The fact is that the Bible nowhere concisely defines exactly what astronomical event(s) constitutes the “new moon.” 

Yet God commands us to observe His “appointed times” on very specific days of certain months. We are to be “cut off” if we do not comply.  (See Exodus 12:15; Leviticus 23:27-30; Numbers 9:13.)

Are we then left in the dark, in an impossible predicament, without the means to know what God considers to be the “new moon,” with only faint hope of getting it right? 

Not at all!  By exploring this matter according to the principles of Scripture, we can confidently ascertain the Biblical new moon. We can confidently observe God’s appointed times on those days which He has commanded.

A Little Simple Astronomy

As a preface, it will be helpful to understand a little bit about the relationship of the sun, moon, and earth, and a few of the terms that are used. 

Like the sun, the moon rises on the eastern horizon, and sets in the west.

In each lunar month, the moon first becomes visible from the earth a day or two[1] after the lunar conjunction (described below).  The moon appears as a crescent-shaped sliver of light, shortly after sunset, just above the western horizon.[2] This is what is called by astronomers, the “young crescent moon.” 

The young crescent moon is visible only at twilight[3] (near the beginning of the Biblical day).

As the days pass, the moon will appear more and more separated toward the east from the sun, with the lighted portion of the moon waxing (growing larger) each night, until the time of the full moon. 

At the full moon, the entire visible face of the moon is fully bathed in light.

The full moon always rises in the east at approximately the same time as the sun is setting in the west.  Lunar eclipses can occur only at the time of the full moon.

According to the U.S. Naval Observatory, “the Moon’s disk may appear to be full for several nights in a row if it is clear.  This is because the percentage of the Moon’s disk that appears illuminated changes very slowly around the time of Full Moon…The Moon may appear 100% illuminated only on the night closest to the time of exact Full Moon, but on the night before and night after, will appear 97-99% illuminated; most people would not notice the difference.  Even two days from Full Moon, the Moon’s disk is 93-97% illuminated.”[4]

After the full moon, as the days pass, the moon will appear to continue shifting toward the east, its lighted area diminishing in size each night, until the waning (shrinking) crescent is finally visible only as a sliver of light near the eastern horizon just before sunrise, a day or two before the approaching lunar conjunction. 

The lunar conjunction is the moment in time each month, when the moon moves most directly between the Earth and Sun and the side of the moon turned toward the Earth is dark.[5]  The moon is not visible from the earth (unless during a solar eclipse) for a period of about one-and-one-half to three-and-one-half days surrounding the time of the lunar conjunction.  Solar eclipses can occur only at the time of the lunar conjunction.

A lunation, or synodic month, is the period of time from one lunar conjunction to the next.  The mean average lunation is just under 29.53059 days[6].  However, the moon’s orbit is not perfectly regular; therefore lunar months vary in length. Thus, a given lunation can be as short as 29 days and 6 hours and 35 minutes, or as long as 29 days, 19 hours and 55 minutes.[7] 

Similarly, the period of time from the appearance of one young crescent moon to the next will be either 29 days or 30 days, but never more or less.[8]

Another notable effect, caused by the irregularities of the moon’s orbit, is that the full moon does not always fall at the exact midpoint between lunar conjunctions.  In contrast to popular belief, the full moon may follow the lunar conjunction by as little as 13 days, 21 hours and 53 minutes, or by as much as 15 days, 14 hours and 30 minutes.[9] 

The Various Views

Next, let’s take a quick overview of the various phenomena which are currently embraced as representing the “new moon”:

What Does the Bible Reveal?

In Part One of this series – “What Are God’s Rules for the Calendar?” – we established that the new moon begins the Biblical month. (See Numbers 29:1-6.)  To that knowledge, we have added a bit of background in simple lunar astronomy and an overview of the various representations of the “new moon.”  Now we are suitably prepared to search the Scriptures for the conclusion to this matter:  Just what is the Biblical new moon?

In the earlier article, we also noted Genesis 1:14-16.  Let’s look again, with a slightly different focus:

Then God said: "Let there be lights in the dome of the sky, to separate day from night. Let them mark the fixed times, the days and the years, and serve as luminaries in the dome of the sky, to shed light upon the earth." And so it happened: God made the two great lights, the greater one to govern the day, and the lesser one to govern the night; and he made the stars. (Genesis 1:14-16 NAB)

Thus, we are reminded that God has given us the moon as a sign – a marker – of time.  Each evening, the sun slipping into the horizon gives us a visible marker of the beginning of the day.  By the terms used and by logic, it would seem that the moon, likewise, should provide a visible indication of the beginning of the month.

