Bible, Cosmology And Biblical Astronomy

The Blood Moon Tetrad of 168-166 BC and the Abomination Desolation-Part 2.

Blood Moon Total Lunar Eclipses framing the 2300 days of Daniel 8.

I am excited to follow up on our June 21st blog post with Part 2. The impetus for this started with a question from one of my colleagues, from Australia on my Facebook Group, the Biblical Astronomy Fellowship. Michael Toms who brings the thunder from down under, posed the following question relating to Part 1 of this study;

“I am trying to find what Saros cycle these Tetrad cycles belong to. As seen on the NASA eclipse page: [https://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/LEsaros/LEsaroscat.html ]. The periodicity and recurrence of lunar (and solar) eclipses is governed by the Saros cycle, a period of approximately 6,585.3 days (18 years 11 days 8 hours). When two eclipses are separated by a period of one Saros, they share similar geometry. The two eclipses occur at the same node with the Moon at nearly the same distance from Earth and at the same time of year. Thus, the Saros is useful for organizing eclipses into families or series. Each series typically lasts 12 to 15 centuries and contains 70 or more lunar eclipses. NASA.”1

This got me thinking, so I looked into the 168-66 BC Blood Moon Tetrad and found that there were indeed some consecutive Saros cycles seen during this 2300 day period. According to Jon Nessle, the 2300 days of Dan. 8:14 occur “if we count backwards 2300 days from the Temple cleansing in 164 BC, it brings us to the month of Av on the Hebrew Calendar in 170 BC.”2 The date was the 26th of AV, 170 BC or 78 Lunar months prior to the cleansing of the Temple on the 25th of Kislev 12/16/164 BC. A few of the consecutive Saros cycles involved in this Blood Moon Tetrad include:

The Dec. 1st Partial Solar Eclipse in 167 BC included in this study is in Saros [49], along with the April 21st, Partial Lunar Eclipse in 164 BC in Saros [48]. and both dates fall within the 2300 days referenced in this post.

Also, the May 28th, 166 BC Annular Solar Eclipse included in Part 1, is in Saros [54] while the Oct. 14th, 164 BC Partial Lunar Eclipse is in Saros [53].3

Then I noticed a third pair of consecutive dates; the Annular Solar Eclipse on Jan. 22, 168 BC is in Saros [72] while the Dec. 6th, 166 Partial Lunar Eclipse is in Saros [71]. All these dates are within the 2300 days from the prophecy in Daniel 8 below. This was only the tip of the iceberg as we find in the Timeline below.

Since Antiochus was a “type” of the Anti-Christ, this qualifies as a “preliminary fulfillment” of this prophecy, yet to be completed by the end-times anti-Christ. We can see how Antiochus IV fulfills the prophecies of Daniel 8 as follows;

Dan. 8:11-14
11 Yea, he magnified {himself} even to the prince of the host [To God Almighty or the Jewish High Priest] and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of the Sanctuary was cast down. [Antiochus Epiphanes desecrated the Temple] 12 And an host was given {him} against the daily sacrifice by reason of transgression, and it cast down truth to the ground; and it practiced [transacted business], and prospered. 13 Then I heard one saint (angel) speaking, and another saint (angel) said unto that certain {saint} which spake, How long {will be} the vision {concerning} the daily {sacrifice}, and the transgression of desolation, [reference to the “Abomination of Desolation”] to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot? 14 And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; [Exactly 78 Lunar Months*] then shall the sanctuary be cleansed. [Time span includes all the parts of verse 13] {insertions by Jon Nessle in red} 4

*A numerical note on the 2300 days equaling 78 lunar months is that (78=6 x 13), 6 as the number of man destitute of God multiplied by the number of rebellion or apostasy.5 These are fitting links since Antiochus IV was a type of the end times Anti-Christ and he instigated this version of the Abomination Desolation. Also the relation between lunar months and this Blood Moon Tetrad marking key dates as the Temple and host were being trodden underfoot during the 2300 days is intriguing.

What this Saros structure surrounding the 168-66 Blood Moon Tetrad began to suggest to me, resembles the structure around the 2014-15 Blood Moon Tetrad that we have documented in previous blog posts. The following excerpt is from my Jan. 15th, 2018 article depicting a structure of solar and lunar eclipses around our most recent Blood Moon Tetrad in 2014-15. As we will see, this relates directly to Blood Moons of 2018, another which occurs this month and early in 2019.

The Jan. 31st, 2018 Blood Moon was visible in Israel as it rose over Jerusalem. It was the first of three consecutive Blood Moons visible in Israel this year. The second occurs on July 27/28, 2018, having this century‘s longest totality during a Total Lunar Eclipse. Totality will last for 1 hour 42 minutes. The 3rd Blood Moon is on Jan. 20-21, 2019. This Blood Moon lunar triple of 2018-2019 is 7 years after the lunar triple of 2010-2011 Blood Moons also visible in Israel. As seen below, these two sets of Blood Moon Lunar triples framed the 2014-2015 Blood Moon Tetrad, marking Hebrew Feast and holy days in 2014-15. The Chart in Figure 1. below also shows us layers of Total Solar Eclipses, for instance solar eclipses located out-side each lunar triple.

