A CASE FOR THE 12 HOUR SABBATH

by Neil Gardner

updated August 27, 2006

THE PURPOSE OF THIS WEB SITE IS TO SHARE WITH YOU WHY I AS A CHRISTIAN SABBATH KEEPER WHO OBSERVED FRIDAY SUNSET TO SATURDAY SUNSET AS THE SABBATH FOR MANY YEARS, NOW BELIEVES THAT THE SABBATH DAY IS SIMPLY 12 HOURS IN LENGTH. THE SABBATH DAY BEGINS AT DAWN ON SATURDAY AND ENDS AT DARK. (Note: When I say the word "Hour", I do not mean 60 minutes. An hour in Bible times was 1/12 of the period of daylight. Longer in the summer and shorter in the winter. I will explain this in greater detail later).

THIS SITE IS DEDICATED TO THOSE OF YOU WHO DESIRE TO KNOW WHEN YOU SHOULD BEGIN AND END YOUR OBSERVANCE OF THE WEEKLY SABBATH DAY ACCORDING TO THE SCRIPTURES.

A RELATED ARTICLE (BELOW) MAY BE OF INTEREST TO YOU PARTICULARLY IF YOU OBSERVED SUNDAY UNTIL GOD OPENED YOUR EYES TO THE SABBATH. (Note: If the title within the flashing area is not visible, simply click on your refresh / reload button or click here to read "Does the Weekly Sabbath Day Really Begin at Sunset?".): --- (New Article: "Midday In The Bible: Was God Confused?" -- In links section at the top of page)

THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO READ THIS INFORMATION

THE SABBATH DOES NOT BEGIN AT SUNSET

MY INTENTIONS

First. It is not my intention to put anyone down who observes the Sabbath from sunset to sunset.

Second. It is not my intention to pretend that I am a "scholar" or a "writer". I am just an average person who is thankful that the scriptures were written for all. I do not claim to have all of the answers.

(Note: Many quotes from scholars / Bible commentators are used throughout this web site.)

Third. It is my intention to provide you with as many reasons as I can to support my stated position. The Weekly Sabbath day does NOT begin on Friday at Sunset. It begins on Saturday at Dawn and ends at Dark.

WAS I UNHAPPY OBSERVING A SUNSET TO SUNSET SABBATH?

One last note before I get to the heart of the matter. When I was attending church on Sunday, I was not unhappy. In fact, I was feeling very good about my beliefs at that time. As we know, good feelings do not always equal truth.

When the Sabbath was first revealed to me, it put some fear into my heart because I thought I was already doing the will of God by keeping Sunday. I then moved a little closer to the will of God when I discovered that the 7th day was the Sabbath (Saturday). I was very happy beginning my observance on Friday at sunset and ending it on Saturday at sunset. In fact, this is a position that I never thought I would change. After many years of observing this tradition, I let human nature grab me when what I thought was a new idea of a dawn to dark Sabbath was introduced to me. I thought this is crazy, just like I thought a Saturday Sabbath was crazy when I was keeping Sunday. I reasoned that all of these Sabbath keepers cannot be wrong, just like I reasoned that all of these Sunday keepers cannot be wrong. As a result, that fear came into my heart again and I did not look into the matter for some time.

I decided to face the issue once again, when it dawned on me that if I have the truth, what do I have to fear? From that point on, I poured over the scriptures and realized for the first time that in my initial study on the Sabbath, 99% of my research focused on my desire to find out if the Sabbath was on Saturday and did it apply to Christians. Although I remember feeling somewhat uneasy with Genesis 1:5, I did not do any major research that asked the question why do we observe the Sabbath from sunset to sunset? I accepted the 2 or 3 scriptures that Sabbath keepers give to support this position. I assumed that as people moved from Sunday to Saturday over the years they certainly had studied this out. I was amazed to find that when I questioned a number of ministers (all had been Sabbath keepers for more than 30 years) from various Sabbath keeping groups, none of them had ever done a major study on this subject.

THE HEART OF THE MATTER

Before I began my research, I was under the impression that all Biblical scholars/commentators held the view that the Sabbath day ran from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset. I was amazed to discover that many commentators believe that the Sabbath day begins at dawn/sunrise on Saturday. Some believe the Sabbath is reckoned from sunrise to sunrise, while others believe that it begins at dawn and ends at dark (the position I take). There are some commentators who believe that the bible indicates both sunset and sunrise reckonings. Clearly, all of these positions cannot be correct and somewhere along the line, human tradition has crept into some of these conclusions.

HOW DOES GOD DEFINE A DAY?

The ultimate question of course is how does God define a day? Is there a pattern running throughout the scriptures that tells us when a day begins? Yes, there is. And we will find that the 7th day (Sabbath) begins just as any other average day in scripture begins.

The Biblical definition for a day as defined by God Himself can be stated in 6 words. "And God called the LIGHT DAY " (Genesis 1:5--King James Version will be used unless otherwise noted). Does this definition seem too simple? Please stay with me and I believe that you will find that it is very simple.

If we keep in mind that LIGHT = DAY, pure and simple, numerous scriptures will become crystal clear. Take Genesis 2:3 for an example. Here, God blesses and sanctifies the seventh DAY. (in other words, God blesses and sanctifies the 7th PERIOD OF LIGHT). Please note that God does NOT bless or sanctify the 7th NIGHT (Darkness). Only the 7th LIGHT (we will cover day and night in greater detail shortly).

Now we can take a look at the 4th Commandment found in Exodus Chapter 20. Verse 8 reads, "Remember the Sabbath DAY (LIGHT), to keep it holy." Verse 10 explains to us not only what day the Sabbath is on, but also how long the day lasts. ". . But the seventh DAY (LIGHT) is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God. ." (or DAWN to DARK).

We will come back and look at the rest of Genesis 1:5 and a number of other scriptures in Genesis. First, I would like to ask the question, what could possibly stand in the way of accepting this simple truth? If God calls the LIGHT DAY, why do most people say that a day is a 24 hour period beginning at sunset? I believe the answer is found in a place where those of us who search the scriptures daily, seeking God's truth, do not wish to find it. In the powerful arms of non-biblical tradition. As I noted above, even scholars get held by those powerful arms now and then.

DON'T BELIEVE EVERYTHING THAT YOU READ

Those of us who have studied the Sabbath/Sunday issue, know the power of human tradition. Once we step outside the pages of the Bible, truth sprinkled with error can be found at every turn. Encyclopedias, dictionaries, Christian writings and church histories can provide us with important information if we allow the word of God to separate the truth from fiction.

On the one hand, we may find examples that will help us as we share the truth of the Sabbath (Saturday). One example is the "History of the Christian Religion and Church" written by the German Theologian Wilhelm August Johann Neander. He writes: "The festival of Sunday, like all other festivals, was always only a human ordinance, and it was far from the intentions of the apostles to establish a divine command in this respect, far from them, and from the early apostolic church, to transfer the laws of the Sabbath to Sunday. Perhaps, at the end of the second century a false application of this kind had begun to take place; for men appear by that time to have considered laboring on Sunday as a sin."--Rose's translation from the first German edition, p. 186.

Over the years, many denominations which do not observe the Sabbath, plainly admit that they know on what day of the week the Biblical Sabbath falls: "...the whole Christian world, even of those sects who profess to take the Holy Scriptures as their sole rule of faith, since they observe as the day of rest not the seventh day of the week commanded by the Bible, but the first day, which we know is to be kept holy, only from the tradition and teaching of the Catholic Church." (Catechism Made Easy (No.2), Ninth Ed., Vol. I, pp. 341, 342--from 'Authoritative Quotations on The Sabbath and Sunday', p.10).

On the other hand, we will wade through numerous works that stray from the truth of God's word, although they appear to be authoritative to those who have not searched the scriptures. A couple of examples are as follows: ". . . the New Testament never even implies that Christians are to worship on the Sabbath. Instead it is clear that Sunday replaced the Sabbath as the Christians day of worship. . ." ("735 Baffling Bible Questions Answered", p. 63). "Sunday is not a sabbath, but the first day of the week, and belongs to the new age of grace which followed the death and resurrection of Christ. Legalistic Sabbath keeping is to go back to the age previous to the rent vail (Mt 27:51). "("The New Ungers Bible Hand Book", p. 83).

Just as we find truth and error sharing the same stage in our Sabbath/Sunday research, a similar pattern began to emerge as I began to study reference materials that focused in on a sunset to sunset Sabbath. I wanted to know if these heart pounding changes that were moving me away from this traditional belief were acknowledged by anyone else other than myself and the gentleman who had originally challenged my thinking.

Time and again I ran across statements like the following from the "Encyclopedia of Jewish Religion". Found under the word "DAY",p. 107:

"The Hebrew word yom can refer BOTH to the PERIOD OF DAYLIGHT (AS OPPOSED TO NIGHT-TIME) AND to the entire span of 24 hours. The 24 hour day is reckoned from evening to evening" (emphasis mine throughout this web site unless otherwise noted). Would God agree with BOTH of the above definitions? Not based on my scripture studies, but I had been wrong before. So I kept on digging not expecting to get any support.

Then it happened. I found an astonishing quote that spurred me on to more research:

"The day was either the PERIOD OF SUNLIGHT, CONTRASTED WITH THE NIGHT (see John 11:9) or the whole period of twenty four hours, ALTHOUGH NOT DEFINED AS SUCH IN THE BIBLE." ("Oxford Companion to the Bible", p. 744). I read it again and again. A 24 HOUR DAY IS NOT DEFINED IN THE BIBLE. This agreed with my study of the scriptures.

Compare the two definitions above. Notice how they both agree that a day was the PERIOD OF DAYLIGHT/SUNLIGHT AS OPPOSED TO NIGHT-TIME. Just as God tells us in Genesis 1:5 when He calls the LIGHT DAY. The very next thing that God says in Genesis 1:5 is, ". . . and the DARKNESS he called NIGHT. . ." Please notice that God does not call the DARKNESS DAY as man does. He simply calls the DARKNESS NIGHT. One reason is because day and night in scripture are two completely different seasons. They are not the same:

"Thus saith the Lord: If you can break my covenant of the DAY, and my covenant of the NIGHT, and that there should not be DAY and NIGHT in their SEASON;" (Jeremiah 33:20). Genesis 8:22 shows us a number of words that are opposed to each other in meaning: "While the earth remaineth, SEEDTIME and HARVEST, and COLD and HEAT, and SUMMER and WINTER, and DAY and NIGHT shall not cease." DAY and NIGHT are listed along side the other seasons. Speaking of the word "DAY", "The Jewish Encyclopedia" calls it ". . . the SEASON of LIGHT . . ." (p. 475).

The two sources above differ when it comes to the second half of the definition, in that the "Encyclopedia of Jewish Religion" states that a day can be 24 hours in length, reckoned from EVENING TO EVENING. This is stated as a matter of fact with no further explanation. Many reference books will give the same definition with nothing to back it up. If scriptures are given, they will normally cite Genesis 1:5, ". . .And the evening and the morning were the first day. . ." (which we will cover), Leviticus 23:32, ". . . from even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath . . .", (which we will cover), or a text that tries to force the two seasons of day and night into one 24 hour day. We will see that these texts do not prove a 24 hour day any more than 1 Corinthians 16:2 proves a change from Sabbath to Sunday. On the other hand, the "Oxford Companion to the Bible" not only tells us that a 24 hour day is NOT defined in the Bible, it goes on to tell us how Jesus defines a day by referring us to John 11:9.

HOW DOES GOD DEFINE A DAY IN THE NEW TESTAMENT? (JOHN 11:9)

"Jesus answered. Are there not TWELVE HOURS IN THE DAY? If any man walk in the DAY, he stumbleth not, because he seeth the LIGHT of this world. But if a man walk in the NIGHT, he stumbleth, because there is NO LIGHT in him." (John 11:9)." Here, Jesus confirms the fact that LIGHT and DAY are married, and that NIGHT and NO LIGHT (Darkness) belong in a separate category, as Genesis 1:4 indicates: ". . . and God DIVIDED the LIGHT from the DARKNESS. . ." In addition, Jesus makes it clear that there is ONLY 12 HOURS in a DAY. NOWHERE in the scriptures does Jesus or anyone else (including His enemies) state that there is 24 hours in a day. As I previously mentioned an hour was not 60 minutes. ". . . an hour is one-twelfth of the period of daylight: "Are there not TWELVE HOURS IN THE DAY?" (John 11:9) ("The New Bible Dictionary", p. 495). In the same dictionary, under the word "Twelve" we read, ".. . The Hebrew year was divided into 12 months, the DAY into 12 HOURS (John 11:9) . . ." (p. 845).

The "Readers Digest A B C's of the Bible" adds: "By the time of Jesus, it was commonplace to divide the DAYTIME into 12 HOURS. The hour, however, was not a fixed unit of time as it is today, but one-twelfth of the period between sunrise and sunset. Thus an hour in summer (which would be about 70 minutes today) was substantially longer than an hour in winter (about 50 minutes today)." (P. 177). Although the word "hour" is used a number of times in the New Testament (and by Jesus Himself), "In ancient Israel the concept of the hour was UNKNOWN. The Israelites divided the DAYTIME into its NATURAL segments: DAWN, "the heat of the day," "the cool of the day," and "EVENING, the time when women go out to draw water." NIGHTTIME was divided into three watches." ("Readers Digest A B C's of The Bible", p. 177).

"The Israelites' day was not portioned out in hours and minutes (for which HEBREW HAS NO WORDS . . ." ("Everyday Life in Old Testament Times", p. 189).

As I attempt to lay down a foundation for this study, it is important to not only keep in mind that LIGHT=DAY, as we have begun to see in the scriptures, but also to zero in on a pattern that we will see as just noted by "Readers Digest A B C's of the Bible". Israel divided the DAYTIME into its NATURAL segments, beginning with DAWN and running all the way through the EVENING. EVENING is still a part of the day that begins at DAWN. EVENING is the tail end of a day and NOT THE BEGINNING OF A DAY, as many of us have been taught. Why? Because God considers EVENING LIGHT. ". . . And the EVENING and the morning were the first DAY (LIGHT) . . ." (Genesis 1:5). Notice that the word "NIGHT" is NOT mentioned here, because NIGHT= DARKNESS. EVENING is still a part of the DAY SEASON and ". . . the GREATER LIGHT to rule the DAY . . ." (Genesis 1:16).

Please read all of Mark Chapter 4. Here we find Jesus teaching throughout the course of a day, and in verse 35 we read: "And the SAME DAY, when the EVEN WAS COME, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side." Based on the standard teaching, this "EVEN" should NOT be the "SAME DAY", but it should be the NEXT DAY if a NEW DAY begins at EVENING. Yet there is not a text in either the Old Testament or the New Testament that tells us that a NEW DAY begins at "SUNSET" or "EVENING". There is NOT a text that says "At EVENING/SUNSET as the new day began" (or "Early in the day as the evening shadows stretched out", etc.). The bible is silent about new days beginning in the evening. It is interesting to note that the word "even" found in Mark 4:35 is the same word found in Mark 1:32 where we read, "And at EVEN, when the SUN DID SET, they brought unto him all that were diseased, and them that were possessed with devils."

Mark 1:32 mentioned above, is one of the main New Testament texts used to prove that the Sabbath day ends at sunset. One author calls this text a ". . . a golden nugget of truth . . ." He asks, "But is there another clear New Testament scripture which proves the Sabbath ended at sunset? Yes, there is." He continues. "In Luke 13 we find that Jesus HEALED a woman on the Sabbath day in verses 11-13. Then the ruler of the synagogue was very upset. In verse 14 he said, "There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be HEALED, and not on the Sabbath day." This ruler wanted the people to wait until the Sabbath ended and then come and be Healed. When did the Sabbath end? At noon? I speak foolishly. It ended at SUNSET! Notice the inspired scripture in Mark 1:32. "And at even (3798), WHEN THE SUN DID SET, they brought unto Him all that were diseased, and them that were possessed with demons." This was sunset of a Sabbath (v-21) and the first day of the week began. One day ended, another day began, AT SUNSET!! The interlinear states. . "And evening coming, when the sun set . . ." ("Light of Truth-May 1995, p. 19).

There are several points that can be made on the above comments:

(1) Jesus obviously disagrees with the ruler of the Synagogue (Luke chapter 13). We also find Him healing a man on the Sabbath (of Mark Chapter 1) in the Synagogue (Mark 1:21-28). And then He heals Peter's Mother-in-law (Mark 1:29-31) after He left the Synagogue. Both of these healings take place prior to the sunset mentioned in Mark 1:32.

(2) Mark 1:32 does NOT say that the Sabbath ended at sunset or that the first day of the week began at that time.

(3) Why were the diseased brought to Jesus at sunset? The bible simply does not say. Was it because there was an announcement that Jesus would be at a particular location in the evening? Any thoughts on this is pure speculation.

In the parallel account (Luke 4:40), Luke writes:

"Now when the sun was setting, all they that had any sick with divers diseases brought them unto him; and he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them."

Once again there is no indication that the Sabbath day ended or that a new day began at sunset. ***

In Luke 4:42 (some 12 hours after sunset), we discover that the new day began early in the morning with the first light of dawn and it is called "daybreak", "break of day", "dawn of day", "next day" etc. The following translations confirm the fact that this new day (V:42) began with the first light of morning, just as all days begin throughout the scriptures:

"And when it was day, he departed and went into a desert place: and the people sought him, and came unto him, and stayed him, that he should not depart from them." (King James Version)

"The next morning..." (Contemporary English Version)

"At daybreak..." (Good News Bible)

"And at the dawn of day..." (Murdock)

"And day having come..." (Literal Translation of the Holy Bible)

"At daybreak..." (International Standard Version)

"In the morning..." (God's Word)

"As day Broke..." (Williams New Testament)

"And day having come..." (Young's Literal Translation)

"At daybreak..." (Twentieth Century New Testament)

"He left the next day..." (The Message)

"At break of day..." (Berkeley)

"Then when day came..." (Knox)

"When day had come..." (The complete Jewish Bible - see source 123)

"When day broke..." (James Moffatt)

"Early the next morning..." (New Living Translation)

"At daybreak..." (J. B. Phillips)

"When daylight came..." (The Jerusalem Bible)

"And when day came..." (New American Standard Bible)

"When it was day..." (Goodspeed)

"Next morning, at daybreak..." (Weymouth)

"In the morning..." (New Life Version)

"At daybreak..." (New American Bible)

"And when it was day..." (Revised Standard Version)

"At daybreak..." (New Revised Standard Version)

"At daybreak..." (New Century Version)

*** Please review the 2 sunset texts below (Mark 1:32 & Luke 4:40) using the same translations above to confirm the fact that the Sabbath day did not end with evening nor did a new day begin. To verify when the new day began please review Luke 4:42 once again:

(Contemporary English Version) - "That evening after sunset..." (Mark 1:32) - "After the sun had set" (Luke 4:40)

(Good News Bible) - "After the sun had set and evening had come..." (Mark 1:32) - "After sunset..." (Luke 4:40)

(Murdock) - "And in the evening at the setting of the sun..." (Mark 1:32) - "And when the sun was set..." (Luke 4:40)

(Literal Translation of the Holy Bible) - "And evening coming, when the sun sank..." (Mark 1:32) - "And the sun sinking..." (Luke 4:40)

(International Standard Version) - "When evening came, after the sun had set..." (Mark 1:32) - "When the sun was setting..." (Luke 4:40)

(God's Word) - "In the evening, when the sun had set..." (Mark 1:32) - "When the sun was setting..." (Luke 4:40)

(Williams New Testament) - "In the evening, when the sun had gone down..." (Mark 1:32) - "As the sun was setting..." (Luke 4:40)

(Young's Literal Translation) - "And evening having come, when the sun did set..." (Mark 1:32) - "And at the setting of the sun..." (Luke 4:40)

(Twentieth Century New Testament) - "In the evening, after sunset..." (Mark 1:32) - "At sunset..." (Luke 4:40)

(The Message) - "That evening, after the sun was down..." (Mark 1:32) - "When the sun went down..." (Luke 4:40)

(Berkeley) - "In the evening at sunset..." (Mark 1:32) - "At sunset..." (Luke 4:40)

(Knox) - "And when it was evening and the sun went down..." (Mark 1:32) - "And when the sun was going down..." (Luke 4:40)

(The complete Jewish Bible- see source 123) - "That evening after sundown..." (Mark 1:32) - "After sunset..." (Luke 4:40)

(James Moffatt) - "When evening came, when the sun set..." (Mark 1:32) - "At sunset..." (Luke 4:40)

(New Living Translation) - "That evening at sunset..." (Mark 1:32) - "As the sun went down that evening..." (Luke 4:40)

(J. B. Phillips) - "Late that evening, after sunset..." (Mark 1:32) - "Then, as the sun was setting..." (Luke 4:40)

(The Jerusalem Bible) - "That evening, after sunset..." (Mark 1:32) - "At sunset..." (Luke 4:40)

(New American Standard Bible) - "When evening came, after the sun had set..." (Mark 1:32) - "While the sun was setting..." (Luke 4:40)

(Goodspeed) - "In the evening, after sunset..." (Mark 1:32) - "As the sun went down..." (Luke 4:40)

(Weymouth) - "When it was evening, after sunset..." (Mark 1:32) - "At sunset..." (Luke 4:40)

(New Life Version) - "In the evening as the sun went down..." (Mark 1:32) - "As the sun went down..." (Luke 4:40)

(New American Bible) - "When it was evening, after sunset..." (Mark 1:32) - "At sunset..." (Luke 4:40)

(Revised Standard Version) - "That evening, at sundown..." (Mark 1:32) - "Now when the sun was setting..." (Luke 4:40)

(New Revised Standard Version) - "That evening, at sundown..." (Mark 1:32) - "As the sun was setting..." (Luke 4:40)

(New Century Version) - "That evening, after the sun went down..." (Mark 1:32) - "When the sun went down..." (Luke 4:40)

The fact that days do not begin or end with sunset is a pattern found in both testaments (see notes # 5 and # 8 listed under "12 Hour Day" in the table of contents and number 94 under "Quotes" for examples)

WHAT ABOUT NEW TESTAMENT COMMENTATORS?

Have you ever wondered why some New Testament commentators seem puzzled by the fact that New Testament writers reckon their days beginning with the first light of morning instead of sunset? I believe the reason that they are confused is because they have approached their study with the preconceived notion that a day in the Bible begins at sunset. Let's take a look at a couple of examples:

Sabbath keepers know Acts 20:7-12 very well. The standard Sabbath literature will say something like this: "Paul once preached on the first day of the week (Acts 20:7); this is generally understood to be a Saturday night since, according to Biblical reckoning, days began with the evening . . ." (The Bible Sabbath: Seventh Day or First Day?).

The "New International Biblical Commentary" may now help us look at the above text from a different point of view." . . . they met on THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK. This is a JEWISH EXPRESSION, but it must still be asked whether LUKE was thinking in Jewish or ROMAN TERMS (my note: God's terms) in marking the days. By JEWISH reckoning this would have been a "Saturday" night (as we would call it), since the new day for THEM started at sunset, making Saturday night the beginning of the first day of the week. But because LUKE speaks of "SUNRISE" as "THE NEXT DAY" (cf.vv. 11 and 7) he APPEARS to be using ROMAN RECKONING (my note: God's reckoning), according to which midnight, and effectively SUNRISE, MARKED THE BEGINNING OF THE NEW DAY. . ." ". . . hence the meeting at night (SUNDAY NIGHT) . . ." (p. 347). LUKE considered the "MORROW" (v. 7) when PAUL departed as the "BREAK OF DAY" (v. 11 and not the evening as most commentators would say.

Did PAUL who lived "Acts 20:7-12" agree with LUKE? "But ye, brethren, are not in DARKNESS, that DAY should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all children of the LIGHT and the children of the DAY; we are NOT of the NIGHT nor of DARKNESS. Therefore, let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. For they that sleep sleep in the NIGHT; and they that be drunken are drunken in the NIGHT. But let us who are of the DAY, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation." (1 Thessalonians 5:4-8). PAUL is in perfect agreement with Genesis 1:5, as he calls the LIGHT DAY and the DARKNESS NIGHT. He also shows that DAY is NOT a part of the NIGHT.

In Romans 13:12, PAUL divides LIGHT AND DARKNESS when he says: "The NIGHT is FAR SPENT, the DAY IS AT HAND; let us, therefore, cast off the works of DARKNESS, and let us put on the armour of LIGHT." A day is "AT HAND" only after a night is 'FAR SPENT". Day and night do not share the same space.

Now, let us take a look at John Chapter 20 (please read the whole chapter). Here on the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK, Mary Magdalene discovers that Our Lord has RISEN FROM THE DEAD early that day. The account takes us through the course of the day, and in verse 19 JOHN writes, "Then the SAME DAY AT EVENING, being the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK. . ." ("EVENING"-same word as "EVEN" in Mark 1:32). Again, we find that the "EVENING" is NOT the NEXT DAY, but it is still the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK.

From the book (A Harmony of the Gospels, p. 286), another commentator states, ". . . one passage in John (20:19), when compared with Luke 24:29, 36, makes it NECESSARY to understand that JOHN used the ROMAN METHOD (my note: God's Method) in this instance. It was toward evening and the DAY HAD DECLINED according to Luke, when Jesus and the disciples drew near to Emmaus. Here he ate supper and, "rising up that very hour," the disciples returned seven miles to Jerusalem and told these things to the eleven who were together. But while they were narrating these things Jesus appears to them. Now John, in mentioning this very appearance of Jesus (20:19), says that it 'WAS EVENING ON THAT DAY, THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK", i.e., evening of the day when Mary Magdalene had seen the Lord. But with the Jews the EVENING BEGAN THE DAY. Hence, JOHN, here at least, is BOUND TO MEAN THE ROMAN DAY (my note: God's day). It was the EVENING OF THE SAME DAY IN THE MORNING OF WHICH MARY HAD SEEN JESUS. THIS APPEARS CONCLUSIVE. John DID use the ROMAN method (my note: God's method) here, MAY HAVE DONE SO ALWAYS. . ."

"Robertson's Word Pictures of the New Testament" adds the following concerning John 20:19, ". . . John is using ROMAN TIME (my note: God's time), NOT JEWISH, for here EVENING FOLLOWS DAY INSTEAD OF PRECEDING IT . . ." (computer bible study).

Is it true that JOHN was NOT using JEWISH TIME and may have ALWAYS reckoned his days starting with the SUNRISE? Is it possible that he may have ALWAYS included EVENING as part of a day that began at SUNRISE? Was JOHN confused? What about JESUS, LUKE and PAUL? Were they confused? Did they not know that a new day was to begin at sunset? No, they did not. They all reckoned their days according to the ancient directions found in Genesis 1:5. "And God called the LIGHT DAY. . ."

The "Encyclopedic Dictionary of the Bible" says, "The ORIGINAL meaning of the word "DAY" is the PERIOD OF DAYLIGHT, FROM SUNRISE TO SUNSET, AS DISTINCT FROM THE NIGHT, THE PERIOD OF DARKNESS ...in this sense the "DAY" is said to "decline" (Jer.6:4) or to "be far spent" (Lk. 24:29 in the late afternoon, and is FOLLOWED by NIGHT. Hence the EARLIER sequence, "DAY and NIGHT..." (P. 497)).

You might be as surprised as I was if you were to open a "Webster's New International Dictionary--Second Edition" and look up the word "DAY". The first definition that I expected to see would say something about a 24 hour day. I was wrong. The first definition states: "...the time of LIGHT, or the interval between one NIGHT and the next; the time between SUNRISE AND SUNSET, or from DAWN TO DARKNESS." (p.672). Just as the Bible indicates.

You might even be more surprised if you were to turn to page 136 of "Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words". You would read the following under "TO LIGHT". "The basic meaning of 'OR (my note-Hebrew for Light) is "DAYLIGHT" (cf. Gen. 1:3). In the HEBREW MIND the "DAY" BEGAN AT THE RISING OF THE SUN...".Many of us have been taught that in the HEBREW MIND a day began at SUNSET!!

God calls the LIGHT DAY. The original meaning of the word "Day" is the period of DAYLIGHT. DAY is called the season of LIGHT. New Testament writers reckon their days from SUNRISE and include the EVENING as part of the day that began as SUNRISE. Jesus informs us that there is 12 HOURS IN A DAY, and He calls the LIGHT DAY. Jesus and New Testament writers separate DAY and NIGHT. Question. Where did the idea of a 24 hour day beginning at sunset come from?

SUNSET TO SUNSET -- THE 24 HOUR DAY: BIBLICAL OR BABYLONIAN?

If "Day and Night" was the "EARLIER SEQUENCE" in the evolution of time, as mentioned above, there must have been a LATER SEQUENCE. The "Encyclopedic Dictionary of the Bible" gives us a clue by showing how other ideas evolved which CHANGED the original meaning of the word "Day". "The flesh of the thanksgiving sacrifice shall be eaten on the day it is offered; none of it may be kept till the next day" (Lv. 7:15), the NIGHTTIME is CONSIDERED as belonging to the preceding period of Daylight. From this there developed the meaning of "day" in the sense of the cycle made up of one period of daylight and one period of darkness, or according to OUR MODERN RECKONING, TWENTY-FOUR HOURS...FROM the NATURAL viewpoint the twenty-four hour day begins at SUNRISE...However, beside this conception there AROSE ANOTHER idea of the twenty-four hour day, according to which this daily period began at SUNSET. It was no doubt the lunar calendar of the Jews which gave rise to this viewpoint...Although the EARLIER COMPUTATION did NOT die out completely, the CUSTOM of CONSIDERING the Day as beginning at SUNSET BECAME general in LATER JEWISH TIMES..." (p. 497). If you are like me, you thought that the sunset to sunset tradition was general from the BEGINNING OF TIME!! And that this is GOD'S NATURAL WAY!!

Over and over again in my research, I not only found that the SUNSET TO SUNSET DAY was a LATER INVENTION, but I also discovered that is was most likely the BABYLONIANS who handed down the tradition of the 24 hour day to the Jews while they were in captivity. I found this in secular, Christian and Jewish writings. (Note: Most of the information that I gathered for this study indicated that the Babylonians began their days with sunset/evening and handed down this tradition to the Jews. However, I did find a few sources that felt that the Babylonians reckoned their days from sunrise to sunrise, as mentioned earlier in the writings of Pliny the Elder. Also, there are sources that state, "Among the Greeks the day was reckoned from sunset to sunset..." (Handbook of Chronology, op.cit., p.8). Some feel that it was the Greek culture that handed down the sunset to sunset tradition to the Jews. The one thing that I know for sure, is that somewhere in the course of history, men have tampered with God's original definition of a Day.

Following are some examples of the information that I gathered:

"...EARLY in the Old Testament period, when Canaan was under Egypt's influence (my note: and God's influence), THE DAY STARTED AT SUNRISE...LATER, perhaps under BABYLONIAN influence, the calendar SEEMS TO HAVE CHANGED. THE DAY BEGAN AT MOONRISE (1800 hrs) and a whole day BECAME an EVENING and a MORNING..." (The Lion Encyclopedia of the Bible - p. 163).

"In LATER Bible times, the DAY STARTED AT DUSK. A whole Day BECAME an EVENING and a MORNING." (Almanac of Bible Facts, p. 170).

"...The Israelites, like the BABYLONIANS, counted their days from SUNSET TO SUNSET..." (NIV Study Bible, p. 707).

"...During the period of the FIRST COMMONWEALTH (prior to 586 B.C.E.) the day was NOT reckoned in terms of hours. In fact the word "hour" in not found ANYWHERE in the Bible (My note: meaning Old Testament Hebrew --This book was written by a Rabbi), even as a figure of speech. The NIGHT was divided into three watches, the early watch, the middle watch and the morning watch. (Hence such Biblical sayings as "Watchman, what of the NIGHT?") The Day was divided into FORENOON and AFTERNOON.

When the Jews returned to Palestine after THEIR BABYLONIAN EXILE (516 B.C.E.) they brought back with them the BABYLONIAN astronomy and WAY OF RECKONING TIME...Jewish tradition STRETCHES THE DAY a little; a FEW MINUTES is ADDED at EITHER END--and even an HOUR OR TWO among the more observant..." (What is a Jew, p. 108). (Note: We will look at other examples of stretching the day later).

The (New Catholic Encyclopedia -Volume 11, p. 1068) adds the following under the heading, "EARLY Palestinian Calendar": "...a sacred day of rest on the 7th day (the Sabbath) . DAYS WERE RECKONED FROM MORNING to morning..." Under the heading "LATER JEWISH CALENDAR" (same article) we read: "Following the reign of King Josia (c. 640-609), and ESPECIALLY AFTER THE BABYLONIAN EXILE a number of SIGNIFICANT and ENDURING CHANGES OCCURRED IN THE ISRAELITE CALENDAR showing that the Jews GRADUALLY ADOPTED THE BABYLONIAN CALENDAR of the time...The seven day week persisted despite its failure to divide evenly either the month or the year. The DAY however, was counted from EVENING TO EVENING, AFTER THE BABYLONIAN FASHION...".

"Obviously the Jews in exile in Babylonia knew the calendars of the temples there; they knew the myths of the months. So effective was the INFLUENCE OF BABYLONIA UPON THEM THAT THEY ABANDONED THEIR OWN NAMES FOR THE MONTHS AND ACCEPTED THE BABYLONIAN NAMES. (Babylonian Menologies and the Semitic Calendars, p. 21). A prime example of this is the word "Tishri", a word that is used to this very day. "Tishri is a BABYLONIAN WORD and was NOT used to designate the seventh month in the Jewish calendar until AFTER THE BABYLONIAN EXILE, when the Jews returned to Palestine. The name TISHRI is NEVER MENTIONED IN THE BIBLE." (This is The Torah, p. 386).

"In addition to the decimal system familiar to Western culture (which uses powers of 10), Babylonian scholars also used a sexagesimal system (employing powers of 60) originally devised by the Sumerians and COMING DOWN TO US in the form of the 60-minute hour and the 360-degree circle...This innovation DIRECTLY INSPIRED THE CALENDAR OF ORTHODOX JUDAISM." (Peoples of the Old Testament World, p. 71).

"The Babylonian Day was divided into 12 'double hours', each divided into 60 'double minutes', in turn containing 60 'double seconds', A SYSTEM ADOPTED BY THE JEWS AFTER THE BABYLONIAN CAPTIVITY." (Babylon, p. 186).

"So far as we know, the BABYLONIAN calendar was at ALL PERIODS TRULY LUNAR...the month BEGAN with the EVENING when the new crescent was for the first time again visible shortly after SUNSET. Consequently, the BABYLONIAN DAY ALSO BEGINS IN THE EVENING..." (The Exact Sciences in Antiquity, p. 106).

Finally, consider these quotes from the following three books:

(1) Festival Days: A History of Jewish Celebrations.

(2) The Jewish Festivals: History & Observance.

(3) Judaism: Between Yesterday and Tomorrow.

Source (1) "Moon-worship was dominant in the Mesopotamian world from which the patriarchs emerged, around 1800 B.C.E., with Abraham the key Bible figure. At that time and in succeeding centuries, moon-worship in Mesopotamia centered on a large pantheon of assorted gods whose images proliferated in the temples...Myths die hard, and the Bible is full of graphic detail showing how the ancient Hebrews slipped readily from time to time into celebrations that bore the mark of the original pagan practices...Many hitherto PUZZLING aspects of the Jewish TRADITION were illuminated in this process. A notable example is the way in which ALL FESTIVALS, including the SABBATH, start with MOON-RISE ON THE NIGHT BEFORE. The reason is an ECHO of the way the BABYLONIANS AND THE ASSYRIANS ASSIGNED THE RESPECTIVE ROLES OF THE TWO GREAT LUMINARIES, THE SUN AND THE MOON." (p. 55, 57, 58). The book goes on to say that the Babylonians put more emphasis on the moon because the darkness of night was more mysterious and exciting than the sun which was more predictable.