Also in Part One, we learned that the most common Biblical Hebrew word for “month” is the noun chodesh (or hodesh or hodes), which “properly means ‘new moon.’”  According to Harris’ Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament:

“Although this word properly means ‘new moon,’ it is commonly used as an equivalent to our word ‘month’ because the month began when the thin crescent of the new moon was first visible at sunset. It was used along with the more rare yerah, from yareah meaning ‘moon.’ … In early Israel the first of each month, or new moon, was determined by observation and proclaimed officially by the blowing of trumpets … When hodesh refers only to the beginning of the month, it is naturally translated ‘new moon,’ which was a feast day …”[11]

However, there is much more to the story of this Hebrew noun.  This is perhaps best illustrated by the fact that in Vine’s Dictionary, which lists Hebrew terms according to their English equivalents, this word is not even found under the heading “month.”  Instead, it is found under the listing “NEW; NEW MOON.”[12] 

This seemingly curious fact is because the verb form of hodesh is chadash (or hadash or hadas), which is a primary root, meaning to renew or repair.[13]  How is the verb form of this word used in Scripture?

“hadash is used in the sense of ‘repair’ or ‘rebuild’ referring to cities (Isa 61:4), the temple (II Chr 24:4, 12), and the altar (II Chr 15:8). It is also used figuratively. Under Samuel the kingdom was renewed at Gilgal (I Sam 11:14). David wanted a right spirit, equivalent to a clean heart, renewed within him (Ps 51:10 [H 12]). The prophet asked for renewal as of old (Lam 5:21). God renews the face of the ground, that is, gives it new life (Ps 104:30), and he renews one's youth (Ps 103:5). Job complained that God was bringing new witnesses against him (Job 10:17). The use of the verb as well as its derivatives is attested in Ugaritic (see UT 19:no. 843.)”[14]

Accordingly, the adjective form of this word also means “new, new thing, fresh.”[15]  Regarding the adjective, Vine’s points out:

 “Hadas means ‘new’ both in the sense of recent or fresh (as the opposite of old) and in the sense of something not previously existing. The first nuance appears in Lev. 23:16: ‘Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the Lord.’ The first biblical occurrence of hadas (Exod. 1:8) demonstrates the second meaning: ‘Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.’[16]

Thus, within the various forms of this Hebrew word, we see a profound association with restoration, rebuilding, and renewal.  This emphasis is unlike anything found in Scripture in connection with the beginning of the day, the beginning of the week, or the beginning of the year.  The Biblical new moon has an emphatic and distinct quality of newness.

What else does the Bible reveal that is pertinent to the Biblical new moon?

God associates the moon with His Church: 

And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars; and she was with child; and she cried out, being in labor and in pain to give birth.  And another sign appeared in heaven: and behold, a great red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads were seven diadems.  And his tail swept away a third of the stars of heaven, and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she gave birth he might devour her child.  And she gave birth to a son, a male child, who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron; and her child was caught up to God and to His throne.  (Revelation 12:1-5)

Throughout Scripture, darkness is associated with evil, and God is associated with light.  Here is just one example: 

Therefore do not be partakers with them; for you were formerly darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light  (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth), trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord.  (Ephesians 5:7-10)

The Sun is used as a symbol of Jesus Christ: 

"And you, child [John the Baptist], will be called the prophet of the Most High; For you will go on BEFORE THE LORD TO PREPARE HIS WAYS; To give to His people the knowledge of salvation By the forgiveness of their sins, Because of the tender mercy of our God, With which the Sunrise from on high shall visit us, TO SHINE UPON THOSE WHO SIT IN DARKNESS AND THE SHADOW OF DEATH, To guide our feet into the way of peace."  (Luke 1:76-79) 

For this reason it says, "Awake, sleeper, And arise from the dead, And Christ will shine on you."  (Ephesians 5:14) 

"I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright morning star."  (Revelation 22:16)

The moon has no light of its own.  Likewise, the Church has no light of its own apart from Jesus Christ: 

Again therefore Jesus spoke to them, saying, "I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life."  (John 8:12)

To the degree that God’s Church is yielding to Him, She is clothed with the light of Jesus Christ, just as the moon is clothed with the light of the sun.  Moreover, She has a duty to reflect that light to the world, just as the moon reflects the light of the sun to the world:

"You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.  "Nor do men light a lamp, and put it under the peck-measure, but on the lampstand; and it gives light to all who are in the house.  "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.  (Matthew 5:14-16)

After we are baptized into the Body of Jesus Christ, we each individually begin to reflect some light to the world.  We do not reflect that light before our sins are forgiven, when we are still walking in darkness.  Our “newness” does not begin – we do not yet reflect that light – when our “old” man is first dead, and we are still buried (immersed) in the watery grave of baptism: 

Having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.  (Colossians 2:12) 

Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death?  Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, in order that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.  (Romans 6:3-4)

We are a new creature – we begin to reflect the light of Jesus Christ – when we are raised up out of the water and receive the Holy Spirit of God.  According to the Bible, we are not a “new man” until we come up out of the watery grave.