Figure 1. 2014-2015 Biblical Tetrad 6

The 2014-2015 Blood Moon Tetrad was centered between the saddest days on the Hebrew Calendar, “the Days of Av” marked by two lunar triples framing this Tetrad between 2010-11 and 2018-19. These Lunar triples or triads are Blood Moon lunar eclipses that do not fall on Hebrew Feast or holy days, bracketing the Blood Moon Tetrad that did. Also the 2nd Blood Moon of each lunar triple was visible over Jerusalem. These lunar triples recall the Jerusalem Temple being destroyed on at least two key occasions in history, in Hebrew Sabbath years of 586-587 BC and 69-70 AD. The Jubilee calendar also marks 27-28 AD a Jubilee year, denoting the year Jesus opens his ministry to Israel, as seen in [Isa. 61:1ff & Lk. 4:18-19].

The 2010-2011 Lunar triple dates prior to the Blood Moon Tetrad and Eclipses of 2016 are seen below:

12/21/2010
6/15/2011
12/10/2011

The 2018-2019 Lunar triple dates after the Blood Moon Tetrad and eclipses of 2016 are next:

1/31/2018
7/27/2018
1/21/2019

Further observations linking the Total Solar Eclipse of Aug. 21^st 2017 to the Blood Moon Tetrad of 2014-15, and the eclipses of 2016 are seen in the fact that each Lunar triple framing this Tetrad is itself framed by a series of Total Solar eclipses! This Total Solar Eclipse series is related to the “Days of Av” as a set of 4 Total Solar Eclipses, all on the 1^st of Av. The first bracket framing the Lunar triple is actually the 3rd total solar eclipse in a set of 3 total solar eclipses on the 1st of Av, as seen above in Figure 1.

As we have documented in previous blog posts on June 24^th and August of 2017, the Aug. 21^stTotal Solar Eclipse initiated the 40-day Season of Repentance leading to Yom Kippur 2017. However, when viewed in the celestial framework of this series of Total Solar Eclipses bracketing the 2014-2015 Blood Moon Tetrad, a clear picture of the relationship between these solar eclipses and the Blood Moon Tetrad becomes apparent.

The Chart below in Figure 2 reflects both series of Partial and Total Solar Eclipses framing the Blood Moon Tetrad of 2014-2015.

Figure 2. Lunar Triads and Solar Eclipses framing the Blood Moon Tetrad 7

As we note the order of these Solar and Lunar eclipses, we find 4 Partial Solar Eclipses between each Lunar Triple. All the solar eclipses on either side of the Lunar Tetrad are spaced equi-distant from the center date [Jan. 5th, 2015] of the Blood Moon Tetrad. For example, we find this in 2 solar eclipses nearest to the center date of the Blood Moon Tetrad, Oct. 23, 2014, and Mar. 20, 2015, are the same distance on either side of this central date [Jan. 5, 2015] of the Lunar Tetrad. The dates for these Partial Solar Eclipses before the Blood Moon Tetrad are listed below:

The Partial Solar Eclipse dates before the Blood Moon tetrad:

1/4/2011
6/1/2011
7/1/2011
11/25/2011

Partial Solar Eclipse Dates with the Second Lunar Triple:

2/15/2018
7/13/2018
8/11/2018
1/6/2019

These 2018 Partial Solar Eclipse dates include two this summer, one this month on July 13th and one August 11th. The Partial Solar Eclipse on July 13th is only 2 weeks before to the Total Lunar Eclipse on 7/27/2018, which is the middle eclipse of the 2018-19 Lunar triple after the 2014-15 Blood Moon Tetrad. The Total Solar Eclipse series brackets both the Blood Moon Tetrad and both sets of Lunar triples. With this in mind lets take a closer look at the eclipse activity surrounding the Blood Moon Tetrad of 168-66.

Figure 3. The Partial Solar Eclipse of July 2018. 8

Related Tetrad and Saros Eclipse Pairs

Solar and Lunar Eclipses come in pairs – a Lunar Eclipse always occurs two weeks before or after a Solar Eclipse. Since my initial focus in the last blog post was documenting the Blood Moon Tetrad of 168-166, I did not include all surrounding eclipse activity outside the 2300 day period. As we consider the Saros cycle data, we are looking for both matching and consecutive Saros cycles, matching belonging to the same Saros cycle, and consecutive refers to adjacent Saroi in their numbered series. As we view the matching and consecutive Saros cycles around this Tetrad, certain eclipse pairs stand out. For example, the Dec. 1st, 167 Partial Solar Eclipse in Saros [49], included in the Tetrad calls our attention to another Partial Lunar Eclipse on March 10th, 171 BC, also in Saros [49] but outside the 2300 days. The next eclipse in the Tetrad, after Dec. 1st 167; the May 28th, Annular Solar Eclipse in 166, is in Saros [54]. This recalls another Partial Lunar Eclipse on Sept. 3rd, 171, also in Saros [54] outside the 2300 days.9 Thus it appears we have a Saros pairing here of 49 and 54 emerging from consecutive eclipses within the 2300 days, pointing to eclipses framing this period.

