Remember the Sabbath Day, to Keep IT Holy

(Exodus 20:8)

"Remember" means to retain in memory; keep in mind; remain aware of. The antonym of "remember" is to forget. Is it possible to forget the Sabbath Day?

For the majority of mankind, the Sabbath Day, the Biblical Seventh Day of the Week, has been forgotten for a very long time. The reason to forget for some is their freewill choice to not believe in God and the Truth revealed in the Bible. Research by Gallup, Pew Research Center and the Hartford Institute for Religion Research indicates a continued steady downward trend in organized religious affiliation and attendance at religious institutions - the downward trend indicates more of mankind, by their own freewill choice, have chosen to forget the Sabbath, to deny God, to deny Jesus. "But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven." (Matthew 10:33)

For some that profess a belief in God, regular weekly worship attendance is optional in many cases, some do not attend weekly services at all - some only attend major celebrations like Easter and Christmas. For the few that still remember the Sabbath Day, some fail to "keep it holy" by not adhering to the Truths revealed in the Bible about Sabbath times, duration, and prohibited activities. For some their reason to forget the "true" Sabbath Day is a result of their freewill choice to follow the mandates of a Man, their chosen spiritual leader, over the Truth revealed in the Bible. Many disagree over which day of the week is the Sabbath, some claim the Sabbath is no longer a requirement despite it being written in stone by the hand of God (Exodus 20:8-11), few have the ability to discern the Truth revealed in the Bible - if they even read the Bible. The following statement of Jesus is the Truth and is Fulfilled:

And Jesus said, the whole world and all nations shall be deceived.

(Revelation 12:9 Revelation 18:23)

Some assert that the Sabbath Day, the Biblical Seventh Day of the Week, has been forgotten and what is displayed on some of the modern day Gregorian calendars does not represent the real Sabbath Day. The Gregorian calendar, in some countries - not all, shows the first day of the week as Sunday and the seventh day of the week as Saturday. Man has settled the “uncertainty” of which day is the seventh day of the week by an internationally agreed to decree, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 8601. Few are aware this decree was formulated and initiated back in 1971, was formalized, and is gradually being implemented worldwide. ISO 8601 stipulates: “Weeks start with Monday and end on Sunday.” Sunday is officially the seventh day of the week, day number 7, by Man’s decree. Coincidentally, it was also a decree by Man that declared Sunday as the official day of worship for many of the Christian faith. One must ask themselves do they follow the Word of God as revealed in the Bible or do they follow the mandates and traditions of Man. And Jesus said, "If ye love me, keep my commandments." (John 14:15)

The Bible defines the 7-Day Biblical Week and the Seventh Day of the Week in Genesis 1:1-31 and Genesis 2:1-3, as illustrated below.

A few religious leaders, theologians, and scholars claim that the current Saturday depicted on some modern day Gregorian calendars is the same Seventh Day of the Week, the Sabbath, since the beginning of creation. Their rationalization is based on the premise that since God's chosen people (Deuteronomy 7:6), the Jewish people, have continually observe the Sabbath on Saturday throughout the ages, that this is evidence enough and "proof". They further stipulate that since many different countries and languages define Saturday in their native tongue as the "day of rest", that this should instill confidence in all that Saturday is without a doubt the Biblical Seventh Day of the Week. Close scrutiny of this "proof" requires one to accept the "traditions" of the Jewish people or the principal of "the majority is right", instead of a "proof" based on facts and the Bible. These same religious leaders, theologians, and scholars assert the Bible provides no method or information to identify the Biblical Seventh Day of the Week to any of Man's calendars, so one must accept their claims and proofs based on circumstantial evidence.

Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.

(1Thessalonians 5:21)

The Bible instructs us to "prove all things" and that should equally apply to the Sabbath Day, the Biblical Seventh Day of the Week. The Bible also instructs us to not be deceived by ourselves (1 Corinthians 3:18), others (Mark 13:5) and spiritual leaders (Matthew 24:11). One should question "everything" and prove its righteousness. Never should one blindly follow the opinions or subscribe to the "truths" proclaimed by self-declared experts or self-anointed religious leaders, but instead seek the real truth in all matters. In the end, only your conclusions and determined truths matter, as you'll stand alone, accountable and responsible for your actions in this life - so "prove all things".