Source (2) "This, approximately, is the picture we have of the Sabbath in those very old days, when both kingdoms, Judah and Israel, still existed. It was a festival on which there was a cessation of DAILY work, and the people assembled in the sanctuary to celebrate the DAY. The STRICT rest of LATER days was NOT YET a part of the Sabbath (p.6)...At any rate, beginning with the BABYLONIAN EXILE, we find the Sabbath attaining a NEW SIGNIFICANCE, and a deeper spiritual content....IN THE BABYLONIAN EXILE...The Sabbath attained a HIGHER STATE OF DEVELOPMENT among the exiled Jews in Babylonia, and it was these exiled Jews who ENFORCED ON PALESTINE THEIR SABBATH, with its STRICTER observance and its universal rest (p.7)....The Jews in Palestine, about a century after the Babylonian exile, did NOT as yet know the STRICT Sabbath of the Babylonian Jews (p.8)...At The Beginning of The Common Era...In order to assure against profanation of the Sabbath the Jews ADDED THE LATE FRIDAY AFTERNOON HOURS TO THE SABBATH (p.13)...The Sabbath in general, thus attained its peak in the first two centuries of the Common Era, the age of the Tannaim (My note: 70 AD-200AD), as the Jewish teachers and sages of that period were called. However, there were NO FRIDAY NIGHT SERVICES AS YET. This most beautiful part of the Sabbath observance DEVELOPED somewhat LATER in the age of the Amoraim (My note: 350 AD-500 AD), as the sages of the Talmud from the third century on were called, and it did NOT attain its highest peak until MUCH LATER, at the very threshold of MODERN TIMES. In the time of the Tannaim there was NO FRIDAY NIGHT SERVICE IN THE SYNAGOGUE (p.14)...LATER it became customary to hold communal services in the Synagogue ON FRIDAY NIGHT..." (p.15).

Source (3) "If we look at the essentials of a day of rest and reflection which has a religious orientation, it is possible to JUSTIFY THE SHIFTING OF SABBATH WORSHIP TO FRIDAY EVENING or Sunday worship to Saturday evening (the celebration of the vigil = night watch was moved BACK to the EVE OF THE FEAST as early as the middle ages..." (p. 518). (my note: At one time a number of Sunday keeping Christians began their worship on Saturday evening, believing that this was the beginning of Sunday, following the tradition of the Jews:

"When the English colonies were planted on North American soil, Sunday was kept there from evening to evening for 200 years...throughout Christendom the Sunday was generally observed from evening to evening until the sixteenth century, and that in many parts it was so observed until the eighteenth." (The Lord's Day on a Round World, p. 69, 83).

The power of the above tradition is still evident today in such observances as Christmas Eve and New Years Eve.

THE DAY OF ATONEMENT --- SIFTING THROUGH THE TRADITIONS

Before we examine the DAY OF ATONEMENT, please take a look at the 4th commandment as found in Exodus 20:8. "Remember the SABBATH DAY, to keep it holy". Notice two very important words in this sentence. "SABBATH" and "DAY". Most of the time when we say the word Sabbath, we simply mean the 7th day of the week. In most cases when the Bible uses the word Sabbath it refers to the 7th day.

As many of you know, the Bible also mentions annual Sabbaths such as the "Feast of Trumpets" (Leviticus 23:24). Although the word "Sabbath" alone can be used to refer to the 7th day, God is very specific in Exodus 20:8 when He tells us to remember the "SABBATH DAY". He does NOT simply say "Remember the SABBATH" in this verse. He adds the critical word "DAY". Why? One major reason is the fact that the word "SABBATH" DOES NOT MEAN "DAY" (LIGHT). Most sources including the "New Bible Dictionary" state that the word "Sabbath" means "to CEASE' 'to DESIST" (p. 1042). The length of cessation is NOT found in this definition. It is God who determines how long a period of cessation lasts. That is why God says, "...the seventh DAY (LIGHT) is the SABBATH of the Lord thy God..." (Exodus 20:10). The WEEKLY Sabbath is ONLY the period of LIGHT. Speaking of the ANNUAL SABBATH in Leviticus 23:32 God says, "...from EVEN UNTO EVEN, shall ye celebrate your SABBATH..." Note. Once again, God does NOT just say "ye shall celebrate your Sabbath". He specifically says that this ANNUAL SABBATH is " FROM EVEN UNTO EVEN".

It is important to keep in mind that the word "SABBATH" does NOT mean "Saturday", it does NOT mean "24 hours", nor does it mean "DAY".

God has determined that the WEEKLY Sabbath is simply the period of LIGHT and that the ANNUAL Sabbath in Leviticus 23:32 is from EVENING TO EVENING (About 24 hours).

Is there a Sabbath in the scriptures that is longer that 24 hours? Yes there is. Turn to Leviticus Chapter 25 and read verses 1 through 4. "And the Lord spake unto Moses in Mount Si'nai, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye come into the land which I give you, then shall the land keep a SABBATH UNTO THE LORD. Six years thou shalt sow thy field, and six years thou shalt prune thy vineyard, and gather in the fruit thereof; But in the SEVENTH YEAR SHALL BE A SABBATH OF REST UNTO THE LAND, A SABBATH FOR THE LORD..." What does all this mean? It simply means that this LAND Sabbath is NOT 12 hours long. It is NOT 24 hours long. It is OVER 300 DAYS LONG!! Once again it is God who determines the length of this Sabbath, which by the way is the same word for "Sabbath" found in Exodus 20:8-10. So a "SABBATH UNTO THE LORD" is NOT limited to a single day, no matter how we may define a day. A Sabbath can clearly be SEVERAL HUNDRED DAYS IN LENGTH.

With the above information in mind, please turn to the command for the DAY OF ATONEMENT found in Leviticus Chapter 23, starting with verse 26. "And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Also on the TENTH day of this seventh month there shall be a DAY (LIGHT) OF ATONEMENT..." (v. 26-27). God calls this "holy convocation" a "DAY (LIGHT) OF ATONEMENT". He does NOT mention NIGHT here. This "DAY (LIGHT) OF ATONEMENT" as He calls it again in verse 28 is on the TENTH day of the month (NOT THE 9TH DAY). In verse 32 we find that it is a "SABBATH OF REST". So the "DAY (LIGHT) OF ATONEMENT" is on the "TENTH" day of the month and it is a "SABBATH OF REST". Continuing in verse 32 we read; "...AND ye shall afflict your souls; in the NINTH day of the month at EVEN, FROM EVEN UNTO EVEN SHALL YE CELEBRATE YOUR SABBATH..." When does this SABBATH/FAST BEGIN? In the NINTH day of the month at EVEN and it ends on the TENTH day at EVEN. In other words this Sabbath/Fast falls on 2 DIFFERENT DAYS. Why? Because a Sabbath is NOT LIMITED TO A SINGLE DAY.

These scriptures reveal that although the DAY (LIGHT) OF ATONEMENT IS ON THE TENTH day ONLY, the SABBATH/FAST is on BOTH the NINTH AND TENTH DAYS and includes the NIGHT PERIOD FOLLOWING THE NINTH DAY. Keep in mind that this "NINTH DAY OF THE MONTH AT EVEN" is still a part of the DAY SEASON THAT STARTED AT FIRST LIGHT IN THE MORNING as we saw earlier in the New Testament.

Genesis 32:22, 24 agrees with the New Testament. Verse 22 indicates that Jacob "rose up that NIGHT" and in verse 24, "...Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until THE BREAKING OF THE DAY" (or "until the coming up of DAWN" ---from the book "The Five Books of Moses", p. 155). Verse 26 reads: "And let me go, for THE DAY BREAKETH..." (or "for DAWN has come up"--"The Five Books of Moses", p.155). And in verse 31, after they have wrestled, we see that, "...as he passed over Penu'-el the SUN ROSE UPON HIM..." Therefore the ANNUAL Sabbath of Leviticus 23:32 BEGINS AT THE TAIL END OF THE NINTH DAY AT EVEN, BECAUSE EVENING IS NOT THE BEGINNING OF A NEW DAY. And you will recall that the Evening is still the same day as the afternoon that comes before it. (Mark 4:35, John 20:19).

What is the Bottom Line? Simply this. The ANNUAL Sabbath of Leviticus 23:32 is a 24 HOUR SABBATH, NOT A 24 HOUR DAY. For God calls "THE LIGHT DAY" (Genesis 1:5), and "Are there not 12 HOURS IN A DAY?" (John 11:9). That is why the "Oxford Companion to The Bible" observes, "In EARLIER TRADITIONS the DAY apparently BEGAN AT SUNRISE (e.g., Lev 7:15-17; Judg. 19:4-19)..." (p. 744).

In the 1997 May-June (p.8) issue of the "Sabbath Sentinel" the following question was asked of representatives from various Sabbath keeping groups. "When does the Sabbath begin and end? Does it matter?" One well respected Sabbath keeper answered, "...from Even unto Even, shall ye celebrate your Sabbath. Although this verse, Leviticus 23:32, has REFERENCE TO A YEARLY SABBATH, its definition agrees with the biblical definition of any day...". The most important thing that he said was, "Leviticus 23:32 has REFERENCE TO A YEARLY SABBATH." Commenting on this same verse, another well known author writes:

"This text does provide the most EXPLICIT and EMPHATIC EVIDENCE of the Biblical method of day reckoning "from evening to evening....Thus it is not surprising that appeal is generally made to THIS TEXT to prove the Biblical principle of Sabbathkeeping...the law in this text regards NOT THE OBSERVANCE OF THE SEVENTH DAY SABBATH AS SUCH, BUT THE DAY OF ATONEMENT. While both festivals were UNDOUBTEDLY observed "from evening to evening", the manner of their observance was RADICALLY DIFFERENT. The Day of Atonement was a day of penance and fasting ("you shall afflict yourselves"--Lev. 23:32), whereas the Sabbath was a day of delight and celebration (Is. 58:13-14)..." (The Time of the Crucifixion and the Resurrection, Chapter 5).

Both writers agree that Leviticus 23:32 specifically refers to the annual Sabbath and NOT to the WEEKLY SABBATH, although they both feel that the weekly Sabbath should be observed in the same manner (evening to evening). In this very same chapter (Leviticus 23), just a few verses earlier, God mentions the weekly Sabbath and says: "Six Days (LIGHTS) shall work be done; But the SEVENTH DAY (LIGHT) is the Sabbath of rest..." (Lev. 23:3). EVEN UNTO EVEN IS NOT MENTIONED HERE AT ALL.

There is a major difference between the Sabbath in Lev. 23:3 and 23:32. Verse 3 is the WEEKLY 12 HOUR SABBATH THAT TAKES IN ONLY THE LIGHT OF DAY. Verse 32 is the ANNUAL 24 HOUR SABBATH THAT TAKES IN PARTS OF 2 DAYS AND ALL OF ONE NIGHT.

Quoting again from Chapter 5 of "The Time of The Crucifixion and the Resurrection", concerning verse 32 of Leviticus 23 we read, "This last verse POSES A PROBLEM because it CHANGES the date of the Day of Atonement from "the tenth day" (v.27) to "the NINTH day". This CHANGE led Solomon Zeitlin to conclude that the FASTING of the Day of Atonement LASTED TWO DAYS, the 9th and 10th of Tishri. This explanation is UNACCEPTABLE, however, because several texts speak of the Day of Atonement as being exclusively "one day," namely, the 10th of Tishri (Ex. 30:10; Lev. 16:29; 25:9, Num. 29:7-11)."

The argument from this author is simply answered by the fact that the Day (Light) of Atonement IS exclusively on "one day". IT IS THE SABBATH THAT FALLS ON 2 SEPARATE DAYS (9th and 10th). The Author continues by saying that "...verse 32 does not intend to change the date of the Day of Atonement from the 10th to the 9th day of the month..." This author points out that Jack Finegan wrote: "...In making the shift from a MORNING reckoning to an EVENING reckoning, the 'day' was in fact MOVED BACK so that it began a half day earlier than had been the case previously...To avoid any misunderstanding, the verse explains with utmost precision that the tenth day, according to the sunset reckoning, began "on the ninth day of the month beginning at evening" and it was to be kept "from evening to evening" (Lev. 23:32--Chapter 5).

Leviticus 23:32 DOES POSE A PROBLEM only if we try to STRETCH the Day of Atonement into a 24 hour day. There is no doubt that the day was certainly MOVED BACK as Mr. Finegan states. The real problem is the fact that God is NOT the one who MOVED IT BACK. This supposed change in the reckoning of the day loses steam quickly when we see New Testament writers reckoning their days from SUNRISE.

A noted Jewish scholar (Dr. Lauterbach) adds this important information about the Day of Atonement: "...The Rabbis of the Talmud who nowhere allude to and probably no longer knew of the EARLIER MODE OF RECKONING THE DAY felt the difficulty in the phrase: 'ye shall afflict your souls on the ninth day,' and when commenting on it they say: 'But are we to fast on the ninth day? (Yoma 81b. R.H. 9a,b). A very sound objection indeed. For if the day had in Bible times been reckoned from evening to evening, as it was in talmudic times then the phrase: 'In the ninth day of the month at evening' contains a contradiction in terms, for the evening is ALREADY PART OF THE TENTH DAY. Besides the SPECIAL injunction 'from even unto even shall ye keep your Sabbath' would be entirely superfluous, for any other day also extends from evening to evening. The talmudic explanation that the meaning of the passage: 'ye shall afflict your souls on the ninth day' is to say that one who eats on the ninth day performs a Jewish religious duty, and it is accounted to him as if he had fasted both on the ninth and the tenth days is, of course, a homiletical subterfuge. The fact is that Rabbis of the Talmud no longer knew or would not acknowledge that in ANCIENT TIMES there was another mode of reckoning the day according to which the EVENING PRECEDING THE TENTH DAY STILL BELONGS TO THE NINTH DAY. In the case of the Day of Atonement the law especially prescribes that the FAST be observed in a NEW MANNER, COVERING PART OF THE NINTH AND PART OF THE TENTH DAY (pp. 447-448)...In certain spheres of the population the OLDER SYSTEM continued to be in use, either exclusively or side by side with the newer system. Thus in the temple service the older system continued all through the time of the existence of the second temple, and there the day was RECKONED FROM MORNING to morning...In some circles or among some Jewish sects the OLDER SYSTEM continued and the Sabbath was observed from SATURDAY MORNING to Sunday morning...SATURDAY-NOT FRIDAY EVENING MARKED THE ENTRANCE OF THE SABBATH. But the majority of the people, following the teachings of the Halakah,** reckoned the day from evening to evening and the entrance of the Sabbath for them came after the sunset of Friday or on Friday evening..." (Rabbinic Essays, pp. 449-450)

** notes: "But even among those who followed the Halakah allusion to the continuance of the older system and traces of an extension of the Sabbath rest to the night following Saturday are to be found. Thus in commenting on the different expressions...used respectively in connection with the commandment about the Sabbath in the two versions of the Decalogue (Ex. 20:8 and Deut. 5:12) the Mekilta says: " 'Remember' and 'Observe.' Remember it before it comes and observe it after it has gone." (Mekilta deR. Ishmael, Bahodesh V11 (ed. Lauterbach, 11, 252). How to remember the Sabbath before it comes is well illustrated there (ibid., p. 253), but no illustration is given as to how the Sabbath is to be observed after it is gone. Instead of such an illustration there is added the remark about the conclusions which the teachers drew from the interpretation of the word "Observe" as meaning "observe it after it has gone."...the teachers said: "We should always increase what is holy by adding to it some of the non-holy." But no illustration of the observance of the Sabbath after it has gone is given in the Mekilta. Such an illustration, however, is furnished elsewhere in the statement that the Jewish women refrained from work on Saturday night even after the Sabbath had gone (p. Pes. 4.1 (30c,dl). This custom of the women is disapproved by the teachers and declared to be not a proper custom...But in spite of the disapproval of the teachers the custom has persisted among pious Jewish women to this day. It is evident that this custom of the Jewish women, which is supported by the saying of the Mekilta, is a relic of the ancient practice of keeping the Sabbath till the dawn of Sunday. The teachers, insisting that the Sabbath extends only from evening to evening, objected to this custom but they were unable to suppress it. They had to tolerate it, hence they tried at least to limit it to only a part of Saturday night...(ibid., loc.cit). And even this approved refraining from work during part of the time of Saturday night they explained to have its reason not in the assumption that Saturday night or part of it was still part of the Sabbath, but merely in the rule that it was a good custom "to add part of the non-holy to the holy." And to be consistent they said that such an addition should not be one-sided, i.e., not only part of the day following the Sabbath but also part of the day preceding it, should be added to the Sabbath. The women, while persisting in their practice and refusing to confine it to the limits fixed by the Rabbis for Saturday night, were nevertheless not unwilling to accept the reason for their practice as given by the Rabbis, and hence agreed that an addition to the Sabbath should also be made on the day preceding it. But they seem to have assumed that such an addition should consist not of a mere fraction of the day but of the whole day of Friday, just as the addition at the going out of the Sabbath consisted --in their practice-- of the whole night following the Sabbath. Thus they would refrain from doing any work during the entire day of Friday. This practice was likewise disapproved by the teachers and declared not to be a valid custom...(p. Pes., loc. cit. (30d). Here also the teachers insisted that only part of the day of Friday should be added to the Sabbath. And a Baraita in b. Pes. 50b declares that whosoever does work on Friday afternoon after the Minhah time and on Saturday night--significantly enough no time limit is specified as to what part of Saturday night--will not be successful. But it should be noticed that while the Rabbis were successful in persuading the women to do work on Friday, adding only a part of that day to the Sabbath, they did not succeed in making them abandon their practice of refraining from work on Saturday night, evidently because the latter custom was a survival of the ancient practice of observing the Sabbath till the dawn of Sunday." (Rabbinic Essays, pp. 450-451).

"Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you." (Deut. 4:2).

WHY DO MOST CHRISTIANS BEGIN THEIR SABBATH OBSERVANCE ON FRIDAY AT SUNSET?

In the question and answer section of the May 1995 issue of the "Bible Advocate" magazine, the following question was asked, "When is the Sabbath day over? At sundown (when it is dark) or at 6:00 p.m. year-round?" They answered, "the simplest answer to the question is found in TWO VERSES of scripture. Leviticus 23:32 tells when the celebration of God's Sabbaths is to begin and end: "from evening to evening" (NKJV). Mark 1:32 helps us understand when the evening is; "when the sun had set" (NKJV).

Based largely on these TWO TEXTS, the Church of God (Seventh Day) observes the seventh-day Sabbath from sunset (Friday) until sunset (Saturday)...A few people have developed alternative ideas from scripture about the time for beginning and ending a day. One of these maintains a TWELVE-HOUR Sabbath, from SUNRISE to Sunset. Others are more complex. It seems better to observe the SIMPLE sunset to sunset FORMULA supported above, just as Sabbathkeepers of the ORTHODOX HEBREW FAITH DO TO THIS DAY."

Question. Do most Christian Sabbathkeepers observe the sunset to sunset tradition because they have searched the numerous scriptures that tell us when a day begins, or do they simply follow the orthodox Hebrew faith?

Turning our attention once again to the book "The Time of The Crucifixion and the Resurrection" (Chapter 6), we read, "It may be surprising to some to note that no specific instructions are given in the Fourth Commandment on the manner and TIME of Sabbathkeeping. The only injunction given is to "Remember the Sabbath day (My note: LIGHT), to keep it holy" by doing all one's work in six days and by resting the seventh day (my note: LIGHT) "to the Lord your God." If we take a closer look at this text we will discover that the "time of Sabbathkeeping" IS found within the Fourth Commandment. Since GOD CALLED THE LIGHT DAY, we are to Remember the Sabbath LIGHT, to keep it Holy (Exodus 20:8). And that Sabbath is on the SEVENTH LIGHT (Exodus 20:10). NOT the SEVENTH NIGHT. This book continues: "...it is thus IMPORTANT to note at the outset that the method of observing the Sabbath from SUNSET TO SUNSET is dictated NOT BY THE FOURTH COMMANDMENT ITSELF (my note: agreed), but by the method of sunset reckoning which BECAME NORMATIVE IN JEWISH HISTORY." (Chapter 6)

Certainly, the sunset to sunset method of reckoning a day is a long standing tradition. Let's read about another long standing tradition. "THROUGHOUT JEWISH HISTORY, there were a number of individuals who claimed to be the Messiah. While each of these people gained some following at first, NONE of them---INCLUDING JESUS--fulfilled the messianic expectations. Thus in Judaism, NO ONE HAS BEEN ACCEPTED AS THE MESSIAH." (Every Persons Guide to Judaism, pp. 6-7).

It is no secret that Jews and Christians have disagreed on many Biblical doctrines over the centuries, including the most important one to Christians stated above. So why would Christians follow the sunset to sunset method of reckoning a day simply because it is a LONG STANDING TRADITION of the Jews?

Quoting from the book "What is a Jew?", note the following. "It is not easy to draw any rigid lines separating JEWISH LAW and JEWISH CUSTOM. There is an ancient saying that in Judaism CUSTOM BECOMES LAW. And the history of Judaism will reveal MANY religious laws widely recognized and observed, which had their origin in LONG-ACCEPTED FOLK PRACTICES." (p. 105). The author states that "any standard manual of Jewish law" points out that customs vary within the faith in different parts of the world.

Another interesting statement is found in the book "This is The Torah". "When Rabbis in the academies of BABYLONIA declared that because of the uncertainty of the calendar (It was not always possible to fix precisely when the New Moon of TISHRI had appeared and the month had actually begun), Rosh Hashana should be celebrated as a TWO-DAY holiday (p. 315)...Since the Bible specified that Rosh Hashana should be a ONE-DAY holiday, the Rabbis had to JUSTIFY the CHANGE to a TWO-DAY holiday. This was done by means of a LEGAL FICTION: they began referring to the TWO DAYS of Rosh Hashana as YOMA ARICHTA, meaning "ONE LONG DAY" of FORTY-EIGHT HOURS..." (p. 386).

If a period of time consisting of 48 HOURS was considered "ONE LONG DAY", it does not take a rocket scientist to understand how easy it would be to take the period of LIGHT (DAY) and combine it with the NIGHT and simply rename this 24 hour period "Day".

If you are expecting find many scriptures explaining why tradition places sunset as the beginning of a day, you will be as disappointed as I was when I asked my Sunday keeping Pastor to show me from the Bible why we should keep Sunday instead of the Sabbath. Over and over again, I found that the standard explanation goes something like this. "All Jewish days begin at sunset. This reckoning is based on the wording of the creation story in Genesis 1. At the end of the description of each day, we find the phrase: "And there was evening, and there was morning..." Since EVENING IS MENTIONED FIRST, the ancient Rabbis DEDUCED THAT EVENING IS FIRST." (Every Persons Guide to Judaism, p.5).

In the next section we will examine the above deduction of the Rabbis, as we look at the second half of Genesis 1:5. Following the last section, I will give you numerous scriptures and quotes for your study that support my position.

AND THE EVENING AND THE MORNING WERE THE FIRST DAY (GENESIS 1:5)

Can we deduce from Genesis 1:5 that a day begins at evening because EVENING IS MENTIONED FIRST? Is evening mentioned first? What does God say? "And God called the LIGHT DAY..." (Genesis 1:5). The very first thing that God tells us in this verse is that LIGHT = DAY. Evening is NOT mentioned at all.

The second thing God tells us is, "and the DARKNESS he called NIGHT." First we have LIGHT which is called DAY and second we have DARKNESS which is called NIGHT. This 24 HOUR period consists of THE TWO SEASONS OF DAY AND NIGHT. This is NOT a 24 Hour day. At this point the word "EVENING" has still not been mentioned.

The third thing that God says is, "And the EVENING and the MORNING were the first DAY (LIGHT)." God has already told us that (1) LIGHT = DAY and that (2) DARKNESS = NIGHT. Does He all of a sudden, change His mind within this same verse to tell us that a day begins at EVENING? No. He is simply telling us that in His definition of a DAY, that He considers both EVENING AND MORNING LIGHT. "And the EVENING and the MORNING were the first DAY (LIGHT). You will note that NIGHT is NOT mentioned here at all, because NIGHT = DARKNESS and EVENING AND MORNING = LIGHT and are a part of the 12 HOUR DAY.

So why is it that in the third section of this verse, Evening mentioned before Morning? Quoting once again from "The Time of The Crucifixion and the Resurrection" (Chapter 5): "In the Bible the MORNING is GENERALLY MENTIONED BEFORE THE EVENING, because this is the ORDER in which they came in the WAKING AND WORKING DAY." (my note: see 1Samuel 17:16). The author is correct. When you search the Bible you will find that this is a NATURAL PATTERN THROUGHOUT THE SCRIPTURES.

An interesting thing to note when reading the scriptures is that THE ORDER FOUND IN AN EXPRESSION IS NOT NECESSARILY THE ORDER FOUND IN THE ACTUAL EVENT. In other words since Morning is "GENERALLY" mentioned before Evening in the word, the fact that evening is mentioned before morning in Genesis 1:5 does NOT NECESSARILY indicate that EVENING COMES FIRST. The key to knowing what comes first is the same key that we use when we study any other subject. We search all of the scriptures before we come to a conclusion.

Reading from the book "The Five Books of Moses", Genesis 1:5 is translated, "God called the Light: Day! and the Darkness he called Night! There was SETTING, there was DAWNING: one Day." (p.13). Commenting in his notes on this verse, the author states, "SETTING.....DAWNING: The Heb. terms erev and boker are rather more specific than the usual "evening" and "morning". Elsewhere I have used "SUNSET" and "DAYBREAK". (p.13).

Since "Morning" is generally mentioned before "EVENING" as noted earlier, and the primary meaning of Morning is "DAWNING" or "DAYBREAK" as confirmed by Jacob when he wrestled until the "BREAKING OF THE DAY" and we saw that the "DAY BREAKETH" when the "SUN ROSE UPON HIM" (Gen. 32: 24,26,31), it stands to reason that the natural Day begins in the MORNING at about the time when the SUN BEGINS TO RISE. I believe that you will come to a similar conclusion when you put the many scriptures together that will be provided for you.

Since "Evening" is generally mentioned AFTER MORNING, and the primary meaning is "SETTING" or "SUNSET" (NEVER "New Day", "Next Day", "Daybreak", etc--Mark 1:32), it stands to reason that Evening is at the END of the day (while still part of the day) as we saw by the examples from New Testament writers and Jesus Christ Himself.

One of the best definitions of a Day that I found that was not a word for word definition from scripture can be uncovered on page 475 in "The Jewish Encyclopedia". I used part of this definition before. "DAY" (Hebrew, "yom"): In the Bible, the SEASON OF LIGHT (Gen. 1:5), LASTING "FROM DAWN (LIT. "THE RISING OF THE MORNING") TO THE COMING FORTH OF THE STARS" . As you can see, even though Genesis 1:5 is used as an example, this definition shows that a DAY IN THE BIBLE BEGINS AT DAWN AND ENDS AT DARK.

In Job 38:4-11, God communicates the following to Job:

(4) "Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth?declare, if thou hast understanding.

(5) Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it?

(6) Whereupon are the foundationsthereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof;

(7) When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

(8) Or who shut up the sea with doors, when it brake forth, as if it had issued out of the womb?

(9) When I made the cloud the garment thereof, and thick darkness a swaddlingband for it,

(10) And brake up for it my decreed place, and set bars and doors,

(11) And said, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further: and here shall thy proud waves be stayed?..."

Throughout these verses we see that God is the one who "laid the foundations of the earth". And in verse 12 God says:

(12) "Hast thou commanded the morningsince thy days; and caused the dayspringto know his place;..."

The primary meaning of the word"morning" (as defined by Strong's) used in verse 12, is: “1242 boqer bo'-ker... properly, dawn (as the break of day)..." This is the same word for "morning" used in Genesis 1:5.

"Dayspring"is the second important word that God uses in verse 12. 'Easton's Bible Dictionary' defines "dayspring" as:“the dawn of the morning; daybreak..”

Now, if we compare Genesis 1:1-5 to Job 38:4-12, we see that “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth“ and He “laid the foundations of the earth". In both scenarios we find God laying down the foundations of the earth. In both cases, He is speaking. And both times He uses the word "morning" which means “dawn (as the break of day). And He clarifies what He means by calling this "morning" period the "dayspring" (obviously the spring of day), which means “the dawn of the morning; daybreak..”

Carefully note, since God only asks Job about the "morning" ("dawn" "daybreak") and not a full day, "evening" is not mentioned at all. Yes "dawn" was the start of a day in the "foundations" or "beginning" of the earth. And it still is today.

In the very same book of Genesis (Chapter 32, as mentioned earlier), Jacob rose at "night" (V:22). in verse 24, "...Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until THE BREAKING OF THE DAY" (or "until the coming up of DAWN" ---from the book "The Five Books of Moses", p. 155). Verse 26 reads: "And let me go, for THE DAYBREAKETH..." (or "for DAWN has come up"--"The Five Books of Moses", p.155).The word for "day" found in verses 24 and 26 of Genesis Chapter 32 is the very same word found in Job 38:12, and is translated there as "dayspring".

Earlier I stated that "THE ORDER FOUND IN AN EXPRESSION IS NOT NECESSARILY THE ORDER FOUND IN THE ACTUAL EVENT". Here are some other examples that I have found. The very first verse of the Bible says, "In the beginning God created the HEAVEN and the EARTH." (Gen. 1:1). So did God create the "Heaven" before the "Earth"? Genesis 2:4 states, "These are the generations of the Heavens and of the Earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the EARTH and the HEAVENS." Here we find that God made the "EARTH" and the "HEAVENS". This reverses the order found in Genesis 1:1. So did God create the Earth or the Heavens first? Obviously, we need to search the scriptures to find the answer. We cannot come to a proper conclusion based on these 2 scriptures alone.

If we do not look at the whole picture and accept a partial picture instead, it can lead us to a wrong conclusion. For an example, Genesis 8:22 States: "While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease." Notice that "summer" is mentioned before "winter". That makes sense. But then "cold" is mentioned before "heat". Should we deduce from the above information based on the order of the words mentioned that "summer" is "cold" and "winter" is "heat"? If it was my desire to further prove that summer was cold I could use the first part of Proverbs 26:1 which states: "As snow in summer, and as rain in harvest..." Now, if we only look at the one and a half scriptures that I used, we must conclude that summer is cold and winter is hot. We must come to this conclusion if we simply accept the order in which the words are given as the actual order that the events take place. Obviously this 1-1/2 scripture conclusion is totally unnatural and yet it is the same line of reasoning that many of us used when we concluded that a day begins at "evening".

Throughout the Bible the expressions "DAY AND NIGHT" and "NIGHT AND DAY" are found. Although we have seen the day reckoned the same in both the Old and New Testaments, some commentators believe the day was reckoned in different ways depending on what Biblical period we are in. One reason is because day is mentioned before night in some places and night is mentioned before day in others. Is this belief correct? Solomon in a single prayer uses BOTH of the expressions "NIGHT AND DAY" (1Kings 8:29) and "DAY AND NIGHT" (1Kings 8:59). Obviously the order in which Day and Night are given does not necessarily tell us when a day begins. By my count (which may not be exact), I found that the expression "Night and Day" is listed about 21 times, including phrases like, "all of the night and all of the day". The exact phrase "Night and Day" is used about 4 times in the Old Testament and 9 times in the New Testament. The expression "Day and Night" is used about 57 times, including phrases such as, "all of the day and all of the night". The exact phrase "Day and Night" is used about 21 times in the Old Testament and 7 times in the New Testament. Solomon was NOT confused when he used the expressions "Night and Day" and "Day and Night" in the same prayer. He was simply using an expression. He was NOT trying to define when a day begins. He left that definition to God.

What have we been taught that the second half of Genesis 1:5 says? We have been taught that it says, "From even UNTO even was the first day". Notice that the expression used here, "Evening AND Morning" is NOT a "FROM and TO" Phrase like it IS with the Sabbath in Leviticus 23:32, which specifically says "FROM EVEN UNTO EVEN". Genesis 1:5 speaks of TWO PERIODS OF TIME (Evening AND Morning) and they are Both called "DAY" (LIGHT). That is why DARKNESS/NIGHT are Not mentioned. This phrase does NOT include the NIGHT SEASON. A similar expression is found in Psalm 55:17 where we find David saying, "EVENING, and MORNING, and at NOON will I pray..." Every commentator that I have read states that David prayed 3 TIMES A DAY. None of them state that he prayed 24 HOURS A DAY. Why? Because these are 3 different periods in a day. This is NOT a "FROM and TO" phrase.

In 1 Samuel 17:16, we find Goliath presenting himself for 40 days, "Morning AND Evening" to Israel. Clearly, he did not stand there for 40 consecutive 24 HOUR periods. He appeared before Israel at 2 different periods every day (Morning and Evening).

In Exodus 18:13 we find that the "...people stood by Moses FROM THE MORNING UNTO THE EVENING." Now that is a "FROM and TO" situation.

David is speaking of 3 separate periods each day when he prayed. Goliath appeared at 2 different periods every day and God is speaking of 2 different periods within the same day when He says "...the Evening AND the Morning..." in Genesis 1:5. And both periods are considered LIGHT.

"Some scholars believe that the days of the creation account extended from MORNING to morning and assume that God created during the DAYLIGHT HOURS before the Evening. This view is supported by the Jewish understanding of a day as the PERIOD OF DAYLIGHT (see John 9:4; cf. Gen. 1:5). OTHERS support the opposite viewpoint by citing the recurring phrase "there was evening and there was morning, one day" (Gen. 1:5; cf. 8,13,19,23,31)..." (The Eerdman's Bible Dictionary, p. 266). As you can see there is disagreement among scholars on when the day begins and ends. I believe that I have shown that Genesis 1:5 does NOT say "from even UNTO even", nor does it say "from morning UNTO morning". The fact is a 24 hour period consists of the 2 seasons of DAY and NIGHT, NOT the "Evening and the Morning" which God simply calls DAY (LIGHT).

TOMORROW IS THE REST OF THE HOLY SABBATH

Finally, we will take a look at a couple of other familiar scriptures from a different point of view. Early on we looked at Acts Chapter 20 and found that Luke reckoned the "BREAK OF DAY" as the "MORROW" (Morning), after the Night had ended. In the Old Testament, we discover that the "MORROW" and "MORNING" also come after the Night has ended and NOT at Sunset. The primary meanings of the word "MORNING" found in Genesis 1:5 are: "MORNING", "BREAK OF DAY", "OF END OF NIGHT", "OF COMING OF DAYLIGHT", "OF COMING OF SUNRISE", OF BEGINNING OF DAY", "OF BRIGHT JOY AFTER NIGHT OF DISTRESS (fig.)", "MORROW, "NEXT DAY", "NEXT MORNING". (Strongs Concordance: Number 01242).

With the primary meanings for the word "Morning" fresh in our minds, please look at the following scriptures as seen in Exodus the 16th Chapter. Speaking of the Manna in verse 19, Moses tells the people to "...Let no man leave of it till the MORNING." ('Today's English Version' and 'The Jerusalem Bible' use the word "TOMORROW"). Verse 20 indicates that "...some of them left of it until MORNING" (The Jerusalem Bible says, "the FOLLOWING DAY"). Moses explains in verse 23, "...This is that which the Lord hath said, TO MORROW is the rest of the holy Sabbath unto the Lord: bake that which ye will bake TO DAY, and seethe that ye will seeth; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the MORNING." The "Today's English Version" Bible translates the same verse as follows: "The Lord has commanded that TOMORROW is a holy day of rest, dedicated to him. Bake TODAY what you want to bake and boil what you want to boil. Whatever is left should be put aside and kept for TOMORROW". "Moffatt" reads: "...TO-MORROW is to be a day of complete rest, a Sabbath sacred to the Eternal...So bake or boil TO-DAY as you please, and keep what is left over till TO-MORROW MORNING..." Here we see how "TOMORROW and the FOLLOWING DAY" are periods of time that begin in the Morning, NOT in the Evening. Thus, the Sabbath also begins in the Morning and NOT in the Evening. The Old and New Testaments both calculate the beginning and ending of days the very same way. There is no difference.

