What was your first thought when you read the title of this article?

Was it of a slender older man with round spectacles and a mustache, wearing a visor on his head and a puffy white long-sleeved shirt with bands around his arms and sporting a bow tie while waving a small stack of papers shouting, “Stop the Presses! Stop the Presses!”

If you are as old as I am, this was a prominent scene in many older black-and-white movies as the Editor of a struggling newspaper just got the proof for a hot news story and insisted that the new printing press be stopped to put in the “story of the decade” where, after it was finally printed in the wee hours of the night for the early morning edition, newspaper sellers on city street corners would exuberantly shout, “Extra! Extra! Read all about it!”

But this is not the press I had in mind. Our topic is better suited to the ancient Biblical olive press or winepress. The idea being that the pressing of an olive or grape – both so important in ancient times – was achieved by applying immense weight, pressure, and stress on the olive to produce the sought-after oil for needed light and the grape for delightful wine that cheered the weary soul.

This brings us to our Bible verse:

“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.” – 2 Timothy 3:1

The Greek word for “perilous” is 5467 χαλεπός “chalepos” and means difficult, hard, hard to do, hard to take, hard to approach, hard to bear, troublesome, dangerous, grievous, harsh, fierce, savage, perilous.

When considering these definitions, one cannot help but sense a high degree of stress to the point that the one going through such a traumatic experience would be led to invariably shout, “Stop the Presses!”

Do you sometimes feel this way in these seemingly last of the last days? I know I do.

For many years I have been putting together a two-part Prophetic Update that focuses in on certain end-time subjects, and I can tell the reader that the presses have certainly heated up.

[If you are interested in receiving the Prophetic Update by email, please just shoot me an email requesting to be signed up. I do not know how much longer I will be able to keep doing this, but God knows!]

All of the prophetic topics have been shooting up the proverbial Richter scale in frequency and intensity, but the ones that have really been speaking to my heart – and have a tendency to shout “chalepos” the loudest – are in the prophetic areas of Jewish and Christian persecution, moral depravity, lawlessness, and love waxing cold.

Jewish and Christian Persecution

When it comes to Jewish and Christian persecution, here are just a few recent examples:

WATCH: Celebration in Jenin over Tel Aviv terror attack | World Israel News

UN schools glorify terrorism, demonize Jews – JNS.org

New ADL’ audit’ finds 2022 had highest levels of antisemitism in 44 years – JNS.org

WATCH: Polish activist denies Holocaust, ‘only solution is destruction of Israel’ | World Israel News

‘Use a Nail Gun to Nail the Heads and Crucify Them’: The Persecution of Christians, February 2023 :: Gatestone Institute

Convert, Marry Me, or Die by Acid: Christian Women in Muslim Pakistan :: Gatestone Institute

Christians Continue to be Purged: Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day :: Gatestone Institute

‘Murder’ threats now explode against Christians for LGBT, abortion views (wnd.com)

Chinese Province Requires Government Approval to Attend a Church Service (breitbart.com)

Oregon Denies Christian Woman Right to Adopt Children Because She Won’t Celebrate LGBTQ (disntr.com)

UK: SILENT Prayer Is Outlawed Outside Abortion Centers – PJ Media

Members of Congress: UK ‘threat’ putting Christians under attack | U.S. News (christianpost.com)

Christian Student Teachers Banned – ‘Biblically Minded’ Teachers Are A Threat (prophecynewswatch.com)

Along with Jewish and Christian persecution, the world is on a rapid downward spiral regarding morality.

Moral Depravity

Here is a brief rundown of what has been occurring within society at an accelerated pace.

Parents Defend Transitioning Child – Say They Knew Their Child Was Trans “Before She (He) Could Ever Speak” (VIDEO | The Gateway Pundit

Pride clothing for infants.