I know, without a doubt, that Jesus died for the forgiveness of all sin on Passover Day the 14th of Abib (Leviticus 23:5), the 5th Day of the Biblical Week, and was resurrected three full days later on the First Day of the Biblical Week; based solely on the Truth revealed in the Bible (read here and here). I also know, without a doubt, that the Sabbath Day is on the Biblical Seventh Day of the Week as revealed in the Bible. From these truths the first month of the Biblical New Year - Abib - the month of Jesus's Passover, has its first day of the month on the 6th Day of the Biblical Week as illustrated below.

The calendar above has no reference to Man’s modern day Gregorian calendar or uses its weekday conventions of Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, or Saturday – the Bible does not use or mention the labels created by Man for days of the week or months of the year.

The calendar above resembles the same format of Man’s modern day Gregorian calendar. However, the Biblical calendar Day starts and ends at sunset with those times aligned to the location of the Temple Mount, Jerusalem, Israel. On Man’s modern day Gregorian calendar, the day begins and ends at midnight, with its times aligned to the Prime Meridian. The other differences like the start of a New Year, number of days in a month/year, the length of a year, etc., must be accounted for in a comparison or synchronization of the two calendars.

What both the Biblical calendar and Man’s modern day Gregorian calendar share in common is the cycle of the Earth around the Sun – a solar year; and both share the phases of the Moon’s orbit around the Earth.

In Genesis 1:14 it states, “And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:”. Man's knowledge has increased substantially throughout the ages and to the extent of his current knowledge, Man has characterized factually and mathematically the movement and cycles of the Sun, Earth, and Moon that were created by God. Man cannot alter or change God's heavenly creations; Man can only attempt to understand and characterize them.

Man’s recorded history is unreliable as many of the dates of distant past events are from fragments of ancient writings, are approximations, and interpretations of them vary widely on specifics. Man’s calendars have been revised and changed since the beginning of time and considerable debate exists on reliable conversion from each one. Prove it to yourself – research Gregorian and Julian calendars as a starting point.

Of particular note is the Jewish/Hebrew calendar as some consider it as “God’s Sacred Calendar” and its trustworthiness is unquestionable. It takes very little research to conclude its unreliability, as its current “rules” are based on a decree of Man and not the Truths revealed in the Bible. Within the different sects of the Jewish faith there is considerable disagreement on calendar methodology and its issues are as contentious as the Christian debate as to whether Sunday or Saturday is the Sabbath Day. The current Jewish/Hebrew calendar “postponement rules” prevent Jesus’s Passover day from occurring on the true day as revealed in the Bible – these “postponement rules” did NOT exist during the time of Jesus and they are not derived from the Bible. Prove it to yourself – read History of the Jewish Calendar, research Hebrew calendar, Hillel II, and read a dissenting opinion - there are many more. Determine the Truth for yourself of why the Jewish religious leaders openly conceal and discount Passover on the fourteenth of the Month and declare Passover on the fifteenth of the Month despite the vivid clarity of the Truth revealed in the Bible.

Use of the “signs” of the “lights in the firmament of the heaven”, created by God, and quantified by Man, is likely to result in the most reliable and accurate answer for determining factually which day is truly the Sabbath Day.

It stands to reason if the Biblical calendar of Jesus's Passover time can be overlaid accurately on Man's Gregorian calendar of the year of Jesus's Passover and the position of the days of the week match between both calendars, then factual proof of which day is the Biblical Seventh Day of the Week - the Sabbath, is irrefutably established.

The Bible does not state the year in which Jesus died or identify the date of His birth.

While the Bible does not identify the year of Jesus's death, it does identify the month of His death - Abib, and that month occurred in springtime in Israel associated with the ripening of barely (Deuteronomy 16:1). The months of springtime in Israel are identified as March, April, and May - read here. This narrows the month down to most likely either March or April.

As a result of the details of Jesus’s Passover derived solely from the Bible we know the first day of the month of Abib is on the Sixth Day of the Biblical Week. For both the Biblical and Gregorian calendars to be in sync then the Sixth Day of the Biblical Week must be initially "assumed" to be Friday. However, a Biblical day begins and ends at sunset, so the Sixth Day of the Biblical Week must start at sunset Thursday and end at sunset Friday. This means the slim crescent of the New Moon must be visible to the unaided eye of an observer located in the vicinity of Jerusalem, Israel at sunset on a Thursday. This also means the New Moon should be total black, zero illumination, on the prior Wednesday or Tuesday. How do we know what a reasonable time should be that the slim crescent of the New Moon should become visible? Man has quantified the visibility of the crescent of the New Moon mathematically and the Bible provides an answer, as illustrated below.

