enoch and his calendar secrets complete
DESCRIPTION
by Andrew Gabriel RothTRANSCRIPT
As it is Written
Episode 41: The Secrets of Enoch
First Step
He is perhaps the most mysterious
figure in all of Scripture.
The attention Scripture gives him may
be fleeting, what is said leaves the
reader craving more.
From Enoch schools of mysticism
have been founded, breakaway sects
created and alternate “scriptures” and
calendars have been credited to him.
First Step
Enoch is hailed as a prophet of
mysteries and a man so righteous that
he earns a unique tour of heaven.
When he returns he is called a genius,
a mystic or even an angel.
And then Enoch is said to have written
all these secrets down for us, and they
survive even amongst the Dead Sea
Scrolls and are alluded to in Jude.
First Step
One important thing we should know
off the bat is the meaning of his name.
“Enoch” is the Greek version of his
name. In Hebrew it is actually
chanok, from a root that means “to be
trained, dedicated”.
This is the same root used to describe
Abraham’s retinue of 318 trained men
and is also used for “Hanukkah”.
First Step
If we just look at the name alone, it
implies that Enoch was the first
“dedicated” or “trained” man in
Scripture—trained in the mysteries of
the Cosmos.
But we should also bear in mind
Cain’s son also had this name, so
perhaps one was trained in evil and
the other in good?
First Step
But who was Enoch really? What
does Scripture really say? And have
we lost critical information about him?
Did he write books that should have
been part of our Bible but were lost or
suppressed?
Did he take a tour of heaven and
leave behind a first hand account of
what it was like? What can we know?
Chanok | ֲחנֹוְך
The Biblical Record
We start our tour where we must:
From the Scripture itself.
It will not take very long for me to
quote every Biblical reference about
him, and that is what adds to Enoch’s
mystery and the need to know more
about him.
Let’s see what Genesis has to say
about this first enigma in Scripture…
The Biblical Record
Jared lived 162 years, and became the
father of Enoch. Then Jared lived 800
years after he became the father of
Enoch, and he had other sons and
daughters. So all the days of Jared were
962 years, and he died. Enoch lived 65
years, and became the father of
Methuselah. Then Enoch walked with
God 300 years after he became the
The Biblical Record
father of Methuselah, and he had other
sons and daughters. So all the days of
Enoch were 365 years. Enoch walked
with God; and he was not, for God
took him. (Genesis 5:18-24 NAU)
After this mention in Genesis 5, Enoch
next appears on a lineage list in
Tanakh (1 Chronicles 1:3) and in Luke
3:37 as Y’shua’s ancestor.
The Biblical Record
Then we get a little more information
on the man in two later NT books:
Hebrews and the Epistle to Yehudah
or Jude.
Both of these references are useful
because they open a window on what
was thought to be true about Enoch
whether it was scriptural or not. Let’s
see what Paul and Yehudah say…
The Biblical Record
By faith Enoch was translated and did
not taste death; and he was not found
because Elohim had translated him: for,
before he translated him, there was
testimony of him that he pleased Elohim.
(Hebrews 11:5- AENT)
This “testimony” Paul refers to may be
found in other early sources outside of
Scripture as we will see. Moving on…
The Biblical Record
And of them also prophesied Enoch who
was the seventh from Adam when he
said: "Behold, Master YHWH comes with
myriads of his Set Apart believers; to
execute judgment upon all and to convict
all the wicked because of all the deeds
they have wickedly committed; and
because of all the hard speeches which
they, sinners without Elohim, have
The Biblical Record
uttered.”
(Epistle of Yehudah 1:14-15-AENT)
That’s all that made it into the official
record, but a little thing like “canon”
has not stopped many other folks from
speculating about Enoch and adding
to his story.
Almost all of these accounts are very
ancient, pre-dating the NT…
Josephus
Josephus Bar
Matthias, Jewish
historian [37 CE
to ca. 100 CE],
writing from
Jerusalem and
later Rome
The Extra-Biblical Record
The historian Josephus relates the
story about how the Greek translation
of the OT was completed in about 280
BCE.
King Ptolemy wanted a copy of the
Torah in Greek for his library, so 72
scholars from Israel were
commissioned to translate it into
Greek.
The Extra-Biblical Record
Also according to Josephus a kind of
miracle occurred where each scholar
produced identical/verbatim copies of
the text in Greek.
But the period between this incident
and the oldest surviving manuscripts
spans more than 700 years and there
is much uncertainty about the details
of the Greek’s development.
The Extra-Biblical Record
What I can say with some certainty is
this: The original translation was only
for the first Five Books of Moses. The
rest was done over a much longer
period of time by separate scholars
like Aquila and some others.
By the time the full corpus of Tanakh
appeared in Greek—maybe 100
BCE—those Jews added more books.
The Extra-Biblical Record
To be fair, the final list of canonical
books in Israel was not completed
until almost 200 years later.
But even during the first century, it
was clear that books Greek Jews liked
Israeli Jews did not. By the year 90
CE, Rabbis ruled that only books
originally done in Hebrew could be
accepted into the Jewish canon.
The Extra-Biblical Record
In recent years though, we found the
Rabbis were not always correct in
making these decisions.
For example, an Aramaic copy of the
book of Tobit was found amongst the
Dead Sea Scrolls and it proved the
Greek version the Rabbis banned was
a translation from Aramaic or Hebrew.
They read Tobit in Israel!
The Extra-Biblical Record
The Rabbis also largely accept the
historical testimony of 1-2 Maccabees
as accurate for telling the Hanukkah
story, though it was not written in
Hebrew or Aramaic either. (If it was,
those copies have not survived.)
In due time, these “extra” books on the
Greek side would be called by
Protestants “Apocrypha”, or “hidden”.
The Extra-Biblical Record
The Roman Catholics however
accepted them in their canon, calling
them “deuterocanonical” or “second
canon” after the other Tanakh books.
Whatever the case on canonicity may
be, there is no doubt these books are
ancient and that they contain valuable
historical information on how the Bible
was being thought about back then.
The Extra-Biblical Record
My quoting though of these books
should in no way imply that I accept
them as authoritative, inspired canon.
But like other sources I use, I do
believe in studying the full interpretive
sweep of ancient literature.
And the fact is Yehudah and Paul
knew of & may have been influenced
by these sources’ popularity…
The Extra-Biblical Record
Enoch pleased the Lord and was
transferred to heaven, an example for
the conversion of all generations.
(Wisdom of Sirach, 44:16 NJB)
No one else has ever been created on
earth to equal Enoch, for he was taken
up from earth.
(Wisdom of Sirach, 49:14 NJB)
The Extra-Biblical Record
These apocryphal texts obviously
don’t add a whole lot to what the
Scripture said.
We will be analyzing the actual
apocryphal book of Enoch a little later
on.
But there are other pre-NT resources
we should look at. Josephus only
mentions Enoch in passing…
The Extra-Biblical Record
Then his son Enoch succeeded him, who
was born when his father was 162 years
old. Now he, when he had lived 365
years, departed and went to God; where
it is that they have not written down his
death.
(Josephus, Antiquities,1:85)
The Extra-Biblical Record
And indeed, as to Elijah, and as to
Enoch, who was before the deluge, it is
written in the sacred books that they
disappeared: but so that no one knew
that they died.
(Josephus, Antiquities, 9:28)
The historian Philo however, (ca. 20
BCE to 50 CE), clearly wanted to
delve into greater detail about Enoch-
Philo
Philo Judaeus,
Jewish historian
[ca. 20 BCE – 50
CE] writing from
Alexandria,
Egypt
The Extra-Biblical Record
Why the man who lives a life of
repentance is said to have lived 365
years? [Genesis 5:23]. In the first
place, the year contains 365 days;
therefore, by the symbol of the solar
orbit, the sacred historian here
indicates the life of the repentant
man. In the second place, as the sun is
the cause of day and night, performing
The Extra-Biblical Record
his revolutions by day above the
hemisphere of the earth, and his course
by night under the earth, so also the life
of the man of repentance consists of
alternations of light and darkness; of
darkness, that is, of times of agitation
and circumstances of injury; and of light,
when the light of virtue and its radiant
brilliancy arises. In the third place, he
The Extra-Biblical Record
has assigned to him a complete
number, as the sun is ordained to be
the chief of the stars of heaven, under
an appointed number, in the time
which came before the period of his
repentance, to lead to the oblivion of
the sins previously committed; as
Elohim is good he bestows the greatest
favors most abundantly and at the
The Extra-Biblical Record
same time, he erases the former
offenses of those who devote
themselves to him, and which might
deserve chastisement, by a recollection
of their virtues. Why, when Enoch died,
the sacred historian adds the assertion,
"He pleased Elohim?" [Genesis 5:24]. In
the first place, he says this because, by
such a statement, he implies that the
The Extra-Biblical Record
soul is immortal, inasmuch as after it is
stripped of the body, it still pleases a
second time. In the second place, he
honors the repentant man with praise,
because he has persevered in the same
alteration of manners, and has never
receded till he has arrived at complete
perfection of life; for behold, some men
appear to be readily sated after they
The Extra-Biblical Record
have only tasted of excellence; and after
a hope of recovery has been given to
them, they relapse again into the same
disease. What is the meaning of the
expression, "He was not found because
Elohim translated him?" [Genesis 5:24].