Pride | carters.com

Inside The Classroom | Trans-Cult Enemy on Twitter: “This teacher @VHelementary brags about her goal of confusing children. https://t.co/xoidH13OQf” / Twitter

Dr. Rachel Levine says changing kids’ genders will soon be fully embraced: ‘Wheels will turn on this’ | Fox News

Minnesota Introduces Legislation Criminalizing Parents Who Refuse Sex Change Operations for Children (disntr.com)

Drag queen forces child to leave class for denying 73 genders, school teaches anal sex to 11-year-olds: report | Fox News

How Low Will We Go? Burlesque For Babies Draws Outrage (prophecynewswatch.com)

Drag Queen Gives Little Children a Lesson About “Twerking” (disntr.com)

Oregon Democrats Seek to Create Sanctuary State for Kids to Get Abortions and Sex Changes Without Parental Consent | The Gateway Pundit

Pentagon Orders Military To Put Male Soldiers In Female Showers (thefederalist.com)

Turkey: Islamist Sex with Children Is Fine; Condemning It Is an Offense :: Gatestone Institute

UN Wants to Decriminalize Sex Between Minors and Adults | The Gateway Pundit | by Anthony Scott

Government-Funded CBC Uses Taxpayer Money To Promote Sexualized ‘Drag Kids’ (prophecynewswatch.com)

The professing “church” has also taken the bait of society’s moral depravity.

Depravity in the ‘Church’

Here is a sampling of what is going on in professing “churches” around the world.

“Pastor” Says God is Every Point on Intersectionality Scale: Gay, Lesbian, Trans, Etc… (disntr.com)

Christian Minister Says “Your Faith is Too Small” if You Don’t Support Killing Babies in Abortions – LifeNews.com

Methodist Pastor Slams Churches That Oppose Abortion: They’re “Simplistic” and Extreme – LifeNews.com

Parents pull 4-year-old from church school for promoting ‘gender identity’ lessons: ‘Cruel deception’ | Fox News

Drag Queens Hold Drag Queen Story Hour at Church in Chesterland Ohio (disntr.com)

Woke Christianity: Historic London Church Hosts Drag Queen Performance (breitbart.com)

Megachurch Pastor Says Not Supporting Same-Sex Marriage is Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit (disntr.com)

With professing “churches” succumbing to, and even pushing, moral depravity, is it any wonder that the world would be experiencing a major uptick in lawlessness and a love that waxes cold?

Lawlessness and Love Waxing Cold

Here is a smattering of lawlessness that generally results from a society’s love that is waxing cold — even against its own children.

Man Brutally Kills Newborn, Fracturing His Skull Because Mom Refused His Demand to Have Abortion – LifeNews.com

Woman Charged With Murder After She Gave Birth, Threw Her Newborn Baby in a Ditch – LifeNews.com

Lesbian couple given life sentences for murder and sexual abuse of their 5-year-old son, text messages between them claimed he was challenging ‘the flow of their relationship’ | The Post Millennial | thepostmillennial.com

Attorney Who Represented Survivors of Sex Crimes Arrested for Child Pornography | NTD

California prostitution crisis: Police chief calls for repeal of law as teens caught up in sex trafficking | Fox News

BLOODY HORROR: Bystanders Videotape Father Stabbed to Death Inside Canadian Starbucks in Front of 3-Yr-Old Daughter For Asking Attacker to Stop Vaping Near His Child | The Gateway Pundit

VIDEO: Newborn Found Crying in Trash Can at California Gas Station (breitbart.com)

REVEALED: Group Behind Trans “Day of Vengeance” Raised Money for Firearms Training – Trans Activists Pose with Firearms Threatening Christians Ahead of Rally at US Supreme Court (PHOTOS) | The Gateway Pundit

Nolte: Four Transsexual Mass Shooters in Less than Five Years (breitbart.com)

Church Attack in Nashville

I cannot imagine that there is a single person who is unaware of what happened in Nashville recently. What shocked me – in addition to the horror of the event itself – was the response from virtually everyone outside of the legitimate Christian community. From the Administration to the media, their impression and reaction to this attack was pure abomination on all levels.