These Scriptural principles reveal an important question for us to contemplate: Can the Biblical new moon be “new,” with all the sense that “newness” implies, before it emerges from darkness and begins to visibly reflect the light of the sun?

The Historical Record

At this point, perhaps you are already convicted as to what constitutes the Biblical new moon. 

On the other hand, perhaps you are noting that while the information presented strongly suggests a particular “new moon,” it does not provide conclusive proof of any particular practice.

That is quite true.

However, in addition to the several important Scriptural indicators which God has provided.  God has given us sufficient historical witness upon which to act.

In the Law, God provides for action, based upon the testimony of two or three witnesses:  

'If anyone kills a person, the murderer shall be put to death at the evidence of witnesses, but no person shall be put to death on the testimony of one witness.  (Numbers 35:30) 

"On the evidence of two witnesses or three witnesses, he who is to die shall be put to death; he shall not be put to death on the evidence of one witness.  (Deuteronomy 17:6) 

"A single witness shall not rise up against a man on account of any iniquity or any sin which he has committed; on the evidence of two or three witnesses a matter shall be confirmed. (Deuteronomy 19:15) 

This is the third time I am coming to you. In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.  (2 Corinthians 13:1)

What are the historical witnesses which God has provided regarding the determination of the new moon? 

Philo:

First, we have the witness of Philo the Jew.  Philo was a prominent Jewish leader, who lived in Alexandria from about 20 B.C. to about A.D. 50:

“Philo, usually known as Philo the Jew (Philo Judaeus) or Philo of Alexandria (a city in Egypt with a large Jewish Diaspora population in Greco-Roman times), lived from about 20 B.C. to about A.D. 50. He is one of the most important Jewish authors of the Second Temple period of Judaism and was a contemporary of both Jesus and Paul …. He lived his entire life in Alexandria, Egypt, the location of the single largest Jewish community outside of Palestine in this period (the Jewish population of Alexandria was perhaps one million people). Philo came from a prominent and wealthy family, was well educated, and was a leader within the Alexandrian Jewish community. So far as is known, Philo visited the temple in Jerusalem only once in his lifetime (On Providence 2.64)…. Philo’s brother, Alexander, held various offices for Rome in Egypt and used his money to plate the gates of the temple in Jerusalem with silver and gold and to make a loan to Herod Agrippa I (see Josephus, Jewish Antiquities 18.159–160; Jewish War 5.205). Alexander’s two sons, Marcus and Tiberius Iuius Alexander, Philo’s nephews, were also involved in Roman affairs. Marcus married Bernice, the daughter of Herod Agrippa I (Josephus, Jewish Antiquities 19.276–277; this is the Bernice mentioned in Acts 25:13, 23; 26:30). Tiberius Alexander became an apostate from Judaism, held the office of procurator of Judaea (A.D. 46–48), and was a prefect in Egypt (A.D. 66–70).”[17]

What is Philo’s witness in regard to the method of determining the new moon?  In his Treatise on the Special Laws, Book II, XI, 41 (translated by C. D. Yonge), Philo apportions the Biblical observances as follows:

“Now there are ten festivals in number, as the law sets them down.
The first is that which any one will perhaps be astonished to hear called a festival. This festival is every day.
The second festival is the seventh day, which the Hebrews in their native language call the sabbath.
The third is that which comes after the conjunction, which happens on the day of the new moon in each month."[18]

"The fourth is that of the passover which is called the passover.
The fifth is the first fruits of the corn—the sacred sheaf.
The sixth is the feast of unleavened bread, after which that festival is celebrated, which is really
The seventh day of seventh days.
The eighth is the festival of the sacred moon, or the feast of trumpets.
The ninth is the fast.
The tenth is the feast of tabernacles, which is the last of all the annual festivals, ending so as to make the perfect number of ten. We must now begin with the first festival.”[20]

In his detailed discussion of the new moon, Philo clarifies further:

“Following the order which we have adopted, we proceed to speak of the third festival, that of the new moon."[21]

"First of all, because it is the beginning of the month, and the beginning, whether of number or of time, is honourable. Secondly, because at this time there is nothing in the whole of heaven destitute of light."[23]

"Thirdly, because at that period the more powerful and important body gives a portion of necessary assistance to the less important and weaker body; for, at the time of the new moon, the sun begins to illuminate the moon with a light which is visible to the outward senses, and then she displays her own beauty to the beholders." [25]

Thus, we confirm Philo's record of the ancient Jewish method of defining the new moon:

The new moon was determined by the observable young crescent moon.