The Bible reveals in Luke 3:23, “And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age...” and this statement was during the time of His Baptism. The Bible reveals Jesus died on the forth Passover after His Baptism [Passover verses: John 2:13, John 6:4, John 11:55, John 19:14] so this would infer Jesus was about 34 years of age. As the terms Anno Domini (AD) and Before Christ (BC) was intended to identify the years after and before the birth of Jesus, of which the accuracy of its assumptions are highly questionable - it nonetheless provides a probable starting point of years to start from. Therefore, a reasonable period of years , 0028 to 0035, will be the starting point to search for a compatible year of Jesus's Passover. Note: The terms BC (Before Christ) and AD (Anno Domini / year of the Lord) have essentially been replaced with the terms CE (Common Era) or BCE (Before the Common Era) to avoid any references to Christianity or Christ on grounds of political correctness and cultural inclusiveness for non-Christians - by Man's decision it is for the betterment of society to forget the name Christ.

The first information needed is the date/time of the New Moons for the Gregorian years 0028 through 0035 for the months of March and April. There are many websites that provide textual lunar moon phases dates (see here), some in calendar form (see here), others by a dedicated program (see here); however, the most reliable and likely most accurate data is directly from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The date and time of each new moon from 3000 B.C. to 3000 A.D. according to NASA's/Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) DE406 file was obtained here.

As NASA’s calendar dates are in Julian date format for the years prior to October 1582, they were converted to Gregorian date format.

NASA’s times are in TDT (Terrestrial Dynamic Time) and were converted to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) by formula UTC = TDT – ΔT. The values of ΔT (delta T) were obtained here - the ΔT value used was of Astronomical Ephemeris (1960) standard conversion. Then the UTC time (or Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)) was converted to Israel Daylight Time (IDT), which is simply UTC/GMT plus 2 hours – Daylight Savings Time is not used. The values for UTC+02:20:57 are based on the Temple Mount, Jerusalem, Israel longitude of 35° 46' 8.9" (E) from the UTC longitude point of 0-degrees which provides a closer approximation of time.

The following table contains NASA's New Moon data, date and time conversions.

Next, the dates listed in the column “Gregorian Date” were reviewed that might provide a visible New Moon crescent on a Thursday at sunset. Dates that were on a Monday, Thursday, Friday, or Saturday were easily eliminated. Dates that were on a Tuesday or Wednesday were compared with the past 10 years of the ripening of wild barely and signs of springs in the countryside areas within the vicinity of Jerusalem, Israel as blogged on Jewish websites. This "subjective" review resulted in leaving only one potential date: “Wed, Mar 20, 30” at 19:46:50 (IDT). The typical sunset time in Jerusalem, Israel for March 20 through 22 is about 17:51 (IDT).

The time difference between the New Moon on 20 March 0030 Wednesday at 19:46:50 (IDT) and 21 March 0030 Thursday at sunset time of 17:51 (IDT) is about 22 hours and 4 minutes. The astronomical data for “Crescent Moon Visibility” from website Her Majesty's Nautical Almanac Office Websurf 2.0 only covers years 1980 to 2030; so had to extrapolate visibility from a year with similar times of the New Moon. Used their “Visibility Predictions for the New Crescent Moon” on 2 March 2022 at 19:35 (IDT)  Wednesday with a time difference of 22:03 which rated the crescent moon visibility at “B - Visible under perfect conditions” on 3 March 2022 Thursday at 18:00 (IDT) best view time. As secondary confirmation for visibility of the New Moon's crescent, checked the same date 2 March 2022 at 19:35 (IDT) on website TorahCalendar.com, page "Determining the Hebrew Month" with Hebrew Month set to 13 and Gregorian Year set to 2021, which also indicated the New Moon's crescent was visible at or slightly after sunset at ~17:38 the following day for about 50 minutes total. The unique graphic illustration of the Moon's visibility below is from website TorahCalendar.com, and it correctly identifies the Astronomical Conjunction Date "2 Mar 2022 C.E." and Time "17:34:43.28 UT" sought. It is important to reemphasize "prove all things" for this website does not fully align with the Truths revealed in the Bible. Other sites with pictorial representations of the New Moon's visibility were discovered and indicated essentially the same results for the date 2 March 2022 at 19:35 (IDT). 