Merrick Garland Refuses to Investigate Nashville Shooting as Hate Crime › American Greatness (amgreatness.com)

Joe Biden: ‘Transgender Americans Shape our Nation’s Soul’ (breitbart.com)

“Our Hearts Go Out to the Trans Community as They Are Under Attack Right Now” – Karine Jean-Pierre After Transgender Terrorist Murders Christians (VIDEO) | The Gateway Pundit

Democrat Kathleen Clark BLASTS “Politicians and Preachers” and “Right Wing Extremists” for Cruelty to Trans Americans After Wicked Transgender Guns Down Kids at Christian School – Forgets to Mention Her Son Is Violent Cop-Assaulting Trans Antifa Felon | The Gateway Pundit

Revoice Founder Defends Transgender Shooter: “Devastating Form of Parental Rejection” (disntr.com)

Demonic Liberals in Media Blame Christians for Mass Shooting at Christian School (substack.com)

Media Narrative After Shooting – Christianity Is The Problem Not The Solution (prophecynewswatch.com)

And here we are, having gone full circle, back to Christian persecution.

No wonder the believer in Christ who witnesses these moral declines and lawless accelerations in virtually every sector of society has the inclination to cry, “Stop the Presses!”

What is the Remedy?

As always, for the child of God, the remedy to our stress from the press is God and His Word.

God’s Word – His commandments – are our delight.

“Trouble and anguish have taken hold on me: yet thy commandments are my delights.” – Psalm 119:143

When we are pressed and in distress – just as Yeshua always is – the Lord is always there.

“I called upon the Lord in distress: the Lord answered me, and set me in a large place. The Lord is on my side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me?” – Psalm 118:5-6

When fearful in this life, or because of what we see in this fallen world, we put our trust in God and in God alone.

“What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.” – Psalm 56:3-4

Our burdens are to be put upon the Lord because He cares.

“Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.” – Psalm 55:22

Jesus reiterated this very thought when it comes to our heavy-laden hearts:

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” – Matthew 11:28-30

We need to always cast our cares upon the One who loves us and bought us with His precious blood and paid our just sentence on Calvary’s cross.

“Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” – 1 Peter 5:6-7

We should, as we trust Him for and in everything, be anxious for nothing because if we truly believe He is on His throne – and He is – then He has our best interests in mind, and our lives are in His omniscient and omnipotent hands.

Staying in prayer, communing with our Lord and Savior, offering our supplications to Him with thanksgiving, and making our requests known to Him, will always satisfy our “stressed from the press” souls.

“Be careful [anxious] for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 4:6-7

When we see and hear of all the evil in this world, we must remember that He warned us in His Word that this would be the condition of a lost humanity until He consummates history.

Ours is never to repay evil for evil but to offer sincere love to every person – His agape love – in all circumstances, as is our duty in service to Him.

Until then, we trust that God will make all things right in the end, and He will.

“Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.

“Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.

“Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.” – Romans 12:17-21

When it comes to the child of God giving “place unto wrath,” the Lord says, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” This brings to my mind the imagery revealed to us in Revelation concerning Christ’s Second Coming, which speaks of God’s own winepress upon a God-hating, Christ-rejecting world when…

“… the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.” – Revelation 14:19-20

But until then, when we feel overwhelmed with the world’s evil systems and perverse ways, we have the Holy Spirit to help make intercession on our behalf and in our time of need when we are at an utter loss for words.

“Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.

“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” – Romans 8:26-28

Keep loving and keep serving in the Name that is above all other names, our God and Savior, Messiah Yeshua. He is with us and will complete that which He has started within us through His indwelling Holy Spirit, despite the presses we may endure along the way.

In the meantime, He will give you a peace that surpasses all understanding – a peace that has no explanation and no worldly rationale, apart from the Lord, because it comes from His glorious shalom that is promised to His faithful children. And He who promises is always faithful!

“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” – John 14:27

Beloved Saint, I know it can be very difficult in these seemingly last of the last days to see what this lost and dying world is coming to, but please, do not fear or succumb to the presses. We were warned that this was coming on the world, and we know it will only grow worse until our Lord calls us home.

Remember, God is lovingly patient for all to come to salvation in His Son. But, one day – hopefully soon – this will all be over and we will be in His presence, which is what we all eagerly desire and look forward to.

Until then, we have one main job to do, and the field is ripe for the harvest. Beloved, continue to share the gospel with the lost – “occupy till he comes” – planting and watering seeds in the hearts of all, for this is certainly our reasonable service to our loving Master.