As a witness, Philo corroborates the second historical witness, the Jewish Mishnah.

The Mishnah:

According to the Encyclopaedia Britannica, the Mishna, “also spelled Mishnah (Hebrew: “Repeated Study”), plural Mishnayot,” is:

“the oldest authoritative postbiblical collection and codification of Jewish oral laws, systematically compiled by numerous scholars (called tannaim) over a period of about two centuries. The codification was given final form early in the 3rd century AD by Judah ha-Nasi. The Mishna supplements the written, or scriptural, laws found in the Pentateuch. It presents various interpretations of selective legal traditions that had been preserved orally since at least the time of Ezra (c. 450 BC).

“Intensive study of the Mishna by subsequent scholars (called amoraim) in Palestine and Babylonia resulted in two collections of interpretations and annotations of it called the Gemara, or Talmud. In the broader sense of the latter terms, the Mishna and Gemara together make up the Talmud.”[27]

Within the tractates of the Mishna, in Massekhtaot Rosh HaShana 21b-25b, there are extensive discussions of the Jewish process for the sanctification of the new crescent moon.  While the rabbis argued among themselves about many of the particulars of the process, the Mishnah records no disagreement as to what constitutes the new moon. 

Here are just a few excerpts from the Mishnah, pertaining to the declaration of the new moon.  (The upper case letters are carried over from the Soncino Talmud): 

“WHEN THE TEMPLE WAS STANDING THEY USED TO PROFANE SABBATH FOR ALL THE MONTHS, IN ORDER THAT THE SACRIFICE [OF NEW MOON] MIGHT BE OFFERED ON THE RIGHT DAY…. WHETHER [THE NEW MOON] HAS BEEN SEEN CLEARLY OR HAS NOT BEEN SEEN CLEARLY, SABBATH MAY BE PROFANED ON ACCOUNT OF IT.”  (Mas. Rosh HaShana 21b) 

“IF ONE WHO HAS SEEN THE MOON IS NOT ABLE TO GO ON FOOT, HE MAY BE BROUGHT ON AN ASS OR EVEN IN A LITTER [ON SABBATH]. IF THEY [THE WITNESSES] ARE LIKELY TO BE WAYLAID, THEY MAY TAKE CUDGELS [TO DEFEND THEMSELVES]…. ORIGINALLY TESTIMONY WITH REGARD TO [THE APPEARANCE OF] THE NEW MOON WAS RECEIVED FROM ANYONE. WHEN, HOWEVER, THE BOETHUSIANS ADOPTED EVIL COURSES, IT WAS ORDAINED THAT TESTIMONY SHOULD BE RECEIVED ONLY FROM PERSONS KNOWN [TO THE BETH DIN].”  (Mas. Rosh HaShana 22a)

“ORIGINALLY THEY USED TO LIGHT BEACONS. WHEN THE CUTHEANS [SAMARITANS] ADOPTED EVIL COURSES, THEY MADE A RULE THAT MESSENGERS SHOULD GO FORTH. HOW DID THEY LIGHT THE BEACONS? THEY USED TO BRING LONG POLES OF CEDAR AND REEDS AND OLIVE WOOD AND FLAX FLUFF WHICH THEY TIED TO THE POLES WITH A STRING, AND SOMEONE USED TO GO UP TO THE TOP OF A MOUNTAIN AND SET FIRE TO THEM AND WAVE THEM TO AND FRO AND UP AND DOWN UNTIL HE SAW THE NEXT ONE DOING THE SAME THING ON THE TOP OF THE SECOND MOUNTAIN; AND SO ON THE TOP OF THE THIRD MOUNTAIN. WHENCE DID THEY CARRY THE [CHAIN OF] BEACONS? FROM THE MOUNT OF OLIVES [IN JERUSALEM] TO SARTABA, AND FROM SARTABA TO GROFINA, AND FROM GROFINA TO HAURAN, AND FROM HAURAN TO BETH BALTIN. THE ONE ON BETH BALTIN DID NOT BUDGE FROM THERE BUT WENT ON WAVING TO AND FRO AND UP AND DOWN UNTIL HE SAW THE WHOLE OF THE DIASPORA BEFORE HIM LIKE ONE BONFIRE.”  (Mas. Rosh HaShana 22b)