In the first place, the end of virtuous
and holy men is not death but a
translation and migration, and an
The Extra-Biblical Record
approach to some other place of
abode. In the second place, in this
instance something marvelous did take
place; for he was supposed to be carried
off in such a way as to be invisible, for
then he was not found: and a proof of
this is, that he was sought for as being
invisible, not only as having been carried
away from their sight, since translation
The Extra-Biblical Record
into another place is nothing else than a
placing of a person in another situation;
but it is here suggested, that he was
translated from a visible place,
perceptible by the outward senses, into
an incorporeal idea, appreciable only to
the intellect. This mercy also was
bestowed on the great prophet, for his
sepulcher also was known to no one.
The Extra-Biblical Record
And besides these two there was
another, Elijah, who ascended from the
things of earth into heaven, according to
the divine appearance which was then
presented to him, and who thus followed
higher things, or, to speak with more
exact propriety, was raised up to heaven.
(Philo, Questions and Answers on
Genesis, 1:83-86)
The Extra-Biblical Record
Between linking Enoch with both
Moses and Elijah and also drawing the
parallel of Enoch’s 365 years to the
number days in the year, Philo is
clearly suggesting Enoch had special
access to heavenly mysteries.
Philo may have gotten that idea not so
much from Scripture as he did from
legends circulating at that time.
The Extra-Biblical Record
While the actual origin time of the
Book of Enoch is unclear, we do know
its core formed popular oral legends
that clearly were known to Philo, Paul
and Jude.
And now versions of Enoch’s
adventures have been found in
Hebrew, amongst the Dead Sea
Scrolls. Let’s take a look!
The Dead Sea Scrolls
The Extra-Biblical Record
I know the mysteries of the Lord which
the holy ones have explained and
showed me and which I read in the
heavenly tablets. And I saw written in
them that one generation after another
will do evil in this way, and evil will last
until generations of righteousness arise
and evil and wickedness shall end and
all violence shall cease from the earth on
The Extra-Biblical Record
them…And now please go to your son,
Lamech, and explain to him that this
child is his son in truth and without lie.
Dead Sea Scrolls 4Q204-En (Complete
Dead Sea Scrolls in English by Geza
Vermes, p. 514-15)
..the soul of all the sons of man. And
behold these are the pits for their prison.
They were made for the final day of the
The Extra-Biblical Record
great judgment which will be imposed
upon them. There I saw the spirit of a
dead man complaining and his moaning
rising to heaven and crying and
complaining.
Dead Sea Scrolls 4Q206:12, p. 515
And beyond those mountains roughly
northwards, on their eastern side, I was
shown other mountains—nard, cinnamon
The Extra-Biblical Record
and pepper. And from there I was taken
to the east of all those mountains, far
from them, to the east of the earth and I
was taken over the Red Sea and greatly
distanced myself from it. And I passed
to the Paradise of righteousness.
Dead Sea Scrolls 4Q206:26, p. 515
This Hebrew book (ca. 200 BCE) is
the oldest version of Enoch known.
The Extra-Biblical Record
The later versions in Greek, Coptic
and other languages are more
complete but all agree on this basic
story contour.
Enoch is taken up to heaven, given a
special tour of its secret places and
writings, then shown Sheol and other
parts of the earth and then he writes
many books about it for us to read.
The Extra-Biblical Record
There is also an “astronomical book”
attributed to Enoch found amongst the
Dead Sea Scrolls as well.
This and related literature has given
rise to a new calendar theory which
had the Hebrew feasts on a solar
calendar, and saying that Enoch kept
a 364 day solar year. We will look at
these claims and see if they are true.
The Extra-Biblical Record
But before doing that I must point this
out: Even among the Roman
Catholics who accept some of the
books we call “Apocrypha”, they did
not include the Book of Enoch as
canonical-so it’s not strong even there!
Only the Ethiopian Church accepts a
later and more robust version of
Enoch than is in the Dead Sea Scrolls.
The Extra-Biblical Record
As time went on, the version attested
to in Hebrew fragments at Qumran got
expanded into other versions that
have questionable information.
Also, according to Gershom Scholem
who was the 20th century’s leading
authority on Jewish mysticism, these
Enochian traditions would become
part of the later Merkava Mysticism.
The Extra-Biblical Record
Merkava, or “chariot” is a mystical
school largely based on the teachings
of Ezekiel’s vision of wheels within
wheels. It flourished between the 3rd
and 8th centuries, CE.
It is actually the next logical
development in the Enochian tradition
from Scripture to “lesser apocrypha” to
Dead Sea Scrolls and now here.
The Extra-Biblical Record
This mystical tradition will also link
Enoch to a special angel named
“Metatron”, who is also symbolically
linked to Messiah.
The heresy though that arises is that
Enoch as Metatron is sometimes
called “the One Redeemer” which of
course takes this away from Y’shua
and commits horrendous sin.
The Extra-Biblical Record
The other problem is that the
Enochian view is that the Sons of
Elohim (Watchers) were angels who
married and procreated with human
women.
But again Y’shua said Messengers do
not marry nor are given in marriage,
so this is impossible--this whole story
re: Enoch and “the Watchers” is false!
The Extra-Biblical Record
But let’s look at the overall story of the
Book of Enoch briefly…
The Extra-Biblical Record
After Enoch witnesses these “angels”
procreate, he talks about bad angels
given forbidden knowledge to this
group of “giants” that come as
offspring. With that knowledge, they
create chaos upon the earth.
Then Enoch is taken up to heaven
where he gets a kind of grand tour of
the wonders there.
The Extra-Biblical Record
He also apparently gets to fly over
other key regions of the earth and
learn those secrets too.
Like a precursor of Virgil or Dante’,
Enoch even gets a brief tour of hell.
He hears warnings and rebukes from
YHWH against these wicked men and
angels and he watches the cosmic
war happen.
The Extra-Biblical Record
It is in fact 1 Enoch’s emphasis on
“angel-ology” that caused the Rabbis
to reject it as canonical text.
There is also not enough emphasis on
righteousness or obedience, except to
say that Enoch himself is worthy.
After the war, Enoch returns briefly to
talk to his son, whom he instructs to
call his son Noah, and the book ends.
The Extra-Biblical Record
When I read this book, I clearly can
understand why it was popular with a
lot of individual believers.
But I also understand why it was
rejected in all of the Jewish and
almost all of the Christian bodies of
faith.
There are things in here that clearly
are against what Y’shua taught…
Next Week…
But that doesn’t mean other parts from
this tradition are false. As long as we
focus on what can be proven directly
from Scripture and astronomy we will
be fine and not go into error.
This includes, as I said before, the re-
discovery of what some are calling
“The Calendar of Enoch”, and that’s
what we will talk about next week.
Next Week…
Episode 42: Did Enoch Have a
Calendar? Part 1
As it is Written
Episode 42:
Did Enoch Have a Calendar? Part 1
First Step
Last week we began investigating the
life of the Prophet Enoch.
While Scripture gives us very little
details about his life, his impact upon
mystical and Jewish folk tradition
remains quite amazing.
Enoch became part of some of the
oldest “apocryphal” tradition known
and was mentioned in the NT.
First Step
Enoch is hailed as a prophet of
mysteries and a man so righteous that
he earns a unique tour of heaven.
When he returns he is called a genius,
a mystic or even an angel.
