Might Pentecost Actually Be On a Monday?

In the past, many Christians who counted Pentecost from a Sunday wave sheaf date arrived at a Monday observance for this Holy Day. For most, this was based upon Leviticus 23:15 and Deuteronomy 16:9 which say "Count FROM..."

If we count one day FROM today, by the way we understand this these terms in modern English, that is tomorrow. For example, we would say that one day FROM Sunday, is Monday. As many have discovered, counting that way puts Pentecost on a Monday.

The difficulty is in the understanding of the word "from." In Biblical Hebrew, the word would be understood, and would be better translated as, "beginning with" -- in other words, if we tell a Hebrew speaker to "count from" Sunday, he understands to count Sunday as the first day.

If we count one day "beginning with" today, it is still today. If we count two days "beginning with" today, that is tomorrow. If we count 50 days "beginning with" a Sunday, we arrive at a Sunday.

When "count BEGINNING WITH" was suggested to Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong in 1974 , he checked it with the Hebrew scholars who were then working on the translation of the New American Standard Bible. The scholars agreed that "beginning with" would more accurately convey to an English speaker the way a Hebrew speaker would understand the word. They indicated that a note would be made of it in the translation. Accordingly, in the Harper Study Bible edition of the NASB there is a note to that effect. Here is the relevant portion of that note pertaining to Leviticus 23:15:

Reading all of the commands regarding Pentecost, including the rest of verse 15 and 16 (above), we also see phrases like "seven Sabbaths," "the day after the seventh Sabbath," etc. Those who observe a Monday Pentecost have had to argue that those words translated "Sabbath(s)" really mean "weeks" (which is apparently a possible reading in Hebrew), yet the more natural and consistent Scriptural translation of the word is "Sabbath."

You may be aware that a few now keep a Monday Pentecost, counting "beginning with" the Sunday, but arguing that they are supposed to complete fifty days before they observe the day, making Pentecost (the "count 50" day), instead to be the 51st day. That belief is based upon interpreting the word "then" in Leviticus 23:16 to mean "after," rather than "at that time."

However, Deuteronomy 16:10 emphasizes the correct understanding of Pentecost being on the 50th day, immediately after the seven weeks are complete, rather than on the 51st day.

Further, when we take into account the several parallels between Pentecost and the Jubilee year, which comes in the year immediately after the seventh sabbatical year, it is only natural that Pentecost would likewise occur on the day immediately after the seventh Sabbath day, rather than two days after.

Thus, we observe Pentecost on the first day of the week, the day which is commonly called Sunday.