“HOW DO THEY TEST THE WITNESSES? THE PAIR WHO ARRIVE FIRST ARE TESTED FIRST. THE SENIOR OF THEM IS BROUGHT IN AND THEY SAY TO HIM, TELL US HOW YOU SAW THE MOON — IN FRONT OF THE SUN OR BEHIND THE SUN? TO THE NORTH OF IT OR THE SOUTH? HOW BIG WAS IT, AND IN WHICH DIRECTION WAS IT INCLINED? AND HOW BROAD WAS IT? IF HE SAYS [HE SAW IT] IN FRONT OF THE SUN, HIS EVIDENCE IS REJECTED. AFTER THAT THEY WOULD BRING IN THE SECOND AND TEST HIM. IF THEIR ACCOUNTS TALLIED, THEIR EVIDENCE WAS ACCEPTED, AND THE OTHER PAIRS WERE ONLY QUESTIONED BRIEFLY, NOT BECAUSE THEY WERE REQUIRED AT ALL, BUT SO THAT THEY SHOULD NOT BE DISAPPOINTED, [AND] SO THAT THEY SHOULD NOT BE DISSUADED FROM COMING.”  (Mas. Rosh HaShana 23b) 

“R. GAMALIEL USED TO HAVE A DIAGRAM OF PHASES OF THE MOON ON A TABLET [HUNG] ON THE WALL OF HIS UPPER CHAMBER, AND HE USED TO SHOW THEM TO THE UNLEARNED AND SAY, DID IT LOOK LIKE THIS OR THIS?”  (Mas. Rosh HaShana 24a)[28] 

Thus, we have a second historical witness that the “new  moon” is the young crescent moon. 

The apostle Paul said, “In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.  Hence, we have the two or more witnesses which God stipulates, and there are no extant ancient historical witnesses which contradict their testimony regarding the normative Jewish method of determining the new moon.

Not until the tenth century A.D., in the face of heated Karaite opposition to the common calculated Jewish calendar, do we find any hint of argument against the testimony of these ancient historical witnesses.  Then, in the midst of that prolonged controversy, the prominent Jewish rabbi Sa’ada Gaon “asserted that even in Biblical times the calendar rested on the system of calculation.”[29]  However, even among his peers, Sa’ada’s contention ultimately became recognized as specious.  The Encyclopaedia Britannica reports:

“The Qaraites opposed the Rabbanites on no point more vehemently than on the calendar; they regarded calculations as impious and useless and sought to reintroduce observation.  In this matter they were victorious over the great Rabbanite champion Sa’ada (892-942), whose theory that calculation preceded observation, they could easily disprove.”[30]

It is important at this point that we also make ourselves aware of the early sectarian Jewish calendars, such as the Qumran Calendar and the Jubilees Calendar (2^nd century B.C.). These calendars were very similar to one another, yet differed markedly from the majority Jewish calendar.  There is debate as to whether any of these calendars were ever actually implemented by the isolated sectarian groups, but these calendars need not particularly concern us for two reasons:

First, although some scholars believe that the (non-Jewish) Samaritan calendar was constructed along the lines of the sectarian calendars, there is no historical evidence to suggest that the sectarian calendars were ever in use in the temple, or by any broad group of Jews. 

This is a significant fact, because the New Testament Gospel accounts record that Jesus’ disciples observed certain of the annual Holy Days at the same time as the broader Jewish community. 

Second, and most importantly, the sectarian calendars, like the secular Gregorian calendar of today, were solar, not lunar, calendars.  (The Jewish sectarian calendars would have been a little less accurate than the solar calendar in common use today, as the sectarian year consisted of exactly 52 weeks – a total of 364 days.)  Not being lunar calendars, the sectarian calendars do not conform to the rules which God has given for the Biblical calendar.

To this point, we have diligently searched out the historical record of the Biblical new moon and we have the necessary witnesses before us; then, according to the Word of God, what does God require of those who are confronted with the testimony of witnesses?  God’s answer is poignantly illustrated in the writings of the prophet Isaiah: 

... Let them present their witnesses that they may be justified, Or let them hear and say, "It is true."  (Isaiah 43:9) 

God expects us to act upon the testimony of the witnesses! 