May we all keep Answering the Call of The Great Commission, and giving an answer to every man and woman who so desperately needs Jesus and asks us, “Why Am I Here and What Is It All About?”

Love, grace, mercy, and shalom in Messiah Yeshua, and Maranatha!

➢ Email: mab10666@yahoo.com – I would love to hear from you!

➢ If you have not given your life to Jesus Christ and are seeking answers about God, Jesus Christ, the gospel, and salvation, please email me at mab10666@yahoo.com for information.

➢ I am still taking questions for the Questions from the Body of Christ series. If you or someone you know has a question pertaining to the Word of God – theology, difficult passages, eschatology, etc. – I would really like to hear from you.

➢ To view my entire catalogue of articles, please visit my Home Page on FaithWriters.com.

 

 

 

In my last article, The End of the Age: From Firstfruits to Hanukkah :: By Randy Nettles – Rapture Ready, I explained why I believe the last seven years of Daniel’s 70th Seven prophecy (Daniel 9:24-27) will be based on the Jewish calendar and not a 360-day “prophetic” calendar. More on this later, but first, let’s review some basic facts regarding the Jewish calendar and some others as well. In our modern Gregorian calendar, there are either 2556 or 2557 days in a seven-year span. The so-called prophetic year has 2520 days in a seven-year period. The Jewish calendar has either 2538-2541 days or 2568-2570 days in a seven-year time span, according to my research.

A lunar month, from new moon to new moon, is, on average, approximately 29.53 days in duration. The new moon I am talking about is the dark moon that cannot be seen, not a crescent moon. Most scholars believe the Jewish calendar in olden times was based on sightings of a crescent moon for the first day of the month/s. After the destruction of the second Temple and Jerusalem and the Jews’ later deportation from the land of Judah, the Jewish people eventually adopted the calculated 19-year Metonic cycle’s structure for their lunisolar calendar, where the phases of the moon are based on calculations and not by observation. With this calendar, the new moon is the dark moon, not the waning crescent moon.

Regarding the Jewish lunisolar calendar, there are normally 353-355 days per year. Where an intercalary month of days is added, there will be 383-385 days per month. This is why there is such a discrepancy in the number of days per seven-year timeframes.

Our Gregorian solar calendar generally has 30 or 31 days per month. The Jewish calculated calendar has either 29 or 30 days per month. Nisan has 30 days, Iyyar has 29 days, Sivan has 30 days, Tammuz has 29 days, Av has 30 days, Elul has 29 days, Tishri has 30 days, Heshvan has 29 or 30 days, Kislev has 29 or 30 days, Teveth has 29 days, Shevat has 30 days, Adar has 29 days. If the intercalary month of Veadar is added, it has 30 days. The Jewish calendar was arranged in this manner in order to have some control over when the Feasts of the Lord, such as Passover, Trumpets, and the day of Atonement, occur. Basically, they don’t want to have two Sabbath days (weekly Sabbath and special high day Sabbath) occur back to back.

At this point, the major rules get a little complicated. There is a principle regarding the Jewish calendar system that says, “Lo Adu Rosh,” meaning the first day of Trumpets (Rosh Hashanah) cannot fall on Sunday, Wednesday, or Friday. Likewise, there is a principle known as “Lo Badu Pesach,” which means that the first day of Passover (Pesach – Nisan 15 for the Jews) cannot fall on Monday, Wednesday, or Friday. The reason why the Rabbis ordained that Pesach cannot fall on these days is that if Pesach would fall on Monday, Wednesday, or Friday, then the first day of Rosh Hashanah would fall on Sunday, Wednesday, or Friday.

The Rabbis wanted to prevent these scenarios because of their ramifications regarding Atonement (Yom Kippur): if the first day of Rosh Hashanah falls on Wednesday, then Yom Kippur falls on Friday, and if Rosh Hashanah falls on Friday, then Yom Kippur falls on Sunday. Either situation – where Yom Kippur falls on Friday or Sunday – would pose considerable difficulty, and the Rabbis, therefore, arranged the calendar in such a way that this could never happen. The Jewish calendar based on the 19-year Metonic cycle is really ingenious in this regard. However, it’s not Biblical. The days of the months should be determined from new moon to new moon, regardless of what day of the week it falls on, especially now that the moon’s phases can be known beforehand.