And then Enoch is said to have written
all these secrets down for us, and they
survive even amongst the Dead Sea
Scrolls and are alluded to in Jude.
First Step
Enoch also has several works
attributed to him amongst the Dead
Sea Scrolls and the book known as 1
Enoch, which we went over briefly, is
canonized in the Ethiopian Orthodox
Church.
In Jewish mysticism, Enoch is a kind
of “founding father” of what is now
called the “Merkava School”.
First Step
All this, and we have barely scratched
the surface of his popularity and
influence, whether he wrote any of
these books or not.
There is also a sequel, 2 Enoch,
where the prophet has even more
spectacular adventures with angels
and demons and so on. Enoch is even
present at Creation itself!
First Step
And then there are two other odd
entries in the “Enoch Library”.
First is the “Book of Jubilees” which
seems to be aware of and adapting
the Enochian narrative for its own
purposes, retelling the story of the
angels (Watchers) who interbred with
women and bore giants.
And then it makes this odd statement:
First Step
And all the days of the commandment
will be 52 weeks of days, and (these will
make) the entire year complete. Thus it
is engraven and ordained on the
heavenly tablets. And there is no
neglecting (this commandment) for a
single year or from year to year. And
command thou the children of Israel
that they observe the years according
First Step
to this) reckoning--364 days, and
(these) will constitute a complete
year, and they will not disturb its time
from its days and from its feasts; for
everything will fall out in them according
to their testimony, and they will not leave
out any day nor disturb any feasts. But if
they do neglect and do not observe them
according to His commandment, then
First Step
they will disturb all their seasons, and the
years will be dislodged from this (order),
[and they will disturb the seasons and
the years will be dislodged] and they will
neglect their ordinances. And all the
children of Israel will forget, and will not
find the path of the years, and will forget
the new moons, and seasons, and
sabbaths, and they will go wrong as to all
First Step
the order of the years. For I know and
from henceforth will I declare it unto
thee, and it is not of my own devising; for
the book (lies) written before me, and on
the heavenly tablets the division of
days is ordained, lest they forget the
feasts of the covenant and walk
according to the feasts of the
Gentiles' after their error and after their
First Step
ignorance. For there will be those who
will assuredly make observations of the
moon--how (it) disturbs the seasons and
comes in from year to year ten days too
soon. For this reason the years will
come upon them when they will disturb
(the order), and make an abominable
(day) the day of testimony, and an
unclean day a feast day, and they will
First Step
confound all the days, the holy with the
unclean, and the unclean day with the
holy; for they will go wrong as to the
months and sabbaths and feasts and
jubilees. For this reason I command and
testify to thee that thou mayst testify to
them; for after thy death thy children will
disturb (them), so that they will not make
the year 364 days only, and for this
First Step
reason they will go wrong as to the new
moons and seasons and sabbaths and
festivals, and they will eat all kinds of
blood with all kinds of flesh. (Book of
Jubilees,6:30-38, from Old Testament
Pseudepigrapha)
A 364-day calendar? Didn’t these
guys “get the memo” that the tropical
year is 365.2422 solar days long?
First Step
As weird as this sounds, not only is
the author of Jubilees serious about
this, but an Aramaic version of this
364 day calendar has been found
amongst the Dead Sea Scrolls and
was used by the Essenes.
Its name…the Astronomical Book of
Enoch. And it dates to about 200
BCE. Some say it’s millennia older…
Calendar Review
There are basically two series of
mysteries I need to explore about the
364-day “Enoch Calendar”: How can it
work and if it works, what is its place
in history?
But before that I need to give a basic
review of my other calendar research
and then see how this “EC” might fit
in, if it does.
Wheel
of
Stars
Calendar Review
As many of you know, I wrote a book
a few years ago called “Wheel of
Stars”.
Its purpose was to look at how the
ancient Hebrews tracked time
because it was a known fact the
Rabbinic calendar was not around or
in force in either Moses’ or Y’shua’s
day—the whole Biblical record.
Calendar Review
To use just one example, the current
Rabbinic calendar’s most ancient
piece is the 19 year lunar or Metonic
cycle. Named after a Greek (Meton)
who lived in Babylon, he noticed that if
you add 7 lunar leap months over 2-3
year intervals every 19 years, the
total period (solar vs. lunar) differs by
only a few hours.
Calendar Review
But Meton only made this discovery in
432 BCE. Some other scholars think
an earlier guy named Kidnu did much
of the “grunt work” for Meton in about
500 BCE, but no historian sees this
discovery going back much further
than that.
Problem is, Moshe died 900 years
EARLIER, so he couldn’t use this!
Calendar Review
And even if by some miracle this
Metonic cycle was known by some
ancient elite, it wasn’t the way the
Egyptians balanced the year and the
way Moses, a Prince of Egypt, learned
to balance the year to keep spring and
fall feasts on time.
So it was this problem that led me
investigate what Moses did use.
Calendar Review
As my discovery deepened, I found
out that Scripture did far more than
answer this question for me
definitively.
I discovered that there was not a
single overall calendar in Scripture.
There were at least 4 separate but
inter-related calendars, each to a
different purpose.
Calendar Review
Basically, one calendar of course was
for keeping festivals like Pesach and
Sukkot on time by using both the solar
and the lunar year.
Another calendar kept track of the
priestly service cycles, synched to the
Hebrew solar year. Still another
calendar focused on prophecy cycles
for YHWH alone, and so on.
Calendar Review
At the heart of my studies was this
clear separation from when Adam and
company used solar cycles just to
plant and harvest and when Moses
came along and was forced to
introduce the new and full moon
cycles to count to the festivals.
This solar calendar was based on a
360 day year, a complete circle.
Calendar Review
360 day math was all over the
Scripture, and it’s a complex topic that
I cannot go into right now.
To give you a brief idea though, Daniel
and Revelation contain references to 3
½ year long periods.
These are called “time, times and half
a time” or “42 months”. Normally this
adds up to 1,260 days…
Calendar Review
42 x 30 = 1,260 (The Beast persecutes
the woman for 42 months)
Time (360) + Times (360*2 or 720) + half
a time (180) = 1,260 days
The assumption of course is that we
have 12 months, each 30 days long.
Confirmation of this is in Genesis—
Noah is clearly counting consecutive
30 day months, not lunar months.
Calendar Review
42 x 30 = 1,260 (The Beast persecutes
the woman for 42 months)
Time (360) + Times (360*2 or 720) + half
a time (180) = 1,260 days
Daniel (12:11) also references a 3 ½
year period that is 1,290 days. That
means a leap month is added.
Calendar Review
In other words, with each 360 day
year being 5-6 days shy of the tropical
year, an entire 30 day month was
added, and the 1260/1290 references
in Daniel and Revelation show this
was done within a 7 year period.
From this point, simple mathematics
tells us exactly when to add these leap
months. Now let’s talk about Noah…
Calendar Review
Remember the flood starts on the 17th
day of the 2nd month and ends the 17th
day of the 7th month, just after 150
days have passed, or day 151.
There is no way you can get at 5 30
day months in a row in a lunar
system, so the months must be solar.
I also confirmed this in the writings of
Josephus and Philo (long story).
Calendar Review
But the reason you would have to
have 5 consecutive 30 day months in
a row for Noah is a matter of simple
math.
Start the count on the 17th day of the
2nd month and include it in your
calculations.
You will now have 14 days from the
17th to the 30th day of that month.
Calendar Review
You also have 17 additional days in
the seventh month to account for, and
this totals 31 days, leaving a
remainder of 120 days for the four
middle months (3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th).
So since your 2nd month was 30 days
long, and the 3rd-6th months also must
be 30 days long, that means 5 30 day
months—impossible with the moon!
360 Math
I am not spending a whole lot of time
on this, but fortunately the math is
pretty easy.
360 days is the mean (average)
between the lengths of the lunar (354)
and the solar (365.2422) year, so it is
easy to balance the two with this
number.
Here’s how it works…
360 Math
1) At the end of every 6th year, ADD a 30
day leap month.
2) Do this 6 times in 36 years (end of
every 6th, 12th, 18th, 24th, 30th and 36th)
years.
3) Add 3 more 360 day years (years 37,
38 and 39).
4) Add 30 more days between year 39
and 40.
360 Math
5) Add up all the days and divide by 40:
14,610 days / 40 = 365.25 days per year.
6) This is as accurate as the Julian
calendar, but not as accurate as our
Gregorian (current) calendar.