With full confidence, we are now equipped to observe the Biblical new moon – determined by the first crescent moon as visible from the Holy Land.  Today, for those of us scattered throughout the world, the prediction and dissemination of new moon dates is greatly simplified by highly sophisticated computer programs which can pre-calculate the visibility of the first crescent moon for Jerusalem.  Also, there are Karaite Jews in the Holy Land who regularly observe and report the monthly sightings of the new moon. 

Why Jerusalem?

Despite the lack of historical precedent, a few have nevertheless suggested that each person or group should observe God’s Holy Days according to when the young crescent moon is first sighted in their own locale. Such practices result in some disparity in the days observed.  For example, there are times when the new moon would not be visible on a particular night in New York, but could be sighted in Florida.  Consequently, you could have some people observing the Feast of Trumpets on the fourth day of the week, and others observing it on the fifth day of the week.  In contrast, we find that throughout Scripture, except in the case of unholy compromise, unity is the strongly preferred state.  Additionally, the apostle Paul reminds us: 

But let all things be done properly and in an orderly manner.  (1 Corinthians 14:40) 

For God is not a God of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.  (1 Corinthians 14:33)

Further, as we will recall from Part One of this series, the harvest markers for the determination of the Biblical year (the abib barley and the grapes) already inextricably tie God’s calendar to the environs of Jerusalem.

Indeed, we will recall that there is more than just the year which ties God's calendar to Jerusalem. The weekly Sabbaths, the annual Holy Days and the new moons were all to be proclaimed and convened by the officiating priesthood:

Thus, every Sabbath, new moon and Holy Day begins first in the environs of the Holy Land, where the observance is designed to be inaugurated and announced by the priests at Jerusalem, and then to roll around the world, along with the natural progression of the day. To begin these observances apart from Jerusalem would render God's command for the priests' holy proclamation unnecessary, redundant and devoid of impact.

Moreover, Salem in the time of Melchizedek is generally recognized to be Jerusalem.  It was the place of the altar, the temple(s), and priesthood. The new moons were historically proclaimed from Jerusalem, and it is from whence the new moons will be proclaimed in the Kingdom (Ezekiel 46:1-6).

God has chosen and placed His name in Jerusalem forever (1 Kings 11:36; 14:12; 2 Kings 21:4; 23:27; 2 Chronicles 6:6; 12:13; 33:4, 7; Jeremiah 3:17).  It was, and will be in His Kingdom, the capitol of His nation Israel (Ezekiel 43:7).  Christ ministered in and died in Jerusalem (Mark 10:33; Luke 13:33).  Christ will return to Jerusalem (Zechariah 1:16; 8:1-8; 14:1-4).  The capitol of the world, and the temple, will be in Jerusalem (Micah 4:1-7; Isaiah 2:1-4).  In God’s Kingdom, people will seek the Lord at Jerusalem (Zechariah 8:21-22).   The law will go forth from Jerusalem (Micah 2:4).  Finally, recorded Biblical prophecy ends with the coming of the New Jerusalem to this earth (Revelation 21:2, 10)!

Clearly, in the context of the entirety of Scripture, Jerusalem is the obvious central point for the declaration of the new moon. 

Going Forward

Exploring this matter according to the principles of Scripture, we have established that we can confidently ascertain the Biblical new moon. We can confidently observe God’s appointed times on those days which He has commanded.  We can rejoice in the festivals which He has lovingly ordained for our benefit. 

May God grant us the hearts to follow where He is leading.

 

APPENDIX:  The Various Arguments

For those who wish to examine several of the more common arguments surrounding the Biblical new moon, this appendix provides both Scriptural and logical analyses helpful in evaluating these contentions.

However, before addressing several of the more specific arguments pertaining to the method of new moon observance, we should first resolve a question which is basic, not just to the question of the Biblical new moon, but to our practice of Godliness in general. 

Paganism:

“Pagan!  That’s associated with paganism!”  More than any other battle cry, it seems that we find passionate accusations flying in every direction, decrying the “paganism” of whatever methods of calendrical determination are different from what is being espoused.

God condemns looking to the pagan nations, and inculcating their practices in our worship of Him: 

Beware that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, 'How do these nations serve their gods, that I also may do likewise?'  "You shall not behave thus toward the LORD your God, for every abominable act which the LORD hates they have done for their gods; for they even burn their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.  "Whatever I command you, you shall be careful to do; you shall not add to nor take away from it.  (Deuteronomy 12:30-32)

It is tragic indeed that many pagan customs have been absorbed into Judaism and into the nominal “Christianity” of this world. 