On website TorahCalendar.com, page "Determining the Hebrew Month" with Hebrew Month set to 1 and Gregorian Year set to 0030, it identified the slim crescent of the New Moon was visible on Friday 24 Mar 30 at local sunset time 5:51 PM. As this is not a Thursday at sunset, one would initially "assume" this would invalidate March 0030 as a potential candidate for Jesus's Passover. However - remember to "prove all things". Discovered their "Astronomical Conjunction Date = 22 Mar 30 C.E." (see picture below or visit their website) - this means they failed to convert the New Moon date to Gregorian format as their "22 Mar 30 C.E." date matches NASA's New moon data of "1732096.36030 30 March 22 Wednesday 20h 38m 49.792s TDT" which is in Julian date format. As a result of their failure to convert the Julian format New Moon date of "22 Mar 30 C.E." to Gregorian format they incorrectly identify the start of the new month's first day from Friday sunset until Saturday sunset - there are also other errors present on this website page if you can discern them. As the TorahCalendar.com website provides no contact method, was unable to notify them of the errors. Checked other websites with calendars based on Jewish ideology and not one that was reviewed provided correct information - some due to the same Julian to Gregorian date conversion error, some due to software logic errors, others due to their non-Biblical calendar “postponement rules”. Remember - "prove all things".  

Therefore, the similar New Moon visibility data of 2 March 2022 at 19:35 (IDT) indicates the slim crescent of the New Moon of 20 March 0030 Wednesday at 19:46:50 (IDT) was likely to be visible to the unaided eye of an observer located in the vicinity of Jerusalem, Israel on 21 March 0030 Thursday at or slightly after sunset time of 17:51 (IDT) as illustrated below.

In the above illustration the Biblical Seventh Day of the Week - Day 7 - the Sabbath Day, aligns with the Gregorian calendar from sunset 22 March 0030 Friday to sunset 23 March 0030 Saturday. This supports the premise that on today's modern day Gregorian calendar that Saturday IS the Biblical Seventh Day of the Week - the Sabbath; but one must account for the Biblical start of the Day at sunset aligned to Jerusalem, Israel versus Man's start of the Day at midnight. Despite the alignment of Saturday of the Gregorian calendar with the Biblical Seventh Day of the Week, the Sabbath Day in Man's modern world remains essentially forgotten by Mankind's voluntary choice and decision.

Using the information and days revealed solely from the Bible and the “signs” of the “lights in the firmament of the heaven”, created by God, and quantified by Man, a "typical" calendar of Jesus's Passover in March of the Gregorian year 0030 is illustrated below.

As the events of the month of Jesus's Passover are derived solely from the Bible, then their positional placement on the Biblical Week should be without question – they represent the Testament of Jesus’s Life and Death as recorded in the Bible. If you have any doubts - "prove all things".

The "typical" calendar of Jesus's Passover in March of the Gregorian year 0030 shown above is a record of times when the New Year's first Month was determined by the Biblical rules of observing the slim crescent of the New Moon with the observation of the proper season of Spring. Ask yourself, would Jesus observe the Sabbaths and Feasts stipulated by the Bible on the incorrect day? The events in the calendar above are the record of Jesus' Passover as revealed in the Truth of the Bible. The Sheaf of Firstfruits depicted in the above calendar is after the Sabbath day ("...on the morrow after the sabbath the priest shall wave it" (Leviticus 23:11) and "...Christ the firstfruits..." (1 Corinthians 15:20-23)) and does not follow the Jewish non-Biblical tradition of being fixed to the 16th day which in this case would violate Sabbath mandates. The calendar above includes the Gregorian UTC time of the phases of the Moon and the astrological northward vernal equinox. (Date/time of vernal equinoxes can be obtained from NASA, programs, or other websites.) The New Moon occurs before the spring equinox, by just a few hours, and hearkens of a time past. These Truths highlight many false Biblical interpretations of past and current day self-declared experts and self-anointed, self-ordained religious leaders of the same mettle as the ancient scribes, Sadducees, and Pharisees hypocrites of Jesus's era. "And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many." (Matthew 24:11) Again it is emphasized, if you have any doubts - "prove all things".

Many religious leaders, theologians, and scholars assert the Bible provides no method or information to identify the Biblical Seventh Day of the Week to any of Man's calendars – yet if one can discern the Truth revealed in the Bible, it is clearly revealed.