As we consider this further, more related eclipses come to light. In the two Partial Lunar eclipses outside the 2300 days, uncovered in the Saros pairing above, we find two more related Solar eclipses that are tightly paired in 171 BC. Pairing with the Mar. 10th, 171 BC Partial Solar Eclipse in Saros [49], we have the Mar. 24th, Total Solar Eclipse also in Spring of 171, 2 weeks later. The Second Eclipse on Sept. 18th, an Annual Solar in the Fall of 171, pairs with the Partial Lunar Eclipse two weeks earlier on Sept. 3rd, 171, in Saros [54].10 Thus we find a bracket being built around the Blood Moon Tetrad of 168-166, of two Partial Lunar Eclipses tightly paired with a Total and Annular Solar Eclipse in 171 BC.

As we continue to observe the structure of Solar and Lunar eclipses around this Blood Moon Tetrad, we find another Saros pair of matching Eclipses. The next eclipse following the May 28th Annular Solar Eclipse of Saros [54] in 166, was the Nov. 20th, 166 BC Annular Solar Eclipse in Saros [59]. This is matched with the next Feb. 27th Total Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse, also in Saros [59], in 170 BC. Amazingly, the next Total Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse took place on Aug. 23rd, 170, in Saros [64].11 This gives us consecutive Eclipses, the last two being Total Blood Moon Lunar eclipses in 170 BC, the same year marking the inception of the 2300 days on the 26th of Av. To summarize what we have, lets look at these eclipse dates color-coded on the Time-line to matching and/or consecutive Saros cycles below.

Saros Cycles of 171-163 Eclipses and the Blood Moon Tetrad of 168-66 BC. 12

171 BC
March 10th Partial Lunar Eclipse in Saros [49]

March 24th Total Solar Eclipse in Saros [75]

Sept. 3rd Partial Lunar Eclipse in Saros [54]

Sept. 18th Annular Solar Eclipse in Saros [80]

170 BC
Feb. 13th Partial Solar Eclipse in Saros [47]

Feb. 27th Total Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse in Saros [59]

Aug. 8th Partial Solar Eclipse in Saros [52]

Aug. 23rd Total Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse in Saros [64]

Start of 2300 days on 26th of Av 170 BC

169 BC
Feb. 2nd Hybrid Solar Eclipse in Saros [57]

Feb. 16th Partial Lunar Eclipse in Saros [69]

July 28th Total Solar Eclipse in Saros [62]

Aug. 13th Partial Lunar Eclipse in Saros [74]

168 BC
Jan. 7th Lunar Eclipse in Saros [41]

Jan. 22nd Annular Solar Eclipse in Saros [67]

July 2nd Penumbral Lunar Eclipse in Saros [46]

July 17th Total Solar Eclipse in Saros [72]

Dec. 27th Total Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse in Saros [51] Tetrad #1

167 BC
Jan. 10th Partial Solar Eclipse in Saros [77]

June 7th Partial Solar Eclipse in Saros [44] ending this Saros cycle

June 21st Total Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse in Saros [56] Tetrad #2

July 7th Partial Solar Eclipse in Saros [82]

Dec. 1st Partial Solar Eclipse in Saros [49]

Dec. 16th Total Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse in Saros [61] Tetrad #3

166 BC
May 28th Annular Solar Eclipse in Saros [54] Feast of Weeks 5-27

June 11th Total Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse in Saros [66] Tetrad #4

Nov. 20th Annular Solar Eclipse in Saros [59]

Dec. 6th Partial Lunar Eclipse in Saros [71]

164 BC
April 21st Partial Lunar Eclipse in Saros [48] 4-10 Passover, 4/11-17 Unleavened Bread

May 5th Annular Solar Eclipse in Saros [74]

Oct. 14th Partial Lunar Eclipse in Saros [53] Tabernacle Feast 10/5-11/Octave 10-12

Oct. 29th Total Solar Eclipse in Saros [79]

12/16/164; sanctuary cleansed; Kislev 25-End of 2300 days [1st Hanukkah]

163 BC
March 26th Partial Solar Eclipse in Saros [46]

April 10th Total Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse in Saros [58]

April 24th Partial Solar Eclipse in Saros [84] April 28th was Passover

Sept. 19th Partial Solar Eclipse in Saros [51]

Oct. 3rd Total Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse in Saros [63] Teshuvah leading to 10-9 Rosh Hash/Trumpets