Yet, can the misguided actions of pagan peoples negate our duty to obey God’s instructions to us?  Upon reflection, we must admit that pagan peoples throughout the ages have eaten meals, worn clothes, married and had families, kept time by the new moons, and performed many other acts which are the same as or similar to God’s Scriptural instructions for man.  Unchristian distortions of any or all of these acts do not excuse our disregard of God’s instructions for us.  Nor does some unwelcome association with “pagan” customs give us license to withdraw from, to modify, or to reinvent God’s doctrine or our practice in order to distance ourselves from what some may associate with “paganism.”

Here, within the same passage where God condemns adopting pagan practice, God also insists that we must  “be careful to do” whatever He commands us. 

"Whatever I command you, you shall be careful to do; you shall not add to nor take away from it.  (Deuteronomy 12:32)

God expressly prohibits any worship OF the sun or the moon: 

"And beware, lest you lift up your eyes to heaven and see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the host of heaven, and be drawn away and worship them and serve them, those which the LORD your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole heaven.  (Deuteronomy 4:19)

Yet God says here that He has allotted the astral bodies to us. As we have seen in Part One of this series, God has given us the sun and moon as markers of the days, months, years, and of His appointed times.  God commanded special offerings on each new moon.  We know from the New Testament that Apostolic Christians observed the new moons.

Further, we learn from Ezekiel’s prophecy of the temple of God, that in the future, there will be public worship ON the new moon days: 

"The people of the land shall also worship at the doorway of that gate before the LORD on the sabbaths and on the new moons.  (Ezekiel 46:3) 

The New Testament Account:

Flying in the face of the historical record, several church organizations have attempted to validate the common calculated Jewish calendar, by “proving” that its postponements and other components were already in practice before and  during the time of Jesus Christ.  Toward this end, they primarily use passages in John, Chapters 7-9, describing Christ’s observance of the Feast of Tabernacles, in order to construct a presumed calendrical sequence for the years 30-31 A.D.

Without going into laborious detail, suffice it to say that upon careful analysis, such constructs are found to be built like a house of cards – tenuous interpretation built upon tenuous interpretation, possibility built upon possibility, girded about with circular reasoning.  However, in addition to those deficiencies, there are other problems with these constructs:

First, there is the contradiction created by presupposition of the calendrical postponements.  Although some of the postponements of the common calculated Jewish calendar are mentioned in the Talmud, there is also significant evidence in the Mishnah which documents the absence of regular postponements during the Second Temple period. 

As just one example: the Jews reaped and processed the omer on the 16^th of Abib, the day immediately following the first day of Unleavened Bread.  Yet in Menachoth 63b, the Mishnah documents discussion of procedures for processing the wave omer on the weekly Sabbath.  However, the postponement rules of the common calculated Jewish calendar serve to prevent the 15^th of Abib – the first day of Unleavened Bread – from occurring on any Friday. Thus, using the common calculated Jewish calendar, the 16^th of Abib could never fall on the weekly Sabbath!

The Mishnah excerpt follows: 

“R. ISHMAEL SAYS, ON THE SABBATH THE OMER WAS TAKEN OUT OF THREE SE'AHS [OF BARLEY]. AND ON A WEEKDAY OUT OF FIVE. BUT THE SAGES SAY, WHETHER ON THE SABBATH OR ON A WEEKDAY IT WAS TAKEN OUT OF THREE SE'AHS. R. HANINA THE VICE-HIGH PRIEST SAYS, ON THE SABBATH IT WAS REAPED BY ONE MAN WITH ONE SICKLE INTO ONE BASKET, AND ON A WEEKDAY IT WAS REAPED BY THREE MEN INTO THREE BASKETS AND WITH THREE SICKLES. BUT THE SAGES SAY, WHETHER ON THE SABBATH OR ON A WEEKDAY IT WAS REAPED BY THREE MEN INTO THREE BASKETS AND WITH THREE SICKLES.”  (Mas. Menachoth 63b)

Second, there is disparity between the intercalation pattern claimed by the churches for 31 A.D., and that of the common calculated Jewish calendar.  The common calculated Jewish calendar adds a thirteenth month in years 3, 6, 8, 11, 14, 16, and 19 of each 19 year cycle.[31]  However, the intercalary pattern demanded by the churches’ calendrical construct for 31 A.D., requires intercalation in years 2, 5, 7, 10, 13, 16, and 18 in order to arrive at the claimed annual Holy Day scenario.[32]  While there is historical evidence that such an intercalary pattern may have been in use at some interim point in the development of the common calculated Jewish calendar, there is no historical evidence to suggest that it, or that any set pattern of intercalation, was in use during the time of Christ or before the destruction of the Temple.