In the last half of Exodus 32:5, Aaron says: "...TO MORROW (Strong's 04279 - As the day following the present day) is a feast to the Lord". Verse 6 continues, "And they ROSE UP EARLY ON THE MORROW (taken from the same word as 04279). This MORROW was a time of EARLY RISING. The "Today's English Version" Bible renders the same scriptures as "...TOMORROW there will be a FESTIVAL to honor the Lord...EARLY THE NEXT MORNING...The people sat down to a FEAST..." "The Jerusalem Bible" says, "...TOMORROW he said will be a feast in honour of Yahweh...And so EARLY the NEXT DAY (Note: if a day began at Evening, MORNING would NOT be EARLY the NEXT DAY, but about HALF WAY through a 24 hour day)...the people sat down to eat and drink..." And finally "Moffatt" reads, "Aaron erected an altar in front of the calf and proclaimed a FESTIVAL NEXT DAY for the Eternal...So NEXT MORNING... the people sat down to the sacrificial FEAST..." Once again we find "Tomorrow", "Morrow", "Next Morning", "NEXT DAY", "EARLY THE NEXT DAY" and "EARLY THE NEXT MORNING" all related to each other WITHOUT a mention of EVENING. The word "TOMORROW" found in Exodus 32:5 is the same word used in Exodus 16:23 when Moses said: "...TOMORROW is the rest of the holy Sabbath..."

So when does the Sabbath Day begin? If today was a Friday afternoon, the Sabbath starts when TOMORROW (Saturday) begins on the NEXT MORNING or NEXT DAY when the SUN'S LIGHT begins to rule or as "Moffatt" explains, "TO-MORROW MORNING" (Saturday Morning). And of course Evening is near the END of the DAY, NOT THE BEGINNING. It is the part of the day that God considers LIGHT, just before the DAY ends with DARK.

In conclusion, I do not claim to have a perfect understanding of the issues that I have laid out before you. I do believe that if you prayerfully study this subject with an open mind, you will come to a similar conclusion and move a little closer to the will of God. (See below for Scriptures and Quotes for your study).

SCRIPTURES AND QUOTES FOR YOUR STUDY OF THE WEEKLY SABBATH DAY

Listed below you will you will find scriptures and quotes that support my belief that, (A) the Sabbath Day and Biblical Day in general begin at DAWN and Not at EVENING. (B) The Sabbath Day and Biblical Day in general end at DARK and that EVENING is the tail end of a day, Not the beginning. (C) The Day is 12 Hours long, NOT 24. (D) DAY and NIGHT are 2 separate Seasons and NOT a single season of 24 hours. (E) Men have tampered with the original meaning of the word "DAY" as found in the Holy Scriptures.

The information below will be updated as new materials are gathered. So please check back often.

SCRIPTURES

(1) Note the 2 different seasons of Day and Night - (God "divided the light from the darkness" -Gen. 1:4) in the following scriptures: Genesis 7:12, 8:22 (just as Summer and Winter are 2 different seasons, so is Day and Night), Exodus 10:13, 13:21, Numbers 11:32, Judges 6:27, 1 Samuel 19:24, 28:20, 1 Kings 8:59, Job 2:13, 26:10, Psalms 42:3,8, 74:16, 78:14, 88:1, 121:6, Jeremiah 33:20-26 (V:20 "Day and Night in their Season"), 36:30, Lamentations 2:18, Jonah 1:17, Matthew 4:2, 12:40, Luke 18:7, 21:37-38, John 9:4-5, Acts 9:24, 26:7.

(2) Note the 2 different Seasons stated in the reverse order of Night and Day - Psalms 91:5, Isaiah 27:3, Jeremiah 14:17, Mark 5:5, 1 Timothy 5:5, Acts 20:31.

(3) NIGHT (A Season that is different from Day): Genesis 1:5 ("...the Darkness HE called NIGHT..."), Joshua 10:9, Judges 19:13, 1 Samuel 15:11, 31:12, 2 Samuel 4:7, 12:16, Psalm 104:20 ("Thou makest DARKNESS, and it is NIGHT..."), 1 Thessalonians 5:5 ("...we are NOT of the NIGHT, nor of the DARKNESS...").

(4) DAY = LIGHT (A Season that is different from Night):

(a) "And GOD called the LIGHT DAY, and the Darkness HE called Night..." (Genesis 1:5).

(b) "...If any man walk in the DAY, he stumbleth not, because he seeth the LIGHT of this world. But if a man walk in the Night, he stumbleth, because there is NO Light." (John 11:9-10).

(c) "Ye are all children of LIGHT and the children of the DAY; we are NOT children of the Night, nor of Darkness." (1 Thessalonians 5:5).

(d) And GOD made two great lights; the GREATER LIGHT to RULE the DAY, and the Lesser light to RULE the Night (darkness): he made the Stars also." (Genesis 1:16).

(e) "To HIM that made great lights...The SUN to RULE by DAY...The Moon and the Stars to RULE by Night (darkness)..." (Psalm 136:7-9).

(f) "Thus saith the LORD, which giveth the SUN for a LIGHT BY DAY, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by Night (darkness)... " (Jeremiah 31:35).

(5) DAY BEGINS AFTER THE NIGHT IS OVER (NOT AT EVENING/SUNSET):

(a) "And he took them the same hour of the NIGHT, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway...And when it was DAY, the magistrates sent the serjeants, saying let those men go..." (Acts 16:33,35).

(b) "And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same NIGHT Peter was sleeping between two soldiers...Now as soon as it was DAY, there was no small stir among the soldiers, what was become of Peter..." (Acts 12:6,18).

(c) "And they took up Asahel, and buried him in the sepulchre of his father, which was in Bethlehem. And Joab and his men went ALL NIGHT, and they came to Hebron at BREAK OF DAY." (2 Samuel 2:32).

(d) "...And they compassed him in, and laid wait for him ALL NIGHT in the gate of the city, and were quiet ALL OF THE NIGHT, saying in the MORNING, when it is DAY, we shall kill him." (Judges 16:2).

(e) "...he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued ALL NIGHT in prayer to God...And when it was DAY..." (Luke 6:12-13).

(f) "The NIGHT is FAR SPENT, the DAY is AT HAND..." (Romans 13:12).

(g) "And he rose up that NIGHT...And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man until the BREAKING OF THE DAY...And he said, Let me go, for the DAY BREAKETH...And as he passed over Penuel the SUN ROSE upon him..." (Genesis 32:22-31).

(h) "...Paul preached unto them, ready to DEPART on the MORROW; and continued his speech until MIDNIGHT...and talked a Long while, even till the BREAK OF DAY, so he DEPARTED." (Acts 20:7,11).

(I) "Simon Peter saith unto them, I go a fishing. They say unto him, We also go with thee. They went forth, and entered into a ship immediately; and that night they caught nothing. But when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the shore: but the disciples knew not that it was Jesus." (John 21: 3-4)

In the two verses above John writes that during the "night" (V:3) no fish were caught and then "the morning was now come" (V:4). Robertson's Word Pictures commenting on verse four states: "When day was now breaking...". Vine's writes: "...at early morn..." In the translations below (verse 4) we see once again that new days follow the night and do not proceed it at sunset:

"But when day was now breaking..." (American Standard Version)

"Now very early in the morning..." (Bible in Basic English)

"Just as day was breaking..." (English Standard Version)

"And early morn already breaking..." (Darby)

"Just as day was breaking..." (Twentieth Century New Testament)

"As the sun was rising..." (Good News Bible)

"Now just as day was breaking..." (Williams New Testament)

"Just as dawn was breaking..." (International Standard Version)

"Now at break of day..." (Moffatt)

"Early next morning..." (Contemporary English Version)

"..day was now dawning..." (Weymouth)

"And morning being now come..." (Young's Literal Translation)

"...when the day was now breaking..." (New American Standard Bible)

"At dawn..." (New Living Translation)

"Just as day was breaking..." (Revised Standard Version)

"Just as dawn began to break..." (Phillips)

"Just after daybreak..." (New Revised Standard Version)

"Early the next morning..." (New Century Version)

"Day had already dawned..." (The New Berkeley Version)

"...Just as the sun was rising in the morning..." (Julian G. Anderson New Testament)

"...just as day was breaking..." (Goodspeed)

Matthew uses this same word for "morning" in the same way (as John above) in a different account found in Matthew 27:1: "When the morning was come, all the chief priests and elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death:" -- The Twentieth Century New Testament says: "At daybreak" -- Williams New Testament says: "As soon as day broke" -- In the same account (of Matthew 27:1), Mark (15:1) uses a different word for "morning" and as noted earlier it means "early in the day at morn"...very early in the morning, at the rising of the sun” - that is, not that the sun “was risen,” but that it was about to rise, or at the early break of day. " -- Continuing in the same account (of Matthew 27:1) Luke (22:66) writes: "And as soon as it was day..." (KJV) (indicating that it was not day until the morning of Matthew (27:1) and Mark (15:1) arrived). --Moffatt says: "When day broke" -- Young's Literal Translation says: "And when it became day..." -- New Living Translation says: "At daybreak". -- Phillip's says: "...when daylight came..." -- The Jerusalem Bible says: "When day broke..." -- Here we have three separate Gospels speaking of the same event and they all show that a new day begins at dawn using different words to arrive at the same conclusion.

(See commentary on John chapter 20 listed under "WHAT ABOUT NEW TESTAMENT COMMENTATORS?" in the 'Table of Contents".)

(6) MORNING FOLLOWS THE NIGHT OR BRINGS THE LIGHT OF DAY: 1 Samuel 25:36, 29:10, 2 Samuel 17:22, 23:4, 2 Kings 3:22, Isaiah 58:8.

(a) "And Saul said, Let us go down after the Philistines by NIGHT, and spoil them until the MORNING LIGHT..." (1 Samuel 14:36).

(b) "And it came to pass that NIGHT, that the angel of the Lord went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand: and when they AROSE EARLY in the MORNING..." (2 Kings 19:35).

(c) "Now therefore up by NIGHT...And it shall be, that in the MORNING, as soon as the SUN IS UP, thou shalt RISE EARLY..." (Judges 9:32-33).

(7) LIGHT AS A SYMBOL OF GOD AND GOOD----DARKNESS AS A SYMBOL OF SATAN AND EVIL: Deuteronomy 16:4,6, Ecclesiastes 11:7-8, Isaiah 42:16, Jeremiah 13:16, Amos 5:18,20, John 3:19-21, Acts 26:18, Ephesians 5:8, 6:12, Colossians 1:12-13, 1Peter 2:9, 1 John 1:5-6 (God separates GOOD from EVIL and many times equates them with LIGHT and DARKNESS which HE also separated because He never meant them to be the same):

(a) "Woe unto them that call EVIL GOOD, and GOOD EVIL; that put DARKNESS for LIGHT, and LIGHT for DARKNESS..." (Isaiah 5:20).

Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. (John 8:12)

(8) IN THE FUTURE, THERE WILL BE NO NIGHT (DARKNESS):

(a) "The Sun shall be no more thy LIGHT by DAY; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an EVERLASTING LIGHT and thy GOD thy glory. Thy Sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself; for the Lord shall be thine EVERLASTING LIGHT, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended." (Isaiah 60:19-20).

(b) "And the city had no need of the Sun, neither of the Moon, to shine in it: for the glory of GOD did LIGHTEN it, and the LAMB is the LIGHT thereof. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the LIGHT of it...And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by DAY: for there shall be NO NIGHT THERE." (Revelation 21:23-25).

(c) "And there shall be NO NIGHT THERE; and they need no candle, neither Light of the Sun; for the LORD GOD giveth them LIGHT: and they shall reign for ever and ever." (Revelation 22:5).

(9) THE SPRING OF THE DAY IS AT DAWN OR DAYBREAK:

(a) "And they AROSE EARLY: and it came to pass about the SPRING OF THE DAY (KJV note: DAWN), that Samuel called Saul..." (1 Samuel 9:26).------OTHER VERSIONS:

(a-1) "At DAWN Samuel called to Saul..." (Today's English Version).

(a-2) "At the BREAK OF DAY Samuel Called to Saul..." (The Jerusalem Bible).

(a-3) "At DAY-BREAK Samuel called to Saul..." (James Moffatt).

(b) "Hast thou commanded the MORNING since thy days; and caused the DAYSPRING (***DAWN) to know his place..." (Job 38:12)--(***'The Jerusalem Bible' and 'James Moffatt'). (Today's English Version reads: "...commanded a DAY to DAWN?...").

(10) IN THE TRANSLATIONS BELOW, NOTE THE FOLLOWING:

EVENING is NOT translated as: The beginning of the "New Day", "Next Day", "Tomorrow" or "Morrow". It is NOT translated as "Daybreak", "Break of Day", etc.

MORNING IS often translated as: The beginning of the "Next Day", "Tomorrow" or "Morrow". It IS translated as "Daybreak", "Break of Day", "Dawn", etc.

EVENING is simply a part of the Day Season (tail end) that is the SAME DAY that began at DAWN. Various translations use words such as : "Evening", "Even", "Between the Two Evenings", "Sunset", "Setting", etc. to describe this part of the Day.----Scriptures are as follows:

(a) "And the SAME DAY, when EVEN was come..." (Mark 4:35---NOT the Next Day).

(b) "Then the SAME DAY at EVENING, being the FIRST day of the week..." (John 20:19---NOT the Next Day).

(c) "...Woe unto us! for the DAY GOETH AWAY, for the SHADOWS OF THE EVENING are STRETCHED OUT...Arise, and let us go by NIGHT..." (Jeremiah 6:4-5).-------OTHER VERSIONS:

(c-1) "...Despair! The DAYLIGHT is FADING already, the EVENING SHADOWS LENGTHEN...To arms! We will launch the attack under cover of DARK..." (The Jerusalem Bible).

(c-2) "...Pity the DAY is DECLINING, the SHADOWS ARE LENGTHENING!...Come on, let us attack by NIGHT..." (James Moffatt). (Many translations use some form of the word "declining" including the 'Jewish Publication Society Bible' which uses the word “declineth” ).

(c-3) "Woe to us, for the DAY IS PASSING; the evening shadows grow long. (The Holman Standard Christian Bible).

(c-4) "Woe to us! for the DAY IS WANING, evening shadows are lengthening." (The Complete Jewish Bible -see source 123).

(c-5) “Oh, it's too late? DAY IS DYING? Evening shadows are upon us?” (The Message)

(c-6) "...It's too late, the DAY is ALMOST OVER, and the EVENING SHADOWS ARE GROWING LONG..." (Today's English Version).----(Note: After the SHADOWS of EVENING have arrived, the DAY is said to be GOING AWAY, FADING, DECLINING, PASSING, WANING, DYING and ALMOST OVER, but it HAS NOT ENDED nor has a NEW DAY BEGUN (Just as we found in the New Testament).-----Also note, that NIGHT follows the EVENING).

(d) "So we LABOURED in the work: and half of them held the spears FROM THE RISING OF THE MORNING TILL THE STARS APPEARED (THIS IS A FULL DAY)...Let every one with his servant lodge within Jerusalem, that in the NIGHT they may be a guard to us, and LABOUR on the DAY." (Nehemiah 4:21-22)-----OTHER VERSIONS:

(d-1) "...This was how I and my men did our WORK; half held their spears from DAWN until the STARS APPEARED...Let each of you, man and servant alike, keep inside Jerusalem to provide us with guard duty at NIGHT and with LABOUR during the DAY..." (James Moffatt).

(d-2) " So every DAY, from DAWN until the STARS CAME OUT AT NIGHT, half of us WORKED on the wall while the other half stood guard with spears...I told the men in charge that they and all their helpers had to stay in Jerusalem at NIGHT, so we could guard the city at NIGHT as well as WORK in the DAYTIME..." (Today's English Version).

(d-3) "...So we went on with the WORK from BREAK OF DAY till the STARS APPEARED...Let each man with his servant, spend the NIGHT inside Jerusalem: in this way we can employ the NIGHT in watching and the DAY in WORKING..." (The Jerusalem Bible).

(e) The following Scriptures are Taken from a Translation of the Pentateuch in the work, "THE FIVE BOOKS OF MOSES" (source # 35 below):

(e-1) "At the LIGHT of DAYBREAK (Morning-KJV), the men were sent off, they and their donkeys." (Genesis 44:3).

(e-2) "...Here were the cloud and the DARKNESS, and (there) it lit up the NIGHT; the-one did not come near the-other ALL NIGHT...and YHWH caused the sea to go back with a fierce east wind ALL NIGHT...Now it was at the **DAYBREAK-WATCH (Morning watch--KJV----**Authors Note: DAYBREAK-WATCH: Before Sunrise: the biblical NIGHT was divided in three "watches")...Moshe stretched out his hand over the sea, and the sea returned, at the face of DAWN (Morning--KJV)..." (Exodus 14:20,21,24,27).

(e-3) "YHWH said to Moshe: Here I will make rain down upon you BREAD from the heavens, the people shall go out and glean, each DAY'S amount in its DAY, in order that I may test them, whether they will walk according to my instruction or not. But it shall be on the sixth DAY: when they prepare what they have brought in, it shall be a double-portion compared to what they glean DAY after DAY. Moshe and Aharon said to all the Children of Israel: At SUNSET (Even--KJV) you will know that it is YHWH who brought you out of the land of Egypt; at DAYBREAK (Morning--KJV) you will see the Glory of YHWH: when he hearkens to your grumblings against YHWH--what are we, that you grumble against us? Moshe said: Since YHWH gives you flesh to eat at SUNSET (Evening--KJV), and at DAYBREAK (Morning--KJV), BREAD to satisfy (yourselves) (Exodus 16:4-8)...I have hearkened to the grumblings of the Children of Israel---speak to them, and say: BETWEEN THE SETTING-TIMES (Even--KJV) you shall eat flesh, and at DAYBREAK (Morning--KJV) you shall be satisfied with BREAD, and you shall know that I am YHWH your God. Now it was at SUNSET (Even--KJV) a horde-of-quail came up and covered the camp. And at DAYBREAK (Morning--KJV) there was a layer of dew around the camp; and when the layer of dew went up, here, upon the surface of the wilderness, something fine (Author's note: The mahn (trad. English "Manna")..." (Exodus 16:12-13). (With the above scriptures listed under (C) in mind, Please take the time to read once again the last section of the main text, titled "TOMORROW IS THE REST OF THE HOLY SABBATH").

(e-4) "Now it was on the MORROW: Moshe sat to judge the people, and the people stood before Moshe from DAYBREAK (Morning--KJV) until SUNSET (Evening--KJV)...why do you sit alone, while the entire people stations itself around you from DAYBREAK (Morning--KJV) until SUNSET (Even--KJV)? (Exodus 18:13-14).

(e-5) "Now it was on the third DAY, when it was DAYBREAK (Morning--KJV)..." (Exodus 19:16)--Author's Note: DAYBREAK: Perhaps to convey that there was nothing deceptive or DREAMLIKE about this event, which was to be SEEN as a large-scale group experience..." (My Note: Not a NIGHT SEASON experience).

(e-6) "And this is what you are to sacrifice on the slaughter-site: year-old lambs, TWO FOR EACH DAY, regularly. The FIRST lamb you are to sacrifice at DAYBREAK (Morning--KJV), and the SECOND lamb you are to sacrifice BETWEEN THE SETTING-TIMES (Even--KJV)..." (Exodus 29:38-39). (Note: TWO lambs EVERY DAY. One at DAYBREAK , which is MORNING and one BETWEEN THE SETTING-TIMES, which is EVENING. The SECOND lamb is sacrificed in the EVENING which is still part of the SAME DAY THAT STARTED AT DAYBREAK. EVENING IS NOT THE NEXT DAY, because the command is to sacrifice TWO LAMBS IN THE SAME DAY. (An author's note on page 618 states: BETWEEN THE SETTING TIMES: Between the time that the Sun is below the horizon, no longer visible, and total darkness. An idiomatic rendition would be "at TWILIGHT".

(e-7) "Outside the curtain of the Testimony, in the Tent of Appointment, Aharon is to arrange it, from SUNSET (Evening--KJV) to DAYBREAK (Morning--KJV)..." (Leviticus 24:3). (Note: The EVENING is simply called SUNSET and NOT the beginning of a New Day (Next Day, etc.). MORNING is called DAYBREAK, which IS obviously the beginning of a New Day.

(e-8) "Then he spoke to Korah and to his entire community, saying at DAYBREAK (To Morrow--KJV)..." (Numbers 16:5).

(e-9) "Bil'am AROSE at DAYBREAK (Morning--KJV)...And God came to Bil'am at NIGHT...Bil'am AROSE at DAYBREAK (Morning--KJV)...Now it was at DAYBREAK (Morning--KJV)..." (Numbers 22:13, 20-21, 41).

(e-10) "Your life will hang-by-a-thread before you, you will be terrified NIGHT and DAY, and you will not trust in (the security of) your life. At DAYBREAK (Morning--KJV) you will say: Who would make it SUNSET (Even--KJV)! And at SUNSET (Even--KJV) you will say: Who would make it DAYBREAK (Morning--KJV)!..." (Deuteronomy 28:66-67).

(f) Every translation below verifies the fact that the annual Sabbath / Fast of Leviticus 23:32 starts on the 9th day of the month (not the 10th) in the evening:

(f-1) "...This time of rest and fasting will begin the evening before the Day of Atonement (see note 7) and extend until evening of that day." -- Note (7) "Hebrew the evening of the ninth day of the month". (New Living Translation (NLT).

The 'New Living Translation' correctly indicates that the Sabbath/Fast begins the "evening before the day of Atonement" and not on the Day of Atonement. Why? Because a new day (Day of Atonement - 10th) begins at dawn.

(f-2) "...and you must abstain and fast: from sunset on the ninth day to sunset on the tenth day you shall hold your Sabbath." (James Moffatt).

Not only does 'Moffatt' understand that the Sabbath / Fast begins at sunset on the ninth day, he also understands that the following evening is still the 10th day and not the 11th day, as it would be if a new day started at sunset.

(f-3) "...and ye shall afflict your souls: in the ninth day of the month at even, from even unto even, shall ye celebrate your Sabbath." (King James Version).

(f-4) "...and you shall humble your souls; on the ninth of the month at evening, from evening until evening you shall keep your Sabbath." (New American Standard Bible (NASB).

(f-5) "...and you must deny yourselves. From the evening of the ninth day of the month until the following evening you are to observe your Sabbath." (New International Version (NIV).

God refers to the evening as the time "when the sun did set" (Mark 1:32). Many people have been taught that God refers to this period of time as the beginning of a new day.

God calls the light "day" and the darkness "night" (Gen 1:5). Many people have been taught that He called both seasons "day". As a result of this teaching, many people overlook the entire first half of Genesis 1:5.

God calls the "evening" and the "morning" "day" (Gen 1:5), thereby classifying both periods as a time of light. Many people have been taught that God actually said "From even unto even" is a day.

God explains that there is 12 hours in a day (John 11:9). Many people have been taught that there is 24 hours in a day.

God calls the evening before the Day of Atonement the 9th day of the month (Lev. 23:32). Many people have been taught that He really meant to call it the 10th day. (See "Day of Atonement -- Sifting Through the Traditions" in the table of contents for more on this subject).

(g) "Then said Boaz unto his servant that was set over the reapers, Whose damsel is this? And the servant that was set over the reapers answered and said, It is the Moabitish damsel that came back with Naomi out of the country of Moab: And she said, I pray you, let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves: so she came, and hath continued even fromthemorning(my note: "early morning" -'Good News Bible', "daybreak" -'God's Word' version) until now, that she tarried a little in the house." (Ruth 2:5-7). -- This is the same word for "morning" found in Genesis 1:5 and Job 38:12. Boaz allowed Ruth to glean in his field and after "mealtime" (Ruth 2:14): "...she gleaned in the field until even..." (Ruth 2:17). -- Here we see that Ruth simply gleaned until evening. The Bible does not say that she gleaned until the "day was over", or until "daybreak". That is because "early morning" was "daybreak" and the evening was still a part of the day season that began at dawn. The word "even" in verse 17 is the same word translated "evening" in Genesis 1:5.

After Ruth had gleaned until "even", she "...beat out that she had gleaned: and it was about an ephah of barley. And she took it up, and went into the city: and her mother in law saw what she had gleaned: and she brought forth, and gave to her that she had reserved after she was sufficed. And her mother in law said unto her, Where hast thou gleaned to day? and where wroughtest thou? blessed be he that did take knowledge of thee. And she shewed her mother in law with whom she had wrought, and said, The man's name with whom I wrought to dayis Boaz." (Ruth 2:17-19). -- It is important to observe that while tradition states that a new day begins with evening, both Ruth and her mother in law refer to all of Ruth's activities that began in the early morning as activities that happened to day. Ruth's mother in law does not ask, "Where did you glean Yesterday ?" That is the question that she should have asked because "even" began before Ruth made her way back to the city. Yes, that is the question that should have been asked if days really began with the evening.

(h) The following Scriptures are Taken from a Translation of the First and Second books of Samuel in the work, "GIVE US A KING" (same author as (e) above -- source # 122 below):

(h-1) "Shemu'el lay down until daybreak ("morning" - kjv)..." (1Samuel 3:15)

(h-2) "And the Philistine would approach, early and late ("morning and evening" - kjv), presenting himself for forty days." (1Samuel 17:16)

(h-3) "...And David fled, escaping on that night. And Sha'ul sent messengers to David's house, to watch out for him and to put-him-to-death at daybreak ("morning"-kjv), but Mikhal his wife told David, saying: If you don't escape with your life tonight, tomorrow you will be put-to-death!" (1Samuel 19:10-11)

(h-4) "...if I leave from all that belongs to him, by the light of daybreak ("morning light" - kjv)..." (1Samuel 25:22)

(h-5) "...had you not hurried and come to meet me, there wouldn't have been left to Naval by the light of daybreak ("morning light" - kjv)..." (1Samuel 25:34)

(h-6) "...so she did not tell him a thing, small or great, until the light of daybreak ("morning light" - kjv). But it was at daybreak ("morning" - kjv), when the wine was gong out of Naval..." (1Samuel 25:36-37)

(h-7) "...they crossed the Jordan, till the light of daybreak ("morning light" - kjv) (2Samuel 17:22)

(h-8) "...a ruler with the awe of God, is like the light of daybreak ("light of the morning" - kjv) (as) the sun rises, a daybreak ("morning" - kjv) without clouds.." (2Samuel 23:3-4)

(h-9) "David arose at daybreak ("morning" - kjv) (2Samuel 24:11)

(h-10) "...and they came, at the heat of the day, to the house of Ish-Boshet while he was lying down for the noonday ("noon" - kjv) nap." (2Samuel 4:5)

(h-11) "...Then they went all night, Yo'av and his men with light-breaking ("break of day" - kjv) upon them in Hevron." (2Samuel 2:32)

(h-12) "...and they fasted until sunset ("even" - kjv)..." (2Samuel 1:12)

(h-13) "...they started-early, and it was, when dawn came-up ("spring of the day" - kjv), that Shemu'el called Sha'ul..." (1Samuel 9:26)

(h-14) "...there was no strength (left) in him, for he had not eaten food all day and all night." (1Samuel 28:20)

(i) "And when they heard that, they entered into the temple early in the morning, and taught. But the high priest came, and they that were with him, and called the council together, and all the senate of the children of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought." (Acts 5:21) --- OTHER VERSIONS (translation abbreviations: source 124 - see sources in table of contents):

"they entered into the temple at daybreak..." (ALT)

"they entered into the temple about daybreak..." (ASV)

"they went into the Temple at dawn..." (BBE)

"they heard that, they entered the temple about daybreak..." (EMTV)

"they entered the temple at daybreak..." (ESV)

"and at dawn they entered the Temple..." (GNB)

"they went into the temple at daybreak..." (ISV)

"they entered the Temple about daybreak..." (JBP)

"they went into the temple about dawn..." (MKJV)

"they went to the temple early in the morning..." (NAB)

"they entered into the temple about daybreak..." (NAS)

"the apostles entered the Temple about daybreak ..." (NLT)

"And when they heard this, they entered the temple at daybreak..." (RSV)

"they went at daybreak into the Temple..." (TCNT)

"and about the break of day they went into the temple..." (WmsNT)

"they entered into the temple about daybreak..." (WEB)

"they did enter at the dawn into the temple..." (YLT)

The same word used to indicate "early in the morning" in Acts 5:21 is also used in John 8:2 and Luke 24:1. In John 8:2 we read:

"And early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him; and he sat down, and taught them." -- A good number of translations simply use words such as, "early in the morning" here. Please review several other translations:

"Then at dawn He came again to the temple..." (ALT)

"At daybreak, he appeared again in the Temple..." (The Complete Jewish Bible -source 123)

"At daybreak he appeared again in the temple..." (ISV)

"And at dawn, He again arrived into the temple..." (LITV)

"At break of day however He returned to the Temple..." (WNT)

Using the very same word for "early in the morning" found in Acts 5:21 and John 8:2, Luke 24:1 reads:

"Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them." --- A number of translations use a phrase such as "very early in the morning" or "at early dawn". Here are several other interesting translations:

"But on the morrow of the sabbath, very early indeed in the morning,..." (Darby)

"On the morowe after the saboth erly in the morninge..." (Tyndale, 1534)

Please observe that the two old translations above refer to this time very early in the morning at dawn as tomorrow after the Sabbath. The early morning at dawn is called tomorrow, not the following evening. 'The Complete Jewish Bible" puts it this way:

"but the next day, while it was still very early..." --- This same version translates "early in the morning" as "dawn" in Acts 5:21 and "daybreak" in John 8:2. As mentioned elsewhere, this time of the morning would not be considered very early the next day if days began at sunset. It would be about half way through a 24 hour day. Noon is considered Midday throughout the Bible.

Thayer's definition of the word "orthros" (found in Luke 24:1, John 8:2 & Acts 5:21): 1) daybreak, dawn -- 2) at early dawn, at daybreak, early in the morning ( p. 453.) --- 'Vincent's Word Studies' and 'Robertson's Word Pictures' also say, "About daybreak".

(see #'s (16), (41), and (60A) listed under "Quotes" for more information)

It is true that a translator may sometimes allow a personal unbiblical view to creep into a text (e.g. 'pascha' translates as 'Easter' -Acts 12:4). It is also true that in this study no matter what a translator may personally believe regarding when a day begins, the truth of the matter comes to the surface numerous times in translation after translation. Why? The fact is, the Bible is so saturated with days beginning at dawn, it soon becomes evident that only a very strong tradition could suppress what the many translations cannot deny.

THE 12 HOUR DAY

FOR NOTES CLICK HERE

"...Jesus answered, Are there not TWELVE HOURS IN THE DAY?..."

(John 11:9) -(note *9*)-Matthew 20:1-16 (note *23*) -

(a) The day starts with "dawn" before the sun rises: Genesis 32: 22, 24, 26 and 31 (note *1* & *22*) - Acts 20:11(note *2*)-

1 Samuel 9:26 (note *4*) -

(b) The primary meaning of the word "morning" is dawn or break of day: Genesis 1:5 (note *21* & *22*) - Job 38:12 (note *22*)-

(c) The "sun" was made to rule the day. Not the night: Genesis 1:16 (note *13*) - Psalm 136:7-9 (note *14*) - Jeremiah 31:35 (note *15*) -

(d) "Day" is a season of light (only) and is different from night.Genesis 8:22 (note *10*) - Jeremiah 33:20 (note *12*)

(e) "Midday" is noon and arrives after the morning: Nehemiah 8:3(note *17*) -

(f) "Noon" is midday: Acts 22:6 (note *3*)

(g) "Midday" is noon and comes before the evening or the evening sacrifice: 1Kings 18:29 (note *18*) -

(h) "Afternoon" arrives after morning and noon and before evening and night: Judges 19:8-9 (note *19*) -

(i) In late afternoon the day is far spent: Luke 24:29(note *6*)

(j) "Evening" is a time when the day is declining and is almost over. It is not the end of a day or the beginning of a new day:Jeremiah 6:4 - 5 (note *5*) - Mark 4:35 (note *7*) - John 20:19 (note *8*)- Matthew 20:1-16 (note *23*) -Exodus 29:38-39 (note *24*) -

(k) The sun is still ruling the day at evening: Mark 1:32 (note *16*) - Genesis 1:5 (note *20*) -

(l) A full day is from dawn to dark:Genesis 1:5 (And God called the light day) (note *10*) - Nehemiah 4:21-22 (note *11*) -

(m) "Hour " -- Most Sabbath literature will indicate that "...Christ and the apostles, reckoned sunset as the ending of one day and the beginning of another." (The Bible Sabbath, p. 21). Various New Testament Bible commentaries will say something like: "...the Sabbath (sundown Friday evening to sundown Saturday evening..." (p. 256). On the other hand the same commentary may say something like: "Work began around sunrise, about 6 a.m....the time of day was necessarily reckoned from sunrise ..." (The IVP Bible Background Commentary - New Testament, pp. 98-99). In addition many commentaries will acknowledge that, "the day was twelve hours long, and the first hour began at sunrise ." (Geneva Bible Translation Notes). Sound confusing? With some research, we will find that Bible translation after translation reveals that a new day begins about the time the sun begins to rise in the morning and not at sunset.

We will now look at every New Testament verse in which a stated hour of the day is mentioned. The KJV will be used for each scripture. At the end of each verse the stated hour will be repeated using a different translation for every scripture quoted. Hours quoted by these translations are based on the day beginning at about 6 a.m. (varies based on the time of the year):

"And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace..." (Matthew 20:3 ) -- "nine that morning" (Contemporary English Version).

"Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise." (Matthew 20:5 ) -- "about noon and 3 p.m." (God's Word).

"And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle?" (Matthew 20:6 ) -- "nearly five o'clock" (Good News Bible).

"And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny." (Matthew 20:9 ) -- "about five o'clock" (International Standard Version).

"Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour." (Matthew 27:45 ) -- "noon to three" (The Message).

"And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" (Matthew 27:46 ) -- "about three o'clock" (The New Living Translation).

"And it was the third hour, and they crucified him." (Mark 15:25 ) -- "nine in the morning" (The Holman Christian Standard Bible).

"And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour." (Mark 15:33 ) -- "at noon...until three o'clock" (The Complete Jewish Bible - see source 123).

"And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" (Mark 15:34 ) -- "at three o'clock" (New Century Version).

"And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour." (Luke 23:44 ) -- "about noon...till three o'clock" (Weymouth New Testament).

"He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour." (John 1:39 ) -- "about the tenth hour" (About four o'clock in the afternoon) (Amplified Bible).

"Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour." (John 4:6 ) -- "about noon" (The New Revised Standard Version).

"Then enquired he of them the hour when he began to amend. And they said unto him, Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him." (John 4:52 ) -- "about one o'clock" (Twentieth Century New Testament).

"And it was the preparation of the passover, and about the sixth hour: and he saith unto the Jews, Behold your King!" (John 19:14 ) -- "about noon" (Moffatt).

"For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day." (Acts 2:15) -- "nine o'clock in the morning" (Williams).

"Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour." (Acts 3:1) -- "three o'clock" (Worldwide English (New Testament).

"He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming in to him, and saying unto him, Cornelius." (Acts 10:3) -- "about three in the afternoon" (New International Version).

"On the morrow, as they went on their journey, and drew nigh unto the city, Peter went up upon the housetop to pray about the sixth hour:" (Acts 10:9) -- "about noon" (Knox).

"And Cornelius said, Four days ago I was fasting until this hour; and at the ninth hour I prayed in my house, and, behold, a man stood before me in bright clothing,..." (Acts 10:30) -- "about three o'clock" (Goodspeed).

What have we learned from the scriptures shown above:

(a) 19 different translations reckon the beginning of a day from the first light of morning (not sunset) regardless of the scenario: (people working, people standing idle and not working, hours mentioned at the time of the crucifixion, journeys, the sharing of living space, healings, Passover preparation, Holy days, visions from God and prayer times).

(b) No stated hour is higher than the 12 total hours that Jesus tells us is in a day (John 11:9-10). The highest stated hour is the 11th ("about five o'clock"). We do not read about the 13th, 17th or 23rd hour of a day.

(c) Day of Pentecost:

In Acts 2:1 God's word states: "And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place." In verse 15 Peter says: "For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day." The Williams translation says, **"nine o'clock in the morning". Question. The third hour of what day? The Day of Pentecost . If nine o'clock in the morning was the third hour of the day, then the Day of Pentecost began in the morning around sunrise (about 6 a.m.).

Conclusion? The Day of Pentecost, an annual Holy Day of God, begins with the first light of morning just as the weekly Sabbath day does.

