-nine days after the latest date of First Fruits. Therefore, the latest Pentecost is 23 JUN (5
MAY + 49 = 54 MAY; 54 MAY – 31 (days in MAY) = 23 JUN).
The latest date that Pentecost can fall on is 22 JUN when the first
Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 23 JUN when the first Biblical day of
Spring is 21 MAR.
The latest date of the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles.
The latest date that the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles can
occur is at the end of the long Six-Month Gap after the latest date of the
first day of the Feast of Unleavened.
So, the latest date of the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles can be
found by adding 178 days to the latest date of the first day of the Feast of
Unleavened.
Therefore, the latest date of the first day of the Feast of
Tabernacles is 25 OCT (30 APR + 178 = 208 APR; 208 APR – 30 (days in APR) = 178
MAY; 178 MAY – 153 (days in MAY through SEP) = 25 OCT.
So, the latest date that the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles
can fall on is 24 OCT when the first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 25
OCT when the first Biblical day of Spring is 21 MAR.
The latest date of the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles.
Since the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles is the fifteenth
day of the seventh month and the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles is the
twenty-second day of the seventh month, it always occurs seven days after the
first day of the Feast of Tabernacles. Therefore,
the latest date of the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles is 1 NOV (25 OCT +
7 = 32 OCT; 32 OCT – 31 (days in October) = 1 NOV.
So, the latest date that the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles
can fall on is 1 NOV when the first Biblical day of Spring is 31 OCT and 1 NOV
when the last Biblical day of Spring is 21 MAR.
The latest date of the Feast of Trumpets.
Since the Feast of Trumpets is the first day of the seventh month
and the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles is the fifteenth day of the
seventh month, it always occurs fourteen days before the first day of the Feast
of Tabernacles.
So, the latest date of the Feast of Trumpets is 10 OCT when the
first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 11 OCT when the first Biblical day
of Spring is 21 MAR.
The latest date of the Day of Atonement.
Since the Feast of Trumpets is the first day of the seventh month
and the Day of Atonement is the tenth day of the seventh month, it always
occurs nine days after the Feast of Trumpets.
This allows us to determine the latest date of the Day of Atonement
based on the latest date of the Feast of Trumpets.
So, the latest date of the Day of Atonement is 19 OCT when the
first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 20 OCT when the first Biblical day
of Spring is 21 MAR.
THE OTHER BIBLICAL HOLIDAYS.
So, far we have only discussed the Feasts of Truth (Moedim aka
Feasts of the Father of Truth) that were given to Moses (Moishe) by the Father
of Truth (YHVH aka God aka THE LORD).
Each of these is literally an appointed time (moed) to meet together at one place with the Father of Truth each year
(Leviticus 23).
However, there are three types of celebrations in the Book of Truth
(The Bible). Beside the moed, there is also a regular celebration (mishteh) and a holy celebration (chag) when people do not have to meet together at one place with the
Father of Truth. The Father of Truth wants us to celebrate every good thing that He has given us.
So, there are two other Biblical holiday that are a chag, but not a
moed.
The first one is Chanukah, which means
"dedication". It celebrates the dedication of those Jews who
refused to allow the Jewish people to be assimilated out of existence during
the rule of the Greeks.
The events of the Chanukah were foretold in the Book of Daniel.
A terrible Greek king polluted the Temple by dedicating it as a
place to worship idols until years later when a group of Jews cleansed the
Temple by rededicating it as a place to worship the Father of Truth (Daniel 8:11-14). These Jews that did exploits because they knew the Father
of Truth were led by the Maccabees through years of great hardship and war to
finally overcome the terrible Greek king along with his Jewish allies (Daniel 11:30-35).
Chanukah is celebrated for eight days starting on the twenty-fifth
day of the ninth Biblical month. This is because cleansing the Temple of
the pollution of idol worship took seven days and the Temple was rededicated to
worshiping the Father of Truth on the eighth day.
The second one is Purim, which means "lots". It
celebrates the deliverance of the Jewish people from being exterminated out of
existence during the rule of the Persians.
The events of Purim were written in the Book of Esther.
A terrible Persian prime minister convinced the Persian king to
destroy Mordecai and his people, the Jews, throughout the Persian Empire on the
thirteenth day of the twelfth month according to the lots that he had cast (Esther 3:6-14). However, in the end the terrible Persian prime minister
and his people were destroyed on that day (Esther 9:1-16).