For more specifications, see On Which Days Do Jewish Holidays Begin? – Chabad.org.

As I mentioned in my previous article, I believe Daniel’s prophecy of 70 weeks/sevens (heptads) is based on the Jewish calendar with its Shemitah years every seventh year. There is no mention of Jubilee years, only “sevens,” which refer to the Sabbath year of rest. There are several descriptions or terms for the duration of the last 3.5 years of Daniel’s 70 sevens prophecy, known as the Great Tribulation, such as “42 months” or “time, times, and half a time,” but there are only three passages of scripture that record an exact number of days between biblical events. The Lord must have done this for a reason; otherwise, He would have kept the same terms for the specified timeframes.

The first passage of scripture is found in Revelation 12:6: “Then the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that they should feed her there one thousand two hundred and sixty days.” I believe these 1260 days are referring to the exact number of days between the Feast of Firstfruits and the Day of Atonement/Tishri 10, which occurs three and a half years later. The exact duration of 1260 days between these two Feast days only occurs on certain rare heptads. There is also another 1260-day timeframe between Nisan 10 and Tishri 1 (the Feast of Trumpets) three and a half years later. Nisan 10 is the date Jesus rode into Jerusalem as the King of the Jews but was not accepted as such. Tishri 1 will be the date Jesus returns to the earth as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. This time He will be accepted as The King.

The Feast of Firstfruits is not acknowledged as a separate Feast of the Lord for the Jews these days; it is simply known as the day the counting of the Omer begins. Firstfruits does not occur on Nisan 16, as most rabbinic Jews believe, but on the day after the weekly Sabbath following the Passover “He shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, to be accepted on your behalf; on the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it“ (Leviticus 23:11). Firstfruits and Pentecost are the two Feasts of the Lord where no specific dates were given for them in the Torah. That is because they are “day of the week” specific and thus can come on different dates within the Jewish calendar. If Firstfruits was meant to be on Nisan 16, the Lord would have said so. If Shavuot or Pentecost was meant to be on Sivan 6, the Lord would have said so.

The Jewish first day of Passover is Nisan 15, which is a special “sabbath” where no work is permitted. The Jews don’t consider Nisan 14 to be the actual day of Passover. The 1260 days mentioned in Revelation 12:6 will start on a future Feast of Firstfruits, a Sunday, and end three and a half years later on the Day of Atonement/Tishri 10, a Saturday Sabbath. In my last article, I mentioned the 1260 days were from Sunday to Sunday, but that is just the amount of days between these two Sunday dates. The Day of Atonement will end on a Saturday evening before Sunday begins.

The next verse of scripture regarding the exact number of days for the Great Tribulation timeline is found in the Book of Daniel. “And from the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety days” (Daniel 12:11). The 1290 days of desolation are from Firstfruits to Heshvan 10, three and a half years later on the Jewish calendar. Actually, Heshvan 10 will be the first day of the Millennium, so Heshvan 9 will be the end of Daniel’s 70th Seven.

The next verse of scripture in Daniel describes the 45 days beyond the 70th seven. “Blessed is he who waits, and comes to the one thousand three hundred and thirty-five days.” These 1335 days are from Firstfruits to Kislev 25, otherwise known as Hanukkah. The event that occurs on the 1335th day from the desecration of the temple (or 45 days past the 1290 days) is not given, only that the people will be blessed on this day. Evidently, these 45 days will take place after the Tribulation is over. I believe the wedding feast of the Lamb will take place on this day, along with the cleansing of the Temple and the inauguration of the Millennial Kingdom.

Seven out of nineteen years of the Metonic cycle have an extra month of 30 days. These embolismic years occur in the following years of the cycle: 3, 6, 8, 11, 14, 17, and 19. These particular years will consist of 383, 384, or 385 days. Currently, in the year 2023 AD, we are in the 8th year of the current cycle, an embolismic year. The year 2023 AD matches the first-century year of 28 AD in that they are/were both in the 8th year of their respective 19-year cycle/s. Whether or not this alignment is anything significant in regard to eschatological matters, I don’t know. It could be we are in the “season” of the Lord’s return.