Many religious leaders, theologians, and scholars assert the Bible provides no method or information to identify the calendar used from Creation and of Jesus’s time or its methodology. From fragments of Man's history they recognize that at a time in the distant past a religious council with witnesses reached consensus as to the start of a new Month based on the visible sighting of the New Moon’s crescent and a New Year based on visible indications of springtime. But with increase in knowledge, Man freely decided to determined new Months and Years from Man’s superior calculations and astrological indicators (constellations, solstices, equinoxes, etc.) over the Truth revealed in the Bible. The Bible cautions against Man’s proud and lofty stature, “Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise.” (1 Corinthians 3:18)

So how does one “become a fool” so “he may be wise”? Forget your preconceived notions, biases, and knowledge – be as a blank sheet of paper or blank tables of stone to be written upon of the proper mind and heart. In the times of Adam and awhile after, there were no timepieces/clocks, there was no familiarity of the workings of the heavens (astrology), there was just Man guided directly by the Word of God. In pure simplicity the definition of a Day was shown to Man as the setting of Sun to the next setting of a Sun. It was no coincident that the definition of a Month was shown to Man as about the same time of the setting of Sun the slim crescent shape of the New Moon was visible. Man counted the Days until the next slim crescent shape of the New Moon was visible and started the count of Days anew. Man soon recognized a pattern of 29 to 30 Days existed between the appearances of the slim crescent shape of the New Moon and he was able to anticipate the Day of the New Moon – yet he remained steadfast and “proved” it each Month. Building upon this simplicity, a Year was defined as the sighting of the slim crescent shape of the New Moon with the renewal of plant life – the ripening of barely – the time of increased warmth that became known as spring time. As a Year or two passed Man noticed that the time of spring no longer coincided with the previous pattern of 12 New Moon cycles and judgement was applied with divine consultation – was the harvest within the time of the new Month or not, if not, the next New Moon signified the New Year.

Some religious leaders, theologians, and scholars assert these simple rules revealed in the Bible cannot be the Truth. They cite the time of Noah, the Ark, and the Flood, they tell of the time of Moses and the Exodus years in a barren desert, they state the signs of spring, the ripening harvest, did not exists for the times of either Noah or Moses, they state the New Moon’s crescent was often obscured by weather, they state visible observation is often an impossibility and only Man's calculations are reliable and conform to their opinion and interpretation of the "intent" of the Words in the Bible.

While portraying knowledge of the content of the Bible, they openly exhibit the appearance of being devoid of any scriptural wisdom or being guided by divine inspiration, these same religious leaders, theologians, and scholars fail to recognize that Noah and Moses had unshakable reverence for God and conversed directly with God. A simplistic thing as the timing of a Month or New Year was easily confirmed by prayerful thought with God – God’s grace and guidance is freely availed to all of the proper mind and heart with willingness to hear His voice - this Truth is the same today as it was from the beginning.

Some religious leaders, theologians, and scholars adamantly assert that the season of spring can only be reliably known from the astrological northward vernal equinox. They justify this "personal" interpretation as an equinox is “signs” of the “lights in the firmament of the heaven” (Genesis 1:14). Long after the times of Adam and Eve, Man observed a moment of time in the year where the amount of daylight and nighttime hours were just about of equal length and called it the equinox. Man later quantified it mathematically and considered it the astronomical definition of the season called spring as it represents a nearly consistent point in the yearly cycle of the Earth’s rotation around the Sun and coincides in many cases with the season of spring.

However an equinox is not a reliable predictor of the earthly conditions and climate changes that cause shifts in weather patterns causing springtime to be either delayed or advanced. One only needs to research Man’s recorded history in the area of climatology or observe current warming trends to know the fixed point called the equinox is an inconsistent indicator of global or regional weather patterns that impact the season called spring. Regardless of what the weather is doing outside, the equinox marks the official start of the spring season for those that follow the edicts of Man. If you have any doubts - "prove all things".

The simplistic and infallible act of observing the presence of spring with the sighting of the slim crescent of the New Moon in the vicinity of Jerusalem, Israel is the only way to determine the start of the Biblical New Year as revealed in the Bible. It is the only way to faithfully and accurately determine God's appointed times for the Feasts and Holy Convocations identified in Leviticus 23.

In regards to the Biblical New Year Exodus 12:2 states, "This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you." Do YOU know what Day of each Year on Man's Gregorian calendar the Biblical New Year occurs? Has your chosen religious faith or institution ever mentioned or even celebrated the Biblical New Year? This post is about the Sabbath and whether it is forgotten or not. This same question about what is forgotten not only applies to the Sabbath but the Biblical New Year, Jesus's Passover and Resurrection, the Feasts and Holy Convocations identified in Leviticus 23, the commandments, etc. Again it is emphasized, the following statement of Jesus is the Truth and is Fulfilled:

And Jesus said, the whole world and all nations shall be deceived.

(Revelation 12:9 Revelation 18:23)