Purim is celebrated on the fourteenth and fifteenth day of the
twelfth Biblical month when the celebrations of the deliverance of the Jewish
people were first celebrated (Esther 9:17-22).
It was established to remind the Jewish people every year that they were
delivered from being exterminated through the efforts of Queen Esther and
Mordecai - who became the new Persian prime minister in the Persian capital.
In fact, these Biblical holidays are not celebrations for only Jews
but also for Gentiles who worship the Father of Truth.
Some Greeks and other Gentiles stood with the Maccabees during
their years of hardship as they resistance against assimilation (Daniel 11:33-35). In like manner, Purim was not decreed for just for Jewish
people, but also for all Gentiles who love the Jewish people (Esther 9:26-28).
So, Chanukah is not just for Jews.
Gentiles are also invited to the Purim Party.
The Man of Truth (Yeshua HaMashiach aka Jesus Christ) proclaimed
his dedication in the Temple unto death to both the Father of Truth and his
people during Chanukah (Feast of Dedication) (John 10:15-23).
The Man of Truth delivered a Jewish man in the Jewish capital from
a hopeless situation during Purim - a chag (eorte
in Greek) of the Jews (John 5:1-14). A
month later, the Man of Truth returned to Jerusalem from Galilee (John 6:1-4).
So, it only makes sense that the Gentile Children of Truth (those
who obey The Father of Truth because they love Him) celebrate these holidays as
well.
The Chanukah Gap
The last day of the Feast of Tabernacles is the twenty-second day
of the seventh Biblical month while the first day of Chanukah is the
twenty-fifth day of the twelfth Biblical month. This is the Chanukah Gap.
The Chanukah Gap is a Two-Month Gap plus three days.
A regular Two-Month Gap has one regular Biblical month and one
short Biblical month, which is the same number of days as one Biblical month
couplet. So, a regular Two-Month Gap has
59 days.
Likewise, a short Two-Month Gap with two short Biblical months has 58
days. Finally, a long Two-Month Gap with
two regular Biblical months has 60 days.
So, a regular Chanukah Gap is 62 days (59 + 3 = 62). Likewise, a short Chanukah Gap is 61 days,
and a long Chanukah Gap is 63 days.
The Earliest Date of the First Day of Chanukah
Since a year can only be one day less than a regular year at the
most, then the Chanukah Gap that follows a short Six-Month Gap cannot be a
short Chanukah Gap. The shortest it can
be is a regular Chanukah Gap.
So, the earliest date of the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles plus
a regular Chanukah Gap gives the earliest date of the first day of Chanukah. The
earliest date of the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles is 24 SEP. Therefore, the earliest date of the first day
of Chanukah is 25 NOV (24 SEP + 62 = 86 SEP; 86 SEP – 30 (days in SEP) = 56
OCT; 56 OCT – 31 (days in OCT) = 25 NOV).
So, the earliest date of the first day of Chanukah is 25 NOV when
the first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 26 NOV when the first Biblical
day of Spring is 21 MAR.
The Earliest Date of the Last Day of Chanukah
Since Chanukah lasts eight days, the last day of Chanukah is seven
days after the first day of Chanukah. Therefore,
the earliest date of the last day of Chanukah is 2 DEC (25 NOV + 7 = 32 NOV; 32
NOV – 30 (days in NOV) = 2 DEC).
So, the earliest date of the first day of Chanukah is 2 DEC when
the first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 3 DEC when the first Biblical
day of Spring is 21 MAR.
The Latest Date of the First Day of Chanukah
Since a year can only be one day more than a regular year at the
most, then the Chanukah Gap that follows a long Six-Month Gap cannot be a long
Chanukah Gap. The longest it can be is a
regular Chanukah Gap.
So, the latest date of the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles
plus a regular Chanukah Gap gives the latest date of the first day of Chanukah.
The latest date of the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles is 1 NOV. Therefore, the latest date of the first day
of Chanukah is 2 JAN (1 NOV + 62 = 63 NOV; 63 NOV – 30 (days in NOV) = 33 DEC; 33
DEC – 31 (days in DEC) = 2 JAN).
So, the latest date of the first day of Chanukah is 1 JAN when the
first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 2 JAN when the first Biblical day of
Spring is 21 MAR.
The Latest Date of the Last Day of Chanukah
Since Chanukah lasts eight days, the last day of Chanukah is seven
days after the first day of Chanukah. Therefore,
the latest date of the last day of Chanukah is 9 JAN (2 JAN + 7 = 9 JAN).