This conclusion is supported by the fact that the time measurement used in Acts 2:15 is identical to the time measurement found in the other 18 scriptures that refer to a stated hour of the day in the four gospels and the Book of Acts.

The conclusion also agrees with Luke's (author of Acts 2:15) understanding of the nature of a day as described throughout this website (see "What About New Testament Commentators?" - Acts 20:7 and # 60 - A & B listed under "Quotes" as examples of Luke's understanding of when a day begins).

In addition it was Peter in Acts 2:15 who said it was the "third hour of the day" at approximately 9 o'clock in the morning . Not only does Peter demonstrate that he understands that a day literally begins at about sunrise in Acts 2:15, he also demonstrates his understanding figuratively in 2Peter 1:19 where he writes: "We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts :" -- Albert Barne's comments on 2Peter 1:19:

"As unto a light that shineth in a dark place - That is, the prophecies resemble a candle, lamp, or torch, in a dark room, or in an obscure road at night. They make objects distinct which were before unseen; they enable us to behold many things which would be otherwise invisible. The object of the apostle in this representation seems to have been, to state that the prophecies do not give a perfect light, or that they do not remove all obscurity, but that they shed some light on objects which would otherwise be entirely dark, and that the light which they furnished was so valuable that we ought by all means to endeavor to avail ourselves of it. Until the day shall dawn, and we shall see objects by the clear light of the sun, they are to be our guide. A lamp is of great value in a dark night, though it may not disclose objects so clearly as the light of the sun. But it may be a safe and sure guide; and a man who has to travel in dark and dangerous places, does well to “take heed” to his lamp.

Until the day dawn - Until you have the clearer light which shall result from the dawning of the day. The reference here is to the morning light as compared with a lamp; and the meaning is, that we should attend to the light furnished by the prophecies until the truth shall be rendered more distinct by the events as they shall actually be disclosed - until the brighter light which shall be shed on all things by the glory of the second advent of the Saviour, and the clearing up of what is now obscure in the splendors of the heavenly world. The point of comparison is between the necessary obscurity of prophecy, and the clearness of events when they actually occur - a difference like that which is observable in the objects around us when seen by the shining of the lamp and by the light of the sun. The apostle directs the mind onward to a period when all shall be clear - to that glorious time when the Saviour shall return to receive his people to himself in that heaven where all shall be light. Compare Rev. 21:23-25; Rev. 22:5 . Meantime we should avail ourselves of all the light which we have, and should apply ourselves diligently to the study of the prophecies of the Old Testament which are still unfulfilled, and of those in the New Testament which direct the mind onward to brighter and more glorious scenes than this world has yet witnessed. In our darkness they are a cheering lamp to guide our feet, till that illustrious day shall dawn. Compare the notes at 1Co 13:9-10." (Albert Barne's Notes on the Bible). -- (The word "dawn" in this verse is defined by Strong's as "to glimmer through, that is, break (as day): - dawn.").

Matthew 20:3 and Mark 15:25 are the two scriptures other than Acts 2:15 that specifically mention the "third hour". The following 11 Bible versions indicate that the "third hour" was approximately 9 o'clock in the morning in all three scriptures that show this stated hour: Moffatt, Goodspeed, Amplified, Contemporary English Version, New American Standard Bible (notes), Williams, Phillips, God's Word, International Standard Version, Good News and The Message.

In the Book of John (11:9), Jesus says, "Are there not twelve hours in the day?". In a parable (Matthew 20:1-16) of our Lord, Matthew writes about the 12 hour day: "For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard." (verse 1) -- The IVP Bible Background Commentary (p. 98-99) says "...sunrise, about 6 a.m...the time of day was necessarily reckoned from sunrise." -- Vine's (pp. 190 & 417- source # 14 below) notes that the word "early " means "...early in the day at morn,... and "is translated "in the morning" in Matt...20:1 (with hama, "early")...". -- Vine's does not say "early in the day at evening" (see #60-D listed under "Quotes" in the table of contents).

Jesus continues (verse 3): "And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace,..." -- Again, at about 9 o'clock in the morning Jesus declares that it is the "third hour". And just 3 hours earlier with the first glimmer of light a brand new day has begun at about sunrise and it is now "early in the day at morn" as "the time of day was necessarily reckoned from sunrise" . Not some 12 hours earlier at sunset.

As the day moves along in this parable, Jesus speaks of the sixth and the ninth hours (verse 5). And then in verse 6 He says, "And about the eleventh hour (my note: about 5 o'clock) he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle?" -- Note: This is the 11th hour (not the 23rd) and Jesus says why do you stand here "all the day". He does not say "why stand ye here half of the day" or "early in the day" etc. He says "all the day". Why? Because it was almost "The last hour: for the day was twelve hours long, and the first hour began at sunrise." (Geneva Bible Translation Notes: on Matthew 20:6).

Mark (15:25) agrees with Jesus (Matthew 20:3) and Peter (Acts 2:15) that the "third hour" of the day was just 3 hours from dawn as he states in 15:1, "And straightway in the morning the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council, and bound Jesus, and carried him away, and delivered him to Pilate." -- The word "morning" is the same word that Matthew uses in our Lord's parable (Matthew 20:1) and means "early in the day at morn" or as Strong's Concordance indicates "at dawn". Mark uses this very same word once again in chapter 16:2: "And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchreat the rising of the sun." 9 A.M. minus 3 hours = 6 A.M (Sunrise) or more precisely "dawn". Mark says "at the rising of the sun". Albert Barne's commenting on Mark 16:1-2 says it was, "... very early in the morning, at the rising of the sun” - that is, not that the sun “was risen,” but that it was about to rise, or at the early break of day. "

Finally, 'Smith's Bible Dictionary' says this about the word "Hour":

"the natural hour, that is, The 12th part of the natural day, or of thetime between sunrise and sunset

These are the hours meant in the New Testament, John 11:9; etc., and it must be remembered that they perpetually vary in length, so as to be very different at different times of he year. For the purpose of prayer the old division of the day into four portions was continued in the Temple service. As we see fromAct 2:15; Act 3:1; Act 10:9.."

I am not aware of any Sabbath observing Christian group that believes the 3 days and 3 nights of Matthew 12:40 exceeds 72 hours in length. Even if such a group exists, the fact is that the vast majority of Sabbath observing Christians agree that none of the 3 days mentioned in Matthew 12:40 (New Testament) - (or Jonah 1:17 Old Testament) exceeds 12 hours in length. While majority does not always equal truth, it should be noted that most of these people strongly believe in 24 hour days. Many Christians who clearly see no more than 12 hours in a day in both Testaments in this case, lose sight of this fact elsewhere ("And God called the light day...", O.T..."Jesus answered, are there not twelve hours in the day?...", N.T.) simply because the sunset to sunset doctrine continues to be a powerful tradition. This tradition persuaded me to be loyal to my notions about God's teaching regarding the day instead of being loyal to God's teaching. The simple fact is that once my loyalties changed through prayer and study, the evidence that new days are ushered in at dawn and are 12 hours long was overwhelming.

**Below you will find some additional notes on Acts 2:15 by several well known Bible commentators:

(1) "The third hour of the day - The Jews divided their day into twelve equal parts, reckoning from sunrise to sunset. Of course the hours were longer in summer than in winter. The third hour would correspond to our nine o’clock in the morning. (Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible).

(2) "But the third hour of the day - That is, about nine o’clock in the morning" (Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible).

(3) "but the third hour--nine A.M." (Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary).

(4) "It is but the third hour of the day - That is, nine in the morning" (John Wesley's Explanatory Notes).

FOR NOTES CLICK HERE

QUOTES

(1) "During the first 10 years of their history Adventists generally observed the Sabbath from 6 p.m. Friday to 6 p.m. Saturday, although some kept it from SUNRISE to sunrise." (The Time of The Crucifixion and the Resurrection, Chapter 6).

(2) Following are some of the key words that I believe will be helpful to you should you decide to do your own study on this subject: "Day", "Time", "Hour", "Sabbath", "Calendar", "Judaism", "Light", "Night", "Clock", "Natural Day" and "Civil Day".

(3) The "Abingdon Bible Commentary" states the following under the word "Time": "The word "hour" does not occur in the O.T., except in the Aramaic section of Daniel, but the division of the NIGHT into three watches, the beginning, middle, and last (also called morning watch), and DAY into MORNING, NOONDAY, and EVENING....The interval "between the two evenings" (Ex. 12:6, 30:8, Num. 9:3 R.V., mg.) refers to the time between sunset and darkness, also called "the cool of the day" (Gen. 3:8) in contrast with "the heat of the day" or high noon (Gen. 18:1)." (Notice the same pattern over and over again. The Day begins with Morning and Evening is near the end of the Day, and it is NOT the beginning of a New Day).

(4) Although this well known author and respected advocate for the Sabbath observes a Friday sunset to Saturday sunset Sabbath, he writes: "...NUMEROUS SCHOLARS have argued for the existence in Bible times of a SUNRISE METHOD OF DAY RECKONING...the evidence for the SUNRISE RECKONING IS SIGNIFICANT AND CANNOT BE IGNORED..." (The Time of The Crucifixion and The Resurrection, Chapter 5). This author believes that both sunset and sunrise methods were used in Biblical times.

(5) "...In EARLIER TRADITIONS a DAY apparently began at SUNRISE (E.G., Lev. 7:15-17; Judg. 19:4-19)..." I used the first part of this quote earlier. What I did not use follows: "...LATER its beginning was at SUNSET and its end at the FOLLOWING SUNSET...This system BECAME NORMATIVE... and is still observed in JEWISH TRADITION, where for example , the Sabbath begins on Friday evening at Sunset and ends Saturday at Sunset..." (Oxford Companion To The Bible, p. 744).

(6) "From a very early period the time of reckoning the day was from sunset to sunset, and this BECAME THE JEWISH METHOD..." (Unger's Bible Dictionary, "Day", p. 1098). (Note: This quote and the previous quote informs us that the sunset to sunset method "LATER" "BECAME" "NORMATIVE" or "THE JEWISH METHOD"----NOT THAT IT WAS THE METHOD USED FROM THE BEGINNING.

(7) "It is a fact, though one perhaps not generally realized, that the twelve divisions on the dials of our clocks and watches have a BABYLONIAN, and ultimately a Sumerian ancestry. For why is it we divide the day into twenty-four hours? We have a decimal system of reckoning, we count by tens; why then should we divide the day and night into twelve hours each, instead of into ten or some multiple of ten? The reason is that the BABYLONIANS divided the day into TWELVE DOUBLE-HOURS; and the Greeks took over their ancient system of time-division along with their knowledge of astronomy and passed it on to US. So if WE OURSELVES, after more than two thousand years, are making use of an OLD CUSTOM FROM BABYLON, it would not be surprising if the HEBREWS, a contemporary race, should have fallen under her influence even before they were carried away as captives and settled forcibly upon her river-banks." (Legends of Babylon and Egypt in Relation To Hebrew Tradition, By Leonard W. King, Assistant Keeper of Egyptian and Assyrian Antiquities in the British Museum, Professor in the University of London King's College. From a 1916 lecture).

(8) In a very early post Biblical writing attributed to Clement of Rome (a.d. 30-100), who is generally thought to be the Clement mentioned by the Apostle Paul in Philippians 4:3, we read: "The heavens swaying peacefully under HIS direction are subject unto Him. DAY and NIGHT fulfil THEIR ORDERED COURSE, in no wise hindering one another. SUN and MOON, and starry choir, in accordance with His command, roll harmoniously along THEIR FIXED ORBITS WITHOUT ANY DEVIATION..." (A Literary History of Early Christianity, p. 38--By Charles Thomas Crutwell, M.A., Vol. 1, AMS Press, New York). ---I found it interesting that Clement said the "ORDERED COURSE" was "DAY and NIGHT" and "SUN and MOON". He separates Day and Night just as Paul does. He does not indicate that Day and Night together equal a 24 hour day. Just an interesting thought.

(9) Commenting on Genesis 1:5 This Author writes: "...To the Light He gives the name Day, to the Darkness the name Night...Thus the work of the first day, reckoned probably FROM MORNING to morning, is accomplished. The period of Light is FOLLOWED by Evening and Darkness, which comes to an end with the NEXT MORNING WHEN THE SECOND DAY BEGINS..." (Peake's Commentary on The Bible, p. 136).

(10) "Sabbath day may be used of the DAY FOLLOWED BY THE NIGHT, according to a possible understanding of the language. The JEWS originally counted from Evening to Evening, but this CUSTOM DID NOT PREVAIL UNIVERSALLY. Jonah (1:17) and Matthew (12:40) speak of three Days and three Nights, Following Day by the Night...". (Harmony of The Gospels, p. 289).

(11) "The Hebrew language had no word for HOUR and those who spoke and wrote it no idea whatever of such a period of time...In place of hours, which meant nothing to him, the ancient Hebrew often lived and thought in terms of SEASONS...he cried unto God in the NIGHT SEASON. In the first chapter of Genesis God has seemingly himself determined this division of time, for He has placed the sun and the moon in the firmament of heaven "to Divide the Day from the Night"...When Hebrew writers refer to the ONLY TIMES OF DAY RECOGNIZED BY THEM, they do so in terms of the NATURAL divisions of MORNING, NOON and EVENING, times which, of course, varied in length depending upon the actual seasons of the year..." (Life and Language in the Old Testament, p. 33,36,37). (Notice the same Natural pattern over and over again).

(12) "There was a SACRED year, and a CIVIL year. The SACRED year began in the SPRING. The CIVIL year began in the FALL (My note: not Biblical). The 7th Sacred month was the 1st Civil month...The NATURAL DAY was from SUNRISE to sunset...The CIVIL DAY (my note: not Biblical) was from Sunset to Sunset..." (Halley's Bible Handbook, p. 148).

(13) "(1) Argument from primary meaning. The preponderant usage of the word Yom ("day") in the Old Testament is of a NORMAL DAY as experienced regularly by man (though it may be LIMITED to the HOURS OF LIGHT, as per COMMON UNDERSTANDING). The word occurs 1704 times in the Old Testament, the overwhelming majority of which have to do with the normal cycle of DAILY earth time..." (Reformed Theology and Six-Day Creation).

(14) "We know little about the old Israelite calendar, apart from the laws of the festivals. But the Mishnah (the collection of Jewish law made at the end of the 2nd century AD) fully describes the system which the Jews had worked out under BABYLONIAN INFLUENCE...Basically, all calendars are determined by the sun, moon and stars. The SUN gives us the BASIC UNIT OF THE DAY..." (Eerdman's Handbook to the Bible).

(15) "Although certain peoples of antiquity MADE the CIVIL DAY begin either in the morning, at midday, or at midnight, others (Athenians, Germani, nomads, etc.) and the Israelites in particular, counted THEIR day from one sunset to the other...This practice was perpetuated throughout the ages among the Jews...But it is clear that the Israelites also understood by "Day" the time during which the EARTH WAS LIT UP: the NATURAL DAY, that of ordinary life, in CONTRAST to NIGHT..." (A Dictionary of Life in Bible Times, p. 95). (Note: How many times have we been told that the NATURAL DAY according to the Bible begins at Sunset?).

(16) "Before the EXILE the Hebrews divided the day into MORNING, NOON, and EVENING...they also described it in terms of four periods: SUNRISE (Gen.19:15, "when MORNING DAWNED" (cf. Luke 24:1; 19:23, "when the Sun had Risen"; 32:31, "the Sun Rose" (cf. Mark 16:1), the heat of the DAY (Gen. 18:1; 1 Sam.11:11), the cool of the Day (Gen. 3:8), and Sunset (Gen. 15:12, 17; Judg. 19:8, ("until the DAY DECLINES"). (The Eerdman's Bible Dictionary, p. 266).

(17) "The CIVIL DAY was the smallest definite measure of time known to the Hebrews of Old Testament TIMES. It began at sunset and ended the following sunset...The NIGHT was divided into three "watches" (a term which is used in Ps. 119:148). These were known as the first watch, the middle watch, and the morning watch...The DAY in ANCIENT times was similarly divided into THREE PARTS, MORNING, NOONTIDE or "the heat of the day", and EVENING or "the cool of the DAY" (my note: tail end). There are MANY references to events happening "in the Morning", a period which covered from DAWN up to about ten o'clock. The Sun's heat at noon can be extremely fierce, which is why the messengers coming from Yahweh to tell Abraham that he would have a son found him sitting in the shelter of "the tent door in the heat of the day" (Gen. 18:1). By EVENING the Sun's heat has decreased to a pleasurable level, and so it was that the Lord God is described as walking in the Garden of Eden "in the COOL of the DAY" (Gen. 3:8). (The Bible Companion, p. 311).

(18) Speaking of the word "LIGHT" in the first Chapter of Genesis, Vine's states, "to become Light, become Lighted up (of DAYBREAK), give Light, cause Light to shine..."And God said, Let there be light: and there was light" (Gen. 1:3). Here "Light" is the OPPOSITE OF "DARKNESS". (Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words, p. 136).

(19) "The Day divided into 24 hours of 60 minutes of 60 seconds, was the Gift of the sexagesimal system (later combined with a decimal system) of the Ancient Sumerians...In the Biblical period MOST Near Easterners BEGAN THEIR DAY WITH SUNRISE and ended it with sunset..." (Harpers Bible Dictionary, p. 761).

(20) The following is found under the word "TIME" in "The Encyclopedic Dictionary of the Bible, p. 2454-2455:

"...While the Western concept of time is quantitative, in the Biblical concept of time the qualitative element predominates. The Israelites, like the Greeks, determined the passage of time with the help of the sun and the moon, but, whereas the Greeks stressed the uniform movement of what they called "the heavenly bodies," the Israelites were primarily concerned with the LIGHT which came from these heavenly "luminaries" or "lamps" as they called them (Gen. 1:14; Ps. 136:7). This shows that for the Israelites time was something that could be PERCEIVED WITH THE SENSES, while for the Greeks it was something that was DEDUCED MATHEMATICALLY. This Biblical notion of time, as something concretely perceptible, finds expression, not only in the identification of DAY WITH LIGHT, and of NIGHT WITH DARKNESS (Gen. 1:5), but also in such phrases for certain points of time as, "the heat of the day" (Gen. 18:1; 1 Sam. 11:9; 2 Sam. 4:5; Neh. 7:3) for "midday,"..."

(21) "In Israel, the DAY was for a LONG TIME RECKONED FROM MORNING to morning...and it was in fact in the Morning, with the CREATION OF LIGHT, that the world began; the DISTINCTION of Day and Night, and time too, BEGAN ON A MORNING (Gn. 1:3-5, cf. 14:16, 18). The opposite conclusion has been drawn from the refrain which punctuates the story of Creation: 'there was an evening and there was a morning, the first, second, etc., day'; this phrase, however, coming After the description of each creative work (WHICH CLEARLY HAPPENS DURING THE PERIOD OF LIGHT), indicates rather the vacant time till the MORNING, the end of a day and the BEGINNING OF THE NEXT WORK..." This author stresses the fact that originally Days began in the Morning and provides verses that show this and also show the difference between Day and Night: "...Thus in the story of the daughters of Lot: 'The NEXT DAY the elder said of the younger, LAST NIGHT I slept with my father; let us make him drink wine again TO-NIGHT (Gn. 19:34). In the story of the Levite of Ephraim: he stays THREE DAYS with his father-in-law and Stops the NIGHT there. The fourth DAY, he WAKES and wants to depart. He is detained and again Stops the NIGHT. The fifth DAY, the father-in-law says to him: 'Behold, the DAY is FAR ADVANCED TOWARDS EVENING. Spend the NIGHT here again...TO-MORROW, EARLY IN THE MORNING, you will depart...' (Jg. 19:4-9). Saul's henchmen arrive at NIGHT to take David by surprise, and Mikal says to him: 'If you do not escape TO-NIGHT, TO-MORROW you are a dead man' (1 Sam. 19:11). In the house of the witch of Endor, Samuel appears to Saul during the NIGHT and says to him: 'TO-MORROW, you and your sons will be with me' (1 Sam. 28:19). Although this author places emphasis on the fact that when day is mentioned before night a Morning reckoning is indicated and when Night is mentioned before day, an evening reckoning is indicated, he still believes that a day beginning at Evening came at a much Later period. Speaking of the Evening reckoning, he writes: "This method of reckoning is used in New Testament TIMES and under LATER JUDAISM for the SABBATH, the religious feasts and CIVIL LIFE.

The CHANGE OF RECKONING must there fore have taken place between the end of the monarchy and the age of Nehemias..." The Author concludes: "This would bring us to the beginning of the EXILE..." (Ancient Israel, p. 181 - 182).

(22) In March and April of 1999, Paul R. Finch, who believes the Biblical day runs from Sunrise to Sunrise, had some fascinating things to say on an internet forum. Mr. Finch is the author of the book "The Passover Papers". He addresses the Biblical day in his book. Although Mr. Finch believes in a sunrise to sunrise day, he certainly was open to the belief that the day was simply the period of Light, as he writes: "Strictly speaking, the Sabbath day was just that - the Sabbath day. It began at SUNRISE and ended at sunset. The idea that work was restricted for a 24 hour period MAY BE A LATER ASSUMPTION. For instance, it is stated by Rabbi Juda ben Bathyra: "(From the wording of the commandment, 'observe) the (Sabbath) day', it follows that it APPLIES TO THE DAY ONLY.Whence therefore (do we include) THE NIGHT? This is taught by (the additional phrase) 'to keep it holy.' Why does it say THE DAY?' Because the Day commands more respect than the Night" (Mechilta of Rabbi Simeon ben Yohai, xx, 8, ed. Epstein, (Jerusalem, 1955)..."

Here is some other very interesting information that Mr. Finch provided: "...It is also interesting that according to the Karaite historian Al-QirqisanI (ca. 975 CE), the dissident Meswi al-Okbari (ca.850 CE) broke from traditional Rabbinical Judaism in an attempt to get back to the original religion and began the RECKONING OF THE DAY FROM SUNRISE. In the 12th Century, Benjamin of Tudela (1160-1173 CE) wrote concerning those who held to the original teaching of days beginning at Sunrise: "There (in Cyprus) are to be found both Rabbinical and Karaite Jews. And there are as well Jewish-Cypriote sectaries, who hold the law in contempt and are excommunicated by Israel (ites) everywhere. And they PROFANE THE EVE OF THE SABBATH and observe the night preceding Sunday" (The Itinerary of R. Benjamin of Tudela, ix, 5-8, ed. Gruhut-Adler, (1904), p. 23). Rabbi Ibn Ezra (1093-1167) CE) must have been aware of these sectaries, for he writes: "Many faithless people have been led astray on account of this verse (Ex. 16:25) and have said that we are ordered to keep the SABBATH DAY and the Night following it. For Moses said 'for TODAY IS A SABBATH unto the Lord,' and NOT THE NIGHT BEFORE IT" (A Short commentary on Exodus, (Vienna, 1926)...The medieval Jewish commentator Rabbi Samuel ben Meir (1100-1160 CE) explained the following concerning this verse (my note: Gen. 1:5): "It does Not say that it was Night time and it was Day time which made one day; but it says "it was Evening," which means that the period of the DAY TIME CAME TO AN END AND THE LIGHT DISAPPEARED. And when it says "it was Morning," it means that the period of the NIGHT TIME CAME TO AN END AND THE MORNING DAWNED. Then one whole day was completed." (Samuel ben Meir, Pirush ha-Torah, ed. by D. Rosin (Breslau, 1881), p. 5)..."There can be NO DOUBT that in pre-exilic times the Israelites reckoned the day from MORNING to morning. The DAY BEGAN WITH THE DAWN and closed with the end of the night following it..." (Jacob Zallel Lauterbach, Rabbinic Essays, (Cincinnati: Hebrew Union College Press, 1951), p. 446)...."In the Old Testament the EARLIER PRACTICE seems to have been to consider that the DAY BEGAN IN THE MORNING. In Gen. 19:34, for example, the "morrow" (ASV) or "Next Day" (RSV) CLEARLY BEGINS WITH THE MORNING AFTER THE PRECEDING NIGHT" (Jack Finegan, The Handbook of Biblical Chronology, p. 7-8).

(23) Concerning Genesis 1:5 Thomas Aquinas wrote: "The reason for mentioning the evening first is that as the evening ends the DAY, WHICH BEGINS WITH THE LIGHT, the termination of the Light at evening precedes the termination of the Darkness, which ends with the Morning" ('Summa I,' p. 377). (Notice the wide variety of commentators who may Not agree on many points of doctrine, but do agree that the Biblical day begins at First Light in the Morning.)

(24) "The Jewish Day (My note: Comment on John 11:9), was from SUNRISE to sunset, and was divided into 12 Hours...The CIVIL day was reckoned from sunset to sunset, and hence Jewish Sabbaths and feasts began with the setting of the sun..." (The New Testament --Translated from the Latin Vulgate, p. 277, 746).

(25) Another author commenting on John 11:9, explains that while the Jews reckoned the day from evening to evening, "The word "Day" was, however, used in another sense also, as with us, to denote that portion of the twenty-four hours during which the SUN SHONE..." (Bible Manners and Customs, p. 429).

(26) "The Israelites' lack of precision in reckoning time seems to have extended even to the definition of a Day. The COMMON ONE was certainly the working day from DAWN to sunset, but PERHAPS even before the EXILE, a Day was THOUGHT of as extending from sunset to sunset, as it was in New Testament TIMES." (Everyday Life in Old Testament Times, p. 189).

(27) "The FIRST Biblical allusion to time is the Genesis account of God's SEPARATION of Light and Darkness (1:5), and His creation of "the GREATER LIGHT" (the Sun) to RULE THE DAY, and the "lesser light" (the moon) to RULE THE NIGHT, with "the stars also" (v v. 14-16)....Men became aware of SEASONS when they began to farm. "While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and DAY and NIGHT shall not cease." (Gen. 8:22). (Harper's Bible Dictionary, p. 759).

(28) "Light and Darkness are NATURAL phenomena, associated with DAY and NIGHT...Darkness in the OT.-- God acted at creation to SEPARATE (make a distinction between) Darkness and Light, NIGHT and DAY (Ge. 1:4, 5, 18). In the OT, Darkness is theologically associated with a number of different things.

a. Judgment and distress. Ex. 10:21 portrays the plague of Darkness falling on the terrified Egyptians. Images of Darkness are associated with God's displeasure (e.g., 1 Sa. 2:9, Ps. 91:6). Darkness is especially associated with the Great Tribulation, the time of world judgment to come at history's end (Joel 2:2, 31; Am. 4:13; 5:18, 20; Zep. 1:15)...Light in the OT.-- God set the Sun in the sky to "give LIGHT on the earth" (Ge. 1:15). He accompanied Israel through the wilderness in a fiery pillar "to give them light" (13:21). These historic acts provide images that are picked up and expanded by the psalmists. God is called "my Light and my salvation" (Ps. 27:1). It is only in relationship with the Lord that one's life is illumined, for 'in (his) Light we see Light" (Ps. 36:9). Light is linked with divine revelation (Ps. 43:3; 119:130), with life (Ps. 49:19; 56:13), with salvation (Ps. 27:1), and with God's presence (Ps. 89:15; 90:8). God's people are called to "walk in the Light of the Lord..." (Isa. 2:5). (Expository Dictionary of Bible Words, p. 413). Light and Darkness are always different, whether the words are used literally or figuratively (Under the above heading 'Scriptures' see # (7).)

(29) The word "NIGHT" as found in Genesis 1:5 (Strongs 3915) is defined as:

leyl {lale} also laylah {lah'- yel-aw}

Hebrew: noun masculine

Possible Definitions:

1) night

1a) NIGHT (AS OPPOSED TO DAY) (My note: Night is Not defined as a 24 hour period)

1b) of gloom, protective shadow (figurative)

(30) The word "DARKNESS" as found in Genesis 1:5 (Strongs 2822) is defined as:

choshek {kho-shek'}

Hebrew: noun masculine

Possible Definitions:

1) darkness, obscurity (my note: Darkness is Not defined as a 24 hour period)

1a) darkness

1b) secret place .

(31) The word "DAY" as found in Genesis 1:5 (3117) is defined as:

yowm {yome}

Hebrew: noun masculine

Possible Definitions:

1) day, time, year

1a) DAY (AS OPPOSED TO NIGHT) (my note: Biblical)

1b) day (24 hour period)

1) AS DEFINED BY EVENING AND MORNING (my note: Not Biblical: Day and Night = 24 hours.

(God considers Evening and Morning part of the

Day (Light). This is the power of human

tradition).

2) as a division of time

a) a working day, a day's journey

1c) days, lifetime (plural)

1d) time, period (general)

1e) year

1f) temporal references

1) today

2) yesterday

3) tomorrow

Note on the word "Day"-- (from an unused root meaning to be hot;) (See number (18) above).

(32) "The hours of daylight were divided into twelve, and this division was more generally used, as is shown by Jesus' observation "Are there not TWELVE HOURS IN THE DAY? (John 11:9)...The first three of these periods are referred to by Jesus in his story of the labourers in the vineyard (Matt. 20:1-16); the reference to "the eleventh hour" in verses 6 and 9 does not mean sixty minutes before the twelfth hour, but a moment which was nearer to 6 p.m. than to 3 p.m. It is clear also from this that the labourers' working day covered the WHOLE PERIOD OF DAYLIGHT, for they began work "early in the Morning" and finished "when Even was come" (verses 1 and 8). (The Bible Companion, p. 311-312). Commenting on verse 8 of this same parable, another author writes: "Jewish law mandated that laborers be PAID THE SAME DAY, because the wages were often little more than sufficient for a Day's needs (Deut. 24:14-15)". (The IVP Bible Background Commentary - New Testament, p. 99). Notice in verse 8, when "EVEN WAS COME", the "Labourers" were called and PAID IN THE EVENING (LIGHT). So EVENING was still a part the SAME 12 HOUR DAY that began "Early in the Morning" as pointed out by 'The Bible Companion', and confirmed by 'The IVP Bible Background Commentary', when they state that the laborers had to be "PAID THE SAME DAY". This author also states that the "work began around Sunrise", and "the time of day was necessarily reckoned from Sunrise". (p. 98-99). The 'New Bible Dictionary' adds the following information concerning the hours of the day: "All three are mentioned in the parable of the labourers in the vineyard (Mt. 20:3,5), as also the ELEVENTH HOUR (v v. 6, 9), which has become proverbial for THE LAST OPPORTUNITY." (P. 496).

(33) "God commanded the light to shine out of darkness,"...It says then that "God called the Light Day" (thus PLAINLY DEFINING what is meant by the word "Day" when it is used in this chapter). This ended the work of the first day; "Evening" came, then a period of Darkness and then "Morning," when ANOTHER DAY BEGAN..." Speaking of the word "Day" this author continues; "...that is as the PERIOD OF LIGHT experienced diurnally as the earth rotates on its axis each 24 hours. It is so defined in verse 5, the FIRST TIME IT IS USED, where we are told that "God called the Light Day." (The Beginning of The World, p. 24-25).

(34) The following examples are from writers who believe that the Sabbath day and day in general begin at sunset and end on the following sunset. As they attempt to bring their readers to this conclusion, they say some very interesting things. And because of the power of tradition, they may not even realize what they just said; "And God divided the Light from the Darkness." When the Light shone upon one side of the Earth, then the terrestrial ball itself, being opaque, intercepted the luminous rays, so that the opposite side of the globe was in Darkness. This Darkness was due to Lack of Illumination...While the Sun appears to set, and Nightfall takes place, along that dividing line on one side of the Earth, on the other side of the globe the Sun appears to Rise, and DAYBREAK occurs, along that dividing line..."And God called the LIGHT DAY, and the Darkness He called NIGHT." This is the FIRST USE OF THE TERM "DAY" in the Bible, and its meaning corresponds exactly to the FIRST dictionary definition we have given, signifying "the TIME OF LIGHT, or the interval between one Night and the Next; the time between Sunrise and Sunset." (The Lord's Day on a Round World, p. 34-35).

"...Another false idea is that we only celebrate the holy time during the daylight, from Sunrise to Sunset...The words used are inspired by the Holy Spirit. How has YHWH used them?...The word "Light" is (216) "owr" meaning LUMINARY OR ILLUMINATION IN EVERY SENSE. It means "Bright, Clear, Day, MORNING, SUN." The root is (215) "owr" meaning to be or to make Luminous, enlighten, Give Light" and can even mean the "BREAK OF DAY."...The word "Day" is (3117) "yowm" or "yom" from an unused root meaning to be HOT, referring to the WARM HOURS. "The primary signification appears to...be that of the HEAT OF THE DAY...OPPOSITE TO NIGHT." It usually refers, depending on context, to BROAD DAYLIGHT IN CONTRAST TO NIGHT OR DARKNESS...The word "Morning" is (1242) "boqer" meaning "DAWN" as the BREAK OF DAY or DAYBREAK..." (When to Observe The Sabbath--Light of Truth Magazine, May 1995 issue, p. 19-20).

This last example is a poem written by a 19th century Seventh-day Baptist (I can only assume that he believed in a Sunset to Sunset day. If he did Not, this poem becomes even more interesting. (See number (1) above under quotes).

The Sabbath on a Round World (by William Stillman):

And now to trace you round this rolling world,

An eastern and a western route you've twirled.

And made out nothing by the spacious travel.

But what I call a wretched, foolish cavil.

And now to make you clearly understand

That Sabbath day may be in every land,

At least those parts where mortal men reside

(And nowhere else can precepts be applied).

There was a place where first the orb of light

Appeared to rise, and westward took its flight;

That moment, in that place the day began,

And as he in his circuit westward ran,

Or rather, as the Earth did eastward spin,

To parts more westward daylight did begin.

And thus at different times, from place to place,

The day began--this clearly was the case.

And I should think a man be a dunce

To think that day began all round at once,

So that in foreign lands it doth appear,

There was a first day there as well as here.

And if there was a first, the Earth around,

As sure as fates the Seventh can be found.

And thus you see it matters not a whit,

On which meridian of Earth we get,

Since each distinctly had its dawn of light,

And ever since, successive day and night;

Thus while our antipodes in darkness sleep,

We here the true, primeval Sabbath keep. (The Lord's Day on A Round World, p. 6)

(35) With all of the above in mind, let us look at a scripture that should make more sense than it ever has before. Some people have argued that Nehemiah 13:19 is proof that the Sabbath begins at Sunset on Friday. Following is one of many examples that you may find:

"This explains why the Sabbath is described in these words, "It shall be unto you a sabbath of rest, ...from even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath." Leviticus 23:32. But when does the evening begin according to the Bible? "And at even, when the sun did set, they brought unto him all that were diseased, and them that were possessed with devils." Mark 1:32. Since the Pharisees taught that it was wrong to heal on the Sabbath, the people waited till the Sabbath (Mark 1:21) was over before bringing their sick to Jesus. So they brought them "at even, when the sun did set."

In Nehemiah 13:19 we are given another description of the beginning of Sabbath. This definitely places the first moments of the Sabbath at sunset, when it is beginning to be dark. This tells us therefore, that the Sabbath begins on Friday evening when the sun goes down."

Does Nehemiah 13:19 really tell us that the Sabbath begins "on Friday Evening when the sun goes down"? What does the verse say?

"And it came to pass, that when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark BEFORE the sabbath, I commanded that the gates should be shut, and charged that they should not be opened till after the sabbath: and some of my servants set I at the gates, that there should no burden be brought in on the sabbath day."

The important thing to notice in this verse is that the Gates BEGAN TO BE DARK BEFORE THE SABBATH. In fact the Sabbath day never begins in this verse. If the Sabbath begins at Sunset, how is it that this period of time between Sunset and Dark is said to be BEFORE THE SABBATH. The answer is simple. The Sabbath does NOT Begin on Friday at Sunset. It Begins at Dawn on Saturday Morning. Translation after Translation places the period of time in this verse between Sunset and Dark and BEFORE THE SABBATH:

"...the gates of Jerusalem BEGAN TO BE DARK BEFORE THE SABBATH..." (The American Standard Version).

"...the gates of Jerusalem HAVE BEEN DARK BEFORE THE SABBATH..." (Young's Literal Translation).

"...it BEGAN TO BE DARK in the gates of Jerusalem BEFORE THE SABBATH..." (Darby Translation).

