The Biblical Year

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The Biblical Year

• Stacey Sporleder
• Honors 390
• January 31, 2003

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Todays Jewish Calendar

• Week
• Days are labeled by number
• the sabbath (Shabbat) ends the week

yom rishon (Sunday) yom sheni (Monday) yom
sh'lishi (Tuesday) yom revi'i (Wednesday) yom
chamishi (Thursday) yom shishi (Friday) Shabbat
(Saturday)
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The Months

• lunar months that begin with the appearance of a
  new moon
• Babylonian originated names
• consist of 29 - 30 days
• one revolution is 29.5 days
• alternate between 29 30 days

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The Jewish Year

• Begins with the first new moon after the vernal
  equinox
• Consists of 12 months 354 days
• shortage of 11 days between lunar solar years
• a 13th month is added 7 times in a 19 year cycle
  (3, 6, 8, 11, 14, 17)

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How it Compares

• 1) Nissan 30 days
  March-April
• 2) Iyar 29 days
  April-May
• 3) Sivan 30 days
  May-June
• 4) Tammuz 29 days
  June-July
• 5) Av 30 days
  July-August
• 6) Elul 29 days
  August-September

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The Later Months

• 7) Tishri 30 days
  September-October
• 8) Heshvan 29 or 30 days
  October-November
• 9) Kislev 30 or 29 days
  November-December
• 10) Tevet 29 days
  December-January
• 11) Shevat 30 days
  January-February
• 12) Adar 29 or 30 days
  February-March
• 13) Adar II 29 days
  March-April
• This is the additional month

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The Biblical Calendar

• Days
• sunset to sunset
• And there was evening, and there was morning,
  the first day. (Genesis 15)
• night first method

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Calendar cont.

• Weeks
• 7 days
• 7 days of creation (Genesis)
• Labor six day, rest one (Exodus 209-10)

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Its Months(biblical contradictions)

• Genesis 7 8
• The flood
• lasted 5 months and 150 days
• exactly 30 days per month
• Isaiah 6623
• new moon to new moon is a month

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More Contradictions

• Ezekiel 45 17-18
• months start with a new moon
• number of months not specified

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References

• www.nathan.co.za/biblyear.asp
• biblicalholidays.com
• www.mechon-mamre.org
• www.execulink.com
• www.users.qwest.net
• www.yrm.org
• www.jewishgen.org