What does this timeline reveal regarding the solar and lunar eclipses surrounding this Blood Moon Tetrad? First, unlike the Tetrads in the AD era, this one is not noted because the eclipses fall on Hebrew Feast days, but because it marks the 2300 days prophesied by Daniel. We also find two Total Blood Moon Lunar Eclipses framing this Blood Moon Tetrad in 170 BC. These eclipses complete their framing of the Blood Moon Tetrad pairing with consecutive Total Blood Moon Lunar Eclipses in 163 BC, seen in the Saros series numbers of each eclipse. The Spring and Fall seasons of 163 BC do witness general alignments with Hebrew Feast and Holy days.13 The Partial Solar Eclipse on April 24th took place only 4 days before Passover on April 28th. Also the Oct. 3rd Total Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse framing this Blood Moon Tetrad occurred in Teshuvah, the Season of Repentance, leading to New Years Day only 6 days later on Oct. 9, and the Feast of Trumpets. If we look further, in 166 BC we find the Annular Solar Eclipse on May 28th during Feast of Weeks or Pentecost, that began the day before on May 27th.14 This Solar Eclipse is placed in a key position between the 3rd and 4th Blood Moons of this Tetrad. We also find that the Saros series of consecutive eclipses framing this Blood Moon Tetrad are composed of eclipses making up the Tetrad itself. This shows how the Saros series are inter-related to both the eclipses of the Tetrad, and to those bracketing the Tetrad, especially since there are related pairs of Total Blood Moon Lunar Eclipses on both sides of the Tetrad. To appreciate the Creator’s order of solar and lunar eclipses, we should begin with an overview of the Creator’s temporal order as laid out on the Fourth Day of Creation, in [Gen. 1:14-16].

Genesis 1:14-16
And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: [15] And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so. [16] And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: He made the stars also.

This reference from Genesis reveals the relationship between the cycles of the Sun and Moon, and the light which these two great lights shed upon the earth. The purpose of the Sun, like other stars, is to give light upon the earth, the nature of which is a three-fold light. First, it is physical light in a literal sense because the stars with the Sun, Moon and planets illuminate the earth. Secondly, as we have seen in the study the astronomical cycles, their earth commensurate model is numerically founded on mathematical constants like Phi, Pi and base 60 Space-Time standard of the precession of the equinoxes. Earth life is dependent upon the light of the Sun for its energy and growth. Thus, it is a powerful symbol for spiritual light or enlightenment. Light and Life go hand in hand, [John 1:3-5, Gen. 1:3-5]. As the Sun passes through its 365.2224- day, annual course it “dwells” in each of the 12 houses of its “civil year” of the zodiac for one month. The Sun moves in its circuit at a rate of 12 miles a second or 43,200 miles per hour, with its train of planets in our solar system between the boundary lines of the tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. Intriguingly, the sun’s orbital speed is 1/10th of half its perimeter in miles [864,000], as a multiple of the unity of Space-Time according to the base 60 precessional standard of measurement, the ruling master cycle all Space-Time. The base 60 number system also breaks down into the base numbers of 6 x 10. This exhibits the relation between the civil [lunar], and sacred [solar] years of the Hebrew calendar, in context of precession. Fittingly, 6 and 10 also provide the basis for the golden section ratio also known as phi: 1.618 (10 by 6.18, or 100 by 61.8…). In addition to unifying the structure of the human body, the musical scale, planetary orbits, biological growth cycles and the Hebrew Calendar, this phi ratio proves to be the key element in the correlation of the eclipse cycle with the solar year.

This is an important aspect of Natural Law, which is established in the luni-solar cycles found at the basis of time periods prophesied in Daniel and Revelation. A major scientific theme in support of this, is found in Symmetry, which is evident everywhere in Nature. Symmetry is the basis of the structure of microcosmic matter, the macrocosm of the firmament and of the world of mathematics. Symmetry is latent in God’s created temporal order, ruled by the regular cycles of the Sun, Moon and Stars, day after day and year after year.

Thirdly, the stars, planets, Sun and Moon illuminate the earth with spiritual light: the eternal light of the witness of God’s Word, which is a primary topic of our study. The principles of how these two great lights rule over the day and night, marking out days, months and years, are preserved in the luni-solar Hebrew calendar, unified according to the phi ratio, in symphony with the 50-year cycle of the Hebrew Jubilee. This phi ratio, also known as the divine proportion, is another central aspect of the Symmetry in God’s creation. It is the unification of these three celestial cycles via God’s created temporal order that exerts the powerful influence as a “mandate from heaven,” over the cultures of the world. Symmetry witnesses to beauty in God’s Creation, from the divine mind of the Creator. We can also see the dominion of God’s light over the kingdoms of life on planet Earth, depicted for example, in the principle of photosynthesis, governing a myriad growth cycles of biological life forms on earth. We witness the foundations of this order in the Plant Kingdom for example, in Genesis 1.

Gen. 1:11-13
¹¹And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed [zera H2233], and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. ¹²And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. 13 And the evening and the morning were the third day.