"...it BEGAN TO BE DARK at the gates of Jerusalem BEFORE THE SABBATH..." (Revised Standard Version).

"...I ordered that the doors be SHUT AT SUNSET BEFORE THE SABBATH..." (New Century Version).

"...the gates of Jerusalem BEGAN TO BE DARK BEFORE THE SABBATH..." (Webster's Bible Translation).

"...When EVENING SHADOWS FELL on the gates of Jerusalem BEFORE THE SABBATH..." (New International Version).

"...the gates of Yerushalayim BEGAN TO BE DARK BEFORE THE SHABBAT..." (Hebrew Names Version of World English Bible).

"...the gates of Jerusalem BEGAN TO BE DARK BEFORE THE SABBATH..." (Third Millennium Bible).

"...the gates of Jerusalem, as it BEGAN TO BE DARK BEFORE THE SABBATH..." (New King James Version).

"...just as it GREW DARK at the gates if Jerusalem BEFORE THE SABBATH..." (New American Standard Bible).

"...the gates of the city should be shut as DARKNESS FELL EVERY FRIDAY EVENING (Note: Hebrew on the DAY BEFORE THE SABBATH)..." (The New Living Translation).

(36) Although the author of an article (p. 16 -17) in the December 1958 issue of 'The Plain Truth ' magazine states that a natural day is 24 hours in length, he writes: "Another Bible meaning of the word day as a 12-hour period is also in common usage today. When it speaks of the three days and three nights Jonah was in the great fish's belly or the three days and three nights Christ was in His grave, the word day refers to the DAYLIGHT PART OF THE 24-HOUR PERIOD. This "day" is by CHRIST'S OWN DEFINITION 12 HOURS. "Are there not 12 hours in the day?" John 11:9". It is very important to note that the author confirms the fact that the "three days" mentioned above have the identical meaning in both the Old and New Testaments, which is the "DAYLIGHT PART OF THE 24-HOUR PERIOD". This is the Biblical (natural) day mentioned all throughout the scriptures.

(37) In the April 1963 issue of 'The Good News' magazine we are told that when Israel came under the control of the Egyptians they began to follow many of their customs. The author writes, "The Egyptian day customarily commenced with sunrise (Wilkinson, Vol. II, p. 368). God's day however, begins at sunset (Lev. 23:32)...While the Egyptians allowed the Jews to retain their ancient calendar, there was a change made in the beginning of the day---it became common to begin the day at SUNRISE. This custom (my note: God's) was adopted, and PERSISTED AMONG THE JEWS EVEN DOWN TO NEW TESTAMENT TIMES (see The Jewish Quarterly Review, April 1946). We (God's ministry) have personal information from the Hebrew Union College admitting this fact..." (p.11-12). Earlier in this article the author says the Egyptians "...imposed their philosophies and religious beliefs upon the Jews in profusion. Dr. Lauterbach, one of Judaism's greatest historians, admits that this period was one of religious anarchy among the Jews of Palestine (Rabbinic Essays, p.200)." Interestingly, Dr. Lauterbach states in his book, mentioned above (Rabbinic Essays), that beginning the day at sunrise was the earlier mode of reckoning the day in the Bible (Read this under the heading --'The Day of Atonement---Sifting through the Traditions'-- above). He also states in this same book: "There can be no doubt that in pre-exilic times the Israelites reckoned the day from morning to morning. The day began with the DAWN...in regard to the Day of Atonement, where the Law wishes to make the fasting on it stricter than on any other fast day so as to include also the preceding night, the Law specifically states that it should begin with part of the preceding day and therefore expressly says: "And ye shall afflict your souls in the ninth day of the month at even, from even to even shall ye keep your Sabbath." This indirectly but unmistakably points to a mode of reckoning the day from morning to morning. In post-exilic times, however, probably not later than the beginning of the Greek period, a change in the system of reckoning the day was made, and the day was reckoned as extending from the preceding to the following evening. As might be expected, such a radical innovation was not immediately generally accepted. It took some time before it entirely supplanted the older system." (p. 437 - 470).

A fascinating point that the author of 'the Good News' magazine article makes, is that many Jews have been reckoning their day as beginning at Sunrise from the time they were under Egyptian control and that this custom has persisted among them "EVEN DOWN TO NEW TESTAMENT TIMES".

(38) Speaking of Genesis 1:5, this author writes, "The evening and the morning were the first day" has given the impression of a day consisting of two parts, the first described as evening the second as morning" The author says that "morning" is better translated as "...DAYBREAK, not a period of morning, and the translation is corrected in the R.V. The literal Hebrew runs: "There was evening and there was DAYBREAK one day...Another O.T. passage often referred to is Lev. 23:32 "From evening unto evening shall ye keep your Sabbath", it is sometimes IGNORED that this has NOTHING TO DO WITH THE WEEKLY SABBATH, but is concerned with the VERY SPECIAL ceremonies and restrictions of the GREAT DAY OF ATONEMENT, Tisri 9-10. If it is lightly said, "no doubt the weekly Sabbath followed the same rule, " it must be remembered that the weekly Sabbath was a joyful festival, while the other was the most penitential occasion in the whole year - a day for a man to afflict his soul...So far the evidence, when NOT AMBIGUOUS, has turned out to be definitely in favor of a day beginning in the Morning..." (The Beginning of The Jewish Day, p. 393 - 401 --JQR).

(39) "In order to fix the beginning and ending of the Sabbath-day and festivals and to determine the precise hour for certain religious observances it becomes necessary to know the exact times of the rising and setting of the sun. According to the strict interpretation of the Mosaic law, every day begins with sunrise and ends with sunset...The Rabbis consider it doubtful whether twilight belongs to the day or to the night...consequently they treat it as a safeguard against encroachment upon either---for example, the twilight of Friday is reckoned as Sabbath eve, and that of Saturday as Sabbath day..." (Jewish Encyclopedia, p. 591-597).

(40) Definition -- "Day" --- "This common word has caused some trouble to plain readers, because they have not noticed that the word is used in several different senses in the English Bible, When different uses of the word are understood the difficulty of interpretation vanishes...It sometimes means the time from daylight till dark. This popular meaning is easily discovered by the context, e. g. Genesis 1:5, 8:22), etc." (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Found under the word "Day")

(41) "In early Jewish practice,...it seems to have been customary to reckon the day from sunrise to sunrise, or, rather, from dawn to dawn. Thus the law for the "praise-offering" (lev. 7:17 (pt) specifies that this sacrifice must be eaten on the day upon which it is offered, and that nothing may be left until morning. The repetition of the law in Lev. 22:30... is even more explicit: "On that very day (when it was sacrificed) it shall be eaten; ye shall not leave anything of it until morning. Clearly the next morning is here reckoned as belonging to the next day, and not the same day as the preceding evening and night. In other words, the day is reckoned here from sunrise to sunrise...Likewise in Exod. 16:19f...the manna was given to the people in the morning, just at dawn and before the sun had become warm (16:21). It was to be eaten only on the day upon which it was gathered; nothing was to remain over until the next morning; that which did so became foul. Here, too, the day seems to have been reckoned from dawn to dawn...From Matt. 28:1 It may be inferred that the practice of reckoning the day from sunset to sunset was not universal in Israel, but in certain circles the older practice continued for several centuries...It is manifest that the day is still reckoned here from dawn to dawn. This is also the implication of the parallel passage, Mark 16:1f...Luke 23:56b-24:1 seems to imply the same...Finally, it is significant that in the second Temple, throughout its entire existence, the practice seems to have been in all ritual matters to reckon the day from dawn to dawn, and not according to the later practice, from sunset to sunset...even the rabbis, who, themselves, reckoned the day from sunset to sunset, and refused to admit the legitimacy of any other practice, or rather, absolutely ignored all divergent practice, none the less had to admit the validity of the interpretation of Lev. 7:15...the day was at one time reckoned from sunrise to sunrise...The earlier practice, which continued until the time of the secondary strata of the Priestly code, was to reckon the day from dawn to dawn...The later practice was to reckon the day from sunset to sunset...It is impossible to tell exactly when this change in the mode of reckoning the day took place in Israel, and what causes brought it about. Possibly it may have had something to do with the introduction of the lunar calendar instead of the solar, for the lunar calendar naturally presupposes a reckoning of the day from nightfall to nightfall...It was probably coincident with the revision of the festival calendar, which took place in the period after the time of Ezra, and was, in all probability, the work of the soferim or of the Great Synod in the fourth century B.C. This may also be inferred from the statement in the Talmud (Berachoth 33a) that the men of the Great Synod instituted the ceremonies of Kiddush and Havdalah, the solemn sanctification of the Sabbath on Friday eve, and its equally solemn ushering out on Saturday eve, in other words, ceremonies specifically marking the beginning and close of the Sabbath as at sunset. These were ceremonies for the Jewish home instead of the Temple. This, coupled with the fact that in the second Temple the old system of reckoning the day from dawn to dawn continued to be observed, as we have seen, may perhaps indicate that this entire innovation was the work of an anti-priestly group or party in the Great Synod..." (The Sources of the Creation Story - Gen. 1:1- 2:4, p. 169-212).

(42) "A new stage in the investigation of the problem of the calendar of ancient Israel was marked by the appearance of a learned article by E. Koenig in 1906...He maintains that two distinct calendars were current in ancient Israel. The first, a solar calendar...This solar calendar was well adapted to the conditions of the simple, agricultural life which the Israelites lived during the first period of their sojourn in Palestine. It reckoned the day from sunrise...

The second calendar was a luni-solar year...The day now came quite naturally to be reckoned from sunset...This second calendar was obviously based upon Babylonian models and was adopted under direct Babylonian influence at about 600 B.C., when Babylonian religion and general culture began to affect with steadily increasing force the Jewish exiles in Babylonia and, through those of them who return from exile, the Jews who had remained in Palestine.

This broadly sums up Koenig's conclusions..

...(1) the time of the transition from the reckoning of the day as beginning with morning to the reckoning of it as beginning with evening...

...that in the earlier calendar and in the literature which records this the day was reckoned from the morning, presumably from sunrise, while in the later calendar and the literature pertaining thereto the day was reckoned from the evening...must be eaten upon the day upon which it is sacrificed, and that nothing of it must be allowed to remain over until morning. Obviously the implication here is that the next morning is no longer a part of the day upon which the sacrifice was offered, but mark the beginning of the next day...

...Elsewhere we have presented quite a mass of evidence which establishes conclusively that the earlier practice in Israel during the biblical period was to reckon the day from sunrise to sunrise...

...That in the earliest period of Israelite sojourn in Palestine, under calendar 1, the day was reckoned from morning to morning is established by a superabundance of evidence...

...This in turn, together with other important considerations, would point to a time approximately about the beginning or the first half, of the third century B.C. as that of the introduction of the new system of reckoning the day." (Supplementary Studies in The Calendars of Ancient Israel, p. 1 - 148).

(43) "The solar hour now in use, which remains stable throughout the year, is a relatively modern innovation. Until the 18th century an hour was usually taken as the 12th part of the period between sunrise and sunset or between sunset and sunrise and varied with the seasons. Hours are divided into 60 equal minutes..." (Funk & Wagnalls New Encyclopedia, Volume 13, p. 234).

(44) "This legendary story is a commentary on the verse in Exodus 12:2, "This reckoning of the month shall be unto you." It describes God divesting Himself of the hallowing of new moons and transferring power over to the Israelite people.

"This reckoning of the month shall be unto you" (Exodus 12:2). Rabbi Joshua ben Levi said, "How can this matter be illustrated? By the parable of a king who had a clock. When his son reached puberty, he said to him, 'My son, until now the clock has been in my keeping. From now on, I turn it over to you.' Similarly, the Holy one used to hallow new moons and calculate leap years. But when Israel arose, God said to them, 'Until now I was in charge of the hallowing of new moons and of the New Year's Day. From now on, I turn this decision-making over to you' " (Tanchuma, Bo 12).

"...It is written, and they shall serve as signs for the seasons and the days and the years (Genesis 1:14). This refers to determining the beginning of the Sabbath by the setting of the sun and calculating the proper dates for festivals, for Rosh Hodesh, and for the new year.

Rabbi Yuden says in the name of Rabbi Tanchum the son of Hiyya and Rabbi Pinchas the son of Rabbi Simon, "If at first both the sun and the moon were called 'great lights,' why is the moon referred afterward as 'the small light'?"

Because the moon trespassed on the domain of the sun, appearing in the evening sky before the sun had set, its light was diminished.

...The Holy One, Blessed be He, said, "I was the One who caused the moon to trespass on the domain of the sun, and thus, to be diminished."

If God diminished the moon for trespassing with His permission, certainly it is a grave infraction to trespass without permission.

Rabbi Levi said in the name of Rabbi Yosi the son of Ila'i: "In the way of the world the older one should count according to the greater sign, and the younger one according to the lesser sign. And indeed, the gentile nations, who are descended from Esau, the older son of Isaac, calculate their calendar according to the sun, while the Jewish people who are descended from Jacob, the younger son of Isaac, calculate their calendar according to the moon."

Rabbi Nachman said, "This bodes well for the Jewish people. The fortunes of Esau, who calculates by the sun, can be deduced from the sun. Just as the sun rules only by day, never by night, so too does Esau have a share only in this world, not in the world to come. The fortunes of Jacob, who calculates by the moon, can be deduced from the moon. Just as the moon rules both day and by night, so too does Israel have a share both in this world and in the world to come" (Genesis, Rabbah 6:1). (Sacred Seasons, A Sourcebook for the Jewish Holidays, p. 21-22, 26-27).

The following information found within number (45) below, deals with the "Dead Sea Scrolls" and the Jewish sect the "Essenes" of the Qumran Community:

(45) "A highly ordered society (my note: the Essenes / Dead Sea Scrolls) as indicated by the scrolls, the Qumran covenanters had a council of twelve members (one for each tribe of Israel) and three priests. They required candidates to endure a three-year probationary period, held property in common, dressed in white, practiced table fellowship, and believed in predestination. These practices, as well as their utilization of a solar calendar (in contrast to the lunar calendar of the Pharisees and Sadducees), ensured their distinction from those they considered corrupt...The covenanters, the "sons of light," would accompany the angels in battle. Their enemies, the "sons of darkness," would eventually fall..." (The Oxford History of the Biblical World, p. 489).

(A) 4QMMT (my note: a Dead Sea Scroll writing) "begins with a section about the correct calendar (almost certainly a 364-day solar year), as in 1 Enoch and Jubilees...The second set of legal texts are calendrical in nature...highlighting certain dates (especially for Sabbaths and festivals) and periods. The Qumran community accepted a solar calendar of 364 days by which the festivals were dated; they also accepted a 354-day lunar calendar and synchronized it with the solar arrangement. In this respect it agreed with the Astronomical Book of Enoch but not with Jubilees, which rejects a lunar calendar...

"...It would not be accurate to claim that the data from the sectarian scrolls and from ancient descriptions of the Essenes coincide perfectly. For example, Josephus never mentions that the Essenes had their own special solar calendar of 364-days, while it is attested in an entire series of texts from the Qumran..." (An Introduction to Early Judaism, p. 155-156, 162).

Note: The leader of the early digs at Qumran was French scholar and archeologist Roland de Vaux. He was then named chief editor of these Judean desert texts. de Vaux writes, "In Israel, the DAY was for a LONG TIME RECKONED FROM MORNING to morning...and it was in fact in the Morning, with the CREATION OF LIGHT, that the world began..." See # (21) above, where de Vaux supplies additional information on the Biblical day from his book "Ancient Israel".

(B) "The calendar that underlies the dated festivals is likely the 364-day solar arrangement familiar from Jubilees, 1 Enoch and other Qumran texts...The first Psalms scroll from cave 11 says that King David composed "52 songs for the Sabbath offerings" (27,7). Thus, he wrote one for each Sabbath in a solar year. Another document, which has been called "The Angelic Liturgy" or "Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice" (4QShirShabb), presents thirteen such poems, enough to cover one-fourth of a year. This text exists in eight copies from cave 4, one from cave 11, and one from Masada. The Sabbaths are dated in each case according to the 364-day calendar, which has been mentioned several times already..." (Dead Sea Scrolls Today, p. 59, 61, 214).

(C) Commenting on the Essenes in his book 'Sketches of Jewish Social Life,' Alfred Edersheim writes, "...They had community of goods; were bound to poverty, chastity, and obedience to their superiors...Their day began with sunrise, when they went to prayer..." (Chapter 15).

(D) The 'Jerusalem Post' of July 24, 1999, in an article titled "Keepers of The Scrolls" states, "...Unlike most Jews, the sectarians had a solar calendar of 364 days divided into 12 equal months each of 30 days...a lunar calendar was also used and ways were found to harmonize the two. Essential to all this was an instrument for determining the hours of the day as well as the seasons, and one such instrument, a stone sundial, is the most fascinating item among all the utensils and footwear on view...At Qumran, seasonal, not absolute, hours were employed. The length of an hour depended on the length of the day, which was divided into three watches, for a total of 12 hours...It appears that three marks equaled one seasonal hour, one-twelfth of daylight..."

The material found under number (46) below, addresses the writings found within "The Book of Jubilees", "The Book of Enoch" and other ancient works outside of the scriptures. These writings may help shed some light on the subject at hand and have been added for your information and consideration:

(46) "...Furthermore, the author protests vigorously against the change from the solar to a solar-lunar calendar...This proves that the Book of Jubilees was written at the time when the calendar was changed from solar to solar-lunar time, and some Jews opposed this innovation...and they will 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..." (The Book of Jubilees, p. 13-15)

(A) "...And command thou the children of Israel that they observe the years according to this reckoning - three hundred and sixty-four 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...For there will be those who will assuredly make observations of the moon - now (it) disturbeth the seasons and cometh in from year to year, ten days too soon...A lunar year consists of 354 days..." (The Book of Jubilees" or "The Little Genesis", p. 64-65).

(B) "Book of Enoch...Book 111, The Heavenly Luminaries (Chs. 72-82)...This astronomical treatise is concerned that time should be reckoned by the sun, not the moon...This insistence upon a solar year may have been in opposition to the Pharisaic use of the lunar calendar..." (The Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible, p. 104-105).

(47) "...The month had thirty days, which means, again, that the calendar of the Bible was a solar one. In a solar calendar, the day could not have started from the evening, according to the current practice in the Jewish calendar, but from sunrise; and that is the meaning of the verse, "there was evening and there was morning, the first day," that is to say, from sunrise to sunrise constituted one day...This opinion was already expressed by a famous Rabbi in the twelfth century, the Rashbam...the meaning is not that the Jews had started the day with the evening, but that the law had ordained they should fast on the tenth day of the month and on the ninth thereof, so that the fast consisted of two half-parts of two consecutive days..." (Some Stages of the Jewish Calendar, p. 183-193).

(48) The Jewish Encyclopedia under "Eve of Holidays" mentions Ibn Ezra's poem on the Sabbath , "...in which he decries the custom of a certain sect which began the Sabbath and festivals with sunrise..." (p. 276).

In Abraham E. Millgram's book 'Sabbath - The Day of Delight,' he introduces us to a Medieval writer named Abraham Ibn Ezra who writes in his 'Introduction to a Sabbath Epistle' about a man (himself) who is dreaming and another man who appears before him and hands the man (Ezra) who is dreaming a letter from the Sabbath. It starts out, "...I am the Sabbath, the crown of the law of the chosen ones, the fourth among the Ten words. And between the Lord and his sons I am the perpetual sign of the covenant for all generations...I have preserved thee at all times because thou hast observed me from the days of youth. But in thine old age an unwitting transgression has been found in thee, for they have brought into thy house books... In which it is written to profane the Sabbath eve, and how canst thou be silent and not swear vows...To compose letters in the way of truth and send them to all sides?...And the messenger of the Sabbath answered and spoke to me..."She has been told that thy pupils brought yesterday to thy house books of commentaries on the law, and there is it written to profane the Sabbath eve..." The one who is dreaming (Ezra) is told to "...wage the battle of the law with the enemies of the Sabbath..." When he awakens, he brings the "...books into the light of the moon and there was written an explanation of Gen. 1. "And the evening and the morning," namely, that when the morning of the second day came then one whole day had passed, for the night is reckoned as part of the preceding day. Then I almost rent my garments, . . . and I took an oath not to give sleep to mine eyes after the conclusion of the holy day till I had written a lengthy letter to explain when was the beginning of the day according to the Law, to remove every stumbling block and to clear away snare and pitfall..." (p. 232-234).

Following are the notes on the above 12th century writing: "Abraham Ibn Ezra visited Cyprus prior to his arrival in London. It was probably there that he met a Jewish sect which celebrated the Sabbath from Saturday morning to Sunday morning instead of from Friday sunset to Saturday eve. This experience, as well as the appearance of some books defending this heterodox practice, induced Ibn Ezra to write the Sabbath Epistle...The book was probably the commentary of Rabbi Samuel ben Meir (Rashbam) on the Pentateuch..." (p. 490). (See # (22) and (47) above where this Rabbi is mentioned).-- This is just one more example showing that this belief of the Biblical day beginning in the morning is not just some new idea dreamed up by Sabbath keeping Christians. It is in fact a belief that is many centuries old and was adhered to by various Jewish sects throughout history.

(49) "The first evening was not the gloom, which possibly preceded the full burst of light as it came forth from the primary darkness, and intervened between the darkness and full broad daylight. It was not till after the light had been created, and the separation of the light from the darkness had taken place, that evening came, and after the evening the morning...It follows from this, that the days of creation are not reckoned from evening to evening, but from morning to morning..." (Commentary on the Old Testament, The First Book of Moses, p. 51).

(50) "There is a beautiful little parable in Rom. xiii. (my note: Rom 13:12) when the apostle, picturing the close of the night season and the near approach of the daybreak, urges all to awake out of sleep, to cast off the works of darkness, the apparel belonging to the night, and to clothe themselves for the day in the armour of light..." (The Study of the Types, p. 108).

(51) In this note on Genesis 1:5 the author writes: "...When day-time had passed, the period allotted to darkness returned...and when night-time came to an end, the light held sway a second time...and this completed the first calendar day...which had begun with the creation of light..."

...An examination of the narrative passages of the Bible makes it evident that whenever clear reference is made to the relationship between a given day and the next, it is precisely sunrise that is accounted the beginning of the second day...So, too, in Lev. xxiii 32, with regard to the Day of Atonement,...thus the evening before the tenth is called the ninth of the month.

It will thus be seen that throughout the Bible there obtains only one system of computing time: the day is considered to begin in the morning; but in regard to the festivals and appointed times, the Torah ordains that they shall be observed also on the night preceding day. This point is explicitly emphasized whenever a certain precept has to be observed particularly at night, like the eating of unleavened bread on the night of Passover and fasting on the evening of the Day of Atonement. In the case of the Sabbath and the other festival days, however, there was no need to stress that work was prohibited on the night preceding (my note: That is because work was not prohibited on the night preceding the weekly Sabbath and festivals), since agricultural tasks...are performed only by day..." (A Commentary on the Book of Genesis, Part 1, p. 28-29).

(52) "The Hebrew word yohm, translated "day," can mean different lengths of time..." The author then admits: "Many consider the word "day" used in Genesis chapter 1 to mean 24 hours. However, in Genesis 1:5 God himself is said to divide day into a smaller period of time, calling just the light portion "day."..." (Life-- How Did it Get Here?, p. 26).

(53) "The fact that evening is placed before morning throughout this chapter is not a foolproof indication that the OT reckons a day from sunset to sunset. There is some evidence that strongly suggests that the day was considered to begin in the morning at sunrise. For example, this view is supported by the fact that when the OT refers to a second day the time reference is the morning (Gen. 19:33-34; Judg. 6:38; 21:4)...Thus it seems likely that this refrain in Genesis refers not to the computation of a day but rather to the "vacant time till the morning, the end of a day and the beginning of the next day." (The Book of Genesis - Chapter 1-17, p. 118-121).

(54) "According to the Bible, even before He created the earth God said, "Let there be light," and there was light, which He divided from the darkness. "And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night." To ancient peoples the day began at sunrise and ended at sunset...but as people began to plant seeds an raise crops it became necessary for them to predict the coming of spring, summer, autumn and winter...A better way had to be found.

Looking again to the heavens for an answer, man noticed that the phases of the moon never changed and that there were about twenty-nine suns between one full moon and the next. Why not use the moon to measure time?...

...The ancient Babylonians used the moon as the basis for a calendar..." (The Mystery of Time, p. 14-15).

(55) "...There is some evidence that at one time the day was reckoned from sunrise to sunrise. But before the close of the biblical period, it had become standard to reckon the day from sunset to sunset, and this has been Jewish practice ever since...

...The language of verses 5 and 6 (my note: Lev. chapter 23) suggests when this sacrifice was performed was considered part of the fourteenth day and that the fifteenth - the Matzah festival - did not begin until the next morning...

...Here again is a suggestion that the new day began at daybreak rather than sundown..." (The Torah - A Modern Commentary, p. 920-930).

(56) "...In Jamnia it was the duty of the Nassi to preach on every Sabbath...At the beginning of the second century we hear of sermons delivered on Friday night..." (The Observance of the Sabbath and the Festivals in the First Two Centuries of the Current Era According to Philo, Josephus, the New Testament, and the Rabbinic Sources, p. 433-532).

Note of interest: "With the exception of Simchat Torah, Jewish law and tradition oppose holding public Torah readings at night. Nonetheless, in Reform Practice the Torah is usually read on Friday nights, and some Conservative and Reconstructionist congregations do likewise...

Although neither the Talmud nor the codes discuss this question directly, it is likely that the Torah was not read at night owing to poor lighting conditions...

With the introduction of electricity, the problem no longer existed. Nevertheless, traditionalists insist that since the time to read the Torah had always been during daylight hours, no change in practice should be made." (This is the Torah, p. 128-129).

(57) "The determining of midnight is still of practical importance to many Catholics even though the Eucharistic fast no longer begins at midnight. There still remains Friday abstinence, which is computed from midnight to midnight...

The law (my note: Canon Law) defines the length of the various time units in common use. In the course of time these units have varied in length. Thus, day was once opposed to night and lasted about 12 hours. Now the day is made up of 24 hours reckoned continuously from midnight to midnight. Thus the day, as opposed to the other units, is indivisible." (The New Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. 14, p. 163).

(58) In the Jamieson, Fausset and Brown 'Commentary on the Whole Bible', the statement is made, that Moses in Genesis 1:5 "reckons according to Oriental usage, from sunset to sunset..." Just prior to saying this, the authors apparently unknowingly do allow the truth to come to the surface when they state: "But by the command of God, light was rendered visible; the thick murky clouds were dispersed, broken, or rarefied, and light diffused over the expanse of waters. The effect is described in the name "day," which in Hebrew signifies "warmth," "heat"; while the name "night" signifies a "rolling up," as night wraps all things in a shady mantle." (p. 17).

It should be very clear by now that Moses did not reckon days according to Jewish tradition. In fact, Moses gives us some of the very best examples of reckoning the start of day as beginning with the first light of morning throughout the first five books of the Bible. (Under the heading "Scriptures" above, go to # (10) and then to # (5) below and read from the translation 'The Five Books of Moses' for some examples).

(59) "The meaning of 'day'...A related problem is how to interpret the phrase 'evening and morning'. It is possible that we do not know what the writer meant. Among suggestions offered are the following: It refers to the Jewish system of reckoning the day from sunset to sunset, that is from evening via morning, to the next evening, or evening marks the completion of a period whose terminus a quo was the morning which dawned with the creation of light, while the 'morning' that follows marks the beginning of the new day and the end of the night section of the old day. these views suggest that the meaning is not clear." (New Bible Dictionary, p. 246-247).

"The precise order in which the phrase, "the evening and the morning appears...no more demonstrates that a new day commences with evening than the precise order of the phrase "the morning and the evening", demonstrates that a new day commences with morning." (When Does the Sabbath Begin? Morning or Evening? -- Appendix, "Does the Sabbath Begin at Nooon?-- 'Refutation of Argument #1').

We certainly should not stake out a position based on the words 'evening and morning' alone. The key as stated from the beginning of this effort is to search all of the scriptures with an open mind and if we do, a meaning much closer to the second view listed under # (59) above should become much clearer.

(60) The following definitions of New Testament words can be found in 'Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words':

(A) "Dawn...orthros..."daybreak," denotes "at early dawn," Luke 24:1 (RV), "early in the morning" (KJV), and John 8:2 (KJV and RV); in Acts 5:21, RV, "about daybreak," for KJV, "early in the morning." (p, 146).

(B) "Break of day" (my note: listed under "Day")...auge..."brightness, bright, shining, as of the sun"; hence, "the beginning of daylight," is translated "break of day" in Acts 20:11." (p, 147). (See "What About New Testament Commentators?" above).

(C) "Noon...mesembria...lit., "middle-day" (mesos, "middle," and hemera, "a day")...Acts 22:6..." (p, 434).

If a day began at sunset and was 24 hours long, "Noon" would not be the "middle-day". Early morning would be the middle of the day.

(D) "Time...'et...In its first biblical appearance for example, 'et represents the "time" (period of the day) when the sun is setting: "And the dove came in to him in the evening (Literally, time of the evening)..."(Gen. 8:11)..."

The dove comes in "Literally" at the "time of the evening". Vine's does not say that the dove came in Literally at the "end of the day" or the "beginning of a new day". It simply arrives "when the sun is setting", which is prior to the end of the day. The day ends with darkness. (Psalm 104:20).

(61) "When the light was removed by the appearance of darkness, it was evening (my note: night), and the coming of light brought morning, the completion of a day. The days therefore, are to be reckoned from morning to morning..." (Studies in Genesis One, p. 89).

(62) "When does the Sabbath begin?...

There is some diversity in the Christian world respecting the time, at which the Sabbath (my note: Sunday observer) begins. Some date it from sunset on Saturday till sunset on Sabbath (my note: Sunday). When asked for their authority, they refer to a phrase which occurs several times in the first chapter of Genesis: "And the evening and the morning were the first day." This has not been considered sufficient proof by the great mass of the Christian world. Nor ought it to be, as all the world knows that no day of creation began in the evening; but all of them began in the morning. That saying of Moses therefore only declares that the day was made up of two parts, the after part, and the fore part. Indeed the evidence in the New Testament seems to be clearly against this view...In the New Testament, the evening following, and not going before this first day of the week, is called the evening of the first day, John 20:19..." (The Law of God, as Contained in the Ten Commandments, Explained and Enforced, pp. 309-310).

The above information was written by a Southern Presbyterian minister in 1864 (Presbyterian Board Publication) to other Sunday observers who followed the sunset to sunset tradition. Many commentators who do not observe the Sabbath day, correctly understand that a Biblical day begins in the morning:

A seventeenth century Sunday Observer writes the following:

"Q. 7. Doth not the Scriptures require us to begin the Sabbath in the evening, when it is said, "The evening and the morning were the first day" (Gen. 1:5); and, "From even unto even shall ye celebrate your Sabbath?"— Lev. 33:32.

A. 1. It doth not follow that the evening of the first day was before the morning, though it be first spoken of; no more than that Shem and Ham were elder than Japheth, because they are reckoned up in order before him. "The sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth (Gen. 10:1); and yet Japheth is called the elder brother. — Verse 21. But Moses, reckoning up the works of God on the first day, retires back from the evening to the morning, and saith, they both make up the first day. Surely in the account of all nations, and in Scripture account too, the morning is before the evening. "The same day at evening, being the first day of the week, came Jesus,"... (John 20:10), where the evening following this day... is called the evening of the same day.2. That place in Leviticus, concerning the celebration of the Sabbath from evening to evening, hath a reference only unto a ceremonial Sabbath, or day of atonement, on the tenth day of the seventh month, wherein the Israelites were to afflict their souls; but it hath not a reference unto the weekly Sabbath.

Q. 8. How do you prove by the Scripture that the weekly Sabbath doth begin in the morning?

A. That the weekly Sabbath is to begin in the morning, is evident— 1. by Exod. 16:23: "This is that which the Lord hath said, to-morrow is the rest of the holy Sabbath unto the Lord." If the Sabbath had begun in the evening, Moses would have said, This evening doth begin the rest of the Sabbath; but he saith, To-morrow is the rest of the Sabbath.2. Most evidently it doth appear that the Sabbath doth begin in the morning, and not in the evening, by Matt. 28:1: "In the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn towards the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene, and the other Mary, to see the sepulchre."... the first day, which istheChristian Sabbath, did begin towards the dawning, as it grew on towards light, and not as it grew on towards darkness; therefore the Christian Sabbath doth begin in the morning."(The Shorter Catechism of the Westminster Assembly Explained and Proved from Scripture by Thomas Vincent, written (seventeenth century). ---Note: The above understanding is based on a Sunday Sabbath and 24 hour days--

(63) "The verse (my note: Gen. 1:5), however, presents not an addition of items but the conclusion of a progression...then the creation of light, the approval of light, the separation of day and night. Now with evening the divine activities ceased: They are works of light not works of darkness. The evening ('erebh), of course, merges into night, and the night terminates with morning. But by the time morning is reached, the first day is concluded, as the account says succinctly, 'the first day,' and everything is in readiness for the second day's task. For 'evening' marks the conclusion of the day, and morning marks the conclusion of the night. It is these conclusions, which terminate the preceding, that are to be made prominent." (Exposition of Genesis, Vol. 1 pp. 57-58).

(64) "Among the ancients the day was reckoned in a great variety of ways...'From dawn to dark'...was the ancient and ordinary meaning of a day among the Israelites; night, as being the time ' when no man can work ' (Jn. 9:4)....

...The Israelites regarded the morning as the beginning of the day; in the evening the day declined 'or' went down,' and until the new day ('morning')...it was necessary to 'tarry all night' (cp Judg. 19:6-9)...Nu. 11:32 'all that day and all the night and all the next day'). Not till post-exilic times do we find traces of a new mode of reckoning which makes day begin at sunset and continue till the sunset following...

...Thus it was in the nature of things that morning,...midday,...and evening...should be distinguished, and equally so that morning should be spoken of as the rising of the morning, the breaking of the day (Gen. 19:15)...or the rising of the sun (Gen. 19:23)..." (Encyclopedia Biblica, pp. 1035-1036).

(65) "The concept of a legal or civil day, the period between two successive sun risings, goes back to the creation story (Gen. 1:14, 19) and is found throughout the Bible." (The Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible, Volume 2, --found under "Day").

(66) "The observance of the day before the Sabbath and before other special days is not mentioned in the written law and shows the development of the oral law of which the Pharisees were such strong proponents". (The Interpreter's One-Volume Commentary on the Bible, p. 539).

(67) Gen. 1:4-5 -- "The most obvious sign of order is the gift of light and its daily separation from the darkness. God's lordship is expressed further in his naming of his works. The one day seems to be reckoned from morning to morning; i.e. God works all day till evening and begins his work again the next morning." (The Interpreter's One-Volume Commentary on the Bible, p. 3).

(68) "Day...(a) The time of daylight from sunrise to sunset, as contrasted to Night (Gen. 1:5; 8:22; Acts 20:31; etc). The day in this sense was divided into morning, noon and evening (cf. Ps. 55:17). Usual designations of periods in the day were sunrise, the heat of the day, the cool of the day, sunset, etc. In the NT the day as the period of light...becomes symbolic of salvation and righteousness (John 11:9; Rom. 13: 12-13). In 1 Thess. 5:5, 8 Christians are called sons of the day, and in 2 Pet. 1:19 faith is likened to the coming of the day. Apocalyptic writings such as Rev. 21:25 envisage perpetual day (my note: perpetual light, because there is no night) in the state of perfection...

(b) The civil day, a space of twenty-four hours, extending from sunrise to sunrise or from sunset to sunset...It would appear that the early Hebrews reckoned the civil day from one dawn to the next, as would naturally follow from its simplest meaning...cf. Num. 11:32; Judg. 19:5-9...Gradually however, they began to count from sunset to sunset, in accordance with the rising importance of their lunar festivals..." (The Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible, p. 783).

(69) Revelation 21:22-25 and Revelation 22:3-5 (New Jerusalem):

(A) Revelation 22:5 "...And there shall be no night there...