The third additional problem is that those annual Holy Day dates which are presumed by the churches for 31 A.D. are impossibly late for that era, if one goes by the common calculated Jewish calendar.  Those presumed dates for 31 A.D. (adjusted to equivalent Gregorian dates) are: 

Passover:                                           Wednesday, April 23
1st Day of Unleavened Bread:        Thursday, April 24
Last Day of Unleavened Bread:      Wednesday, April 30
Feast of Trumpets                             Saturday, October 4 

Due to its imperfections, there is seasonal drift in the common calculated Jewish calendar. (The annual Holy Days are gradually drifting later in the year.)  However, even with that drift, by the prescriptions of the common calculated Jewish calendar, it was simply not possible for the annual Holy Days to occur as late the churches’ presumed dates in any year prior to 1815 A.D.[33]

Consequently, like Dagon falling before the Ark of God, the churches’ whole defense of the common calculated Jewish calendar simply falls in pieces, shattered and useless.  The churches are left with nothing more than a hollow assertion, professing “authority” to modify the immutable commandments of Almighty God.  (See Section Seven: The Responsibility of the Church, in Part One of this series.) 

Psalm 81:3:

Moving along to one of the narrower arguments, a verse which is offered by some in an attempt to support the lunar conjunction method is Psalm 81:3.  While the King James Bible translates this verse differently, most versions translate the verse much like the NASB, which is a truer rendering of the Hebrew: 

Blow the trumpet at the new moon, At the full moon, on our feast day.  (Psalm 81:3)

The argument contends that in order for the astronomical full moon to fall upon the feast day (Hebrew for feast day here is hag), that the new moon must be determined by the lunar conjunction method. 

There are a couple of fundamental flaws in this argument.

First, as we learned in our simple astronomy review, often the astronomical full moon does not fall at the exact midpoint between two lunar conjunctions. The full moon may follow the lunar conjunction by as little as 13 days, 21 hours and 53 minutes, or by as much as 15 days, 14 hours and 30 minutes.  Consequently, no method of determining the new moon could precisely satisfy such a requirement.

Second, it is an insupportable presumption to interpret the meaning of the obscure Hebrew kese (“full moon”) as being limited to the precise moment of the astronomical full moon, rather than to the several nights during which the surface of the moon appears to be more than 90% illuminated. 

The Story of David and Jonathan:

Another Biblical passage which has often been employed, in attempts to support various methodologies for determining the new moon, is the account of David and Jonathan, which begins in 1 Samuel 20:5: 

So David said to Jonathan, "Behold, tomorrow is the new moon, and I ought to sit down to eat with the king. But let me go, that I may hide myself in the field until the third evening.

Much ado has been made over the fact that David obviously knew that the next day “is the new moon.”  Without careful analysis of the facts, many have presumed that David’s advance knowledge requires the use of a calculated method of determining the new moon, other than by observation of the crescent.

What are the flaws of this argument?

First, the Bible records that the “new moon” in this instance was a two day celebration.  

And it came about the next day, the second day of the new moon, that David's place was empty; so Saul said to Jonathan his son, "Why has the son of Jesse not come to the meal, either yesterday or today?"  (1 Samuel 20:27)

Thus, when David knew that the next day was the “new moon,” did David refer to the king’s celebration or to the astronomical event?  We simply do not know.  Moreover, we are not told why the celebration lasted for two days.  The two-day celebration could have been scheduled to encompass both possible dates for an observed crescent moon.

From the astronomy which we have learned, however, another strong possibility arises.  There are no 28-day or 31-day lunar months!  Lunar months are always either 29 or 30 days long.

Therefore, it had to be either the 29^th or the 30^th day of the month in order for David to state: “Tomorrow is the new moon.” 

IF David’s comment was made on the 30^th day (which is just as likely as not), then regardless of which method of new moon determination was utilized, the following day – “tomorrow” – would definitely be the new moon!

Thus, while this anecdote does provide an interesting glimpse into new moon observance under the reign of Saul, it does not provide enough information for us to logically conclude that any particular method of determining the new moon was the practice. 

Other Arguments:

Countless other arguments pertaining to the calendar have each been accepted by a few people here or there. Yet these arguments, too, can be shown to be intrinsically flawed, when they are carefully studied and analyzed.

Questions?

If you have additional questions pertaining to God's calendar, or regarding any other Biblical topic, please contact us at: ministry@BelovedofGod.org, and we will be happy to respond.