So, the latest date of the first day of Chanukah is 8 JAN when the
first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 9 JAN when the first Biblical day of
Spring is 21 MAR.
The Purim Gap
Make-Up Passover is the fourteen day of the second Biblical month
while the first day of Purim is the fourteenth day of the twelfth Biblical
month. This is the Purim Gap.
The Purim Gap is a Ten-Month Gap.
A regular Ten-Month Gap has five regular Biblical months and five
short Biblical months, which is the same number of days as five Biblical month
couplets. So, a regular Two-Month Gap
has 295 days (59 X 5 = 295).
A short Ten-Month Gap has 294 days while a long Ten-Month Gap has 296
days.
So, the shortest Purim Gap is a short Ten-Month Gap of 294 days
while the longest Purim Gap is a long Ten-Month gap of 296 days.
The Earliest Date of the First Day of Purim
The earliest date of Make-Up Passover plus the shortest Purim Gap
gives the earliest date of the first day of Purim.
The earliest date of Make-Up Passover is 22 APR. Therefore, the earliest date of the first day
of Purim is 10 FEB (22 APR + 294 = 316 APR; 316 APR – 30 (days in APR) = 286
MAY; 286 MAY – 276 (days in MAY through JAN) = 10 FEB).
So, the earliest date of the first day of Purim is 10 FEB when the
first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 11 FEB when the first Biblical day
of Spring is 21 MAR.
The Earliest Date of the Last Day of Purim
Since Purim lasts two days, the last day of Purim is one day after
the first day of Purim.
So, the earliest date of the last day of Purim is 11 FEB when the
first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 12 FEB when the first Biblical day
of Spring is 21 MAR.
The Latest Date of the First Day of Purim
The latest date of Make-Up Passover plus the longest Purim Gap
gives the latest date of the first day of Purim.
The latest date of Make-Up Passover is 29 MAY. Therefore, the latest date of the first day
of Purim is 21 MAR (29 MAY + 296 = 325 MAY; 325 MAY – 31 (days in MAY) = 294 JUN;
294 JUN – 273 (days in JUN through FEB) = 21 MAR).
(The latest date in a Gregorian leap year when the first Biblical
day of Spring is 21 MAR would be 20 MAR due to February having an extra day.)
So, the latest date of the first day of Purim is 20 MAR when the
first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 21 MAR when the first Biblical day
of Spring is 21 MAR.
The Latest Date of the Last Day of Purim
Since Purim lasts two days, the last day of Purim is one day after
the first day of Purim.
So, the latest date of the last day of Purim is 21 MAR when the
first Biblical day of Spring is 20 MAR and 22 MAR when the first Biblical day
of Spring is 21 MAR.
THE POSSIBLE RANGE OF DATES FOR BIBLICAL HOLIDAYS:
The possible range of dates for the Biblical holidays on the
Gregorian Calendar are as follows:
|
Holiday
|
Earliest Date
|
Latest Date
|
|
First day of Purim
|
10 FEB
|
21 MAR
|
|
Last day of Purim
|
11 FEB
|
22 MAR
|
|
Rosh Hashanah
|
11 MAR
|
16 APR
|
|
Passover
|
24 MAR
|
29 APR
|
|
First day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread
|
25 MAR
|
30 APR
|
|
First Fruits
|
31 MAR
|
5 MAY
|
|
Last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread
|
31 MAR
|
6 MAY
|
|
Make-Up Passover
|
22 APR
|
29 MAY
|
|
Make-Up First day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread
|
23 APR
|
30 MAY
|
|
Make-Up First Fruits
|
28 APR
|
2 JUN
|
|
Make-Up Last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread
|
29 APR
|
5 JUN
|
|
Pentecost
|
9 MAY
|
23 JUN
|
|
Trumpets
|
3 SEP
|
11 OCT
|
|
Day of Atonement
|
12 SEP
|
20 OCT
|
|
First day of the Feast of Tabernacles
|
17 SEP
|
25 OCT
|
|
Last day of the Feast of Tabernacles
|
24 SEP
|
1 NOV
|
|
First day of Chanukah
|
25 NOV
|
2 JAN
|
|
Last day of Chanukah
|
2 DEC
|
9 JAN
|
The Distribution
of the Dates for Biblical holidays:
The Biblical holidays are not distributed evenly across these date
ranges. Most of the time the earliest
and latest dates can only occur under unusual circumstances. Some of these can only occur under very rare
circumstances.