7) To fix this, repeat the 40 year cycle an
additional 98 times—99 in all—and when
the last 40 (of 4,000 years) comes you
OMIT the leap month.
360 Math
The math clearly works, but it is not
practical because the calendar will get
out of season before it is balanced by
the omission of a leap month.
Even 2-3 weeks out of season is
impractical and it is not balanced for a
1000+ years.
This cannot be used to seed and
harvest!
360 Math
So I was faced with a bit of a dilemma.
I knew the 360 day calendar worked
mathematically, but it didn’t work for
what mankind needed it most for.
I thought the answer was simply for
man to look up at the stars to tell them
when to plant regardless as to the 360
day month they were in, but that never
totally satisfied me.
Chanok | ֲחנֹוְך
The “New” Calendar Emerges
What I was looking for then was a
Practical Solar calendar devoid of
paganism that Adam, Noah and others
could use to do crops in their proper
season.
And here in ancient records was a
calendar that purported to not only be
able to do that, but to help the
Hebrews keep lunar feasts on time.
The “New” Calendar Emerges
If true, it would be the best of all
worlds. It would explain exactly how
the stars helped the Hebrews keep the
seasons properly.
I had long known the stars were used
in Scripture, such as calling the New
Moon nearest the VE Abib, but this
new system did the same thing in a
very interesting manner.
The “New” Calendar Emerges
The question of course was: How
could this work with only 364 days in
its year?
I know on the face of it this sounds
contradictory, but bear with me as I lay
this foundation out step by step.
Then, after showing how it works, we
can return to the discussion on what
its role in history might be.
The “New” Calendar Emerges
Each side of this pyramid has 91
“steps”, which adds up to 364 days.
The top “step” then is day 365.
The “New” Calendar Emerges
An advantage of the 364 day year is
that it is the product of 52 x 7, so each
year begins on the same weekday.
The “New” Calendar Emerges
So if New Year’s Day is a Wed, the
last day of that year will be a Tues and
year 2 starts on a Wed, and so on.
The “New” Calendar Emerges
The amazing secret of this calendar is
that it merges the solar day count with
the 7 day Shabbat count to balance.
The “New” Calendar Emerges
Here’s how it works…
1) Let’s say March 22nd was a Wed.
2) The VE would not be known “to the
second” as we do today, but would
instead be defined in the stars about a
day later.
3) In our current Gregorian calendar, this
sighted event almost always
translates to 3/21 @sunset.
The “New” Calendar Emerges
4) Because you started on a Wed, you
will end on a Tues, 52 weeks later, on
day 364.
5) In terms of our Gregorian calendar,
that will be 2 calendar days earlier than
where you started, so starting on March
22nd (ignoring leap years) 364 days later
will bring you to Tues March 20th.
The “New” Calendar Emerges
6) At that point, let’s say you ran out of
days on March 20th and it’s a Tues.
7) Since the year ended before the VE
you go to the next Wed, 3/28 and call
that new year’s day.
8) That’s all there is to it! Setting the new
year to start on Wed synchronizes the
364 day count to the tropical year. But
there’s one more fact to bear in mind…
The “New” Calendar Emerges
9) Technically speaking, I am just using
the Gregorian calendar for convenience
and clarity. But all the ancients needed
to know was that if they did not see
the VE in the stars when the Enoch
year ended, they had to add a week.
Otherwise, whenever the VE did happen
in the stars before year’s end, take the
next Wed after that.
Proving the Cycle
This calendar accurately tells people
when to plant and when to harvest.
Each year its first day (a Wed) will be
within the range of the week of the VE
(the week of March 21st by Gregorian
calendar) capturing the perfect time of
spring planting.
But since I know this sounds still a bit
odd, let me take you through a cycle…
Proving the Cycle
1) We just went through year 1, starting
on Wed 3/21 and ending on Tues
3/20 364 days later. Because this
was before 3/21 @ sunset, the next
year would begin Wed, 3/28, i.e. a
week is added to the current year.
2) In year 2, 364 days after 3/28 brings
us to Tues 3/26, making Wed 3/27 the
Wed after VE the start of year 3.
Proving the Cycle
3) If we encounter a Gregorian Leap
Year (Feb. 29th), this calendar is
unaffected as the 7 day week remains
the same.
4) In other words, this calendar always
has 52 or 53 weeks, starts on a Wed,
ends on a Tues, and Gregorian Leap
Years have no influence.
Proving the Cycle
5) Year 4 goes as expected, with 364
days bringing us to Wed, March 24th.
Incidentally the day still ends at
sunset, so the daylight part of Wed is for
the old year and sunset to midnight part
of Wed is for the new year.
6) Year 5 then ends Tues, March 22nd,
and this is also the Wed after VE,
sunset, March 23rd.
Proving the Cycle
7) Year 6 began as we saw Wed, March
23rd and will end 364 days (52 weeks)
later on Tues March 21st at sunset.
8) This is a little tricky because by
experience, the ancients clearly knew
the year was ending Tues night just
hours before the VE would have been
seen in the stars. They could have
therefore called the next day new year’s.
Proving the Cycle
9) However, I believe they would have
rigorously enforced this one rule of the
calendar. Year 6 ends Tues, Mar 26th
and year 7 starts Wed, Mar 27th.
10) From here the cycle will simply
repeat this way into infinity, always
framing VE week. Being tied to the stars,
it never goes out of date. Here’s how
the months fall each year…
Proving the Cycle
Vernal Equinox
Month 130 days
Month 230 days
Month 331 days (Summer Solstice)
Month 430 days
Month 530 days
Month 631 days (Fall Equinox)
Month 730 days
Proving the Cycle
Month 830 days
Month 931 days (Winter Solstice)
Month 1030 days
Month 1130 days
Month 1231 days (Vernal Equinox)
Begin Year 2, Wednesday after VE.
And, in case you are wondering why
start always on Wed, here’s why…
Proving the Cycle
God said, 'Let there be lights in the vault
of heaven to divide day from night, and
let them indicate festivals, days and
years. Let them be lights in the vault of
heaven to shine on the earth.' And so it
was. God made the two great lights:
the greater light to govern the day, the
smaller light to govern the night, and
the stars. God set them in the vault of
Proving the Cycle
heaven to shine on the earth, to govern
the day and the night and to divide light
from darkness. God saw that it was
good. Evening came and morning
came: the fourth day.
(Genesis 1:14-19 NJB)
So this is one way of interpreting
Genesis, to align a calendar with when
the stars, sun and moon were made!
Next Week…
At this point then, we know this
calendar works. Its mechanism is
beautiful, elegant, simple, perfectly
accurate and, above all, Scriptural.
But was it really the calendar of Adam
and Enoch? Can history prove that
claim one way or the other? And what
does it mean in relation to our Hebrew
calendar? Join me next week for…
Next Week…
Episode 43:
Did Enoch Have a Calendar? Part 2
As it is Written
Episode 43:
Did Enoch Have a Calendar? Part 2
Going Deeper
12. ...But you have changed your works, 13.
[and have not done according to his command,
and transgressed against him; (and have
spoken) haughty and harsh words, with your
impure mouths, 14. [against his majesty, for
your heart is hard]. You will have no peace.
Dead Sea Scrolls fragment of the Book of
Enoch, 4Q201
Going Deeper
Milik, Jazef. T., ed. The Books of
Enoch: Aramaic Fragments of
Qumran Cave 4 (Oxford, 1976)
Printed book. General Collections, Library of Congress.
First Step
Last week we continued our studies
into the prophet Enoch, exploring the
possibility that he may have
developed a Hebrew solar calendar.
We looked at the mechanism that
Enoch may have proposed, compared
it the 360 calendar found in Scripture
and determined EC does work
amazingly well.
First Step
But now we need to turn our attention
to another series of questions, this
time from history and the documented
record.
What can the Dead Sea Scrolls tell us
in concert with other ancient records
about if this calendar and if it was
actually used? Also, was its potential
original use perverted later?
First Step
Right now, in terms of the small
fragments we have from the Dead Sea
Scrolls, the Astronomical Book of
Enoch and the tiny fragments from
First Enoch, go back no earlier than
about 200 BCE.
We must bridge a significant gulf of
time from there to get to Moses,
Abraham or earlier.
