People are entitled to their own view, but not their own facts

 

There are a lot distractions that bombard us continuously from all sides seeking to divert our attention and efforts from the facts set out in the Scriptures and introduce increasingly minor and subconscious changes to our though processes. Taken to extremes, these diversions will steadily lead you away from the narrow path to the Father. Some suggestions:

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• Firstly, it is important to prioritise and make time for prayer, meditation, and reading the Scriptures. This will strengthens your connection to the Father and provides a focus amidst the chaos of daily life. The Father must be first in your life.

• Secondly, it can be helpful to limit exposure to distractions that may lead one away from faith. This may mean reducing or eliminating time spent watching TV, on social media or avoiding certain types of media that conflict with the Scriptures.

• Thirdly, find a community of like-minded individuals who can provide support and encouragement in staying focused on your spiritual path. This may mean joining a religious community or seeking out spiritual mentors or counselors. But be careful that who you join shares your faith and belief.
• Fourthly, stay away from fruitless debates. You need to be focused on the Father and bring others to belief in the Messiah. This is a primary task for all believers.

Ultimately, staying focused on the Fathers walk requires intentionality and commitment. By prioritising prayer and seeking a relationship with the Father, limiting exposure to distractions, and seeking support from others, you can stay on the Fathers way.

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This was also an issue that Paul grappled with, we are told in Colossians 3 to focus on what matters, and to distance ourselves from foolish questions, strife and quarrels

 

Colossians 3:1 If, then, you were raised with Messiah, seek the matters which are above, where Messiah is, seated at the right hand of Elohim. 2 Mind the matters above, not those on the earth. 3 For you have died, and your life has been hidden with Messiah in Elohim……… 9 But keep away from foolish questions, and genealogies, and strife and quarrels about the Torah, for they are unprofitable and useless.

 

One of these distractions is the Hebrew new year – when is it, why does the Salvation Plan span years? Arguments and debates remove the power of the Scriptures from believers minds as they focus on relatively trivial matters,  and do nothing to strengthen our, or anyone else’s, faith.

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One of the larger distractions, and fundamental to the observance of the Fathers Salvation Plan (Feasts), is what is the correct calendar. Why are there so many variations? When are the dates of the Feasts. You may ask yourself why it matters, but to those who think it does, I hope the below helps. This is a highly debated distraction.

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There is very little guidance given in the Scriptures on what is the correct calendar to follow, but I consider that the Hebrew calendar normally starts each month with the start of a lunar cycle, ie the new moon (which is no moon).

Psalm 81:3 uses the word - כסה keseh which can help determine the timing of some of the Feasts.

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Keseh (we think - it is not used often) means properly the full moon, the time of the full moon. In Syriac the word means either "the first day of the full moon," or "the whole time of the full moon." This fixes the time of some of the Feasts to the full moon, which can only then be either the Feast of Unleavened Bread or Sukkoth. Both start on the 15th day of a month, and for a lunar month this would have been the full moon. The other Feasts are preparatory in nature for these two Feasts and occur on days that are not full moons, but there are reasons for this. Any month not commencing at the new moon would not then make sense for this Scripture.

 

Some translations interpret keseh as "new moon" rather than "full moon." However, the context of the verse suggest that "full moon" is the more accurate translation.

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​At the end of a 12-month cycle, a new year commences. For this reason, the Hebrew calendar is classified as a lunar-solar calendar. This is however only a 354 day years and needs to be corrected or the calendar will lose step with the seasons relatively quickly. Every few years a further month is added to correct the lunar cycles to a solar year. As a lunar cycle is 29.4 days, and this is not directly dividable by 7 (number of days in the week) each month of the Hebrew calendar may start on a different day of the week and each day starts and ends at sunrise. The lunar-solar calendar appears to make sense as for an agrarian people, they always know where within a months cycle they are, simply by observing the phase of the moon.

 

The Gregorian calendar that most of the western world uses, is not a lunar cycle, it is a fixed number of days, with 12 months adding to a total of 365 days in each year. The Gregorian calendar is then a true solar calendar with fixed period months, and is very different in time keeping to the Hebrew calendar.

 

The Father specified the Feast days using the lunar solar calendar, and not the Gregorian calendar, and not the day of the week. The basis for the timing of the Feast days has nothing to do with the Gregorian calendar, the solar cycle, or the day of a week.

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The relationship between the Hebrew calendar and the Gregorian calendar is approximate, and is as shown below.

Month count

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I have read many articles discussing the Hebrew new year, that is, when does a new year occur and the count of the year is complete. Some say sources say that there are two dates, some say that 7 Tishri is the new years as this is when Israel celebrates the new year, and some say that 1 Nisan is the start of the new year. Lets just unpack these a little as the account is a little confusing.

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While we do not know the month of the year that the Father created the earth we do know it was created at some time, as were all plants animals and Adam and Eve. There are estimates of the creation date which is about 3,761 BC (5,784 years ago) according to the Hebrew calendar.

 

We do know however, from the structure of the Spring and Autumn Feasts, the Fathers salvation plan for mankind, and that is what remains as the single most important fact for us to absorb and understand.

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In Exodus Chapter 12, the Father gave Moses instructions for the Passover. This instruction is as follows

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Exodus 12:1 And Yahuah spoke to Moses and to Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying,  2 “This new moon is the beginning of new moons for you, it is the first new moon of the year for you. 3 “Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying, ‘On the tenth day of this new moon each one of them is to take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household.

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So, the Father set the start of the Salvation Plan with a new year, a new beginning, a blood sacrifice to enable death passing over, and an exodus from slavery for us all. This is the Spring Feasts. Logically the Salvation Plan should not be represented as spanning years, as it is a continuous process ending with the Autumn Feasts in the same year.

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In Leviticus, the Feast of Trumpets was specified as being in the seventh month of the year, and this feast day is still remembered as being the 7th day of Tishrei which is the seventh month of the year with Nisan being the first month. Have a look at Leviticus chapter 23 and I Kings 8

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Leviticus 23:23 And Yahuah spoke to Moshes, saying, 24 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying, ‘In the seventh new moon, on the first day of the new moon, you have a rest, a remembrance of trumpets, a set-apart gathering. 25 ‘You do no servile work, and you shall bring an offering made by fire to Yahuah.”

 

1 Kings 8:2 And all the men of Israel assembled to Sovereign Solomon at the festival in the month of Tishri, which is the seventh new moon.

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Clearly you may think that the Scriptures state that the Nisan is the first month of the new year, however there is a difference between translations that misguide people’s understanding. For instance, in many translations, Exodus 34:22 states

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Exodus 34:22 And thou shalt observe the feast of weeks, of the first fruits of wheat harvest, and the feast of in-gathering at the year's end.

 

This is a mistranslation of the original Hebrew where the wording is “middle” and not “beginning”. Better translations, including the English version of the Septuagint, are clearer and state

 

Exodus 34:22 And thou shalt keep to me the feast of weeks, the beginning of wheat-harvest; and the feast of in-gathering in the middle of the year.

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Confused? Please don’t be, focus on the facts in the Scriptures and place your trust in the Messiah Yahusha, and not in peoples views.

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Does it matter? Yes it does, as people are quoting mistranslations and teaching things that depart from the Scriptures. If they are wrong with one thing, what else are they wrong with?

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Today is the time for you to choose, time is short. The choices you make today impact not just how you understand the world, it also impacts your eternity. Don't delay, don't give up - we would love to hear your stories.

 

Web page last updated 25 February 2023

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