One reason is that the earliest date of some holidays is only
possible in year when the first Biblical date of Spring is 20 MAR. Likewise, the latest date of some holidays is
only possible in year when the first Biblical date of Spring is 21 MAR.
This means that the earliest and latest dates that can only occur
in those years will have half as many occurrences as the dates that can occur
in any year.
Another reason is that other conditions necessary for some of the
earliest and latest dates only occur very rarely. For example, the earliest possible date for
Purim can only occur in a short regular Biblical year – which is rare
itself. Even then, Passover had to fall
on the earliest possible date – which is also rare in itself. Besides that,
Passover would then have to be followed by a short month - which occurs than
half the time.
The greater the number of days a possible date is outside of the
normal range of dates then the less frequently that it occurs.
For example, over a thousand-year period, Passover might fall once
on 24 MAR and ten times on 25 APR, but it might fall over thirty times on 9
APR.
For this reason, the Rabbis have created the Rabbinic Calendar by
ignoring the rare occurrences as if they never happened. However, there is nothing in the Book of
Truth that allows them to change the way that Biblical holiday dates occur for
the sake of convenience.
THE NORMAL DATE RANGE OF BIBLICAL HOLIDAYS:
However, since Biblical Holidays will almost always occur under
normal circumstances, then it can be helpful to know the normal date range of
Biblical holidays.
Under normal circumstances the date ranges of all Biblical holidays
can be calculated off of the Passover date range. The earliest normal Passover date, 25 MAR, makes
the earliest normal Rosh Hashanah date to be 12 MAR. This defines day one and all holidays can be
counted off from it.
Under normal conditions, there are four sets of dates for Passover
to fall on.
There is an early and late start date due to Spring having two
possible start dates. For each of these
start dates, there are two types of Biblical months – regular with thirty days
and short with twenty-nine days.
So, the early months start on day one, while the late months start
on day two of the range under normal conditions. This gives four sets of dates for Rosh
Hashanah:
A short month with an early start date will include days one
through twenty-nine. A regular month
with an early start date will include days one through thirty. A short month with a late start date will
include days two through thirty. A
regular month with a late start date will include days two through thirty-one.
So, the normal Rosh Hashanah date range is days 1 through 31. This makes the normal Passover date range to
be days 14 through 44.
Since the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is the day
after Passover, the normal date range for it is days 15 through 45. Likewise
the last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is seven days after Passover, so
the normal date range for it is days 21 through 51.
However, First Fruits is based on a day of the week and as well as
a day of the Biblical calendar month.
So, First Fruits can occur on one of seven Biblical calendar dates
instead of just one like the Biblical holidays that are based only on a day of
the Biblical calendar month.
So, the normal First Fruits date range will contain thirty-one days
like the Biblical holidays that are based only on a day of the Biblical
calendar month. However, since it is
always a Sunday and the earliest possible date is 31 MAR, then it will start on
day 20. This means that the normal First
Fruits date range will occur on days 20 through 51.
Also, under normal conditions a pair of months will form a Biblical
month couplet. So, the normal range of
later Biblical holidays can be determined from the normal range of the early
Biblical holidays.
For example, under normal circumstances if the first Biblical
Calendar month has twenty-nine days, then the second one will have thirty
days. Likewise, if the first Biblical
Calendar month has thirty days, then the second one will have twenty-nine days.
When first Biblical Calendar month has twenty-nine days in a year
with an early first day of Biblical Spring, then the Passover date range will
be days 14 through 42 and the Make Passover date range will be days 43 through 71.
When this occurs in a year with a late first day of Biblical Spring, then the
Passover date range will be days 15 through 43 and the Make Passover date range
will be days 44 through 72.
When first Biblical Calendar month has thirty days in a year with
an early first day of Biblical Spring, then the Passover date range will be
days 14 through 43 and the Make Passover date range will be days 44 through 73.
When this occurs in a year with a late first day of Biblical Spring, then the
Passover date range will be days 15 through 44 and the Make Passover date range
will be days 45 through 74.
So, the normal Make-Up Passover date range is days 43 through 74. Since the first day of the Feast of
Unleavened Bread is the day after Passover, then the normal date range for it
is days 44 through 75. Likewise the last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread
is seven days after Passover, so the normal date range for it is days 50
through 81.
Also, the normal Make-Up First Fruits date range occurs on days 48
through 81, since the earliest normal Make-Up First Fruits is restricted by the
normal First Fruits date range and the requirement to always be on a Sunday.