First Step
But first, before I can outline the right
approach, I need to address some
misconceptions from some folks who
are turning to this calendar today…
The following is given from the website:
http://bayithhatorahblog.tk/
Spinning History…
I am quoting from it not to “bash” it per
se, but because I feel it gives the best
attempt on the web to explain ideas
that are incorrect. In other words,
though I disagree, I admit they have
“done the work” to put their position
together! But history can lead well
meaning people to error without right
context. Here’s what they said…
Spinning History…
In fact, according to the T'nach, only the
sons of Zadok (the Zaddikim or
Sadducees) will have the right to make
sacrifices in the New Mikdash; see Ezek.
40:46. This means that the Dynasty of
Zadok, the First High Priest in the
Mikdash, will be restored. These items
would include such items as the Mikdash
incense, the anointing oil of the
Spinning History…
priesthood, the ashes of the Red Heifer,
and the Ark of the Covenant. Josephus,
himself a priest of the Pharisees who
had no knowledge of the Oral Law
being given on Mt. Sinai, relates that
the Sadducees reflected the traditions
of the Fathers, which seems to have
been the forerunner of the Oral Law,
and was also observed as law by the
Spinning History…
Pharisees. It follows then
that at the time of the First Holy
Mikdash, it was not taught that the
Oral Law was given to Moses.
The article starts out with accurate
information. It is true the sons of
Zadok ruled the priesthood from the
time of David until the end of the
Maccabean Revolt, ca. 164 BCE.
Spinning History…
It is also true that Ezekiel prophesied
a restored Zadokite priesthood and
that the Sadducees take their name
from Zadok.
But the Sadducees departed from
those traditions and became corrupt,
even though Scripture never suggests
Zadok’s ways were changed either
from David’s or Moses’ time.
Spinning History…
The fact is, priestly families did bicker
between each other for power, but this
happened because of wickedness, not
because the system was altered.
For example, the priesthood was
taken away from the sons of Eli in 1
Samuel because Eli turned a blind eye
to his corrupt sons. By one system
they came to power and lost power!
Spinning History…
Here is where we get into a bit of
really lazy language: What they said
about Josephus. The website essay
claims that Josephus both was and
was not aware of the more ancient
traditions of the Zadokites!
You have: “Josephus…had no
knowledge of the Oral Law being
given on Mt. Sinai”, contrasted with…
Spinning History…
“[Josephus knew] that the
Sadducees reflected the traditions
of the Fathers, which seems to
have been the forerunner of the
Oral Law, and was also observed as
law by the Pharisees.”
Josephus was a Pharisee, so how is
it that he has no knowledge of what
their oldest traditions were? He says:
Spinning History…
The family from which I am derived is not
an ignoble one, but has descended all
along from the priests; and as nobility
among several people is of a different
origin, so with us to be of the sacerdotal
dignity, is an indication of the splendor of
a family. Now, I am not only sprung from
a sacerdotal family in general, but from
the first of the 24 courses; and as among
Spinning History…
us there is not only a considerable
difference between one family of each
course and another, I am of the chief
family of that first course also; nay,
further, by my mother I am of the royal
blood; for the children of Asamoneus,
from whom that family was derived,
had both the office of the high
priesthood, and the dignity of a king,
Spinning History…
for a long time together. (Life of
Josephus,1:1-2)
Throughout the Scripture the calendar
secrets always resided with two
groups: Priests and kings. Josephus is
descended from both groups, as is the
other Jewish historian Philo, writing
from Alexandria Egypt about 70 years
earlier. This brings us to my research
Wheel
of
Stars
Spinning History…
So if anyone is going to know these
ancient secrets, it is Josephus and
Philo. This is why in Wheel of Stars I
spent a lot of time discussing this
ancient knowledge from Josephus and
Philo and that it neither contradicted
Scripture, nor history, nor physics.
In sum, if EC is right, Josephus and
Philo would have known about it!
Spinning History…
On the contrary, a smaller body of law
was, at that time, referred to as
TRADITION. Both groups adhered to this
tradition. To justify and venerate their
own rulings, the Pharisees began to call
their own legislation the very Word of G-
d. In this way they set themselves above
their vanquished foe, the Sadducees,
and rewrote history.
Spinning History…
The funny thing about “rewriting
history”, of course is that if you point
out there’s no evidence for it all the
folks on the other side will say is: “See
how well they covered up the truth?”
But most who study know how hard it
is to get everyone “on the same page”
and there should always be SOME
proof of the original truth.
Spinning History…
The fact is, it was the Sadducees who
corrupted themselves, not the
Pharisees.
The Sadducees, who never had a
single major opinion ever rule in Israel,
were not trusted by the people. The
Sadducees as high priests
answered to PHARISAIC laws and
were appointed by Romans!
Spinning History…
I could put a dozen quotes from
Josephus proving the Pharisees ruled
the calendar in all things, but I know
these opponents will simply cry “the
winners write history” and allege
“cover-up” again.
Instead, I think what I need is an
unimpeachable source from the
beginning of time. Someone like…
What did Y’shua say?
Spinning History…
"The scribes and the Pharisees sit on the
throne (korsiya-כֻּורסיָא) of Moshe. Therefore everything that they say to you that you
should keep and do. But not according to
their deeds, for they talk, but do not.”
(Matthew 23:2-3-AENT)
Note: Not just “seat” of Moshe—his
throne, meaning they interpret Torah!
Spinning History…
While the Pharisees were criticized for
loading up with human traditions that
Y’shua directly says “forsook the
Torah”, the calendar was not under
his rebuke.
This evidence here is that Y’shua says
the “Pharisaic calendar” (not the
Rabbinic which came later) was the
right system—back at least to Moses!
Spinning History…
The reason I can be so confident on
this point is simple: Y’shua never
argued with the Pharisees on when
Shabbat or a Great Feast was and
he attended every one of them!
And for their part, the Pharisees never
accused Y’shua of following a
calendar different from theirs either!
So here’s the key question…
Spinning History…
Given the critically high stakes on both
sides of debate between Y’shua and
the Pharisees, wouldn’t a calendar
difference between them (if it
existed) have to come up at some
point in 3 ½ years?
Or are we really going to think neither
side thought it relevant when to
observe Pesach, Shavuot and so on?
Spinning History…
This is where our other first century
witnesses come into play.
Josephus and Philo, descendants
from priests and kings on both sides of
their family tree, clearly knew what the
REAL calendar was from deepest
antiquity. They wrote about it in detail.
So, if EC is real, they knew of it!
Now let’s continue with the quote…
Spinning History…
On the contrary, a smaller body of law
was, at that time, referred to as
TRADITION. Both groups adhered to this
tradition. To justify and venerate their
own rulings, the Pharisees began to call
their own legislation the very Word of G-
d. In this way they set themselves above
their vanquished foe, the Sadducees,
and rewrote history. The truth, however,
Spinning History…
has come back to bite them in the form
of the Dead Sea Scrolls of the
Sadducees. But regarding the calendar,
the Torah teaches the sun is to govern
"their appointed days" and the moon, the
season. The days are determined by the
travel of the sun's annual circuit through
the 6 gates of the eastern horizon.
Originally then, it seems observation of
Spinning History…
the New Moon was not for the purpose
of determining the calendar. Even the
Mishna ("Tosefta Nazir") acknowledges
the existence of the solar year and sets
its length at 364 days. Jehuda the
Persian, in the 9th Century CE, wrote
that the Jews "had always reckoned by
solar months (Sachau, p. 69).
-Also reprinted from Qumran.com
Spinning History…
There is a good deal here I agree with,
but I think it’s the application of these
facts which becomes problematic.
That the New Moon was not used
“originally” is very factual, simply
because the Scripture itself tells us
that new and full moon cycles were
not needed before Moses because the
Hebrews relied on a solar year!
Spinning History…
The problem is though in not
recognizing that Exodus 12:1-2 re-set
the calendar. The lunar month of Abib
“is now to be the beginning of your
months, the start of your year” YHWH
declares this!
But Abib was also tied to the solar
year, as the time of the barley. We
had to get the season right too!
