Up to this point in this series, I have proposed a calendar system based on the book of Ezekiel, consisting of a year of 368 days divided into 12 months. I intend to build on this foundation later in this series. First, however, I'd like to offer some additional observations about the proposed calendar that I find interesting. These observations, however, are not critical to the case for the proposed calendar's credibility.
While the calendar may appear to be out of sync with the solar year, it's important to remember that even our modern calendar system, which calls a year 365 days, is not perfectly aligned with the solar year. Leap years of 366 days are built in to account for this discrepancy.
Ezekiel's calendar can be viewed in a similar light. It is usually 368 days, with occasional adjustments to maintain alignment with the seasons. One possible solution is to reduce the length of each 4th year by 11 days, resulting in a year of 357 days. This adjustment aligns the calendar with the solar year over a 4-year period on the scale of whole days, as shown by the equation: ((368 * 4) - 11) / 4 = 365.25
Using such a system would synchronize the lunar and solar months over the course of 19 sets of 4-year periods. This would represent a span of 76 years in which the amount of time in 912 calendar months would almost exactly equal the amount of time in 940 lunar months. This fact could possibly serve as a means of harmonizing the lunar and solar calendars. It's worth noting that in Biblical times, the lunar month, which lasts approximately 29.53 days, is known to have been a crucial component of timekeeping.
Another unique feature of this system emerges when 7 sets of 4-year periods are combined, the 28-year cycle, where the days of the week align with the same calendar dates every 28 years. This cyclical pattern provides a framework that would allow the Israelites to predict whether a particular day of the year would fall on a Sabbath, hundreds of years in advance. For example, if the first day of the first month is a Sabbath in a given year, it will also be a Sabbath 28 years later. This predictability would make it easier to coordinate and schedule weekly temple services. David divided the priesthood into 24 divisions by patriarchal house to serve in the temple on a rotating basis for one-week periods.
Although Ezekiel's calendar may seem impractical, it provides a logical system for keeping track of time. Its potential benefits for long-term planning and religious observance make it a compelling framework to consider.
Dead Sea Scroll 4Q324d also provides an interesting perspective on the topic of calendars used by Jews in the past. This deciphered calendar differs from the one I have proposed. The calendar from Scroll 4Q324d is a 364-day solar calendar with a year consisting of 12 months. It shows the intense passion that some Jewish communities had for using a 12-month solar calendar. It shows that some saw the change to a lunar calendar as a major grievance that justified a break with contemporary society. The scroll is dated several centuries after Ezekiel's day, so it's not surprising that the calendar it describes differs in some ways from the proposed calendar. However, there are also unmistakable similarities. Both calendars show a preference for a pattern where the days of the week fall on the same calendar dates in a predictable way. Both calendars use the same technique of inserting a certain number of days into each quarter of the year to synchronize with the seasons. Also, both calendars show a clear preference for consistently dividing years into 12 months rather than occasionally adding extra months to the year.
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