The new and full moons of these twenty-first century years will not fall on the same dates as their current first-century counterparts, as they have now advanced by 7-8 days. For example, in 28 AD, the new moon of Tishri 1 (the first day of the civic Jewish calendar) fell on September 7, 28 AD (according to NASA’s reckoning). In 2023 AD, the new moon of Tishri 1 will fall on September 15. The Metonic cycle’s moon phases and their dates are in harmony (every 19 years) for about 250-290 years until they drift apart by one day.

If these different era years are in alignment, regarding the Metonic cycle, then the Sabbath or Shemitah “weeks” (seven years) are in alignment as well. For example, the years 26 – 33 AD have a total of 2569 days (from Tishri to Tishri), just as its modern-day counterpart of 2021 – 2028 does. The Jewish Sabbath “weeks” are approximately 2540 or 2569 days in duration. I believe the last seven years of Daniel’s prophecy (the 70th seven) will contain 2569 days.

The 69 “sevens” prophecy of Daniel 9:24-25 was from 444 BC to AD 33. Even though this timeline was from Nisan to Nisan, it still contained 69 sevens or Shemitah years. In other words, there are 69 sevens (Sabbath years) within the 476-year timeline of Daniel’s prophecy. Tishri 1 is the start of the new year on the Jewish civic calendar, where the year count changes. For this 476-year timeframe, there are 173,847 days in a Jewish calendar (Nisan to Nisan or Tishri to Tishri), and there are 173,856 days in a proleptic Gregorian calendar (January to January)… only nine days difference. The end date for the 69 sevens prophecy of Daniel 9:25 occurred when Jesus was “cut off” or crucified on Passover, Nisan 14 (or April 2, AD 33 on the Julian calendar).

I believe the reason the last seven years will be for 2569 days instead of 2540 days is to keep the Jewish calendar in line with the Gregorian calendar. If we add 2569 days to our previous total of 173,847 days, then you have a total of 176,416 days. Likewise, if you were to add 2557 days (7 years of 365/366 days) to the previous total of 173,856 days in the Gregorian calendar, then you have a total of 176,413 days. This is only a difference of 3 days.

In my last article, regarding the Great Tribulation, I showed that the timing of the 1260 days of Revelation 12:6 would be from a future Feast of Firstfruits to a future Day of Atonement. “Then the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that they should feed her there one thousand two hundred and sixty days.“ I also demonstrated that the timespan from that same Firstfruits to Heshvan 10 would amount to 1290 days, thus fulfilling Daniel 12:11. “And from the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety days.“ Last but not least, I showed how the timespan between that same Feast of Firstfruits and the Feast of Dedication, or Hanukkah, amounts to 1335 days. “Blessed is he who waits, and comes to the one thousand three hundred and thirty-five days.”

With these same requirements in mind, I did some research to determine how many other upcoming Jewish “heptad years” there are that have these qualifying characteristics. I researched 20 different heptads, starting with 2023-2030 and continuing with 2024-2031, 2025-2032, 2026-2033, …2042-2049. I was looking for an exact match of 1260, 1290, and 1335 to occur between the two specified Jewish dates/Feast days.

First, I reckoned the duration (number of days) of the seven-year heptads by using the calculated Metonic cycle Jewish calendar (360calendar.com Calendar Converter). For these calculations, I used the civic new year of Tishri 1 to Tishri 1, as that is the day the new year count changes. Tishri 1 is also the first of the month and occurs on a new moon. I could have just as well used a Nisan 1 to Nisan 1 or even Heshvan 10 to Heshvan 10, as they would have all had the same amount of days.

Then, I double-checked these dates with NASA’s Six Millennium Catalog of Phases of the Moon (AstroPixels – Six Millennium Catalog of Phases of the Moon). These dates aligned, for the most part, with the calendar converter being off by only a day or two in various places due to the way the Metonic cycle is configured, so the Feasts of the Lord will not occur on certain days. Let’s look at a couple of examples regarding the duration of upcoming seven-year timespans.