The Spiral Mirabilis Phi Pattern as seen in the Plant Kingdom and the Heavens

The word for “seed” is used four times in these two verses detailing the Third Day of Creation. In the cycles of life that God instituted in the Plant Kingdom, the cycle of the fruit tree is archetypal. The fruit tree yielding fruit after its kind, generates a flower which transforms into the type of fruit dictated by the kind of fruit tree in question. This fruit contains its seed in itself, which falls to the ground and grows into another fruit tree. Thus we find the cycle of the tree of life, to flower, to fruit, to seed, returning to the tree once again. The pattern of Life in Creation from the Hand of the Creator lies at the foundation principles of Natural Law ruling our world. We also find the ubiquity of the phi ratio ruling over the many growth cycles of the Plant Kingdom. This pattern of the seed [zera-*H2233] seen in the 12-fold symmetry of the Chlorophyll molecule, the life giver that transforms sunlight into organic substance, is also mirrored in the heavens, in the 12-fold structure of the zodiac, telling of the coming promised seed of Israel-Jesus Christ, who not only brings spiritual light to the world, seen already in Gen. 1:14-16., but through the transforming power of the holy spirit vitalizes our spiritual relationship with the Heavenly Father through the salvation Christ brought to humanity. Jeremiah also speaks

Jer. 31:35-36
³⁵Thus 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, which divides the sea when the waves thereof roar; The LORD of hosts is his name: ³⁶If those ordinances depart from before me, saith the LORD, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me forever.

In Jer. 31:35 the root of the word “ordinances” [chaqaq] 16, used of the light of the celestial ordinances of the Sun by day, and the Moon and stars by night, [Gen.1:14-18]. The ordinances of God’s covenant with the seed of Abraham were first set in the Natural laws that rule creation, before they were ever recorded in written form. Later these laws, as they applied to God’s covenant with Israel, were written with the finger of God in the rock of His holy mountain and entrusted to Moses the Lawgiver, [Ex. 24:12, 31:18, 32:16]. This verifies the relation between God’s celestial witness with His Word written in the Scriptures, [Gen. 1, Ps. 19]. We can see a close link between God’s stellar witness of His ordinances fulfilled in His covenant with the seed of Israel in verse 36 above. This promised seed was consummated in the Lord Jesus Christ. This record in Jeremiah relates that the celestial witness contained in God’s covenant with Day and Night, has not ceased since the first day of Creation [Gen. 1:4-5], re-ordered in the 2nd Heaven and Earth. There is no one who can halt these celestial cycles and seasons set in motion by God’s Hand, thus the surety of the return of His only begotten Son, the promised seed is inevitable! As we note the numbers linked to the prophecies related to the Lord’s return in Daniel and Revelation, we not only find the fulfillment of these prophecies in Revelation, but also the consummation of time periods finding their completion in solar and lunar cycles.

According to Daniel’s Prophecy above [8:11-14] spoken related to Days, we have shown both from history and astronomically how the Jerusalem Temple was trodden underfoot by the Gentiles, for 2300 days, in this case by Antiochus IV. However, a fascinating thing happens when we view this cycle as 2300 years. In reference to the Saros, also called historically, the Metonic Cycle, W.F.A Ellison tells us that “the Metonic cycle is the lowest common multiple of the lunar month and the solar year.”17 This quote alone gets our attention, but he continues with even more intriguing truths. Ellison goes on to say; “it is only an approximate multiple. There are other common multiples of the same two periods [solar & lunar], much longer but far more exact.”18 He points out that the Swiss Astronomer De Cheseaux, in the mid-18th Century found, in his study of principle time periods in Revelation and Daniel, that the numbers 1260 [315 x 4], 2300 and their difference 1040, without exception proved to be cycles of the Sun and Moon, and 1040 was a triple cycle being a common multiple of the Solar Day, lunar month and the year.”20 Thus we can see a conversion basis for Solar and Lunar cycles with the calendar year via this lens of temporal periods linked to Biblical prophecy.

Rev. Grattan Guinness expanded on the work of De Cheseaux in comparing the Saros or Metonic cycle to a 23oo year cycle, noting that 2300 years was not only an expanded Saros, but was the primary natural cycle for the correction of the Metonic cycle. The 2300 year cycle is 33 times as exact as the Metonic and is the natural basis for a calendar correctly adjusted to solar and lunar revolutions.”21

Guinness is an important historical source on this subject, first due to his unique view of the relationship of solar and lunar cycles to these periods of Biblical prophecy. Secondly, he also recognizes Antiochus IV relative to the prophecies of Daniel, from this unique perspective based on solar and lunar cycles! Guinness relates this to us in his own words, in the next 7-8 paragraphs:

Figure 4. The Greek Kingdom 333-31 BC 22

“In the year 553 B.C., the third year of the reign of Belshazzar, and about fifteen years before his subjugation by Darius the Mede, there was granted to Daniel a third great symbolic vision, that of the ram and the he-goat, affording a fuller glance than the previous one, at the history of the second and third of the four great monarchies.

