THE STRUCTURE OF THE JEWISH CALENDAR (2)
(Message by Tanny Keng)
1. The structure of the Jewish calendar
a) The Jewish calendar, being lunar-based, invariably began with the new moon. To make up for the shorter year (compared to solar-based calendars), an extra month was periodically inserted between the months Adar and Nisan. That month, sometimes called Veader (“second Adar”), was added seven times within a 19-year cycle (at which time the month Adar received an extra half day).
b) The names of the months in the Jewish calendar originated in the period following the return from Babylonia to Palestine. Before the Babylonian exile, at least four months had other names: Abib (Exodus 13:4), Ziv (1 Kings 6:1, 37), Ethanim ( 1 Kings 8:2), and Bul (1 Kings 6:38). After the Captivity, these months were renamed Nisan, lyyar, Tishri, and Heshvan (originally Marcheshvan), respectively. The pre-exilic names carried agricultural connotations. For example, Abib (“ear of grain”) signified the month in which grain became ripe; Ziv (“radiance”) was the month for desert flowers to bloom. An agricultural orientation is apparent in what is evidently the oldest Hebrew calendar, found at Gezer (southeast of Tel Aviv) in 1908 and dating from the 10th century BC. The calendar divides the year according to agricultural activities such as sowing, reaping, pruning, and storage.
c) Primarily, however, the months of the Jewish calendar had religious significance for the Jews and enabled them to commemorate the important events of their history. Each month’s beginning was considered holy. To ancient Israel, the moon became a symbol of the nation itself; the sun eventually became symbolic of the Messiah (Malachi 4:2). Since the moon produces no light of its own, the symbolism is especially appropriate: Israel was supposed to reflect the Messiah’s light to the world.
d) The Jewish calendar remained unchanged during the period between the Old Testament and New Testaments (approximately 400 years), despite an attempt by Hellenistic rulers to introduce a modified lunar-month system, presumably of Macedonian origin. According to that calendar, five days were added to the final month of the year, with each of the 12 months containing 30 days. Even then, it only approximated the solar year.
g) Usually, the ancient Hebrews did not record dates by citing the month and day of an event. Rather, dates were computed by reference to some significant event such as the accession year of the reigning king (2 Kings 15:17) or a patriarch’s birth (Genesis 7:11). In New Testament times, the Jews continued the Old Testament method of dating events by synchronizing them with events either in their religious calendar or within the secular sphere of the Roman world. Writers of the New Testament followed the same practice (Luke 1:5; John 12:1; Acts 18:12). It was only as the calendar reforms of Julius Caesar became embedded in the culture that people changed from that long-standing method to a more standardized system.
The End ...
1. The structure of the Jewish calendara) The Jewish calendar, being lunar-based, invariably began with the new moon. To make up for the shorter year (compared to solar-based calendars), an extra month was periodically inserted between the months Adar and Nisan. That month, sometimes called Veader (“second Adar”), was added seven times within a 19-year cycle (at which time the month Adar received an extra half day).
b) The names of the months in the Jewish calendar originated in the period following the return from Babylonia to Palestine. Before the Babylonian exile, at least four months had other names: Abib (Exodus 13:4), Ziv (1 Kings 6:1, 37), Ethanim ( 1 Kings 8:2), and Bul (1 Kings 6:38). After the Captivity, these months were renamed Nisan, lyyar, Tishri, and Heshvan (originally Marcheshvan), respectively. The pre-exilic names carried agricultural connotations. For example, Abib (“ear of grain”) signified the month in which grain became ripe; Ziv (“radiance”) was the month for desert flowers to bloom. An agricultural orientation is apparent in what is evidently the oldest Hebrew calendar, found at Gezer (southeast of Tel Aviv) in 1908 and dating from the 10th century BC. The calendar divides the year according to agricultural activities such as sowing, reaping, pruning, and storage.
c) Primarily, however, the months of the Jewish calendar had religious significance for the Jews and enabled them to commemorate the important events of their history. Each month’s beginning was considered holy. To ancient Israel, the moon became a symbol of the nation itself; the sun eventually became symbolic of the Messiah (Malachi 4:2). Since the moon produces no light of its own, the symbolism is especially appropriate: Israel was supposed to reflect the Messiah’s light to the world.
d) The Jewish calendar remained unchanged during the period between the Old Testament and New Testaments (approximately 400 years), despite an attempt by Hellenistic rulers to introduce a modified lunar-month system, presumably of Macedonian origin. According to that calendar, five days were added to the final month of the year, with each of the 12 months containing 30 days. Even then, it only approximated the solar year.
g) Usually, the ancient Hebrews did not record dates by citing the month and day of an event. Rather, dates were computed by reference to some significant event such as the accession year of the reigning king (2 Kings 15:17) or a patriarch’s birth (Genesis 7:11). In New Testament times, the Jews continued the Old Testament method of dating events by synchronizing them with events either in their religious calendar or within the secular sphere of the Roman world. Writers of the New Testament followed the same practice (Luke 1:5; John 12:1; Acts 18:12). It was only as the calendar reforms of Julius Caesar became embedded in the culture that people changed from that long-standing method to a more standardized system.
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