Spinning History…
In the month of Xanthikos, which is by us
called Nisan, and is the beginning of our year,
on the 14th day of the lunar month, when the
sun is in Aries, (for in this month it was that
we were delivered from bondage under the
Egyptians,) the law ordained that we should
every year slay that sacrifice which I before
told you we slew when we came out of Egypt,
Spinning History…
and which was called the Passover; and so we
do celebrate this passover in companies,
leaving nothing of what we sacrifice till the
day following. (Antiquities, 3:248)
Notice that Josephus the Pharisee
gives us star-zodiac information, along
with the day of the lunar month. Stars,
sun and moon work together…
Spinning History…
On the 4th day of the week of the sons of
Gamul in the first month of the first year.
On the 5th day in the week of Jedaiah
corresponding to the 29th day of the lunar
month, which falls on the 30th day of the
solar month.
Mishmarot A (4Q320), as translated by
Geza Vermes, The Complete Dead Sea
Scrolls in English, p. 336
A Guide to Dead Sea Scrolls
Classification
(4Q320)
4 = the cave designation it was
found in.
Q = Qumran, the location of the
cave.
320 = This was the 320th
manuscript found in that cave.
Spinning History…
Some scholars have argued that lunar
months are not used at all in
determining Great Feasts, but I
strongly disagree. If they did, that was
un-Scriptural.
When we read a bit deeper into the
Dead Sea Scrolls Enochian traditions,
we find something quite different and
in line with the other sources…
Spinning History…
And this is his birthday on which he (is to
be/was?) born; in the foot of the Bull
(Taurus-AGR). He will be meek, and his
animal is the Bull.
4Q186, fragment 1, The Complete Dead
Sea Scrolls in English, p. 358
And they are not only tracking the sun
thru the zodiac—but the moon also…
Spinning History…
IV…and on 13 and 14 Pisces; and on 15
and 16 Aries; on 17 and 18 Taurus; on
19 and 20 and 21 Gemini; on 22 and 23
Cancer; on 24 and 25 Leo; on 26, 27 and
28 Virgo; on 29 and 30 Libra…Tishri. On
1 and 2 Scorpio. 4Q318, The Complete
Dead Sea Scrolls in English, p. 361
Sun and moon are linked to Zodiac!
The Details Emerge
Getting back to my previous point,
Josephus and Philo must have known
about this calendar.
Now I believe it is possible to read
their texts in light of what we know and
see that they are referring to it in at
least a broad sense.
Philo in particular makes a comment
that is hard to explain otherwise…
The Details Emerge
Moses puts down the beginning (arche:
ἀρχὴν) of the vernal equinox as the
first month of the year.
(Life of Moses, 2:222)
This is a very curious phrasing in
Greek. The vernal equinox is fixed to
a particular day of the year, so why
specify “beginning”? Why not just say
“VE day”?
The Details Emerge
Part of the answer is that the VE is a
kind of choreography that can unfold
over 24-48 hours from when it actually
happens to when the stars show it is
passed.
The difference between knowing the
moment of VE as opposed to when it
is perceived marks the boundary
between ancient and modern method.
The Details Emerge
Since the ancients needed more
time/evidence to confirm the VE, this
is why Philo says “beginning”—which
means he is framing VE week as
opposed to VE day.
This is process confirmed by Dead
Sea Scrolls researchers Ben Dov
(Head of All Years, p. 16-17) and
Geza Vermes, whom I now quote…
The Details Emerge
The Qumran sect rejected this seemingly
artificial system [the 19 year Metonic
lunar cycle—AGR] and adopted instead
a chronological reckoning, probably of
priestly origin, based on the sun, a
practice attested to also in the Book of
Jubilees and 1 Enoch, and fully laid out
in a series of calendrical documents
(4Q320-30). The outstanding
The Details Emerge
feature of this solar calendar was its
absolute regularity in that, instead of
354 days, not divisible by seven, it
consisted of 364 days, i.e. 52 weeks
precisely. Each of its four seasons was
13 weeks long, divided by three months
of 30 days each, plus an additional
“remembrance day” (1QS x, 5) linking
one season to another (13 x 7 = 91 = 3 x
The Details Emerge
30 +1). In tune with this way with “the
laws of the Great Light of heaven” (1QH
xii, 5) and not with the ‘festivals of the
nations’…Its unbroken rhythm meant
furthermore that the first day of the
year and of each subsequent season
always fell on the same day of the
week. For the Essenes this was
Wednesday, since according to
The Details Emerge
Genesis 1, 14-19, it was on the fourth
day that the sun and the moon were
created.
The Complete Dead Sea Scrolls in
English, p. 78
As we saw last week, there is no
question whatsoever that such a
system is eternally perfect and
accurate.
The Details Emerge
But the final question we need to
address this week is this: What is the
relationship between the Aramaic
fragments on this calendar found
among the Dead Sea Scrolls and the
later fuller traditions that end up in the
Greek, Latin and Ethiopian versions of
1 Enoch, Jubilees, and similar works?
To answer that, let’s go here…
The Details Emerge
The published and unpublished Qumran
fragments show, when they are
compared with the Ethiopic and Latin
versions, that the ancient translators of
the book did their work with remarkable
care. Though these two granddaughter
translations are separated by the Greek
translation from the Hebrew original, they
largely agree with the Hebrew.
The Details Emerge
The implication is that the Ethiopic
and Latin forms of the book are
reliable indicators of the original text
and can thus be used as authentic
reflections of what the author wrote in
the mid-second century B.C.-James
Vanderkam, The Dead Sea Scrolls: Book
of Jubilees, (Missouri Review, Spring
2011) also from:
The Details Emerge
http://www.missourireview.org/content/dy
namic/view_text.php?text_id=1943
James VanderKam is a Professor of
Theology at the University of Notre
Dame and has edited Discoveries in the
Judaean Desert for Oxford Press. He is
currently working on a new book titled
The Dead Sea Scrolls Today with
William B Eerdmans.
Next Week…
So now that we know that the
astronomical data in all versions of
these works is reliable both in terms of
content across several languages and
in terms of its accuracy as a calendar,
we are ready to move to the final
considerations.
Our final test: To prove this calendar
is really part of Scripture itself.
Next Week…
Once that is dealt with, we will close
the Enoch series by explaining what
this calendar was really for and how
that original intention has been
misunderstood.
Please also bear in mind that I am not
in any way endorsing the extra-biblical
contradictory information with regards
to Enoch.
Next Week…
I will not sanction the idea of “angels”
inter-breeding with humans to make
giants, as mentioned before, because
this goes against Y’shua’s own words.
Anything then that contradicts Torah
or Y’shua in these resources must be
discarded as heresy. It is what is left in
terms of ancient calendar that I
believe is most helpful to us.
Next Week…
It is also wrong to say, as some
scholars do, that lunar months were
never a part of calculating the Feasts,
again because Scripture says no.
But we will find together what this
solar mechanism was really used for:
Something amazing, beautiful and
Scriptural that no one has thus far has
considered. Join us then for…
Next Week…
Episode 44:
Did Enoch Have a Calendar?
Part 3
Episode 44:
Did Enoch Have a Calendar? Part 3
As it is Written
Episode 44:
Did Enoch Have a Calendar? Part 3
First Step
Last week we made some great
strides separating the proverbial
wheat from the chaff.
While no believer should
wholeheartedly endorse every detail in
this extra-biblical literature, certain
astronomical and mathematical
principles lined up with Scripture and
wider history to tell us a great story…
First Step
That story basically showed a chain of
evidence that began with Y’shua
endorsing the calendar he knew as
from people “who sat on Moses’
throne” (Matthew 23:1-2).
We saw that while both Y’shua and
the Pharisees had a ton of criticisms
for one another, neither accused to
other of being on the wrong calendar!
First Step
From that point, we went into the
wider first century history of Josephus
and Philo, Jewish historians
descended from priests and kings who
kept the calendar secrets.
Going further back we found further
attestation in the Dead Sea Scrolls
that painted a gloriously intricate
picture of the calendar of Enoch (EC).
First Step
But only now do we get to the heart of
the matter: Is it really Scriptural after
all?
And, even if it is Scriptural, are the
claims about how it should be used
accurate?
The foundation has been laid, and
now it is time to lift off the veil and tell
the truth!
The Testimony of…Noah?
The Testimony of…Noah?
The first thing we need to establish is
this: The timeline is not based on the
tropical year (from fall or spring
equinox) but on when Noah was born:
The Testimony of…Noah?