Given as it was at a time when the Babylonian Empire and Captivity were both rapidly drawing to a close, this vision naturally unfolds God’s providence with regard to Israel and Palestine, under the MEDO-PERSIAN and GRECIAN empires. The symbols shown to Daniel prefigured their history with graphic accuracy: the successive rise of the two horns of the ram, fore-showing the sway of the two dynasties, which were afterwards merged in the great MEDO-PERSIAN monarchy; the he-goat from the west,-with his rapid course, great strength, wide dominion, and notable horn, abruptly broken, and replaced by four notable horns, prefiguring to the life, the character, the course of conquest, and subsequent history of the Macedonian or Greek empire of Alexander the Great, as well as its fourfold division consequent on his premature death.

This “little horn” is evidently a fellow to the “little horn” of the previous vision, only it rises, not amid the 10 kingdoms of the Roman earth, but from one of the four branches of Alexander’s Greek Empire. These four were, the SYRIAN kingdom of the Seleucidae, the MACEDONIAN kingdom of Cassander, the EGYPTIAN kingdom of Ptolemy, and the kingdom of Lysimachus, which included THRACE, BITHYNIA, and other parts of Asia. It was from the kingdom of Ptolemy, that this little horn arose. The direction of the early conquests of this singular power, are distinctly given, “toward the south, toward the east, and toward the pleasant land.” The main features of his conduct, as described in the vision, are his self-exaltation against the Prince of princes, his persecution of the saints, his taking away the daily sacrifice, and defiling the sanctuary, and his casting down the truth to the ground.

UNTO TWO THOUSAND AND THREE HUNDRED DAYS, then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.”

Now, as this question was asked and answered before the close of the Captivity in Babylon, and when therefore the daily sacrifice and the sanctuary were not in existence, it is clear that this prediction of a second destruction; supposes a prior restoration, [587-86 BC by Nebuchadnezzar].

This predicted period of 2300 years, commences, therefore, at some point in the time of the restored national existence, and ritual worship of the Jews, and includes the entire period of their subsequent dispersion, and of the desolation of the sanctuary: An important later starting point is the era of the Seleucid, or of the founder of the Syrian dynasty which included Antiochus Epiphanes, the first of the three powers referred to in the prophecy, as defiling the sanctuary and causing the daily sacrifice to cease. Reckoned lunar years from the Seleucid era (and it should be remembered that the long Mohammedan period of desolation which it includes is measured by lunar years) it terminates in A.D. 1919-20, Or just 75 years later on, than when reckoned in solar years from the decree of Artaxerxes. Thus reckoned in solar and in lunar years from these two most important starting points, it terminates first at the commencement and then at the close of the last 75 years of the great “seven times” of prophecy. [2520 yrs]

*The Mohammedan power is, we think, unquestionably the main fulfillment of this symbol; but it is almost equally clear that it had a precursive fulfillment, on a smaller scale, in the person and history of ANTIOCHUS EPIPHANES. His career accords so closely with almost every feature of the prediction, as to leave little room for doubt that it was intended by the Holy Spirit, as one subject of the prophecy. For 17 centuries all expositors, Jewish and Christian, held that the prophecy referred to Antiochus. The Books of Maccabees record his career with great detail, and trace in it, as does Josephus, the fulfillment of the predictions of this little horn. But Antiochus never waxed “exceeding great,” though he took away the daily sacrifice; and he lived too near the time when the prophecy was given, to be the full and proper fulfillment of it.

* “The Moslem Dome of the Rock Mosque occupied the site, replacing the Temple of Jupiter in 691 AD.”

AS THIS ERA OF THE SELEUCID , LONG USED BY THE JEWS THEMSELVES, AND STILL EMPLOYED BY THE NESTORIANS AND OTHER EASTERN NATIONS, IS DATED FROM THE GREAT FOUNDER OF THE DYNASTY OF THE PRECURSORY “LITTLE HORN,” it is not an unsuitable point of departure. The period of 2300 years measured from it, and reckoned in lunar years, rules out in A.D. 1919-20, seventy-five years later than its first termination in 1844, and the same year as the main measurement of the Times of the Gentiles, dated from Nebuchadnezzar’s overthrow of Jehoiakim, B.C. 602.

B.C 312, 2300 LUNAR YEARS FROM THE ERA OF THE SELEUCID, A.D. 1919-20.

Daniel could neither have known that 2300 years (Chap. viii.) was a soli-lunar cycle, nor could he have selected by chance the exact number of years in that cycle, as the period of the restored temple and subsequent desolation of the sanctuary. Such coincidences are not the work of chance.

In the last chapter of Daniel the angel intimates to the prophet in answer to his chronological inquiries, that while the scattering of the power of the holy people, should terminate at the end of the second half of the 2520 years, yet there should be additions of thirty and forty-five years, before the era of blessedness would arrive. (Dan. 12:11-13.) In other words, to the long period of 2520 years Scripture adds a brief period of seventy-five years, and as we see below, astronomy does the same. The difference between 2520 true lunar and the same number of true solar years is seventy-five years. Thus the seventy-five years added in the prophecy is exactly equal to the epact of the whole 2520 year period.” If 2520 lunar, and the same number of solar years begin together, the former will run out 75 years before the latter. The 75 years added to the “Times of the Gentiles” are equal to the epact of that great dispensational [2520 year] period.”23

Thus what we have shown in the Blood Moon Tetrad of 2300 days, Guinness has applied also in a 2300 lunar year prophecy including the epact of Solar and lunar cycles as seen below.