For the seven years of 2023-2030: The Tishri 1 to Tishri 1 timespan is September 15, 2023, to September 28, 2030 (2570 days). NASA’s new moon of September to new moon of September timespan is September 15, 2023, to September 27, 2030 (2569 days).

For the seven years of 2024-2031: The Tishri 1 to Tishri 1 timing is October 2, 2024, to September 17, 2031 (2541 days). NASA’s record shows the new moon’s timespan from October 2, 2024, to September 16, 2031 (2540 days).

For the seven years of 2025-2031: The Tishri 1 to Tishri 1 timespan is September 22, 2025, to September 5, 2032 (2540 days). NASA’s record shows the new moon’s timespan from September 21, 2024, to September 4, 2032 (2540 days).

Out of twenty heptads, only nine didn’t have the same number of days (from comparing Tishri 1 and NASA’s new moons), and they only differed by one or two days at the most. Where there was a difference, I used NASA’s dates for my reckoning of 1260, 1290, and 1335 days. Out of these 20 possible upcoming heptads, there were only four that matched perfectly. Only one had 2540 days. The other three had 2569 days between the two dates. The 1260, 1290, and 1335 days are all figured from the Feast of First fruits, which is “in the midst” of Daniel’s 70th Seven. The abomination of desolation by the Antichrist in the new Temple in Jerusalem will begin the Great Tribulation, otherwise known as Jacob’s Trouble.

POTENTIAL DATES FOR JACOB’S TROUBLE

1. 1. 2023 – 2030 (2569 days). 1260 days between Firstfruits (Nisan 19/April 25, 2027) and the Day of Atonement (Tishri 10/Oct. 6, 2030). 1290 days between Firstfruits and Heshvan 10 (Nov. 5, 2030). 1335 days between Firstfruits and the start of Hanukkah (Kislev 25/Dec. 20, 2030). In this hypothetical example, if Jesus was crucified in 30 AD, He will return to the earth 2000 years later in 2030.

2. 2026 – 2033 (2569 days). 1260 days between Firstfruits (Nisan 19/April 21, 2030) and the Day of Atonement (Tishri 10/Oct. 2, 2033). 1290 days between Firstfruits and Heshvan 10 (Nov. 1, 2033). 1335 days between Firstfruits and the start of Hanukkah (Kislev 25/Dec. 16, 2033). In this example, if Jesus was crucified in 33 AD, He will return to the earth 2000 years later in 2033.

3. 2033 – 2040 (2540 days). 1260 days between Firstfruits (Nisan 21/April 5, 2037) and the Day of Atonement (Tishri 10/Sept. 16, 2040). 1290 days between Firstfruits and Heshvan 10 (Oct. 16, 2040). 1335 days between Firstfruits and the start of Hanukkah (Kislev 25/Nov. 30, 2040).

4. 2040 – 2047 (2569 days). 1260 days between Firstfruits (Nisan 21/April 17, 2044) and the Day of Atonement (Tishri 10/Sept. 29, 2047). 1290 days between Firstfruits and Heshvan 10 (Oct. 29, 2047). 1335 days between Firstfruits and the start of Hanukkah (Kislev 25/Dec. 13, 2047).

Many Bible teachers, including myself, believe Jesus’ 3.5-year ministry began in the fall of 29 AD and he was crucified in 33 AD. So, if you start with this year of 29 AD and use the 19-year Metonic cycle to reckon comparative 21st-century dates, and add 101 nineteen-year time periods (which equals 1919 years) you get 1948 AD (a very significant year for Israel). If you add another 19 years, you get 1967 AD (another very significant year for Israel). If you add 3 more nineteen-year time periods (57 years), you get 2024 AD. Could 2024 be another “very significant” year for Israel (and the world) as well?

In 29 AD, Jesus began to preach and prophesy. “From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand'” (Matthew 4:17). 1995 years later, in 2023-2024, Christians should have the same message of “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” For Christians, the kingdom of heaven will begin at the Rapture. “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself“ (Philippians 3:20-21).

“Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!“ (Matthew 13:43).

Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

Randy Nettles

rgeanie55@gmail.com