In the 600th year of Noah's life, in the
2nd month, and on the 17th day of the
month, that very day all the springs of
the great deep burst through, and the
sluices of heaven opened. And heavy
rain fell on earth for 40 days and 40
nights. That very day Noah and his
sons Shem, Ham and Japheth boarded
the ark, with Noah's wife and the three
The Testimony of…Noah?
wives of his sons, and with them every
species of wild animal, every species of
cattle, every species of creeping things
that creep along the ground, every
species of bird, everything that flies,
everything with wings. One pair of all
that was alive and had the breath of life
boarded the ark with Noah, and those
that went aboard were a male and
The Testimony of…Noah?
female of all that was alive, as God had
commanded him. Then Yahweh shut him
in. (Genesis 7:11-16 NJB)
After 150 days the waters fell, and in
the 7th month, on the 17th day of the
month, the ark came to rest on the
mountains of Ararat.
(Genesis 8:3-4 NJB)
The Testimony of…Noah?
So the timeline breaks down this way…
1) Flood begins, Noah’s family shut in:
17th day of 2nd month.
2) After 150 days from when it started,
flood waters recede; Ark rests on the
mountains of Ararat: 17th day of 7th
month.
3) “After 150 days” = day 151,
encompassing 5 months to the day.
The Testimony of…Noah?
In the 600th year of Noah's life, in the
2nd month, and on the 17th day of the
month…(Genesis 7:11-NJB)
It was in the 601st year of Noah's life,
in the 1st month and on the 1st of the
month, that the waters began drying out
on earth. (Genesis 8:13 NJB)
Next’ let’s see the one system of
timekeeping this can not be …
The Testimony of…Noah?
The Testimony of…Noah?
It’s simple physics. As we saw before,
the lunar month is 29.53 solar days
long, so depending on when the
conjunction and crescent are timed to
happen, you will have either a 30 or a
29 day month, usually alternating.
Noah’s count, which takes place when
neither sun nor moon can be seen—
requires five 30 day months in a row.
The Testimony of…Noah?
And while it does sometimes happen
that you have 2 30 day months in a
row, having five 30 day months in a
row is impossible in a lunar-based
calendar!
This is because the start and end
months must leave remainders that
equal 31 days, and that leaves 120
days for the 4 full months in between.
The Testimony of…Noah?
Here’s the one way to add it up if we are
in a lunar system to account for the
greatest number of days…
The Testimony of…Noah?
1) Flood starts 17th day 2nd month.
2) There can be no more than 30 days in
a lunar month, so only 14 days (max)
remain after 17 days, if we include day
17 itself.
3) To those 14 days add 17 at the end,
accounting for 1 month out of 5.
The Testimony of…Noah?
4) Since at least one of any lunar month
in the middle of the count (4 total
months) must be 29 days, that total can
never exceed 119 days. (Any variation of
30+ 29 + 30 + 30).
So 31 (14 days remaining from month 1
+ 17 days into the last flood month) +
119 = 150; we need to account for 151,
so we are 1 day short.
The Testimony of…Noah?
5) This is a very generous and extreme
example. More than likely, a normal
half-year interval would have had 1-2
additional 29 day months, making this
total 2-3 days short!
6) But while the text seems pretty clear
that we need to start our count with the
17th day of the 2nd month as day 1, the
ending date is not clear in the Hebrew.
The Testimony of…Noah?
7) This is because the phrase is “after
150 days, the Ark rested on the
mountains of Ararat”, as opposed to
“and on the 151st day the Ark rested on
the mountains of Ararat”!
8) The most natural assumption is that it
is an indirect reference to day 151, but
really any number greater than 150 is
also “after” 150 days.
The Testimony of…Noah?
9) While this may seem a bit nit-picky, it
really isn’t. There is no reason for Moses
to not say “151st day” when he keeps
giving us precise dates elsewhere, e.g.,
“slaughter the Passover lamb on the 14th
day in the first month at twilight”.
10) But in order to traverse 5 months by
any measure and be “after” 150 days by
the 17th, gives a handful of days only.
The Testimony of…Noah?
In the 360 calendar, which is
Scriptural, every month is 30 days
long throughout the year. So including
the 17th day in the 2nd month
guarantees 14 days left over after the
Flood began, plus the other 17 days
in the 7th month, a.k.a. day #151. But
look what happens with the middle
months, meaning 3, 4, 5 and 6:
The Testimony of…Noah?
Total days accounted for thus far: 31
(14 from month 2; 17 from month 7).
17th day of 7th month must be “after
150”.
Days left to go in months 3-6: 120. 4
months of 30 days each = 120. And
of course 120 + 31 = 151 which is
“after 150 days” certainly, and so 360
does work. But look at Enoch now…
The Testimony of…Noah?
Like the 360 day system, we have 12
months of 30 days each. But we also
have 4 “remembrance days”, one for
each solstice or equinox, or 364 total.
The practical effect of adding a
“remembrance day” for each of the 4
seasons is that every third month will
have an extra 31st day.
The Testimony of…Noah?
So, if we pick the right time of year for
Noah’s birth, we can arrange the
months in such a way that the 2nd and
7th months from his birth will add up to
“after 150 days”. Let’s see how…
The Testimony of…Noah?
Month 1 (Noah’s birth) on
“remembrance day” for the Fall Equinox
September 23rd.
Month 2 (first flood month) begins on
September 24th. The Flood begins 17
days later or October 11th. The month is
30 days long, ending October 24th.
Month 3 begins on October 25th and
ends 30 days later, on November 24th.
The Testimony of…Noah?
Month 4 begins on November 25th and
ends on December 26th. Because this is
the time of the solstice, there is a 31st
day or “remembrance day” for the
solstice’s approximate time.
Month 5 begins on December 27th and
ends 30 days later, or January 26th.
Month 6 begins on January 27th and
ends 30 days later, or February 26th.
The Testimony of…Noah?
Month 7 is only counted to the 17th day
and would have had a “remembrance
day” if counted to its end. This is when
the Ark is on Ararat. Now add it up!
Month 2: 14 days| Month 3: 30 days
Month 4: 31 days| Month 5: 30 days
Month 6: 30 days| Month 7: 17 days
TOTAL 152 days!
The Testimony of…Noah?
So both 360 and Enoch calendar
systems yield a number that is “after
150 days”—151 for 360 and 152 for
Enoch. 152 days is the outer limit of
how many days you can have in any
counting of 5 solar months.
But this gets back to the original
question: Why the vague language?
The Testimony of…Noah?
In other words, why write in such a
way that covers the counting methods
of both systems?
I believe the answer is that Moses did
this on purpose, as a way to tell us
both systems were valid and in force.
Moses, even as a prince of Egypt,
would have been aware of the 360
day year—they also used it!
The Testimony of…Noah?
The evidence that I have seen also
strongly suggests that Moses had very
sophisticated astronomical training as
a Prince of Egypt.
Both Philo and Josephus write that
Moses surpassed the skill of the best
tutors in all his subjects—a fact St.
Stephen also alludes to in Acts. More
on this in 2 weeks by the way…
The Testimony of…Noah?
In any case, my point is that Moses
used his knowledge to merge the two
systems into a master-method to track
the solar tropical year.
Then when writing Genesis, he used
vague language to point to this same
master system, to show that both in a
sense “worked”, without explaining
directly what he did! Now lets go to…
The Problem with 30 CE
While writing Wheel of Stars I found
out about an issue that I couldn’t
completely solve.
My science adviser, Bill Welker, has
two physics degrees, works on
classified satellites for the government
and can build telescopes from scratch
in his spare time. We found something
very rare in the year Y’shua died.
The Problem with 30 CE
Many years of research had led me to
conclude that every once in a great
while, the timing of the vernal equinox
and the spring new moon can get
very, very close together—within a few
hours of one another.
Later astronomical research proved
these occurrences happened 24 times
in about 5,500 years.
The Problem with 30 CE
This was the case in the year Y’shua
died, where the vernal equinox and
spring new moon came within 5 hours
of one another.
I knew theoretically speaking that
there were rare times when the stars
would overrule the moon, and force
what would have been a 30 day month
to end on its 29th day.
The Problem with 30 CE
I called this “VE trumps all” because
the stars and sun outrank the moon
(Revelation 12:1-2), but I never
thought I would actually see one!
To make matters even worse, Bill
proved that astronomical factors (too
close to the horizon, etc.) made it
impossible to see the New Moon for
3 nights in a row!
The Problem with 30 CE
So the stars are telling you it’s spring,
the barley is also telling you it’s spring
but you need a New Moon time to
count your Hebrew days from!