This is repeated from (Revelation 21:25)...it will be one everlasting day, (hmera aiwnow), "day of eternity", or "eternal day", as in (2 Peter 3:18)..." (John Gill's Exposition of the Bible **).

"...To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity..." (2 Peter 3:18 - NASB).

(B) Revelation 21:23-25 "... (Isaiah 60:19, 20) The direct light of God and the Lamb shall make the saints independent of God's creatures, the sun and the moon..." (Jameson Faucet Brown **).

(C) Revelation 22:5 "...Thus ends the doctrine of this Revelation, in the everlasting happiness of all the faithful. The mysterious ways of Providence are cleared up, and all things issue in an eternal Sabbath, an everlasting state of perfect peace and happiness reserved for all who endure to the end." (notes of John Wesley **). (** Crosswalk.com - source for material listed under # (69) -- (See # (68 A) under "Quotes" and # (8) under "Scriptures" in the table of contents).

(70) "Acts 4:3 speaks of Peter and John being arrested and put "in custody until the morrow (my note: KJV = "next day"), for it was already evening (my note: not tomorrow)." ... the night belongs to the preceding day, suggesting that the day began and ended at daybreak." (The Time of the Crucifixion and the Resurrection, Chapter 5).

Thayer/Strong state that the words translated "next day" (KJV) - Strong's 839 -(Acts 4:3) means "...1) Tomorrow...from a derivative of the same as G109 (meaning a breeze, i.e. the morning air). while the KJV and J.B. Phillips use the words "next day", Moffatt and Charles B. Williams use the words "next morning". In verse 5, Williams uses the words "next day", Moffatt uses "Next morning" and the KJV uses the word "morrow" (same Greek word as "next day" in verse 3).-- ("Morning" and the beginning of the "Next day" go hand inhand.)

Acts 4:3, 5, 7 from the KJV reads:

"And they laid hands on them (my note: Peter & John), and put them in hold unto the next day; for it was now eventide. (v:3)

And it came to pass on the morrow... (v:5)

...when they had set them (my note: Peter & John) in the midst, they asked, By what power, or by what name, have ye done this?" (v:7)

(71) The first part of Matthew 28:1 reads, "In the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week..."

Commenting on the above verse, this author takes issue with those who conclude that "...the dawning of the first day is interpreted as being the beginning of dusk (evening) rather than of dawn (morning). The reasoning runs as follows: "Since the Sabbath day ended at sunset, it would be impossible for 'dawn' to mean morning here, for the sun would not rise until some 12 hours later. It could not be in the end of the Sabbath and morning at the same time...

He continues:

...the end of the Sabbath at sunset does not mark the dawning of the first day, since the two events are about 12 hours apart...

The above interpretation, though ingenious, cannot be accepted for at least two reasons. First, because the verb"to dawn" (epiphosko) literally means not "to become dusk" but "to grow light," "to dawn." Second, because a figurative interpretation (i.e. to become dusk) in this instance runs against the explicit statements of the other Gospels which tell us that the women came to the empty tomb at daybreak "when the sun had risen"...

A first solution (my note: to the apparent contradiction) is suggested by the broader meaning of the adverb "opse" which is translated in the KJV as "in the end of" but in the RSV and most modern translations as "after". The two translations reflect the dual meanings of the term, namely "late" or "after." (Chapter 4).

(See note on author listed under "Quotes" # (4) above).

This same author continues: "The day appears to begin at sunrise also in Mark 16:2 which says: "And very early on the first day of the week they (thetwo Marys) went to the tomb when the sun had risen."According to the sunset reckoning the "very early" part of the first day of the week would be the hours immediately following the end of the Sabbath at sunset--what we would call Saturday night. Mark however, takes pains to explain what he means be "very early on the first day of the week," namely, not the early hours of the night immediately following the close of the Sabbath at sunset, but "when the sun had risen."...

...Mark saw the need to clarify what he meant by "very early on the first day of the week," namely, "when the sun had risen."This time reference presupposes a sunrise reckoning because according to the sunset reckoning, by the time the sun had risen it was the middle and not the early part of the first day." (Chapter 5).

"In 1 Samuel 19:11...Michal warns her husband David, after Saul's messengers surrounded their house, saying: "If you do not save your life tonight, tomorrow you will be killed" (cf. 1 Sam 28:8, 19, 25). The fact that at night Michal referred to the next morning as "tomorrow" clearly suggests that the new day began in the morning." (Chapter 5).

"In the story of the Levite of Ephraim we are told that he stayed four days with his father-in-law. On the fifth day the father-in-law says to him: "Behold, now the day has waned toward evening; pray tarry all night...and tomorrow you shall arise early in the morning for your journey, and go home" (Judges 19:9). The fact that the morning following the night is referred to as "tomorrow" suggests that the new day here begins at sunrise..." (Chapter 5).

All infomation listed under # 71 is from the book 'The Time of the Crucifixion and the Resurrection'.

(72) "The outstanding ceremony of Friday evening is the kindling of the Sabbath lights or the lighting of the lamps, performed in the Jewish home at the very moment of the entrance of the Sabbath. This is the oldest and one of the most striking ceremonies observed in connection with the welcoming of the Sabbath...

While we know that this was an old custom we do not know exactly how old it is...the ceremony could not have been observed at a time when the day was reckoned from morning to morning and the Sabbath began with the dawn of Saturday. And as we have seen above, the change in the mode of reckoning the day to make it extend from evening to evening, with the result that the entrance of the Sabbath took place on Friday evening, was not made before the Greek period..."(Rabbinic Essays, pp. 454 - 456).

(73) " It is certain that the Sabbath was the day on which regular divine service first took place; praying on the Sabbath was so usual that the synagogues were called "Sabbath houses".Divine service was at first held only in the day-time, not in the evening, for the evening was utilized by the religious societies for domestic and household celebrations...

Home services on Sabbath Evewere observed as far back as the time of the second temple..." (The Universal Jewish Encyclopedia, Volume 9, p. 296, 298).

(74)" Perhaps most significant of all the innovationsof the Deuteronomic Reformation was the inauguration of a new calendar. The old, solar calendar, of Canaanite origin (my note: God's origin) was abrogated completely...Instead, an entirely new calendar was introduced, luni-solar in character and obviously based upon the calendar current in Babylonia at that time...

This new, lunar calendarhad been itself invented only a few years or decades earlier by scholarly Babylonian astronomers after significant scientific discoveries . Its adoption by Jewish religious leaders represented therefore a direct and conscious borrowing of a very important institution of foreign culture and the readjustment of Jewish religious festival practice to it. Moreover, the names of the months of this calendar, which now came into general use within the Jewish community of Palestine, were...Babylonian.. .This calendar has continued with practically no modification, as the official calendar of Judaism down to this very day." (As a Mighty Stream : The Progress of Judaism Through History, pp. 242, 243, 282).

(75) " The BIBLE Definition ... But the BIBLE definition of the duration of "nights and days" is simple. Even these same higher critics admit that in the HEBREW language, in which the book of Jonah was written, the expression "three days and three nights" means a period of 72 hours -- three twelve-hour days and three twelve-hour nights. Notice Jonah 1:17, "And Jonah was in the belly of the fish THREE DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS." This, they admit was a period of 72 hours. And Jesus distinctly said that as Jonah was three days and three nights in the great fish's belly, SO He would be the same length of time in His grave! As Jonah was in the "GRAVE"...72 hours, after which he was supernaturally resurrected by God, by being vomited up, to become a savior to the people of Nineveh upon proclaiming the warning to them, so should Jesus be 72 hours in His grave, thereupon being resurrected by God to become the savior of the world! Did Jesus know how much time was in a "day" and in a "night"? Jesus answered, "Are there not twelve hours in a day . . . but if a man walk in the NIGHT, he stumbleth," John 11:9-10.

Notice the BIBLE DEFINITION of the expression, "THE THIRD DAY." Text after text tells us that Jesus rose THE THIRD DAY. See how the BIBLE defines the time required to fulfill "THE THIRD DAY." In Genesis 1:4 God "divided the LIGHT from the DARKNESS, and God called the LIGHT Day, and the DARKNESS He called Night.And the evening (darkness) - (my note: evening is called "day" & = "light") and the morning (light) were THE FIRST DAY . . . and the evening [darkness] and the morning [light] were THE SECOND DAY, . . . and the evening [ now three periods of darkness called NIGHT -- three nights] and the morning [ now three periods of light called DAY -- three days] were THE THIRD DAY," Genesis 1:4-13.

Here we have the ONLY BIBLE DEFINITION which explains and COUNTS UP the amount of time involved in the expression "THE THIRD DAY." It includes three dark periods called NIGHT, and three light periods called DAY -- three days and three nights, and Jesus said they contained TWELVE HOURS for each period -- a total of 72 hours! That ought to be conclusive! Any seven-year old, near the end of the second grade, could figure it easily. We praise God that His plain truths are revealed UNTO BABES, and hidden from the wise and prudent!"(Does Easter Really Commemorate the Resurrection? - article excerpt).

Note: This well known Christian author observed a 24 hour sunset to sunset Sabbath "day".

(76) "evening....morning (my note Gen. 1:5) Hebrew 'erev and boker mean, strictly speaking, the "sunset" and the "break of dawn",...Here the two words, respectively, signify the end of the period of light, when divine creativity was suspended, and the renewal of light, when the creative process was resumed.

As Rashbam(my note: Rabbi mentioned earlier) noted, the day here is seen to begin with the dawn."...the Mesopotamian concept of the day as beginning at eventide also has its counterpart in the Bible in the phrase "night and day"...This is the system that governs the Jewish religious calendar, by which the Sabbath and festivals commence at sunset and terminate at the start of the following night."

(Note: See "night and day" and "Solomon's prayer" under the heading "And the Evening and the Morning were the First Day (Genesis 1:5)" in the table of contents.)

"Gen. 32:23-33... The restless Jacob gets up during the night...heis attacked by a mysterious assailant who wrestles with him until daybreak...he wrenches Jacob's hip...he vanishes as the sun's rays shed their first lighton a limping Jacob..."(The J P S Torah Commentary - Genesis, p.8, 226 --The Jewish Publications Society)

(77)"Genesis counts the day from sunset to sunset (my note: as deduced by Rabbis--see # (78) below) like the Greeks, Gauls and ancient Germans. This custom was observed by the Arabs in Palestine till well within the last cent.The following are the subdivisions of the day anciently recognized: day-break (morning), midday (the heat of the day), sunset, twilight and evening."(The Encyclopedia of Jewish Knowledge, p. 389).

(78)"Tomorrow Morning Starts Tonight

Aha! An easy one, although it does cause occasional confusion: The counting of the day from the preceding dusk stems from the biblical pronouncement "And there was evening and there was morning, one day." From this the Rabbis deduced that the Jewish day commences at sundown.

That's why tomorrow starts tonight." (The Book of Jewish Customs, p. 199). ---Note below:

"As the sun disappears on Friday evening, Shabbat begins. Indeed, Jewish holidays also begin with sunset. Why?

The answer is startlingly simple. In the first verses of Bereshit / Genesis, God creates light and "there was evening and morning, the first day," (Genesis 1:5). The rabbis reasoned that if the Torah, the product of divine revelation, said that the first day began with evening, that must have been God's intention, for "days" to begin at sunset." (Essential Judaism, p. 39).

"At the end of the description of each day, we find the phrase: "And there was evening, and there was morning..." Since EVENING IS MENTIONED FIRST, the ancient Rabbis DEDUCED THAT EVENING IS FIRST." (Every Persons Guide to Judaism, p.5). -- Also see Dr. Lauterbach's comments on the Rabbis in his "Rabbinic Essays" listed under the heading "The Day of Atonement--Sifting Through the Traditions" in the table of contents.

(79) "That the custom of reckoning the day as beginning in the evening and lasting until the following evening was probably of late origin is shown by the phrase "tarry all night" (Jdg 19:6-9); the context shows that the day is regarded as beginning in the morning; in the evening the day "declined," and until the new day (morning) arrived it was necessary to "tarry all night" (compare also Num 11:32)" (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia --found under "Day and Night")

(80)Alfred Edersheim wrote: "The day was computed from sunset to sunset, or rather to the appearance of the first three stars with which a new day commenced. Before the Babylonish captivity, it was divided into morning, mid-day, evening, and night..." (The Temple, Its Ministry and Services, chapter 10--Listed under "The Week").

(81)In the King James Version of the Bible 2 Corinthians 11:25 is translated: "Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a dayI have been in the deep;...”

The Greek word "nucyhmeron" is translated as "a night and a day". 'Robertson's Word Pictures' states, "Night and day (nuchthemeron) Rare word. Papyri give nuktemar with the same idea (night-day). 'Vincent's Word Studies' adds, "A night and a day...A compound term occurring only here in the New Testament, and rarely in later Greek...Lit., I have made (spent) a night and a day in the deep."

Some commentators, such as John Gill state: "The word (nucyhmeron) , "a night day", signifies a whole natural day, consisting of a night and a day; and is an Hebraism, and answers to (rqbw bre) , "the evening and the morning", which make a full day;..." Speaking of Genesis 1:5 mentioned above, Gill writes: "and the evening and the morning were the first day: the evening, the first part of the night, or darkness, put for the whole night, which might be about the space of twelve hours; and the morning, which was the first part of the day, or light, put also for the whole, which made the same space, and both together one natural day, consisting of twenty four hours..." (John Gill's Exposition of The Bible). So Gill believed that the Greek word "nucyhmeron" is similar to "the evening and the morning" of Genesis and equals a 24 hour day. John Gill was familiar with ancient traditions:

"He (my note: Gill) preached in the same church as C. H. Spurgeon over one hundred years earlier...his works contain priceless gems of information that are found nowhere except in the ancient writings of theJews..."( http://bible.crosswalk.com/Commentaries/).

Another author (of the 'Handbook of Biblical Chronology') believes that the beginning of a Biblical day varied at different periods in history and was generally 24 hours in length. He writes, "A “day” in the sense of a complete period of light and darkness might be reckoned as beginning with the coming of the light or with the coming of the darkness, as well as of course theoretically at any other point. In ancient Egypt the day probably began at dawn, in ancient Mesopotamia it began in the evening. Among the Greeks the day was reckoned from sunset to sunset..." This author also writes:

"Gen 1:3–5 the first of the works of creation was “light” in distinction from “darkness,” and the light was called day, in Hebrew {Oy (yom), the darkness night, hlyl (laylah). Thus “day” can have the sense of daytime as distinct from nighttime, but the same word can also comprehend the complete cycle which includes both the daytime and the nighttime: “And there was evening and there was morning, one day” (Gen 1:5)..." While this author believes that the beginning of a day moved around from light to dark throughout Bible history and sometimes even in the same verse, he admits that " In the Old Testament the earlier practice seems to have been to consider that the day began in the morning..."He also states," In the New Testament in the Synoptic Gospels and Acts the day seems usually to be considered as beginning in the morning..."

This same author (Handbook of Biblical Chronology) agrees with John Gill, in that, "evening and there was morning, one day" was a 24 hour day and regarding the New Testament he writes: " For the complete cycle of light and darkness there is a word, nucjh/meron, which combines “night” (nu/x) and “day” (h[me/ra) in one term. This is used in 2 Cor 11:25 where it is translated “a night and a day.” (Chapter 2,-- The Reckoning of Time in the Ancient World).

'Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament' defines "nuchthemeron" as, "... a night and a day, the space of twenty four hours..." (p, 431). The following translations agree that 2 Corinthians 11:25 takes in a 24 hour period:

"...three times I was whipped by the Romans; and once I was stoned. I have been in three shipwrecks, and once I spenttwenty-four hoursin the water..." (Good News Bible).

"Three times I have been beaten with Roman rods, once I have been stoned, three times I have been shipwrecked, once for full four and twenty hoursI was floating on the open sea." (Weymouth New Testament).

So here we have a New Testament word that is defined as " a night and a day, the space of twenty four hours".'Vine's' adds: "lit., 'I have done a night-and-a-day'..."(p. 432). Every translation below indicates that this 24 hour period was a Night and a day, or a day and a night. There was not a single version found that translated the Greek word in question ( meaning "the space of twenty four hours") as simply "a Day". Why? Because a Biblical "day" is not 24 hours long.A Biblical "day" takes in only the period of light and is 12 hours long. The space of 24 hours always takes in the two separate seasons of "day" and "night" (Genesis 8:22). Please review the following translations of 2 Corinthians 11:25:

"Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned; thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day adrift in the deep;..." (Third Millennium Bible).

"Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. Once I spent a whole night and a day adrift at sea." (The New Living Translation).

"Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I received a stoning. Three times I was shipwrecked; for a night and a day I was adrift at sea;" (The New Revised Standard Version).

"Three times I have been beaten with rods; once I was stoned. Three times I have been shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been adrift at sea." (The Revised Standard Version).

"Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day have I been in the deep;" (American Standard Version 1901)

"Three times the Romans beat me with a big stick, and once my enemies stoned me. I have been shipwrecked three times, and I even had to spend a night and a day in the sea." (Contemporary English Version).

"Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea;" (English Standard Version).

"three times Roman officials had me beaten with clubs. Once people tried to stone me to death; three times I was shipwrecked, and I drifted on the sea for a night and a day." (God's Word).

"Three times I was beaten with a stick, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, and I drifted on the sea for a day and a night." (International Standard Version).

"I was flogged three times; I was stoned once; I was shipwrecked three times; I have spent a night and a day in the deep." (Literal Translation of the Holy Bible).

"Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked. I have spent a night and a day in the deep." (Modern King James Version).

"beaten by Roman rods three times, pummeled with rocks once. I've been shipwrecked three times, and immersed in the open sea for a night and a day." (The Message).

"thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice was I shipwrecked, a night and a day in the deep I have passed;" (Young's Literal Translation).

"Thrice was I beaten with rods: once I was stoned: thrice I suffered shipwreck: a night and a day I was in the depth of the sea." (The Douay-Rheims Bible).

"Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. I spent a night and a day in the open sea." (The Complete Jewish Bible - see source 123).

"Three different times I was beaten with rods. One time I was almost stoned to death. Three times I was in ships that wrecked, and one of those times I spent a night and a day in the sea." (New Century Version).

"Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I suffered shipwreck. I have been a night and a day in the deep." (Hebrew Names Version of World English Bible).

"Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I suffered shipwreck. I have been a night and a day in the deep." (World English Bible).

"Three times I was whipped with rods, once I was stoned, three times the ship I was in came to destruction at sea, a night and a day I have been in the water;" (The Bible in Basic English).

"Thrice have I been scourged, once I have been stoned, three times I have suffered shipwreck, a night and day I passed in the deep:" (The Darby Translation).

"Thrice was I beaten with rods, once I was stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;" (Webster's Bible Translation).

"Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. I have spent a night and a day in the depths of the sea." (The Holman Christian Standard Bible).

Addressing the claim that the beginning of a Biblical day varied at different periods and between the Old and New Testaments, this author writes: " Furthermore, the novel idea that after the exile a new way of reckoning a day was introduced into biblical revelation (apart from God’s approval) undermines the authority and sufficiency of Scripture. How can one maintain that all of Scripture is inspired and yet contend that a different way of reckoning a day was introduced into biblical revelation by the prophets and apostles apart from the divine sanction and approval of the Holy Spirit? Or how can one maintain the authority and sufficiency of Scripture and yet contend that the Old Testament presents the case accurately while the New Testament presents the case inaccurately? Such a view leads one to the position that certain parts of Scripture are of divine origin while other parts of Scripture are of human origin." (When Does The Sabbath Begin? Morning or Evening?).

(82) "And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea..." (Revelation 7:2).

"In Rev 7:2, the Revised Version (British and American) has “sunrising”for the King James Version “east.”(International Standard Bible Encyclopedia: found under the word "Sunrising"). 'Vincent's Word Studies' says, " East...more literally, the sunrising..."

The same Greek word translated as "East"in Revelation 7:2 is translated as "Dayspring"in Luke 1:78, "Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspringfrom on high hath visited us..."

'Easton's Bible Dictionary' shows the following definition: "Dayspring...Job 38:12; Luke 1:78, the dawn of the morning; daybreak..."

Putting the above information together we find that the word translated as "East" has the more literal meaning of "Sunrising" and it is also translated as "Dayspring" which is defined as "the dawn of morning, daybreak". The Hebrew word for "Dayspring" found in Job 38:12 is also defined as "the dawn of morning, daybreak". (See "And the Evening and the Morning were the first day" in the table of contents for more information on the Hebrew word translated as "Dayspring".

"Christ is... the morning Light, the rising Sun, Mal 4:2. The gospel brings light with it (John 3:19), leaves us not to wander in the darkness of Pagan ignorance... but in it the day dawns...We have as much reason to welcome the gospel day who enjoy it as those have to welcome the morning who had long waited for it. First, The gospel is discovering; it shows us that which before we were utterly in the dark... (Luke 1:79); it is to give light to them that sit in darkness, the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ; the day-spring visited this dark world to lighten the Gentiles, Acts 26:18. Secondly, It is reviving; it brings light to them that sit in the shadow of death, as condemned prisoners in the dungeon, to bring them the tidings of a pardon, at least of a reprieve and opportunity of procuring a pardon; it proclaims the opening of the prison (Isa 61:1), brings the light of life. How pleasant is that light!..." (Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible, Luke 1:78).

From one end of the Bible to the other a new day begins at the first light of dawnas the sun begins to rise .Those who wrote the words found in the 66 books of the Bible understood this concept and we find it within their writings in both the literal sense as well as the figurative sense.

(83)" LAG BA'OMERis, as the name indicates, the thirty-third day of the 'Omer period, the fifty days intervening between the Passover-Massot Festival and the Festival of Sabu'ot or "weeks"... According to the calendar in official use in Jewish circles since some time about the beginning of the fourth century B.C., the counting of the fifty days begins with the second day of the Passover-Massot Festival, the 16th day of Nisan.Lag ba'Omer falls therefore upon the 18th of Iyyar. It is regarded as a semi-holiday, largely of joyous character. However, never once is it referred to in the Bible...

Tradition has associated Lag ba'Omer closely with Rabbi Simeon b. Yohai. Upon this day this highly venerated Rabbi, according to tradition the author of the Zohar, is supposed to have died. Accordingly upon this day the Jews of Safed and from all Over Israel make a pilgrimage to the tomb of Rabbi Simeon at Merom...The journey or pilgrimage to Merom takes place upon the thirty-second day of the Omer period, during the daylight portion of the second half of this day...

However, after nightfall, and with this, according to the present official Jewish system of reckoning the day, the beginning of Lag ba'Omer, the thirty-third dayof the 'Omer period, the people assembled gather in large groups closely about the tomb of Rabbi Simeon b. Yohai...( authors note # 2, p, 82: " For the earlier system, current in Israel until some moment early in the fourth century B.C., of reckoning the day from sunrise to sunrisecf. J. Morgenstern, "Supplementary Studies in the Calendars of Ancient Israel," HUCA 10 (1935), 15-28")...

...as has been stated, Lag ba'Omer falls upon the 18th of 'Iyyar and Sabu'ot itself upon the 6th of Sivan. But in the two earlier calendars (which were in different periods of Israel's history official, the first and oldest calendar, the so-called pentecontad calendar, until the erection and dedication of the first Temple in Jerusalem by Solomon at about the middle of the tenth century B.C., and the second calendar, inaugurated by Solomon, until the adoption of the present, official calendar) such was not at all the case...

Actually the legislation for the bringing of the 'Omer, the first sheaf of the new, annual crop, is recorded in only one passage of the entire Pentateuch, Lev. 23: 9-16...This legislation provides that the 'Omer is to be waved before Yahweh by the priest upon the day following the Sabbath...The basic difficulty here is the determination of the precise dating implicit in the term, "the day after the Sabbath." The customary interpretation, accepted by most present-day biblical scholars, is that the Sabbath here is the Sabbath which falls within the week of the Passover-Massot Festival. Such too was the interpretation given of old to this term by three quite ancient Jewish sects, the Samaritans, the Boethusians and the Karaites. This would imply, of course that the day of bringing the 'omer was always a Sunday, and also, since the counting of the fifty days which intervened between the day of bringing the 'omer and the Sabu'ot Festival commenced upon a Sunday, the latter festival also would fall always upon a Sunday...

...the year of the pentecontad calendar totaled three hundred and sixty-five days, a true solar year as then reckoned...Each week within each pentecontad, of seven days duration, began then upon what we would call a Sunday, and ended therefore upon Saturday, the Sabbath...

Jesus and his disciples, hailing from Galilee, employed the pentecontad calendar in fixing the time of their celebration of the Massot Festival...

And since, as we have noted, the seventh and final day of the Massot Festival was a Sabbath, the day of bringing the 'omer, and with this of counting the fifty days of the 'Omer period, now fell upon the day immediately following the Sabbath, in other words upon the first day of the week, upon what we call Sunday.And, very significantly, this practice continued in Israel, with official, priestly sanction, for at least five centuries, until the inauguration of the Priestly Code as the law-code of the official religious practice of the Jewish people...

...the old, original system of reckoning the fifty-day 'Omer period according to the principles and procedure of the ancient pentecontad calendarpersisted in Israelite practice until after the composition of the Holiness Code, i.e., until the early postexilic period, and undoubtedly continued in official use throughout the entire period of existence of the second Temple, i.e., well into the fifth century B.C., and very probably until the adoption of the present official calendar of Judaism near the beginning of the fourth century B.C. Accordingly the present system of reckoning the 'Omer period from the second day of the combined Passover Massot Festival could have been inaugurated, at the very earliest, only at some time shortly after 400 B. C....

Lag ba'Omer, the thirty-third day of the present 'Omer period, was originally the twenty-fifth, the middle, day of this period of the ancient pentecontad calendar, and not improbably also of the solar calendar instituted by Solomon, and as such was observed as a semi-holiday, only after the official adoption of the third, the present-day Jewish calendar, with its shifting of the reckoning of the day of commencement of the 'Omer period from the day following the close of the Passover-Massot Festival to the second day of this festival, eight days earlier than the original system of reckoning the 'Omer period did what had been originally the twenty-fifth, the middle, day of 'Omer period became the thirty-third day thereof, Lag ba'Omer." (Hebrew Union College Annual-- Article: 'Lag ba'Omer--Its Origin and Import' by Julian Morgenstern, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, p. 81-90).

(84) "A History of Jewish Time - Book Review...Calendar and Community: A History of The Jewish Calendar, Second Century BCE -- Tenth Century CE. By Sacha Stern. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001...

Sacha Stern's new book, Calendar and Community, is an historical approach to the evolution of the Jewish calendar over the course of about 1100 years, from the second century B.C.E. to the tenth century C.E., when the calculated luni-solar Jewish calendar in use today was definitively established...

Stern's major thesis is that "the Jewish calendar gradually evolved in this period from considerable diversity to normative unity"(vi). This is in sharp contrast to the traditional rabbinical view, which has decisively influenced most previous scholarship. This view is that there has always been only one Jewish calendar used by all Jews--the rabbinical lunar calendar.At least since the time of the Second Temple the new month was declared upon the observation of the new lunar crescent, as described in the Mishnah and other Tannaitic sources (Stern cites the Tosefta and halakhic Midrashim). Nevertheless, the rabbinical calendar methodology changed from observation to fixed calculation, ostensibly by the publication of the calendar's rules by Hillel the Patriarch in 358/9 C.E., which was a response to the inability of the calendrical court to continue functioning due to persecution. Most modern scholars, with some modification, have endorsed this rabbinical history, along with the rabbinical view of the importance--and reality--of Jewish calendrical uniformity...

In contrast, Stern shows us that both this presumed unity of Jewish calendrical practice, as well as the date and manner of the shift from observation to calculation, are incorrect and reflect only the imaginings of the rabbinic movement. His most important thesis is that for this thousand-year period, there was no unity of Jewish calendrical practice, and that the unity established by the Middle Ages developed gradually as the rabbinic movement grew.In fact, for Stern, evidence of use and non-use of the rabbinic calendar can be used as a marker of rabbinic hegemony in the Jewish world...

For Stern, the importance of the Dead Sea Scrolls calendar texts is to show definitively that in the late Second Temple period there is no single "Jewish" calendar, for "both solar and lunar calendars were variously observed, in a relationship that remains somewhat unclear"...

By the late first century C.E., all evidence of Jewish use of solar calendars disappears. This is particularly noteworthy because, according to Stern, "whilst the non-Jewish calendars of the Roman Near East were switching from lunar to solar reckonings, the Jewish calendar was evolving, in the very same period, in the opposite direction: in the first century C.E .... the Jews appear to have lost all interest in the solar calendar, so that only the lunar calendar prevailed" (44). Stern proposes that as a result the "lunar calendar (formerly Babylonian, now Jewish) became to the Jews a marker of cultural difference"(45)... it seems likely that the demise of the Jewish solar calendar is probably related to the destruction of Jerusalem, the Second Temple, and Qumran by the Romans during the Jewish War of 70 C.E...

...It is well known that the Mishnaic texts describe in elaborate detail a process by which a rabbinical court would take testimony about the appearance of the new moon, declare the new month, and communicate this to the rest of the Jewish world via signal fires and messengers. While there is evidence of a rabbinical calendar court existing in Palestine until at least the ninth century (190)--and at the same time, that the calendar had not yet reached its final form (185)--the nonrabbinic textual and archeological evidence that Stern marshals shows that the court's decrees were not universally heeded. Even in Palestine--but also in Egypt and Asia Minor--it seems that many Jewish communities kept their own calendar, at least until the sixth century. Many of these used a method similar to the observationally determined lunar calendar of the Mishnah, while others used a form of calculation similar to the later rabbinical calendar. As an example, Stern interprets the complaint at the Council of Nicaea (325 C.E.)--one of whose main tasks was to unify Christian observation of Easter and separate it from the Jewish observation of Passover--that the Jews "celebrate Passover twice in the same year" as implying that different Jewish communities used different calendars (84)...

His major finding, of great importance to the study of late Antique Judaism, is that this diversity of calendars "suggests that as late as the sixth century rabbinic authority in calendrical matters was yet to be established outside the main rabbinic communities" (vi)...

Nevertheless, it is clear that the rabbis placed great importance on calendrical unity; the problem was that the observational system itself made this almost impossible to achieve. The result, according to Stern, was the slow evolution toward the calculated Jewish calendar, starting in the third century...

...Stern argues that the development of a calculated calendar was mainly a response to the internal needs of the rabbinic movement. In particular, the purpose was to "ensure that Babylonian rabbis were able to observe the same calendar as in the Land of Israel" (255). The Palestinian rabbis, Stern suggests, were willing to alter their calendar and adopt a fixed methodology in the fourth century in order to secure the Babylonian rabbis' loyalty.This was probably the result of an incremental process over the course of the third and fourth centuries in which "ever-multiplying calendrical rules ... may have simply overrun the old Mishnaic system" (256).The final form of the calculated calendar was settled in the tenth-century dispute between the Babylonian R. Saadya Gaon and the Palestinian R. Ben Meir, in which Saadya rejected Ben Meir's calendar decision as not in keeping with the calculated "four gates" calendar table, which was already widespread at that time...

While Stern notes that as late as the sixth century there is evidence of diversity in Jewish calendar practice, by the tenth century this has disappeared. This is broadly significant, concludes Stern, because the "evolution of the Jewish calendar reflects, in a sense, a wider historical pattern. To some extent it epitomizes the gradual development of solidarity and communitas among the Jewish communities of late Antiquity and the early Middle Ages, and hence, the development of an increasingly united culture and religion" (vi). This, he notes, developed in concert with the geographic expansion of the rabbinic community from Palestine to Babylon, Egypt, North Africa, and Europe, "eventually to dominate the whole of world Jewry" (211)." (Judaism -Winter - Spring, 2003).

(85)"The older Biblical term for the whole daywas "yom wa-lailah" or "yomam wa-layelah" (my note: "day and night")." Later"ereb wa-boker" (my note: "evening and morning") was used (Dan. viii. 14)... " Boker" (my note: "morning") is literally the break of day, " 'ereb" (my note: "evening") the decline of day.

Among the ancient Israelites, as among the Greeks, the day was reckoned from sunset to sunset. This was the custom also of the Gauls and ancient Germans, and was probably connected originally with the cult of the moon. There is, however, evidence that this was not the custom at all times; e.g., the expression "day and night " in Lev. viii. 35; Num. ix. 21; Jer. viii. 23, xvi. 13, xxxiii. 25; Isa. Ix. 11; Ps. i. 2; xxxii. 4; xlii. 4, 9; lv. 11; Lam. ii. 18; I Sam. xxv. 16; I Kings viii. 59. So too some claim that in Gen. i. 5 et seq. the day is reckoned according to the Babylonian manner, from morning till morning(see Delitzsch in Dillmann's commentary on Gen. i. 5).

Further evidence that the reckoning of the day from the evening is of later dateis found in connection with the sacrificial service, in which the oldest customs were undoubtedly most rigidly preserved. While in the Talmud the day is always counted with the preceding night , as, for instance, in regard to the prohibition of killing the young with its mother on the same day (Lev. xxii. 28), with reference to sacrifices which had to be eaten on the day on which they were offered the night is counted with the day preceding it(Hul. 88a).

The division into day and night was originallyvery indefinite, and there was no accurate measurement of time.The distinctions were made according to the successive natural stages or the occupations in daily life. The early morning is "'alat hashahar," literally "rising of the morning [star]."

The morning is "boker," or "the sun rose" (Gen. xix. 23, xxxii. 31).

Midday is "zaharayim," literally "the double light," that is, the time when the sunlight is brightest; or "the heat of the day" (Gen. xviii. 1; I Sam. xi. 11); or "the perfect day" (Prov. iv. 18).

Afternoon and evening are "'ereb," the time of the day's decline(Judges xix. 8); or "the wind of the day" (Gen. iii. 8), that is, the evening breeze..." (Article: "Night", (The Jewish Encyclopedia, p. 303)

(86) In Professor David Blumenthal's "Reading Genesis" project, he (re) writes the creation narrative of the 12th century Rabbi,Rashbambased on his understanding of what the writer was trying to say and compares this narrative to three other rabbinic commentaries on Genesis chapter 1. He asked his students to (re) write the creation narrative from the point of view of the various commentators. Professor Blumenthal wanted to know: "how did Rashi, Ibn Ezra, Rashbam, and Ramban "read" the text? Did they have a grasp of how the narrative would look if written from the point of view of their commentaries? If so, just how would one (re)write the narrative line so as to reflect their interpretations? What would "Rashi's Genesis" look like? "Ibn Ezra's Genesis"? " Rashbam'sGenesis"? and "Ramban's Genesis"?...

Blumenthal writes: "The most widely read book in rabbinic Jewish culture is not, properly speaking, a book but a commentary to a book. It is Rashi's commentary to the Tanakh...No one with an education rooted in the traditionfinds his or her way into the scriptural text without Rashi(1040-1105, northern Europe). His commentary, which is a mixture of explication and midrash, was and remains the key to the rabbinic understanding of the Tanakh..." Speaking of Rashbam'scommentary, the Professor states: "...He hews very closely to the text yet his commentary to this chapter is omitted from many of the standard editions of rabbinic commentaries; why? He is the grandson of Rashi..." Please review a few excerpts fromRashbam's(re) written commentary on Genesis chapter one and you may begin to wonder if there were other reasons why his commentary is "omitted from many of the standard editions of rabbinic commentaries":

Verse 2: "the earth as we know it was completely empty, for water covered it up to the upper heavens. Darkness that was not night was over the depths, and there was no light in the heavens. A wind blew across the waters."

Verse 3: "God said, "Let there be light" to correct the lack of light, and there was light."

Verse 4: "God looked at the light and saw that it was beautiful. God divided the light into a unit of twelve hours and the darkness into a unit of twelve hours."

Verse 5: "God named the newly-formed unit of twelve hours of light "day"and the newly-formed unit of twelve hours of darkness "night,"and they have been so called ever since, day always preceding night. Daylight turned to evening as its light faded; then, morning broke as the morning star signaled the end of night. The first of the six days of creation referred to in the Ten Commandments was, thus, completed and the second day began(2)."

Blumenthal's note (2) on verse 5 reads: "Rashbam is, thus, of the opinion that the day begins and ends in the morning."