Figure 5. Daniel 12:11-12 24

In reference to the graphic above, Guinness also observed that if we multiply 1260 by 2 we get 2520, the lowest common multiple of the first 10 digits; the numbers 1-10 will all divide it without remainder. As a result it is the first in the entire series of numbers, that is exactly divisible by all the first ten numerals.25 If we add 75 years to the 1260, we get the 1335 years of [Dan 12:11-12] expressed in Days. As the graphic states, 75 years is exactly the difference between 2520 lunar years and the same number of solar years. This depicts the conversion rate of Solar and Lunar cycles with the calendar year mentioned earlier according to these cycles seen in Biblical Prophecy.

The 11-day gap between the solar and lunar years expands to a period of 7 months over the 19-year lunar saros. During this 19-year period there are 235 full moons in the Metonic Cycle. If we divide 235 by 19, we get 12 7/19, [12.368] full Moons, synodic, or lunar months of 29.53 days per month. There are 13.368 sidereal months or [very close to the 1335 days above] 12.368 synodic months, the time it takes the Moon to return to the same point in the sky against the backdrop of the stars, in each year.²⁶This shows the relation between the Moon and the Stars on an annual basis.

Jon Nessle says about 1260 days in [Dan. 12:11-12] “We know this must be referring to another fulfillment of this prophecy because there is a time span which is different from Daniel 8. Here it is 1290 days, there it is 2300. So this reference appears to be still in the future in the Book of Revelation period, just before the Great Tribulation, [Matt. 24:21].”27

Putting this into perspective, I think it fitting that we quote from the final chapter of Witness of the Stars, by E.W Bullinger, on his discussion of the Saros: Bullinger shows the period of Jerusalem under the Gentiles in two 1260 years cycles totaling 2520 years.28 He depicts the domain of Babylon, Medo-Persia and Greece as 594 years, and the Roman dominion of Jerusalem at 666 years; totaling 1260 years. Both of these periods are calculated in eclipse cycles. The second 1260 year period consists to the Mohammedan conquest of Jerusalem that began in 636-37 AD.29

“Saros cycles breakdown into two cycles, one of 666 years and the other of 594 years totaling 1260 years. We know that 1260 years is a soli-lunar cycle, so exact that its epact or difference in only 6 hours. Bullinger notes not only these aspects of the 1260 year period but also its double-2520 years. Bullinger believed that these 1260 year periods would foreshadow a 1260 day period in the end-times when the final Abomination of Desolation was to be fulfilled, [2 Thess. 2:1-3]. 30

As we include the conversion rate of Solar and Lunar cycles with the calendar year according to these cycles seen in Biblical Prophecy, from Daniel and Revelation, we gain a panoramic view of Biblical history and an incisive view of end-times prophecy, related to the activities of the Anti-Christ and his final desolation of the Temple at Jerusalem. It is interesting that the Hanukkah Feast marks the dedication of the Temple after its defilement. Yet this Temple has been razed to the ground since 70 AD, and only makes sense in view of the coming 3rd Temple to Jerusalem. This of course is an important precursor to the tribulation and the Return of the Lord Jesus Christ.

When Caleb was part of the company of Spies, sent to inspect the Promised Land, he was one of only two that brought back a positive report. As a result He did not perish during the 40 years in the wilderness, and was allowed to share in the rewards of the Promised Land God had set aside for him.

As we recall the 30 years added to the 1260 years making 1290, we also have 45 more years added in Dan. 12:12 to 1290, making 1335 years, carrying us 75 years beyond the 2nd 1260 year period aligning with eclipse cycles, referring to the Times of the Gentiles, looking forward to the eternal age of full blessedness.

We find a related 45 years with Caleb’s inheritance leading to his rest in the Promised Land of Canaan. As Joshua reminds us, Caleb, when appealing to Joshua to give him the promised possession, said, “The Lord hath kept me alive these forty and five years, ever since the Lord spake this word unto Moses, while the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness, and now I am this day fourscore and five years old. Now therefore give me this mountain whereof the Lord spake in that day. And Joshua blessed him, and gave unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh, Hebron for an inheritance, and the land had rest from war. ” (Josh 14:10-13).

As believer’s look forward to the Hope of Christ’s Return, we also must maintain our positive mind-set, not looking upon the size of the dogs that oppose us in this fight, but considering the size of Christ in our hearts that always carries us to victory in every situation. As we do, we are assured of our entrance into the abundant rewards the Almighty has set aside for us in Christ, for all Eternity…

Every bad day always contains the seeds of a Good Day if we let it…

Agape’

Rene’

PS. I am blessed to recognize our 4th anniversary of the Biblical Astronomy Fellowship Blog this month! Our audience continues to grow not only in the US but around the globe! I find this edition a fitting blog to commemorate this anniversary related to a Blood Moon Tetrad in prophecy and history, which was a key purpose for the Blog, and a reason for its inception. I’m very blessed and thankful for all the new friends we are adding to our audience, along with our website @ [www.try-god.com].