Since Pentecost is forty-nine days after First Fruits, it will also
have a 32-day normal date range. It will
occur on days 69 through 100.
The first day of the Feast of Tabernacles is six Biblical calendar
months after the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. So under normal
circumstances it has a normal Six-Month Gap containing three Biblical month
couplets resulting in 177 days (59 X 3 = 177).
So, the normal date range of the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles
is days 192 through 222.
Since the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles is seven days after
the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles, then the normal date range for it is
days 199 through 229. Likewise, the
Feast of Trumpets is fourteen days before the first day of the Feast of
Tabernacles, so the normal date range for it is days 178 through 208. Lastly, the Day of Atonement is nine days
after the Feast of Trumpets, so the normal date range for it is days 187
through 217.
The first day of Chanukah is two Biblical months and three days
after the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles.
The normal Chanukah Gap is 62 days, so the normal date range for the
first day of Chanukah is days 261 through 291.
Since the last day of Chanukah is seven days after the first day of
Chanukah, then the date range of it is days 268 through 298.
The first day of Purim is ten Biblical months after Make-Up Passover. The normal Purim gap is 295 days, so the
normal date range for the first day of Purim is days 338 through 369. Since the last day of Purim is one day after
the first day of Purim, then the date range of it is days 339 through 370.
The normal range of dates for the Biblical holidays on the
Gregorian Calendar is as follows:
|
Holiday
|
Earliest Date
|
Latest Date
|
|
First day of Purim
|
12 FEB
|
15 MAR
|
|
Last day of Purim
|
13 FEB
|
16 MAR
|
|
Rosh HaShannah
|
12 MAR
|
11 APR
|
|
Passover
|
25 MAR
|
24 APR
|
|
First day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread
|
26 MAR
|
25 APR
|
|
First Fruits
|
31 MAR*
|
1 MAY
|
|
Last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread
|
1 APR
|
1 MAY
|
|
Make-Up Passover
|
23 APR
|
24 MAY
|
|
Make-Up First day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread
|
24 APR
|
25 MAY
|
|
Make-Up First Fruits
|
28 APR**
|
31 MAY
|
|
Make-Up Last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread
|
1 MAY
|
31 MAY
|
|
Pentecost
|
19 MAY
|
19 JUN
|
|
Trumpets
|
5 SEP
|
5 OCT
|
|
Day of Atonement
|
14 SEP
|
14 OCT
|
|
First day of the Feast of Tabernacles
|
19 SEP
|
19 OCT
|
|
Last day of the Feast of Tabernacles
|
26 SEP
|
26 OCT
|
|
First day of Chanukah
|
27 NOV
|
27 DEC
|
|
Last day of Chanukah
|
4 DEC
|
3 JAN
|
* 31 MAR is the earliest possible First Fruits, so it is the
earliest normal First Fruits instead of 26 MAR.
** 29 APR (29 days after 31 MAR) will be a Monday if 31 MAR was a Sunday,
so 28 APR will be on a Sunday making it the earliest normal Make-Up First
Fruits.
The Common Range of dates for Biblical holidays:
Under normal conditions there is a date range within the normal
date range of each Biblical holiday that is very common. Over a long period of time of time the dates
within these common date ranges will have many more occurrences than those
close to either end of the normal date ranges.
Like Passover, there are four sets of dates for most Biblical
holidays to fall on.
There is an early and late start date due to Spring two possible
start dates. For each of these start
dates, there are two types of Biblical months – regular with thirty days and
short with twenty-nine days.
So, the early months start on day one, while the late months start
on day two of the range under normal conditions. This gives four sets of dates:
A short month with an early start date will include days one
through twenty-nine. A regular month
with an early start date will include days one through thirty. A short month with a late start date will
include days two through thirty. A
regular month with a late start date will include days two through thirty-one.
All four sets include days two through twenty-nine. So, these are the most common dates for the
date range of most Biblical holidays.
These days in these four date sets make up two Biblical month
couplets with 118 days (59 X 2 = 118). Since
one of these dates would be the date of the Biblical holiday each year, it
would take a period of 118 years for all of them to occur under normal
conditions.
In 118 years under normal conditions each of the most common dates would
occur four times. Since day one is only
in the sets with an early start date, it will occur two times. Since day thirty
occurs in all sets except for the one with an early start date and a short
Biblical month, it will occur three times.
Since day thirty-one only occurs in the set with a late start date and a
long Biblical month, it will occur only once.
