By: Karen Engle, ICEJ USA Managing Editor
Photo Source: Unsplash,
The Biblical Month
The sun divided the day from night, establishing a biblical day. But the moon provided the division of the month—one new moon to the next equaled one lunar, biblical month. As the moon waned, ending one month, the children of Israel looked for the New Moon—and once sighted, a new month began. We see this in Isaiah 66:22–23, where the prophet hints that this is how God will calculate months in His kingdom to come:
“For as the new heavens and the new earth which I will make shall remain before Me,” says the LORD, “So shall your descendants and your name remain. And it shall come to pass that from one New Moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, all flesh shall come to worship before Me,” says the LORD.
Interestingly, Exodus 12:2 indicates God numbered the months based on when Israel was released from captivity in Egypt, the very first Passover: “This month shall be your beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you.” It was the Hebrew month Abib—roughly our March/April. Nahum Sarna writes in the JPS Torah Commentary that God did so as a stark visual—Israel would be starting a new order of life dominated by the consciousness of God’s active presence in history: “The entire religious calendar of Israel is henceforth to reflect this reality by numbering the months of the year from the month of the Exodus.”
It was at this same time God formally instituted the Sabbath, linking God’s rest after the six days of creation (Exodus 20:8–11). God would arrange His calendar according to His great acts on behalf of the nation He set apart to bring glory to his name.
Like biblical days, God identified His months using ordinals: “the first month,” “the second month,” and so on. Later, the children of Israel gave them Hebrew names. However, while in Babylonian captivity, Jews borrowed month names from the Babylonian calendar. The first month, Abib, for example, became Nisan.
What is your faith? How can it impact your health? Why?
Share the wealth of health with your family and friends by sharing this article with 3 people today.
If this article was helpful to you, donate to the Shidonna Raven Garden and Cook E-Magazine Today. Thank you in advance.
Comments