Verse 14: "God said, "Let there be bodies of light in the expanse which is below the upper heavens to signal the actual division of day from night, which is sunset and the appearance of the stars, and night from day, which is sunrise. Let them also be used to indicate miraculous signs, to calculate the holidays and the calendar, to mark the beginning and end of day and night, and to delineate the four seasons of the year."

Verse 16: "God made the two large bodies of light, the larger to rule the day and the smaller to rule the night together with the stars."

Verse 18: "to rule during the day and the night, and to signal the beginning of day with the rising of the sunand the beginning of night with the setting of the sun and the appearance of the stars. God looked at the heavenly bodies and saw that they were beautiful." (Reading Genesis: See source # (110) below to read the entire text).

(See # (47) and # (76) above, listed under "Quotes").

In a second (re) written commentary (Reading Genesis) byIbn Ezra,the text in Genesis 1:5 reads:

“by naming the light "day" and the darkness "night." The diurnal sphere revolved once, day blended into evening and night blended into dawn (9), day one.”

Note (9) on verse 5 reads: "The days of creation thus begin and end at daybreak, not at evening."

In an email to Professor Blumenthal, I asked him if he could shed any light on Ibn Ezra'sapparent struggle with days beginning at "dawn" (his Genesis commentary) vs "evening" ( his dream / poem - see # (48) above, listed under "Quotes"). Although Professor Blumenthal was not aware of the above information on Ezra (#(48), he gave a very interesting reply:

"The overall problem is, however, as I stated: (1) that we traditionallyobserve a "day" from evening to evening but the very first day had no evening; and (2) the "day" of the temple, i.e. during which sacrifices could be offered, went from morningto morning. This would, however, not allow any group to split away and start observing the Sabbath on that schedule."

Although tradition would not allow any group to split away and start observing the Biblical Sabbath beginning at dawn, we have seen from Lauterbach, Millgram, Morgenstern and others, that tradition does not always get its way. The fact of the matter is that some groups did split away or continued without change to observe the Sabbath beginning at first light on Saturday morning.

(87)"Owing to the regular reading of the Law and to its accessibility, there arose among the Judaeans an intellectual activity which gradually gave a peculiar character to the whole nation. The Torah became their spiritual and intellectual property, and their own inner sanctuary. At this time (my note: 420-300 B.C.) there sprang up another important institution, namely, schools for young men, where the text of the Law was taught, and love for its teaching and principles cultivated. The intellectual leaders of the people continually enjoined on the rising generation, "Bring up a great many disciples."...One of these religious schools (Beth-Waad) was established in Jerusalem. The teachers were called scribes (Sopherim) or wise men; the disciples, pupils of the wise (Talmide Chachamim). The wise men or scribes had a twofold activity: on the one hand, to explain the Torah, and on the other, to make the lawsapplicable both to individual and communal life. The supplementary interpretation was called "exposition" (Midrash)...

An entire set of laws, made for the purpose of preventing the violation of the commands of the Torah, belong to the Sopheric age. For instance...The loose way in which the Sabbath was observed in Nehemiah's age was replaced by anextraordinarily rigid observance of the Sabbath. In order to prevent any possible violation of the Sabbath or of the festival days, all work was to cease before sunset on the preceding evening,and an official was appointed to proclaim, by blast of a horn, the proper hour for repose." (History of the Jews, p. 396-397. - The Jewish Publication Society of America, 1891).

(88)" Light"...That which emanates from a light-giving body such as a lamp (Jer: 25:10) or the sun;the opposite of darkness literally and figuratively (Isa. 5:20; John 11:10, 11)..."(p. 1066)

"Day"...God introduced this fundamental division of time, when...he caused the moisture-covered earth to experience its first day and night as it rotated on its axis through the light of the sun. "God brought about a division between the light and the darkness. And God began calling the light Day, but the darkness he called Night" (Gen. 1:4, 5). Here the word "Day" refers to the daylight hours in contrast with the nighttime...

The Hebrews began their dayin the evening, after sunset, and ended it the next day at sunset. The day, therefore, ran from evening to evening...

Although the Hebrews officially began their dayin the evening, they sometimes spoke of it as if beginning in the morning. For example, Leviticus 7:15 says: "The flesh of the thanksgiving sacrifice of his communion sacrifices is to be eaten on the day of his offering. He must not save up any of it until morning."...

As mentioned in the creationaccount, the daylight period is also called "day" (Gen. 1:5; 8:22)...the day's beginning with the rising of the sun or dawning..."(p. 428).

"Hour"...The ancient Israelites may have divided the day-time into four parts. (Neh. 9:3) The night was divided into three periods called "watches." Mention is made of the "night watches" (Ps. 63:6), the "middle night watch" (Judg. 7:19) and the "morning watch."--Ex. 14:24...

The Hebrew scriptures (my note: referring to " day"), instead of designating certain 'hours', use expressions "morning," "noon," "midday" and "evening"as time markers for events.(Gen. 24:11; 43:16; Deut. 28:29; 1 Ki. 18:26) Also, perhaps more precise designations were "as soon as the sun shines forth" (Judg. 9:33), "the breezy part of the day" (Gen 3:8), "the heat of the day" (Gen. 18:1),...and "the time of the setting of the sun". (Josh. 10:27; Lev. 22:7)...

In the first century C.E. the Jews used the count of twelve hours to the day, starting with sunrise. (p. 797 - 798).

"Sunrising, Sunset"...These times were pivotal points in the daily life of people in the Biblical period. For most persons, the dawn opened the curtain on the day's activity and the dusk drew it closed again...

The rising of the sun marked the start of the natural daylight period and, when Jesus was on earth, the start of the counting of the "twelve hours of daylight." (Mark 16:2; John 11:9)..."(p. 1560)

(The above definitions come from the book 'Aid to Bible Understanding')

(89)" Gen. 1:5...The word “ day” is used in Scripture in three ways:

(1) that part of thesolar dayof twenty-four hours which is light(Gen. 1:5); (Gen. 1:14); (Joh. 9:4); (Joh. 11:9).

(2) such a day, set apart for some distinctive purpose, as, “day of atonement" (Lev. 23:27); “day of judgment" (Mat. 10:15).

(3) a period of time, long or short, during which certain revealed purposes of God are to be accomplished, as “day of the Lord." (Scofield Reference Notes (Gen 1:5) - Scofield Bible).

(90) The Geneva Bible (16th century) was the Bible of choice for years before the King James Bible came on the scene and continued to be the choice of some after the KJV was introduced. Within the 'Geneva Bible Translation Notes' we will see the light of truth revealed even though the truth is mixed with tradition:

Regarding the definition of a "day", the 'Translation notes state: "For in ancient timestheycounted in this way, beginning the day at sunset till the next day at the same time." The 'notes' continue:

"Lev 23:32 - It [shall be] unto you a sabbath of rest, and ye shall afflict your souls: in the ninth [day] of the month at even, from (o) even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath...(o) Which contains a night and a day: yet theytook it as their natural day."

Notice how the 'notes' (Lev 23:32) wonder about, but do not question why "a night and a day" is accepted by Judaism as "their natural day".

Please observe how the 'Translation Notes' recognize what God has in mind when He defines a "day" in the first chapter of Genesis:

"Gen 1:14 - And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to (I) divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:...(l) Which is the artificial day, from the sun rising, to the going down."

Although the 'notes' on Gen. 1:14 pick up on the fact that God defines a day as " the sun rising, to the going down", this period of time is called the "artificial day"because the ancient tradition that says "sunset to sunset" is the " natural day"is accepted with wonder but without question.

As we come to the New Testament, the 'Translation Notes' see the same thing that was seen in Gen. 1:14. This time the 'notes' are not as kind to tradition as they were in the Older Testament:

"Mat 28:1 - In the (a) end of the sabbath, as it (b) began to dawntoward the first [day] of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre....(a) At the going out of the sabbath, that is, about daybreak after the Roman mannerof telling time, which considers the natural dayto be from the rising of the sunto the next sunrise: and not as the Hebrews, which count from evening to evening....(b) When the morning of the first day after the sabbath began to dawn: and that first day is the same as that which we now call Sunday..."

The scriptural day begins at first light of morning in both the Older and New Testaments. 'The Geneva Bible Translation Notes' see this through a glass darkly, because the beginning of the Biblical day is called " artificial"in the Old Testament and "daybreak after the Roman manner"in the New Testament. Yes, it is seen, but it is seen through the filter of mans traditions.

A final comment from the 'Translation Notes' on Matthew 20:6 is as follows:

"Mat 20:6 - And about the (b) eleventh hourhe went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the dayidle?...(b) The last hour: for the day was twelve hours long, and the first hour began at sunrise." (Geneva Bible Translation Notes).

(91)"The basis for the Talmud was provided by thesofrim. These were the copyists of the Torah who were at the same time teachers explaining the sayings of the Torah to the people. The original text of many laws was not very clearand could not be understood unless they were interpreted. But the interpretationsof the sofrimbecame accepted, and on the foundation of their explanations there grew an organization of seers and elders that came to be called the Men of the Great Synagogue.

The Great Synagogue acted as a Supreme Court in deciding all religious matters, and it was presided over by the High Priest...

Theyestablished a new calendarso that the count of years should begin with Tishriinstead of Nisan, and that the day of the blowing of the ram's horn, the first day of Tishri,should be the New Year...

In order to safeguard the Sabbath, they ruledthat it is to be observed from sunset on Friday until the stars appear on Saturday...

At noon Friday the shofar was blown six times as a sign that the Sabbath was beginning. At the first blast of the shofar, all men ceased working in the fields. Then they all came from near and far and gathered before the gates of the city so that they might enter it together. The stores were still open, but the bolts for the doors were held in readiness. After the second blast of the shofar it was necessary to lock the stores, but the pots still remained in the ovens. The shofar was blown a third time, after which all pots were removed from the ovens and candles were lit. After that the people waited the period of time it takes to bake a small fish, or to place the bread in the oven, and then three blasts of the shofar were blown at once and the Sabbath began...

The Great Court, later known as the Sanhedrin, issued all decrees and together with the academies it became the law-giving body that regulated the moral and religious conduct of the people and strengthened its ethical concepts. One of the first activities of the Sanhedrinwas the establishment of a "protective fence " (siyag) about the Torah. It was the function of this "fence" to prevent the people from doing anything to lead them astray from the commandments of the Torah, even when the particular deed had not been prohibited in itself...

Tools and vessels used for the performance of occupations forbidden on the Sabbath, could not be carried out on that day. As a further safeguard the sofrim ruledthat the Sabbath was to be observed from sunset on Friday until sunset on Saturday.."

"...The Mishnaic method of interpretation...became the nerve center of Jewish jurisprudence, and the Jerusalem Talmud explains even where tradition and biblical text were contradictory it was sought to find some way to derive the tradition from the text in order not to impair the sanctity of the scriptural text. Actions forbidden at one time were permitted at a later date, but both the prohibition and the permission were derived by expounding the same text. A case in point involved the timingwhen cultivation of the fields on the year preceding the sabbatical year had to cease..." (The Encyclopedia of Talmudic Sages, pp. 6, 8, 11, 245, 386, 387, 608, 609).

(92)"Rabbi Eleazar ben Pedat instructed the Babylonian Jews to strictly observe all holidays for two days, as it was the law at the Diaspora. The problem of the second day of a holiday was then an important matter for the Jews of Babylonia. This custom of celebrating an extra day was introducedduring the time when messengers of the Palestine High Court could not be sent to inform the Babylonians of the beginning of a new month. Although the Babylonian Jews could have determined the new months themselves, because they also followed the lunar calendar, the Exilarch nevertheless added a day to all holidays for fear that his calculations might differ from those of the High Court in Palestine." (The Encyclopedia of Talmudic Sages, p. 562).

(93) "Midday"...The Hebrew... in... (**Neh 8:3) and the Greek ... in... (##Act 26:13) are strictly the middle of the day, but the Hebrew... in 1Ki 18:29... is a dual form ...meaning “ light,” hence, light or brightness, i.e. the brightest part of the day(^^1Ki 18:29). See NOON...

"Noon; Noonday"...The word means light, splendor, brightness, and hence, the brightest part of the day(Gen 43:16, Gen 43:25; ++Act 22:6). See also MIDDAY..." (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia).

** 1) "half, middle...1a) half...1b) middle, midday, noon." (Brown-Driver-Briggs, Hebrew Definitions).

^^ " midday, noon...when thesun mounts its highest...noon as a specif. time of day, 1 K 18:29..." (Brown-Driver-Briggs, Hebrew Definitions)

++ " Noon...mesembria...lit., "middle-day" (mesos, "middle," and hemera, "a day")...Acts 22:6..." ('Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words', p. 434).

## "at midday" translates the adjective mesos, "middle," and the noun hemera, "a day," in the combined adverbial phrase..." ('Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words', p. 406)

Please observe how "noon / midday" is considered to be a period of " light" and is the " brightest part of the day"in both the Old and the New Testament.

"And the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, Rechab and Baanah, went, and came about the heat of the dayto the house of Ishbosheth, who lay on a bed at noon." (2Samuel 4:5). -- ("Lay on a bed at noon- Render, “was taking his midday rest,” according to the custom of hot countries. -- Albert Barne's Notes on the Bible).

If days began at sunset and were 24 hours long, "midday" would be arrive about 6 o'clock in the morning. This is certainly not the "brightest part of the day" or the "heat of the day". If days began at sunrise and were 24 hours long, "midday" would commence about 6 o'clock in the evening. A time when the day is either growing dark or has become dark. Obviously not the "heat of the day ". The answer is that daysbegin at dawnand are12 hours long, because "midday" in the Bible bursts on the scene at"noon", " the brightest part of the day", that is also known as the "heat of the day".

(See Mark 16:2 -- # (71) listed under "Quotes" above).

(Note:Green type listed under # (93) above = my addition).

(94)'The Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon' is an invaluable resource for examining the Biblical "Day". Please consider some examples:

++ "Morning"...morning = forenoon...of end of night... the coming of dawn and even daylight...by looking at it...of coming of sunrise...of beginning of day..." (p. 133) - "...all day Ex 18:13 (my note: "from the morning unto evening")...note also the formula...and evening came and then morning Gn 1:5, 8, 13, 19, 23, 31...i.e. the day ended with evening, and the night with morning..." (p. 134)

++ "Day" ...as opposed to night...Ne 8:3 from dawn until mid-day" (p. 398) (my note: see "midday / noon" # (93) above) . -- After "dawn" to "mid-day" is covered, the Lexicon goes on to cover most of the rest of the day by using Judges 19:8, 9, 11. All three verses will be provided, followed by the Lexicons English explanation from the Hebrew. Please observe once again that a day does not end when the evening first arrives nor does a new day begin. The day ends with the last light of evening and night closes the day (see "night" below):

Verse 8: "And he arose early in the ++##morning on the fifth day to depart; and the damsel's father said, Comfort thine heart, I pray thee. And they tarried until afternoon, and they did eat both of them." (English explanation: "until the declining of the day").

Verse 9: "And when the man rose up to depart, he, and his concubine, and his servant, his father in law, the damsel's father, said unto him, Behold, now the day draweth toward evening, I pray you tarry all night: behold, the day groweth to an end, lodge here, that thine heart may be merry; and to morrow get you early on your way, that thou mayest go home." (English explanation: "the day hath sunk down to become evening...the declining of the day").

Verse 11: "And when they were by Jebus, the day was far spent; and the servant said unto his master, Come, I pray thee, and let us turn in into this city of the Jebusites, and lodge in it." (English explanation: "the day has gone down exceedingly (is far spent)." -- (Verses 8, 9 & 11 p. 398).

++ "Night"...as opposed to day...Is 38:12 , 13 i.e. within one whole day (my note: verse 12: *** "from day even to night"); as close of day" (p. 538) (my note: "night").

*** "From dawn to night" (The Jerusalem Bible), "from day . . . to night--that is, in the space of a single day between morning and night" (Jameson Faucet Brown: Is. 38:12) -- ++ Same word is used in Genesis 1:5. ## "... properly dawn (as the break of day); generally morning: - (+) day, early, morning, morrow." (Strong's Hebrew and GreekDictionaries).

Keil & Delitzsch comments on Judges 19: 9-10, "When at length he rose up, with his concubine and his attendant, to go away, the father entreated his daughter once more: “Behold the day has slackened to become evening, spend the night here! Behold the declining of the day, spend the night here,”...But the Levite did not consent to remain any longer, but set out upon the road...Their commentary continues with verse 11. "But as the day had gone far down when they were by Jebus,... the attendant said to his master, “Come, let us turn aside into this Jebusite city, and pass the night in it.”

(95) "Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days began,

And caused the dayspring to know its place? (2)..."

Authors note (2) on Job 38:12: "...(2) i.e., let each day know just when to break."(p. 191) --

"...the power of the high priest was far from unlimited. The affairs of the community were, in fact , controlled by a supreme council, or body of elders which came to be known as the Keneset Hagedolah or the Great Assembly...In time under the name of Sanhedrin, it came to be composed of seventy members, for seventy had been the number of elders chosen by Moses "to bear the burden of the people" with him.

The Keneset Hagedolah was a judicial as well as a legislative body. It tried important cases and interpreted the Mosaic code, thus controlling the social and religious life of the community. The principle of interpretation which guided the council was expressed in the maxim; "Make a fence around the Law." That meant that the Torah must be surrounded with other laws which would make its observance doubly certain. To insure the strict observance of the Sabbath, for example, it was laid down that all work must cease before dark on Friday. The Torah became an object of intense study, and the art of interpretation, called midrash, was developed to a high degree" (p. 133) (Outline of Jewish Knowledge - Volume Three, pp. 133 & 191 above - Bureau of Jewish Education)

It is interesting to see how the authors recognize that a day breaks in the morning according to the scriptures.( p. 191) And then according to tradition they give credit to the Keneset Hagedolah for adding the law that all work must cease before dark on Friday. (p. 133)

(96) "Among other things which the Oriental world, including the Jews, inherited from them (my note: the Sumerians) was their calendar...Their year was divided into twelve months, each one beginning with the new moon. This is known as the lunar year..." (Outline of Jewish Knowledge - Volume One, pp. 21, 22 - Bureau of Jewish Education)

(97) Speaking of "early civilizations", this author writes: "...day and night might be divided into hours, but as the day began at sunrise and ended at sunset, the length of an hour varied throughout the year. A day is an imprecise unit until it is divided into so-many equal hours which together make one artificial 'civil day' which cannot be sharply defined by natural events. The idea of a measured day of 24 (or any other arbitrary number of) equal hours, is so recent, that few old languages have an exact word for it. In Homer the days are counted in 'suns', 'sleeps', or 'dawns'...Evening is 'the time when the oxen are unyoked', as in ancient Irish the morning is imbuarach, 'the yoking'. Till lately the Scottish ploughman ordered his day by 'youken time' and 'lousen time'...

Ask a child, even an adult, to think of 'time', and a clock-face is likely to be the first mental image to form. In the mediaeval mind, unfamiliar with clocks, the image might have been a sundial, but as likely the sun itself. The unformulated thought behind this might well have been that the motion of the sun is the very source of time, not as for us a product of time and distance. We may agree with Shakespeare's shepherd Corin that 'a great cause of the night is lack of the sun', but to us the sun indicates time; to the mediaeval mind it made time...

'Men schulde make and use clockis for to knowe the houris of the dai and nyt.' (The Bishop of Chichester, 1449)...

Outside the monasteries, the only indisputably fixed moments of the day...were dawn, noon and sunset...

The labourers were still largely 'hearth-men' dwelling under the lord's roof, as in ancient Greece. Their daily round was still ordered by the sun, for the communal fire was doused at curfew, and artificial light was a luxury, even to Chaucer:

The day gan fallen, and the derke night...

Berafte me my book for lakke of light...

Reading by candle-light was rare until the fifteenth century, and then was for lords and ladies...

But for centuries yet, street lighting was to be sparse...and night-life seldom sought away from home..." (Clockwork Man, pp. 15, 30, 53 & 70)

(See "Quote" # (43) above)

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING

(1) "I am somewhat convinced that you are 100% right. I read your whole Paper and I loved it." (New York)

(2) "This is a very good article. Makes a lot of sense to me."

(3) "It can't hurt you to re-visit things, just to be sure. I think you'll find it worth your time to check out that article."

(4) "Hello!, I myself have been studying about the Sabbath also. My studies also lead me to see that days did not begin at sunset. Like you, I could also write a book on the subject in scriptures alone. One of the best ones is in Ecc.2:13...

here again I do not believe the time of Yahweh's days, months and years are to be kept with the crescent moon... but I do know we are to keep the high Sabbaths!" (Lebanon Tennessee)

(5) "Hi , Shabbat shalom-tomorrow, of course, when the sun comes up...

I hope you understand that this is a radioactive topic. Meaning it will either taint you in the minds of some people, or blow up this forum ... or both. ;-)

All your questions are legitimate questions - in fact, I have raised the same issue here before. I have put it on the back burner and continued to observe evening-to-evening (just to be on the safe side), pending further study. But when this has come up on the forum before, the responses attempting to debunk the "daybreak" model have fallen short. The discussion seemed to either get too emotional and personal, or bogged down in nit-picking and correcting minor slip­ups in my arguments-while missing the big picture. The last time we brought this up, I was kept so busy answering such minor objections, and being sidetracked (and sidetracking *myself*), that eventually I just tired of it and dropped the whole thing.

Jesus teaching throughout the course of a day, and in verse 35 (my note: Mark 4:35) we read: "And the SAME DAY, when the EVEN WAS COME, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side." Based on the standard teaching, this "EVEN" should NOT be the "SAME DAY", but it should be the NEXT DAY if a NEW DA Y begins at EVENING. Yet there is not a text in either the Old Testament or the New Testament that tells us that a NEW DAY begins at "SUNSET" or "EVENING".

This is one area of the standard teaching that has always caused problems for me, and now I am beginning to understand why. If evening is the beginning of a new day, it makes no sense to say "that day, at evening." (Such a phrase shows up with regard to Passover, for instance.) It should simply be called "the next day."

If you adhere to the standard model, the phrase "X day at evening" poses a problem, and you have to explain it by interpreting "at evening" to mean "a little before evening," or "the last few minutes before evening really arrived and the new day began." That's a bit too creative of an interpretation for my tastes. And, if that interpretation were correct, as you noted, somewhere in the Bible we should find a verse that says: "that day, at evening, just before the beginning of the new day..." or "at evening, when the day had begun ..." But there is no such verse, to my knowledge.

The problem with "you shall afflict your souls on the ninth day" is another interesting point (my note: Leviticus 23:32). We afflict our souls the ninth day. And we fast, beginning the ninth day at even (which, according to the standard reckoning, would really be the beginning of the tenth day). This creates confusion and it causes you to find a way to divorce "afflicting your souls" from "fasting" (as the rabbis did, in fact, do). However, this problem is resolved by using a sunrise-sunset reckoning of days.

Also, as you pointed out, the traditional view seizes upon the single example of Atonement-the only Sabbath ever said to begin at sunset and applied it broadly to all Sabbaths, annual and weekly, which seems to me to be taking liberties with scripture.

You've done a good job marshalling a lot of verses and facts. (Also some interesting quotes about the Babylonian influence on the Jewish calendar.) ... The rest of the job is just getting people to listen. A lot of people have gone through a lot of hardship over Friday nights-myself included and will be dismayed to find that it may have all been in vain. But as they say: you live, you learn."

(6) "I have read your study regarding 12 hours in a day. I found it to be very informative and your study is extensive."

(7)The following are excerpts from a series of emails (in the order sent) that were received from the same person:

(First email) “I am in the midst of reading your article. Good work!”

(New email) “... your articles, especially the intro-article, got my attention. As I read it, I realized that I am like you--which is to say, that your circumstance and mode of thinking was identical to mine regarding the long-held belief and practice of the sunset/sunset Sabbath. Only in my case it was even worse. I was born... keeping that tradition, and never had the experience of switching from Sunday worship. Perhaps in that way it's even harder for me. I see the strength of your argument not in the endless proof that night does not equal day, but rather in demonstrating that those who make a case for the 24 hour Sabbath (as I have for all of my 38 years!) don't have much of a case. When you expose it to the light and find out that only a small handful of scriptures, wedded with Jewish tradition, make up the entire case for the sunset/sunset Sabbath, it looks pretty flimsy. And I say this as a current, active sunset/sunset observer...”

(New email) “My wife... read your article last night. We've been discussing it this morning. We both see good evidence in the scriptures for a day beginning in the morning. Now we're discussing when a day ends. She leans toward the sunrise to sunrise 24 hour day...”

“It is always hard to change, and harder with every year that one entrenches oneself in a belief and practice. But I've been wrong on so many occasions that I'm getting used to it. It's still hard to admit, but there is precedent; there is a track record of wanting truth more than wanting to maintain pride. So I choke on the remaining pride, gulp it down, and move on toward a better understanding...”

(New email) “We made the "day" issue our whole study for our congregation this past Sabbath day. We went through a goodly number of scriptures, and also discussed many of the points you made in your article. The result was something that doesn't happen too often: consensus. We all agreed, upon looking closely at the scriptural evidence, that there is good reason to believe that a scriptural day begins at first light, and ends at last light. This coming Sabbath day will be the first for most of us to keep it in a different way. For almost all of our group, that means changing the behavior of more than 25 years. For me, it means changing the behavior of ALL of my years. I was born to seventh day Sabbath keeping parents and have known nothing else. Next week I'm going to change from what I have been doing for 38 years.

I think our Father YHWH is testing us, and whittling away at our vanity, pride, and resistance to see whether we will really follow Him. At what point do we freeze up, harden, and no longer accept correction? He wants to know that. That's why it is so important for us to be humble and listen for his calling and leading.

I wrote a summary that may be useful to you if someone is interested in the issue but cannot wade through the long version. I included the best verses to prove both sides of the case. It's pretty compelling when you look at the evidence" (For Summary Click Here): (Virginia)

(8) "A friend sent me the 12-hour Sabbath Article a while back...I agree with you [absolutely] about the definition of a "day" !! (the clincher was the evidence from Scripture concerning the "day of Atonement". )...However, the Sabbath is determined by the 4 Quarters of the Moon...

Thanx again for all the detailed and thoroughly researched information!"

(9) (First Email) "I have finished reading your paper and am inclined to follow the truth outlined in the scriptures, after having the veil lifted from my thinking."

(New Email) "We actually will, for the first time this year, keep the holy "days" rather than the holy 24 hour period..." (Dallas Texas)

(10) "You have given us a good case for the 12 hour Sabbath!"

(11) "Hi,...I just came across your website, Praise Yah! From the time I was 3 and up my mother taught me in truth (the best she knew, that Yahweh had revealed to her) you know we didn't do x-mas and the other pagan days, and we did keep the Holy Sabbath, and the Holy High Sabbath Days, but it was about a year and a half ago that Yahweh started teaching me of the dawn to sunset Sabbath, but also that His Days (of 24 hours) start at dawn and end at dawn...Praise Yahweh! Anyway liked reading your article..."

(12)"You have done a very exhaustive study on this subject. Somewhere on this road you have taken a wrong turn.

Not going to debate the issue however...

At least you are out doing something to further Scriptural knowledge and discussion."

(13)"I read your article and it was quite interesting. I'm new to the knowledge of the true Sabbath. I've been aSunday keeper all my life until the fall of last year. As I studied about the Sabbath, I've always felt that t here was something incorrect about the "sunset to sunset" Sabbath. I actually thought the correct observance of the weekly Sabbath is "sunrise to sunrise" because of the statement in Matthew 28:1 which states "In the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first of the week..."

(14)"Someone recently sent me a link to your web site. It is absolutely wonderful! I am amazed at how the traditions of men are being dismantled one by one in these latter days...

I came to the understanding of the Sabbath Day almost a year ago. I just focused on the first half of Gen. 1:5 and saw how the second half embellished on the first. I wanted to give you another thing I found helpful (if you have already used it in your paper then please forgive me for I didn't notice it. It is:

If "evening and morning were the first day" as Gen 1:5 states, then how could the first evening precede the first day. Since evening comes at the end of a day, this can work for all subsequent days of creation week, but it can't work for the first day. For the first evening to begin the first day, it would have to come at the end of a day that precede the first day - making the first day no longer the first day - by definition." (Laurel Mississippi)

(15) (First Email) “I must admit my initial attitude upon seeing the subject ...was one of "now what!" I only considered reading A Case for the 12 Hour Sabbath after coming across it on a web site. It seemed preposterous to me... but I had to admit this subject wasn't something I had even thought to look into previously.

My husband and I are still going over your article because with God's help we are getting a better understanding of the issue. We now see that the whole subject is a legitimate study in which you have made good points. Thanks for drawing our attention to this.”

(New Email) “What really impressed me about your subject was the whole idea of light and darkness and how important it is to God from beginning to end. God is still separating the light from the darkness even in people today. I never considered the continuity in this way before. I find the subject so inspirational and profound and GOD used your web site to bringing this to our attention! Thanks for enlightening us.”

(New Email) "...I don't see how anyone after thoroughly looking into the matter can come up with any other conclusion than what you have presented!

One thing we are pleased about is that during the last Feast of Tabernacles we met a fellow who attends an independent Church of God and he mentioned that a family we know was convinced as we were about the Day as defined by God...

During this Passover/unleavened bread season I have been meditating how God had brought his people out of the darkness into the glorious light of day and is continuing to do so..." (Ohio)

(16) "I have been convinced, for some time, that even or evening was at the end of the biblical day. This is contrary to what I was taught when I first became a sabbath keeper. The idea that the day is the light period only seems to be right but is new to me...

Thanks for the information it is very thought provoking."

(17) “…I'm a Sabbath keeper and I attend the Church of God (7th Day) church here in the Philippines. I learned about the "Daylight Sabbath" from a friend of mine and I started practicing it last year…

I'm planning to make your article into a "reference book" so I may have an easy to use, handy reference guide which I can take with me wherever I go to meet with other Sabbath keeping people…”

(18) "I keep the Sabbath the way you do! from sunrise to sunset. I also keep the rest of the feast days according to Leviticus 23. The 12 hour Sabbath is the correct way of truly understanding the 4th commandment. Your article is a blessing to me and my family. There are many who are in total agreement with you.

l have downloaded and printed your article. Many of my friends see it and agree with it. I hope to show your article to more people." (Los Angeles California)

(19) “I had a look at your website (''A Case for the 12-Hour Sabbath) after reading the letter... in the 28 February 2006 edition of ''The Journal: News of the Churches of God'' with the heading, "12 hours in a day." I have downloaded all your information and will read it all through to see the main points you are making.

For a year or two now I have been observing Yahweh's weekly Sabbath and annual ''moedim'' from dawn to dusk, except for those where the observance specified takes in the previous night (Day of Atonement or Reconciliation) or the following night (as with Passover). Formerly, I attended the Worldwide Church of God and, in more recent years, the United Church of God, so I am familiar with sunset-to-sunset observance - but find that it doesn't have any basis when subjected to the light of the Scriptures...

As a result of my independent studies, it became clear that the biblical day since creation was defined as dawn-to-dusk.

In general, then, I am expecting to be in agreement with the thrust of your arguments and the scriptural support you present for the case put forward...

I look forward to hearing from you and reading your material." (Western Australia)

Note: The letter mentioned above "in the 28 February 2006 edition of ''The Journal: News of the Churches of God'' with the heading, "12 hours in a day." -- Can be found in issue 107 (Letters from our readers) at:

http://www.thejournal.org/issues/issue107/letters.html

(20) "I have been searching for some time for information about a Dawn Sabbath start instead of the Sunset to Sunset Sabbath I was taught and have been keeping. Starting the Day at Sunset always seemed backward to me.

I have just downloaded your Article and can appreciate the amount of time, effort. thought and prayer that has obviously gone into this.

Thank you so much..." (New Zealand)

Your feedback is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

I AM THE VINE, YE ARE THE BRANCHES: HE THAT ABIDETH IN ME, AND I IN HIM, THE SAME BRINGETH FORTH MUCH FRUIT: FOR WITHOUT ME YE CAN DO NOTHING. (JOHN 15:5).

NOTES - Go Back To 12 Hour Day

(note *1*)(Genesis 32:22, 24. Verse 22 indicates that Jacob "rose up that NIGHT" and in verse 24, "...Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until THE BREAKING OF THE DAY" (or "until the coming up of DAWN" ---from the book "The Five Books of Moses", p. 155). Verse 26 reads: "And let me go, for THE DAY BREAKETH..." (or "for DAWN has come up"--"The Five Books of Moses", p.155). And in verse 31, after they have wrestled, we see that, "...as he passed over Penu'-el the SUN ROSE UPON HIM...")

(note *2*)("Break of day" (my note: listed under "Day")...auge..."brightness, bright, shining, as of the sun"; hence, "the beginning of daylight," is translated "break of day" in Acts 20:11." (p, 147) -(Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words).

If a day began at evening, then sunset (not dawn) would be considered the break of day.

(note *3*)("Noon...mesembria...lit., "middle-day" (mesos, "middle," and hemera, "a day")...Acts 22:6..." (p, 434) - (Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words).

("And it came to pass, that, as I made my journey, and was come nigh unto Damascus about *+noon, suddenly there shone from heaven a great light round about me.") (Acts 22:6)

*From Strong's 3314, meaning: ("...midday...") +From Thayer's, meaning: ("...midday...(as respects time) noon: Acts xxii 6...").

If a day began at sunset and was 24 hours long, "Noon" would not be the "middle-day". Early morning would be the middle of the day. If a day ran from sunrise to sunrise, "middle-day" would be about 6:00 PM.

"The day appears to begin at sunrise also in Mark 16:2 which says: "And very early on the first day of the week they (the two Marys) went to the tomb when the sun had risen." According to the sunset reckoning the "very early" part of the first day of the week would be the hours immediately following the end of the Sabbath at sunset--what we would call Saturday night. Mark however, takes pains to explain what he means be "very early on the first day of the week," namely, not the early hours of the night immediately following the close of the Sabbath at sunset, but "when the sun had risen."...Mark saw the need to clarify what he meant by "very early on the first day of the week," namely, "when the sun had risen." This time reference presupposes a sunrise reckoning because according to the sunset reckoning, by the time the sun had risen it was the middle and not the early part of the first day." (Chapter 5 - 'The Time of the Crucifixion and the Resurrection').

(note *4*)(THE SPRING OF THE DAY IS AT DAWN OR DAYBREAK: (A) "And they AROSE EARLY: and it came to pass about the SPRING OF THE DAY (KJV note: DAWN), that Samuel called Saul..." (1 Samuel 9:26).------OTHER VERSIONS: (A-1) "At DAWN Samuel called to Saul..." (Today's English Version). (A-2) "At the BREAK OF DAY Samuel Called to Saul..." (The Jerusalem Bible). (A-3) "At DAY-BREAK Samuel called to Saul..." (James Moffatt).

(note *5*)("...Woe unto us! for the DAY GOETH AWAY, for the SHADOWS OF THE EVENING are STRETCHED OUT...Arise, and let us go by NIGHT..." (Jeremiah 6:4-5).-------OTHER VERSIONS: (a) "...Despair! The DAYLIGHT is FADING already, the EVENING SHADOWS LENGTHEN...To arms! We will launch the attack under cover of DARK..." (The Jerusalem Bible). (b) "...Pity the DAY is DECLINING, the SHADOWS ARE LENGTHENING!...Come on, let us attack by NIGHT..." (James Moffatt). (c) "...It's too late, the DAY is ALMOST OVER, and the EVENING SHADOWS ARE GROWING LONG..." (Today's English Version).----(Note: After the SHADOWS of EVENING have arrived, the DAY is said to be GOING AWAY, FADING, DECLINING and ALMOST OVER, but it HAS NOT ENDED nor has a NEW DAY BEGUN as it would have if a new day began at sunset).

If a day ran from sunrise to sunrise it would not be declining or almost over until close to the following morning.

(note *6*)(The "Encyclopedic Dictionary of the Bible" says, "The ORIGINAL meaning of the word "DAY" is the PERIOD OF DAYLIGHT, FROM SUNRISE TO SUNSET, AS DISTINCT FROM THE NIGHT, THE PERIOD OF DARKNESS ...in this sense the "DAY" is said to "decline" (Jer.6:4) or to "be far spent" (Lk. 24:29 in the late afternoon, and is FOLLOWED by NIGHT. Hence the EARLIER sequence, "DAY and NIGHT..." (P. 497).