So, most of the time the common range of dates of most of the
Biblical holidays will fall during the common range of day 2 to day 29 of each
range. In fact, the date of the Biblical
holidays will fall within the common range of dates about 95% of years with
normal conditions.
However, First Fruits is based on a day of the week and as well as
a day of the Biblical calendar month. So,
First Fruits can occur on one of seven Biblical calendar dates instead of just
one like the Biblical holidays that are based only on a day of the Biblical
calendar month.
So, the normal date range of First Fruits will contain twenty-eight
days like the Biblical holidays that are based only on a day of the Biblical
calendar month plus another six days for the other days on the Biblical
calendar month that it can fall on.
Thus, the normal date range of First Fruits is 34 days (28 + 6 =
34). The same is true for Make-Up First
Fruits. Since Pentecost is based off of
First Fruits it will have a normal date range of 34 days.
The common range of First Fruits will vary from the earliest common
date of the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the latest common
date of the last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
The common range of dates for the Biblical holidays on the
Gregorian Calendar is as follows:
|
Holiday
|
Earliest Date
|
Latest Date
|
|
First day of Purim
|
13 FEB
|
13 MAR
|
|
Last day of Purim
|
14 FEB
|
14 MAR
|
|
Rosh Hashanah
|
13 MAR
|
9 APR
|
|
Passover
|
26 MAR
|
22 APR
|
|
First day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread
|
27 MAR
|
23 APR
|
|
First Fruits
|
31 MAR*
|
29 APR
|
|
Last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread
|
2 APR
|
29 APR
|
|
Make-Up Passover
|
24 APR
|
22 MAY
|
|
Make-Up First day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread
|
25 APR
|
23 MAY
|
|
Make-Up First Fruits
|
28 APR**
|
29 MAY
|
|
Make-Up Last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread
|
1 MAY
|
29 MAY
|
|
Pentecost
|
19 MAY
|
17 JUN
|
|
Trumpets
|
6 SEP
|
3 OCT
|
|
Day of Atonement
|
15 SEP
|
12 OCT
|
|
First day of the Feast of Tabernacles
|
20 SEP
|
17 OCT
|
|
Last day of the Feast of Tabernacles
|
27 SEP
|
24 OCT
|
|
First day of Chanukah
|
28 NOV
|
25 DEC
|
|
Last day of Chanukah
|
5 DEC
|
1 JAN
|
* 31 MAR is the earliest possible First Fruits, so it is the
earliest common First Fruits instead of 27 MAR.
** 29 APR (29 days after 31 MAR) will be a Monday if 31 MAR was a
Sunday, so 28 APR will be on a Sunday making it the earliest common Make-Up
First Fruits.
THE CONCLUSION
OF THE MATTER:
Of
course, the date range of Biblical holidays only matters to those who are
observing them. It is like knowing a
bunch of tricks to solve math problems quicker in your head only matters when
you need to do the math.
The Children of Truth do not have to observe these holidays to be
saved. The Savior of the Gentiles does not force
them to become Jews to be saved.
They do not have to keep the lessor matters of the Law of Truth that are meant to make the Jewish people distinct from all other
ethnic groups. Still, It only makes
sense for those following the Man of Truth to do what he did.
The Children of Truth should be asking themselves WDJD (What did
Jesus Do) about everything in life instead of WWJD.
So, they should not keep these holidays to be saved, but because they
are saved.
On the other hand, observing these holidays is of no real value
unless you are following the Messiah of Israel. Everyone has to keep the weightier matters of the Law of Truth to enter into the kingdom of the Father of Truth.
The problem is that no one has done so, for all people have sinned
(1 Kings 8:46). So, keeping the Biblical holidays is
worthless when people have sin in their lives (Isaiah 1:13-15).
They must not only repent of their sins, but they must also have
them washed away (Isaiah 1:16-18). Their sins can only be taken away by the
Messiah dying in their place and rising again to rule them (Isaiah 53).
The Father of Truth told Moses that He would raise up a Prophet of
Truth like unto Moses and he would require it of anyone who did not obey that
Prophet of Truth (Deuteronomy 18:17-19). The Man of Truth is that Prophet of Truth and
the Father of Truth will destroy every Jew who does not obey him (Acts 3:19-23).
So, come into the House of Truth by committing to obey the Man of
Truth in everything because you believe that the Father of Truth raised him
from the dead (Romans 10:9).
Come into the House of Truth!
Labels: Biblical Calendar, Chanukah, Feasts of The Lord, Holidays, Moedim, Purim