As I said, this is very rare and it is
clearly a worst case scenario, but
surely the Pharisees and Sanhedrin
had the knowledge to for even this
contingency—and it’s the EC!
The Problem with 30 CE
2 weeks ago, we saw the actual EC 7
year cycle in action. It will always
repeat exactly that way, unto infinity.
And because it is tied to the spring
equinox and the stars, it will never,
ever go out of date.
But for the folks who are working the
EC all the time for centuries on end, it
really becomes helpful in this case.
The Problem with 30 CE
When any EC year starts, the
calendar experts know exactly how
many days they had to add to have it
start on time. (Watch “Secrets of
Moses” coming in 2 weeks for proof!)
Because it’s 364 days, they also know
every year will begin and end on a
Wed. They also will know where that
day falls either before or after VE.
The Problem with 30 CE
In other words, the 364th day would be
known a year in advance to fall say 2
days before the VE, which will require
more days be added to get the
following year starting the Wed after
VE.
To put it another way, they will know
“VE is exactly on the 30th day of EC
12th month, 2 days before new year.”
The Problem with 30 CE
Hypothetically speaking, if the skies in
30 CE were also cloudy for a few days
and the stars could not be seen either,
this “advance date” will let them know
when to call the Solar Year. We don’t
know the weather for 30 though.
The fact is, you need multiple
witnesses from math and observation
to keep it on time, so next step is to…
Now Count the Moon
Now Count the Moon
Because the Feasts are all tied to the
New and Full Moons, obviously all the
calendar folks in Israel would be
counting from that cycle all the time.
But there would be other moon
specialists who had additional skills
and knowledge counseling Israel.
The last full moon of the year will
always be the one for Purim.
Now Count the Moon
It is at this point that the moon experts
begin the critical task of tracking that
year’s last two weeks. (If there is a
leap month, Purim is in 2 Adar, so it’s
always the last full moon before
Pesach.)
These moon experts, according to the
Talmud, Dead Sea Scrolls, etc., kept
detailed records for centuries.
Now Count the Moon
The records would show them the full
spectrum of lunar timing and they may
have been supplemented by
astronomical drawings also mentioned
in the tradition…
Tell us in what form you saw the moon; was
it before or behind the sun? Was it to the
north or the south (of the sun)? What was its
elevation on the horizon? Towards which
Now Count the Moon
side was its inclination? What was the width
of its disk? If he answered before the sun, his
evidence was worthless.
(Rosh Hashanna 2:3 Rodkinson)
This is the kind of data the moon
experts were recording and tracking
over the long haul. It was enough to
cover all the moon’s eccentricities...
Now Count the Moon
R. Gamaliel had on a tablet, and on a wall of
his upper room, illustrations of the various
phases of the moon, which he used to show to
the common people, saying: "Did you see the
moon like this figure or like this?"
(Rosh Hashanna, 2:5 Rodkinson)
So they also collected visual records
of the moon as well, like the Essenes:
Now Count the Moon
On the 5th day of the (solar) month, 12
fourteenths of the moon’s surface was covered
and thus it enters the day. On the 6th day, 13
fourteenths of the moon are covered and thus
it enters the day. On the 7th day of it, 14
fourteenths of its surface is covered and thus
it enters the day. 4Q317, The Complete Dead
Sea Scrolls in English, p. 360.
Now Count the Moon
The Essenes counted in 14 day
cycles, from New to Full and from Full
to New, for a total of 28 days.
But because the total month is 29.53
solar days long, the darkness period
that is before the first crescent and
after the last crescent will vary.
By counting in 14ths, the Essenes
have synched math to observation.
Now Count the Moon
Start
28
count
End
28
count
Now Count the Moon
While the percentages must be
approximate, the general math works.
The nearest multiple of 14 near 100%
is 98.
A 98% full moon will, without question,
be perceived as totally full by the
ancient naked eye. The Essenes then
count roughly 14 periods of 7% each
to reach the mathematical full moon.
Now Count the Moon
After that, the clearest and most un-
mistakeable sign in the entire
month is when what was a full
moon the previous night is no
longer full the next night.
This brings us to the last full moon
before Pesach and our experts. The
same data we have been tracking now
becomes critical, as the Talmud says:
Now Count the Moon
After this they introduced the younger
(witness) and he was examined; if their
testimony was found to agree, it was accepted
as valid; the remaining pairs (of witnesses)
were asked leading questions, not because
their testimony was necessary, but only to
prevent them departing, disappointed, and to
induce them to come again often, the chief of
Now Count the Moon
the Beth Din then said: "It (the new moon) is
consecrated," and all the people repeated after
him: "It is consecrated; it is consecrated."
Whether the new moon was seen at its proper
time (after 29 days) or not, they used to
consecrate it. R. Elazar b. Zadok said: If it
had not been seen at its proper time it was not
consecrated, because it
Now Count the Moon
had already been consecrated in heaven (i.e.,
of itself). -Rodkinson Mishnah, Rosh
Hashanna, 2:3-4
Incidentally, notice the Rabbis didn’t
“need” the witnesses to prove what
they already knew. Rather, they
wanted people to feel encouraged to
come and give testimony, because
they needed constant data.
Conclusions
Calendar experts, detailed
astronomically accurate drawings,
precise observations recorded for
centuries on end.
All these things, and more, would give
the Sanhedrin the ability, to
completely comprehend any variation
in the lunar cycle. They may not have
understood everything we do now…
Conclusions
…Kepler’s laws of planetary motion,
tracking elliptical orbits, precession of
the moon, etc…but they would know
what all that behavior was and could
predict the next step even without
today’s precision theories.
All told, this data could easily tell them
if the New Moon was coming in an
early, normal of late timing that year.
Conclusions
Once the Purim full moon then stops
being full—again this is the easiest
sign the entire month—the early,
normal or late moon data which is
both predictable and cyclical will give
them a final, certain answer.
If it’s an early moon year, they will
count 15 days from the end of the full
moon to start of the next lunar year.
Conclusions
If it’s a normal moon year the hard
count to the next New Moon is
reduced to 14 days.
And if it’s a late moon year it’s only
13 days from the end of the Purim full
moon to the next New Moon of Abib,
which kicks of the Hebrew lunar year.
So in 30 CE, even if nothing could be
seen, they knew what day to call.
Conclusions
The start of spring then “trumped” the
New Moon simply because the EC
count and the moon count told them
both were coming at the same time.
But with the moon invisible, the stars
brought in the year, exactly as the
Scripture demands in Genesis 1:14-
19, Job 38:31-33 and countless other
places.
Conclusions
There were also calculated math back
ups hidden in the Torah text that
would enable the priests to accurately
predict Abib NMs from both 1 and 5
years in advance, but that’s a much
longer story for later.
While I know a lot of technical stuff
and math has dominated this study of
the Enoch Calendar…
Conclusions
We can never lose sight of the
beautiful truth that it is real, Scriptural
and it works.
But, as we have also seen, it’s use
has been perverted by some to
suggest that there was no role for the
moon in pointing to the Great Feasts,
and that is just as bad a heresy as the
other extreme, like Lunar Sabbath.
Conclusions
Noah’s situation, like 30 CE,
represents a kind of worst case
scenario. Noah could not see sunrise
or sunset, and much of the moon and
stars were obscured while shut in the
Ark 40 days and nights of the flood.
Such a precision count that he gives
then proves the need for sighting and
calculation to work together!
Conclusions
In the end though, what this does is
tell us exactly how the earliest Biblical
people used the sun and stars to seed
and harvest. In some cases it may
even help us figure out the exact day
a given event with then happened, but
I will leave that for another time.
But I end with a caution: just because
Enoch and his calendar are real…
Conclusions
…doesn’t mean that we must accept a
lot of the later un-Scriptural stories
that are given in these extra-biblical
books.
They are like the Rabbis who have a
kind of fragmentary memory of the
real calendar, but it’s inter-cut with a
lot of later and unreliable traditions, so
we need to separate fact from myth.
Conclusions
At the end of the day, I think we should
take Paul’s great advice (AENT)…
Explore everything and hold fast to the good, and
fly from everything evil. And may the Elohim of
peace sanctify you all, perfectly, and keep blameless
your whole spirit and your soul and your body till
the coming of our Master Y'shua the Mashiyach.
-1 Thessalonians 5:21-23