If a day ran from sunrise to sunrise it would not be far spent until close to the following morning.

(note *7*) (Please read all of Mark Chapter 4. Here we find Jesus teaching throughout the course of a day, and in verse 35 we read: "And the SAME DAY, when the EVEN WAS COME, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side." Based on the standard teaching, this "EVEN" should NOT be the "SAME DAY", but it should be the NEXT DAY if a NEW DAY begins at EVENING).

(note *8*) ( John Chapter 20 (please read the whole chapter). Here on the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK, Mary Magdalene discovers that Our Lord has RISEN FROM THE DEAD early that day. The account takes us through the course of the day, and in verse 19 JOHN writes, "Then the SAME DAY AT EVENING, being the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK. . ." ("EVENING"-same word as "EVEN" in Mark 1:32). Again, we find that the "EVENING" is NOT the NEXT DAY, but it is still the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK. From the book (A Harmony of the Gospels, p. 286), another commentator states, ". . . one passage in John (20:19), when compared with Luke 24:29, 36, makes it NECESSARY to understand that JOHN used the ROMAN METHOD (my note: God's Method) in this instance. It was toward evening and the DAY HAD DECLINED according to Luke, when Jesus and the disciples drew near to Emmaus. Here he ate supper and, "rising up that very hour," the disciples returned seven miles to Jerusalem and told these things to the eleven who were together. But while they were narrating these things Jesus appears to them. Now John, in mentioning this very appearance of Jesus (20:19), says that it 'WAS EVENING ON THAT DAY, THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK", i.e., evening of the day when Mary Magdalene had seen the Lord. But with the Jews the EVENING BEGAN THE DAY. Hence, JOHN, here at least, is BOUND TO MEAN THE ROMAN DAY (my note: God's day). It was the EVENING OF THE SAME DAY IN THE MORNING OF WHICH MARY HAD SEEN JESUS. THIS APPEARS CONCLUSIVE. John DID use the ROMAN method (my note: God's method) here, MAY HAVE DONE SO ALWAYS. . .").

(note *9*) ("The day was either the PERIOD OF SUNLIGHT, CONTRASTED WITH THE NIGHT (see **John 11:9) or the whole period of twenty four hours, ALTHOUGH NOT DEFINED AS SUCH IN THE BIBLE." ("Oxford Companion to the Bible", p. 744). -- Note: A God defined 24 hour day is not found in the scriptures.

("**Jesus answered. Are there not TWELVE HOURS IN THE DAY? If any man walk in the DAY, he stumbleth not, because he seeth the LIGHT of this world. But if a man walk in the NIGHT, he stumbleth, because there is NO LIGHT in him." (John 11:9)." Here, Jesus confirms the fact that LIGHT and DAY are married, and that NIGHT and NO LIGHT (Darkness) belong in a separate category, as Genesis 1:4 indicates: ". . . and God DIVIDED the LIGHT from the DARKNESS. . ." In addition, Jesus makes it clear that there is ONLY 12 HOURS in a DAY. NOWHERE in the scriptures does Jesus or anyone else ever say, "ARE THERE NOT 24 HOURS IN THE DAY?")

("The observance of the day before the Sabbath and before other special days is not mentioned in the written law and shows the development of the oral law of which the Pharisees were such strong proponents". (The Interpreter's One-Volume Commentary on the Bible, p. 539).

(note *10*) ("DAY" (Hebrew, "yom"): In the Bible, the SEASON OF LIGHT (Gen. 1:5), LASTING "FROM DAWN (LIT. "THE RISING OF THE MORNING") TO THE COMING FORTH OF THE STARS " (The Jewish Encyclopedia) . As you can see, even though Genesis 1:5 is used as an example, this definition shows that a DAY BEGINS AT DAWN AND ENDS AT DARK. -- ("Thou makest darkness, and it is night..." (Psalm 104:20). ("O my God, I cry in the day time, but thou hearest not; and in the night season, and am not silent." (Psalm 22:2). ("I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons." (Psalm 16:7).

"The Hebrew language had no word for HOUR and those who spoke and wrote it no idea whatever of such a period of time...In place of hours, which meant nothing to him, the ancient Hebrew often lived and thought in terms of SEASONS...he cried unto God in the NIGHT SEASON. In the first chapter of Genesis God has seemingly himself determined this division of time, for He has placed the sun and the moon in the firmament of heaven "to Divide the Day from the Night"...When Hebrew writers refer to the ONLY TIMES OF DAY RECOGNIZED BY THEM, they do so in terms of the NATURAL divisions of MORNING, NOON and EVENING, times which, of course, varied in length depending upon the actual seasons of the year..." (Life and Language in the Old Testament, p. 33,36,37).

(note *11*) ( "So we LABOURED in the work: and half of them held the spears FROM THE RISING OF THE MORNING TILL THE STARS APPEARED (THIS IS A FULL DAY-- see note *10*)...Let every one with his servant lodge within Jerusalem, that in the NIGHT they may be a guard to us, and LABOUR on the DAY." (Nehemiah 4:21-22)-----OTHER VERSIONS: (a) "...This was how I and my men did our WORK; half held their spears from DAWN until the STARS APPEARED...Let each of you, man and servant alike, keep inside Jerusalem to provide us with guard duty at NIGHT and with LABOUR during the DAY..." (James Moffatt). (b) " So every DAY, from DAWN until the STARS CAME OUT AT NIGHT, half of us WORKED on the wall while the other half stood guard with spears...I told the men in charge that they and all their helpers had to stay in Jerusalem at NIGHT, so we could guard the city at NIGHT as well as WORK in the DAYTIME..." (Today's English Version). (c) "...So we went on with the WORK from BREAK OF DAY till the STARS APPEARED...Let each man with his servant, spend the NIGHT inside Jerusalem: in this way we can employ the NIGHT in watching and the DAY in WORKING..." (The Jerusalem Bible).

("Before the EXILE the Hebrews divided the day into MORNING, NOON, and EVENING...they also described it in terms of four periods: SUNRISE (Gen.19:15, "when MORNING DAWNED" (cf. Luke 24:1; 19:23, "when the Sun had Risen"; 32:31, "the Sun Rose" (cf. Mark 16:1), the heat of the DAY (Gen. 18:1; 1 Sam.11:11), the cool of the Day (Gen. 3:8), and Sunset (Gen. 15:12, 17; Judg. 19:8, ("until the DAY DECLINES"). (The Eerdman's Bible Dictionary, p. 266).

(The DAY in ANCIENT times was similarly divided into THREE PARTS, MORNING, NOONTIDE or "the heat of the day", and EVENING or "the cool of the DAY" (The Bible Companion, p. 311).

("In the Biblical period MOST Near Easterners BEGAN THEIR DAY WITH SUNRISE and ended it with sunset..." (Harpers Bible Dictionary, p. 761).

("According to the strict interpretation of the Mosaic law, every day begins with sunrise and ends with sunset..." (The Jewish Encyclopedia).

(It (day) sometimes means the time from daylight till dark. This popular meaning is easily discovered by the context, e. g. Genesis 1:5, 8:22), etc." (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Found under the word "Day").

("Many consider the word "day" used in Genesis chapter 1 to mean 24 hours. However, in Genesis 1:5 God himself is said to divide day into a smaller period of time, calling just the light portion "day."..." (Life-- How Did it Get Here?, p. 26).

("To ancient peoples the day began at sunrise and ended at sunset..." (The Mystery of Time, p. 14-15).

('From dawn to dark'...was the ancient and ordinary meaning of a day among the Israelites; night, as being the time ' when no man can work ' (Jn. 9:4)....(Encyclopedia Biblica, pp. 1035-1036).

(note *12*) ("Thus saith the Lord: If you can break my covenant of the DAY, and my covenant of the NIGHT, and that there should not be DAY and NIGHT in their SEASON;" (Jeremiah 33:20).

(note *13*) ("And GOD made two great lights; the GREATER LIGHT to RULE the DAY, and the Lesser light to RULE the Night (darkness): he made the Stars also." (Genesis 1:16).

(note *14*) ("To HIM that made great lights...The SUN to RULE by DAY...The Moon and the Stars to RULE by Night (darkness)..." (Psalm 136:7-9).

(note *15*) ("Thus saith the LORD, which giveth the SUN for a LIGHT BY DAY, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by Night (darkness)... " (Jeremiah 31:35).

(note *16*) ("And at EVEN, when the SUN DID SET, they brought unto him all that were diseased, and them that were possessed with devils." (Mark 1:32).

(note *17*) ("And he read therein before the street that was before the water gate from the *morning until +midday, before the men and the women, and those that could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive unto the book of the law." (Nehemiah 8:3). -- *Some translations say "early morning" (American Standard, Webster, Amplified, etc.)

+From Strong's 4276, meaning ("...a halving or the middle...half...mid (-day). 4276 is combined with 3117 (yom -"Day") to indicate the middle of the day.

(note *18*) ("And it came to pass, when *+midday was past, and they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that there was neither voice, nor any to answer, nor any that regarded." (1 Kings 18:29).

*From Strong's 6672, meaning: ("...noon: -- midday, noon...) +From Brown-Driver-Briggs, meaning: (midday, noon...when the sun mounts its highest...noon as a specif. time of day, 1 K 18:29). (Note: noon/midday is the same in both the Older and New Testaments. (see note *3*) -- The Hebrew word for"noon" and "noonday" found throughout the Old Testament is the same Hebrew word as "midday" in 1 Kings 18:29).

(note *19*) ("And he arose early in the morning on the fifth day to depart; and the damsel's father said, Comfort thine heart, I pray thee. And they tarried until afternoon, and they did eat both of them. 9 And when the man rose up to depart, he, and his concubine, and his servant, his father in law, the damsel's father, said unto him, Behold, now the day draweth toward evening, I pray you tarry all night..." (Judges 19:8-9).

(note *20*) ("And God called the light Day..."And the evening and the morning were the first day." (Genesis 1:5) -- Note: God calls the light day (not night) and classifies "evening" as "day" (Light). Evening is a time when the sun's light continues to rule as the day declines but does not end until night ("...and the darkness he called Night." - Genesis 1:5).

(note *21*) (In "The Five Books of Moses", Genesis 1:5 is translated, "God called the Light: Day! and the Darkness he called Night! There was SETTING, there was DAWNING: one Day." (p.13). Commenting in his notes on this verse, the author states, "SETTING.....DAWNING: The Heb. terms erev and boker are rather more specific than the usual "evening" and "**++morning". Elsewhere I have used "SUNSET" and "DAYBREAK". (p.13).

** Strong's 1242 (...dawn (as the break of day); generally morning..." ++Brown-Driver-Briggs, "dawn...end of night...beginning of day...note also the formula...and evening came and then morning Gn 1:5...i.e. the day ended with evening, and the night with morning..."

("...The Israelites regarded the morning as the beginning of the day; in the evening the day declined 'or' went down,' and until the new day ('morning')...it was necessary to 'tarry all night' (cp Judg. 19:6-9)...Nu. 11:32 'all that day and all the night and all the next day'). Not till post-exilic times do we find traces of a new mode of reckoning which makes day begin at sunset and continue till the sunset following... ...Thus it was in the nature of things that morning,...midday,...and evening...should be distinguished, and equally so that morning should be spoken of as the rising of the morning, the breaking of the day (Gen. 19:15)...or the rising of the sun (Gen. 19:23)..." (Encyclopedia Biblica, pp. 1035-1036).

(note *22*) (In Job 38:4-11, God communicates the following to Job:

(4) "Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding.

(5) Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it?

(6) Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof;

(7) When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

(8) Or who shut up the sea with doors, when it brake forth, as if it had issued out of the womb?

(9) When I made the cloud the garment thereof, and thick darkness a swaddlingband for it,

(10) And brake up for it my decreed place, and set bars and doors,

(11) And said, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further: and here shall thy proud waves be stayed?..."

Throughout these verses we see that God is the one who "laid the foundations of the earth". And in verse 12 God says:

(12) "Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days; and caused the dayspring to know his place;..."

The primary meaning of the word "morning" (as defined by Strong's) used in verse 12, is: “1242 boqer bo'-ker... properly, dawn (as the break of day)..." This is the same word for "morning" used in Genesis 1:5.

"Dayspring" is the second important word that God uses in verse 12. 'Easton's Bible Dictionary' defines "dayspring" as: “the dawn of the morning; daybreak..”

Now, if we compare Genesis 1:1-5 to Job 38:4-12, we see that “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth“ and He “laid the foundations of the earth". In both scenarios we find God laying down the foundations of the earth. In both cases, He is speaking. And both times He uses the word "morning" which means “dawn (as the break of day). And He clarifies what He means by calling this "morning" period the "dayspring" (obviously the spring of day), which means “the dawn of the morning; daybreak..”

Carefully note, since God only asks Job about the "morning" ("dawn" "daybreak") and not a full day, "evening" is not mentioned at all. Yes "dawn" was the start of a day in the "foundations" or "beginning" of the earth. And it still is today.

In the very same book of Genesis (Chapter 32, as mentioned earlier), Jacob rose at "night" (V:22). in verse 24, "...Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until THE BREAKING OF THE DAY" (or "until the coming up of DAWN" ---from the book "The Five Books of Moses", p. 155). Verse 26 reads: "And let me go, for THE DAY BREAKETH..." (or "for DAWN has come up"--"The Five Books of Moses", p.155). The word for "day" found in verses 24 and 26 of Genesis Chapter 32 is the very same word found in Job 38:12, and is translated there as "dayspring".)

(note *23*) ("The hours of daylight were divided into twelve, and this division was more generally used, as is shown by Jesus' observation "Are there not TWELVE HOURS IN THE DAY? (John 11:9)...The first three of these periods are referred to by Jesus in his story of the labourers in the vineyard (Matt. 20:1-16); the reference to "the eleventh hour" in verses 6 and 9 does not mean sixty minutes before the twelfth hour, but a moment which was nearer to 6 p.m. than to 3 p.m. It is clear also from this that the labourers' working day covered the WHOLE PERIOD OF DAYLIGHT, for they began work "early in the Morning" and finished "when Even was come" (verses 1 and 8). (The Bible Companion, p. 311-312). Commenting on verse 8 of this same parable, another author writes: "Jewish law mandated that laborers be PAID THE SAME DAY, because the wages were often little more than sufficient for a Day's needs (Deut. 24:14-15)". (The IVP Bible Background Commentary - New Testament, p. 99). Notice in verse 8, when "EVEN WAS COME", the "Labourers" were called and PAID IN THE EVENING (LIGHT). So EVENING was still a part the SAME 12 HOUR DAY that began "Early in the Morning" as pointed out by 'The Bible Companion', and confirmed by 'The IVP Bible Background Commentary', when they state that the laborers had to be "PAID THE SAME DAY". This author also states that the "work began around Sunrise", and "the time of day was necessarily reckoned from Sunrise". (p. 98-99). The 'New Bible Dictionary' adds the following information concerning the hours of the day: "All three are mentioned in the parable of the labourers in the vineyard (Mt. 20:3,5), as also the ELEVENTH HOUR (v v. 6, 9), which has become proverbial for THE LAST OPPORTUNITY." (P. 496).

Other comments below on days not ending at "evening":

(...The Israelites regarded the morning as the beginning of the day; in the evening the day declined 'or' went down,..."(Encyclopedia Biblica, pp. 1035-1036).

("Before the EXILE the Hebrews divided the day into MORNING, NOON, and EVENING...they also described it in terms of four periods: SUNRISE (Gen.19:15, "when MORNING DAWNED" (cf. Luke 24:1; 19:23, "when the Sun had Risen"; 32:31, "the Sun Rose" (cf. Mark 16:1), the heat of the DAY (Gen. 18:1; 1 Sam.11:11), the cool of the Day (Gen. 3:8), and Sunset (Gen. 15:12, 17; Judg. 19:8, ("until the DAY DECLINES"). (The Eerdman's Bible Dictionary, p. 266).

"The DAY in ANCIENT times was similarly divided into THREE PARTS, MORNING, NOONTIDE or "the heat of the day", and EVENING or "the cool of the DAY" (The Bible Companion, p. 311).

"...When Hebrew writers refer to the ONLY TIMES OF DAY RECOGNIZED BY THEM, they do so in terms of the NATURAL divisions of MORNING, NOON and EVENING, times which, of course, varied in length depending upon the actual seasons of the year..." (Life and Language in the Old Testament, p. 33,36,37).

"Day...(a) The time of daylight from sunrise to sunset, as contrasted to Night (Gen. 1:5; 8:22; Acts 20:31; etc). The day in this sense was divided into morning, noon and evening... (The Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible, p. 783).

(note *24*)("And this is what you are to sacrifice on the slaughter-site: year-old lambs, TWO FOR EACH DAY, regularly. The FIRST lamb you are to sacrifice at DAYBREAK (Morning--KJV), and the SECOND lamb you are to sacrifice BETWEEN THE SETTING-TIMES (Even--KJV)..." (Exodus 29:38-39). (Note: TWO lambs EVERY DAY. One at DAYBREAK , which is MORNING and one BETWEEN THE SETTING-TIMES, which is EVENING. The SECOND lamb is sacrificed in the EVENING which is still part of the SAME DAY THAT STARTED AT DAYBREAK. EVENING IS NOT THE NEXT DAY, because the command is to sacrifice TWO LAMBS IN THE SAME DAY. (An author's note on page 618 states: BETWEEN THE SETTING TIMES: Between the time that the Sun is below the horizon, no longer visible, and total darkness. An idiomatic rendition would be "at TWILIGHT". (The Five Books of Moses).

SOURCES

(1) History of the Christian Religion and Church (by Wilhelm August Johann Neander--Rose's translation from the first German Edition).

(2) The Oxford Companion to the Bible (by Bruce Manning Metzger -- Oxford: N.Y. -- Oxford University Press 1993).

(3) The Jewish Encyclopedia (by Joseph Jacobs -- Ktav 1964).

(4) Reader's Digest A B C's of the Bible (N.Y., N.Y. : Reader's Digest Association, c 1991).

(5) Everyday Life in Old Testament Times (by Eric William Heaton -- Scribner 1956).

(6) The New Ungers Bible Handbook (by Merrill F. Unger - Revised by Gary N. Larson - Moody Press, Chicago, c 1966, 1984)

(7) Chronological Aspects of the Life of Christ (by Harold W. Hoehner. Zondervan Publishing House, 1978).

(8) Natural History, 11, lxxix (Pliny the Elder).

(9) New International Biblical Commentary (by David John Williams -- Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers 1990).

(10) Harmony of the Gospels (by A.T. Robertson -- c 1922, 1950 "The Citizens Fidelity Bank and Trust Co").

(11) Robertson's Word Pictures of the New Testament (Found at "Bible Study Tools" at: http://bible.crosswalk.com/Commentaries/RobertsonsWordPictures/ (See John 20:19). Copy Right c Broadman Press 1932,33, Renewal 1960) also -(http://www.e-sword.net/).

(12) Encyclopedia of Jewish Religion (Edited by R.J. Zwi Werblowsky and Geoffrey Wigoder, 1986)

(13) Encyclopedic Dictionary of the Bible (A translation and adaptation of A. Van Den Born's Woordenboek, By L.F. Hartman -- McGraw 1963).

(14) Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words (by W.E. Vine, Merill F. Unger, William White Jr. - Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville, Atlanta, London, Vancouver. c 1984, 1996.)

(15) What is a Jew? ( by Rabbi Morris N. Kertzer -- Collier Books, N.Y., c 1960, 1953, The World Publishing Co.).

(16) New Catholic Encyclopedia - Vol :2 (McGraw Hill Book Company. c 1967 by the Catholic University of America, Washington D.C.)

(17) The Lion Encyclopedia of the Bible (Tring, Herts, England; Batavia, IL USA: Lion Publishing 1986).

(18) NIV Study Bible (10th Anniversary Edition. c 1995 by Zondervan Publishing House - General Editor Kenneth Barker.)

(19) Almanac of Bible Facts (by Anna Trimiew and Gary Burge. c 1996 Publications International, Ltd. - Lincolnwood, Illinois.)

(20) Babylonian Menologies and the Semitic Calendars (by S. Langdon, Oxford University Press, 1933.)

(21) The Time of The Crucifixion and The Resurrection (by Samuele Bacchiocchi -- Found at web site: http://www.biblicalperspectives.com/books/crucifixion/)

(22) 735 Baffling Bible Questions Answered (by Larry Richards, Revell, 1993).

(23) Peoples of the Old Testament World (Edited by Alfred J. Hoerth, Gerald L. Mattingly & Edwin M. Yamauchi; Forward by Alan R. Millard -- Grand Rapids, MI : Baker Books, c 1994).

(24) Babylon (by Joan Oates; Thames and Hudson, 1979.)

(25) The Exact Sciences in Antiquity (by O. Neugebauer, 1957, Brown University Press, 1969, Dover Publications, Inc. New York.)

(26) Festival Days: A History of Jewish Celebrations (by Chaim Raphael - N.Y. : Grove Weidenfeld, 1990).

(27) The Jewish Festivals: History & Observance (by Hayyim Schauss - Shocken 1938).

(28) Judaism : Between Yesterday and Tomorrow (by Hans Kung, Pub. Crossroad 1992.)

(29) Every Person's Guide to Judaism (by Steven J. Einstein & Lydia Kukoff - VAHC Press - N.Y.N.Y - 1989 Pub.).

(30) This is the Torah (by Alfred J. Kolatch - Jonathan David Publishers 1988).

(31) The Eerdman's Bible Dictionary (Edited by Allen C. Myers, Grand Rapids, Mich. Eerdman's , 1987).

(32) Rabbinic Essays (by Jacob Z. Lauterbach. Hebrew Union College, Cincinnati, 1951).

(33) Unger's Bible Dictionary "Day", page 108.

(34) The Bible Sabbath: Seventh Day or First Day? (Found at: http://www.biblestudy.org/basicart/sabbsdf.html). -- Distributed by the 'Bible Sabbath Association' at: http://www.biblesabbath.org).

(35) The Five Books of Moses --The Schocken Bible: Volume 1 (by Everett Fox. - Schocken Books c 1995).

(36) Bible Advocate (Magazine) -- May 1995 Issue.

(37) The Light of Truth (Magazine) -- May 1995 Issue (by John W. Trescott).

(38) Sabbath Sentinel (Magazine) -- May-June 1997 Issue.

(39) Peake's Commentary on The Bible (Edited by S. Peake, M.A., D.D. - Thomas Nelson & Sons, New York)

(40) The New Bible Dictionary - Second Edition, Inter-Varsity Press, Leicester, England, Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois, U.S.A. c 1962, 1982.

(41) A Literary History of Early Christianity (by Charles Thomas Crutwell, M.A., Vol. 1, AMS Press, New York).

(42) Handbook of Biblical Chronology (by Dr. Jack Finegan, Hendrickson Publishers, Peabody, MA c 1998)

(43) Webster's New International Dictionary (Second Edition).

(44) Life and Language in the Old Testament (by Mary Ellen Chase - W.W. Norton & company, New York, 1962. c. 1955 by Mary Ellen Chase.)

(45) Halley's Bible Handbook (by Henry H. Halley - Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan. c. 1962, 1965.)

(46) Reformed Theology and Six-Day Creation (by Kenneth L. Gentry) --Found at web site:

www.chalcedon.edu/report/98sep/Gentry_Reformed_Creation.html

(47) Eerdman's Handbook to the Bible (Edited by David Alexander and Pat Alexander, c 1973, 1983 by Lion Publishing, Sandy Lane West, Oxford, England).

(48) A Dictionary of Life in Bible Times

(49) The Bible Companion (Nashville, TN: Abingdon, 1985)

(50) Harpers Bible Dictionary (by Paul J. Achtemier, Harper & Row Publishers, Society of Biblical Literature, San Francisco, 1985)

(51) Ancient Israel - It's Life and Institutions (by Roland De Vaux, McGraw 1961)

(52) The New Testament -- (Translated from the Latin Vulgate, St. Anthony Guild Press, Paterson, New Jersey,

1941).

(53) Bible Manners and Customs (Nelson's Ilustrated) (by Howard Frederic Voss, T. Nelson Publishers, Nashville, TN, c 1999)

(54) Expository Dictionary of Bible Words (by Larry Richards, Zondervan, 1985, Grand Rapids, Michigan)

(55) The IVP Bible Background Commentary - New Testament (by Craig S. Keener, InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, Illinois 60515, c 1993).

(56) The Plain Truth (magazine) December 1958 issue (How Long Were The "Days" of Creation?, by Kenneth C. Herrmann).

(57) The Beginning of The World (by Henry M. Morris, Master Books, c 1991, El Cajon, CA)

(58) The Lord's Day on A Round World (by Robert Leo Odom, The Southern Publishing Association, Nashville, Tennessee, c 1946)

(59) The Good News (magazine) April 1963 issue (The Jews Don't Observe Passover!, by Ernest L. Martin).

(60) The Beginning of The Jewish Day, by P.J. Heawood -- JQR, XXXVI, (The Dropsie College For Hebrew and Cognate Learning, Philadelphia, 1945-1946)

(61) The Sources of the Creation Story - Gen. 1:1 - 2:4, (by Julian Morgenstern, AJSL, XXXVI, (The University of Chicago Press, Chicago)

(62) International Standard Bible Encyclopedia ( found at web site http://www.searchgodsword.org/enc/isb/view.cgi?number=T2551

(63) Supplementary Studies in The Calendars of Ancient Israel, (by Julian Morgenstern, HUCA, X, Hebrew Union College Press, Cincinnati, 1935).

(64) Funk & Wagnalls New Encyclopedia (Leon L. Bram, Vice - President and Editorial Director, c. 1971).

(65) Sacred Seasons - A Sourcebook for the Jewish Holidays (by Ronald H. Isaacs, Jason Aronson, Northvale, NJ, 1997).

(66) The Oxford History of the Biblical World (Edited by Michael D. Coogan, Oxford University Press, New York, Oxford, 1998).

(67) An Introduction to Early Judaism (by James C. Vanderkam, - William B. Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, MI c 2001).

(68) Dead Sea Scrolls Today (by James C. Vanderkam, - Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, MI 1994).

(70) Sketches of Jewish Social Life (by Alfred Edersheim, 1876 - found at: http://www.piney.com/EdFam15.html

(71) The Book of Jubilees (by Solomon Zeitlin, - JQR, XXX, The Dropsie College For Hebrew and Cognate Learning, Philadelphia, 1939-1940).

(72) The Book of Jubilees or The Little Genesis (by R. H. Charles, D. LITT., D.D., -- Translated from the Ethiopic text, - Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, London, 1917).

(73) Some Stages of the Jewish Calendar, - in Solomon Zeitlin's Studies in the Early History of Judaism (by Solomon Zeitlin, - KTAV Publishing House, Inc., New York, 1973).

(74) Sabbath - The Day of Delight (by Abraham E. Millgram, - The Jewish Publication Society of America, Philadelphia, 1944, second impression 1945).

(75) Commentary on the Old Testament, The First Book of Moses (by C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, reprinted may 1975).

(76) The Study of the Types (by Ada R. Habershon, -- Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1961).

(77) A Commentary on the Book of Genesis, Part 1, tr. Israel Abrahams (by U. Cassuto, - The Magnes Press, The Hebrew University, Jerusalem, 1944).

(78) Life-- How Did it Get Here? (Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc. International Bible Students Association, Brooklyn, New York, U.S.A., c 1985).

(79) The Book of Genesis - Chapter 1-17 (by Victor P. Hamilton, - William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1990).

(80) The Mystery of Time (by Harry Edward Neal, - J. Messner, New York, 1966).

(81) The Torah - A Modern Commentary (Edited by Gunther Plaut, - Union of American Hebrew Congregations, New York, 1981).

(82) The Observance of the Sabbath and the Festivals in the First Two Centuries of the Current Era According to Philo, Josephus, the New Testament, and the Rabbinic Sources (The Collected Articles of Jacob Mann, - M. Shalom Ltd., Israel, 1971).

(83) Authoritative Quotations on The Sabbath and Sunday (Compiled by The Voice of Prophecy, P.O. Box 55, Los Angeles, California 90053).

(84) Commentary on the Whole Bible (Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset and David Brown, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan).

(85) When Does The Sabbath Begin? Morning or Evening? --Appendix, "Does the Sabbath Begin at Noonn?-- 'Refutation of Argument #1) (by Greg L. Price, 1995, Still Waters Revival Books, 4710-37A Ave. Edmonton AB Canada T6L 3T5).

(86) Studies in Genesis One (by Edward J. Young -- Professor of Old Testament at Westminster Theological Seminary).

(87) The Law of God, as Contained in the Ten Commandments, Explained and Enforced (by William S. Plumer, -- Presbyterian Board of Publication, 1864).

(88) Exposition of Genesis, Vol. 1 (by C. H. Leupold).

(89) Encyclopedia Biblica, Vol. 1, A to D, (Edited by T. K. Cheyne, M.A., D.D. and J. Sutherland Black, M.A., LL. D., -- New York, The Macmillan Company, 1899, London: Adam and Charles Black.

(90) The Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible, Volume 2 (by M.C. Tenney).

(91) The Interpreter's One-Volume Commentary on the Bible (Edited by Charles M. Laymon, Abingdon Press--Nashville and New York, c. 1971).

(92) The Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible (George Arthur Buttrick, Dictionary Editor, Abingdon Press -- New York and Nashville, c. 1962).

(93) http://bible.crosswalk.com/ (c. 1995-2003) -- (Infomation listed under (69) "Quotes").

(94) The Universal Jewish Encyclopedia (Edited by Isaac Landman, Universal Jewish Encyclopedia Co., Inc, New York, c. 1943).

(95) As a Mighty Stream: The Progress of Judaism Through History (by Julian Morgenstern, The Jewish Publication Society of America, c. 1949).

(96) Does Easter Really Commemorate the Resurrection? (by Herbert W. Armstong - Excerpt from his early writings).

(97) Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (by Joseph H. Thayer, Reprinted from the fourth edition originally published by T. & T. Clark, Edinburgh, 1896, with Strong's numbering added by Hendrickson Publishers, fifth printing - January 2002.).

(98) The Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon (by F. Brown, S. Driver, and C. Briggs - Francis Brown, D.D., D. Litt., with the cooperation of S.R. Driver, D.D., Litt.D. and Charles A. Briggs, D.D., D. Litt. --Reprinted from the 1906 edition originally published by Houghton, Mifflin and Company, Boston - Strong's numbering was added by Hendrickson Publishers, fourth printing -- January 1999).

(99) The JPS Torah Commentary - Genesis (Commentary by Nahum M. Sarna, The Jewish Publications Society, Philadelphia, New York, Jerusalem, c.1989) - The Traditional Hebrew Text with the New JPS Translation.-

(100) The Encyclopedia of Jewish Knowledge (Edited by Jacob De Haas, Behrman's Jewish Book House, New York, 1934.

(101) The Book of Jewish Customs (by Harvey Lutske, Jason Aronson, Inc., Northvale, New Jersey, London, c 1986 by Harvey Lutske.

(102) The Temple, Its Ministry and Services (by Alfred Edersheim,( http://www.godrules.net/bibles.html)

(103) Vincent's Word Studies (http://www.e-sword.net/)

(104) John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (http://bible.crosswalk.com/) and also (http://www.freegrace.net/gill/)

(105) Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (http://www.e-sword.net/)

(106) Hebrew Union College Annual, Volume XXXIX (Editor, Matitiahu Tsevat, Cincinnati, 1968-- c. 1969).

(107) Essential Judaism, A Complete Guide to Beliefs, Customs, and Rituals (by George Robinson, Pocket Books, a division of Simon & Schuster, Inc. c. 2000 by George Robinson.).

(108) A History of Jewish Time - Book Review - Calendar and Community: A History of The Jewish Calendar, Second Century BCE -- Tenth Century CE. (Judaism - Winter - Spring 2003, by Ron H. Feldman)

(109) The Shorter Catechism of the Westminster Assembly Explained and Proved from Scripture (by Thomas Vincent, written (seventeenth century).

(110) Reading Genesis (by Professor David Blumenthal) http://www.js.emory.edu/BLUMENTHAL/GenIntro.html

(111) History of the Jews - Vol. 1, From the Earliest Period to the Death of Simon the Maccabee (135 B.C. E.) (by Professor H. Graetz, The Jewish Publication Society of America, Philadelphia, c. 1891).

(112) Aid to Bible Understanding (Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania, c. 1969, 1971).

(113) Scofield Reference Notes (Gen. 1:5) - Scofield Bible, (http://www.e-sword.net/).

(114) Geneva Bible Translation Notes, (http://www.e-sword.net/).

(115) The Encyclopedia of Talmudic Sages (by Gershom Bader (1868 - 1953), translated by Solomon Katz, Jason Aronson Inc., Northvale, NJ, - London, c. 1988).

(116) The Bible Sabbath (by Ned S. Ashton, Review and Herald Publishing Association, Washington, D.C.)

(117) Barne's Notes on the Bible (by Albert Barnes, (http://www.e-sword.net/).

(118) Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (by Adam Clarke, (http://www.e-sword.net/).

(119) John Wesley's Explanatory Notes (by John Wesley, (http://www.e-sword.net/).

(120) Smith's Bible Dictionary (by William Smith LL.D., (http://www.e-sword.net/).

(121) Strong's Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries (http://www.e-sword.net/)

(122) Give us a King (by Everett Fox, Schocken Books, New York, c. 1999)

(123) Scripture quotations are taken from the Complete Jewish Bible, copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. Published by Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc. www.messianicjewish.net/jntp. Distributed by Messianic Jewish Resources. www.messianicjewish.net. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

(124) Bible Translation Abbreviations: (ALT) Analytical-Literal Translation, (AMP) Amplified Bible, (ASV) 1901 American Standard Version, (BBE) 1965 Bible in Basic English, (Bishops) Bishop's Bible, 1568, (CBC) Complete Jewish Bible, (CEV) Contemporary English Version, (CSB) Holman Christian Standard Bible, (Darby) 1889 Darby Bible, (DRB) 1899 Douay-Rheims Bible, (EMTV) English Majority Text Version, (ESV) English Standard Version, (FBM) Five Books of Moses, (GB) 1599 Geneva Bible, (GNB) Good News Bible / Today's English Version, (GW) God's Word, (ISV) International Standard Version, (JBK) Jerusalem Bible (Koren) 1982, (JBP) J. B. Phillips, (JGA) Julian G. Anderson's New Testament (JPS) Jewish Publication Society Bible, (KJV) King James Version, (KJ21) 21st Century King James Version, (KTC) Knox Translation - New Testament, (LITV) Literal Translation of the Holy Bible, (MKJV) Modern King James Version, (MOF) James Moffatt Translation, (MSG) The Message, (Murdock) James Murdock New Testament, (NAB) New American Bible, (NAS) New American Standard Version, (NBV) The New Berkeley Version, (NCV) New Century Version, (NEB) The New English Bible - New Testament, (NIV) New International Version, (NLT) New Living Translation, (NLV) New Life Version, (NJK) New King James Version, (NRS) New Revised Standard Version, (REB) Revised English Bible 1989, (RSV) Revised Standard Version, (SGAT) An American Translation - Smith / Goodspeed, (TCNT) Twentieth Century New Testament 1904, (TEV) Today's English Version / Good News Bible, (TJB) The Jerusalem Bible 1968, (TLB) The Living Bible, (Tyndale) 1534 Tyndale Bible, (WSB) Webster's Bible, (WmsNT) William's New Testament, (WNT) 1912 Weymouth New Testament, (WEB) World English Bible, (WORNT) Worsley's New Testament 1770, (YLT) 1898 Young's Literal Translation

(125) Outline of Jewish Knowledge - Volume Three (by Israel Goldberg and Samson Benderly, Bureau of Jewish Education, New York, c. 1931)

(126) Outline of Jewish Knowledge - Volume One (by Israel Goldberg and Samson Benderly, Bureau of Jewish Education, New York, c. 1929)

(127) Clockwork Man - The story of time, its origins, its uses, its tyranny (by Lawrence Wright, Horizon Press, New York)

ALL GLORY AND HONOR TO GOD IN HEAVEN