God Bless!!

Footnotes

1. NASA eclipse page. [https://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/LEsaros/LEsaroscat.html ]
2. “Analysis of Prophecies in Daniel.” [ppg. 15-16.] Jon Nessle
3. NASA eclipse page. [https://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/LEsaros/LEsaroscat.html ]
4. “Analysis of Prophecies in Daniel.” [ppg. 15-16.] Jon Nessle
5. Number in Scripture, E.W. Bullinger
6. [www.bloodmoonscoming.com] Graphic 3B “Like No Other”
7. Fearful Symmetry Pt. II graphic, Alexander Lawrence
8. Graphic credit to Michael Toms
9. NASA eclipse page. [https://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/LEsaros/LEsaroscat.html ]
10. IBID
11. IBID
12. IBID
13. Hebrew Calendar Feast dates 168-163 BC [http://www.cgsf.org/dbeattie/calendar/?roman=167%20bc]
14. IBID
15. Strong’s Concordance, [zera H2233], James Strong
16. IBID [Chaqaq- H2708]
17. Irish Astronomical Journal of June 1953, Vol. 2, No. 6 ‘The Mystic Numbers: Daniel and the Apocalypse” p. 155
18. IBID
19. IBID p. 156
20. IBID
21. IBID ppg. 156-157
22. Picture Credit, www.bible .ca [Steve Rudd]
23. GUINNESS on SOLI-LUNAR CYCLES, THE APPROACHING END OF THE AGE VIEWED IN THE LIGHT OF HISTORY, PROPHECY, AND SCIENCE by H. GRATTAN GUINNESS (1879), SECTION III [https://creationconcept.info/GUINNESS.html]

24. Graphic credit to Michael Toms
25. Irish Astronomical Journal of June 1953, Vol. 2, No. 6 ‘The Mystic Numbers: Daniel and the Apocalypse” p. 157
26. www.Try-god.com/the-calendar-of-the-biblical-patriarchs.php
27. “The Abomination of Desolation and other Prophetic Terms of Biblical Eschatology”, Jon Nessle
28. Witness of the Stars, E.W Bullinger, [p.181-2]
29. IBID p. 189
30. IBID [ppg. 190-2]

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The Blood Moon Tetrad of 168-166 BC and the Abomination of Desolation

The Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse Tetrad and the Destruction of the Jerusalem Temple

The solar and lunar eclipses in the Blood Moon Tetrads during the formation of the state of Israel in 1949-50, to the reclamation of Jerusalem by Israel, marked by the 1967-68 Blood Moon Tetrad, to the recent 2014-15 Blood Moon Tetrad, all exhibit how God speaks to His people via His Word, Spoken, written and incarnate, confirmed by these heavenly signs. As in the 1949-50 and 1967-68 Tetrads, the Blood Moons have indicated war in Israel was is the case historically in 168-66 BC.

As we have seen with previous Blood Moon Lunar and Solar Eclipses marking the defiling of the Jerusalem Temple in 70 AD [Table 2.], these are noteworthy and instructive concerning current and future events. The subject of this study concerns a relevant aspect of Biblical Prophecy relating to events of the end-times that we can see coming together before our eyes.

In end-time prophecy, Daniel 8 is a key section of Scripture. Scholars are agreed in Daniel 8 that the goat’s first horn (the horn that was broken) is Alexander the Great, and the four horns arising afterwards are four generals who divided his empire, from which Antiochus IV arose. The symbols of the ram and he-goat, in Daniel 8 are the kings of Persia and Greece.

Antiochus’ IV took the title “Epiphanes” (God Manifest) when he took the Seleucid throne in 175 BC. Antiochus’ IV efforts to Hellenize the kingdoms he conquered had an effect on other cultures besides Israel. Their various pagan idols or “stars” were cut down by Antiochus IV to establish Hellenized religious observances throughout his kingdom, [Dan. 8:10]. Although the books of the Apocrypha hold little Scriptural value in the Canon of God’s Word, the Books of the Maccabees are valuable concerning the historical record of this time period. These records from Maccabees show the nature of the conflict Antiochus IV engaged with Israel, his unbridled ego and events surrounding the Temple at Jerusalem.

Figure 1.

Bust of Antiochus IV at the Altes Museum in Berlin. 1

1 Macc. 1:7-10 [175 B. C. 137th Seleucid year; Antiochus IV begins his reign]

⁷ Alexander had reigned twelve years when he died. ⁸ Each of his officers established himself in his own region. ⁹ All assumed crowns after his death, they and their heirs after them for many years, bringing increasing evils on the world. ¹⁰ From these there grew a wicked offshoot, Antiochus Epiphanes son of King Antiochus; once a hostage in Rome, he became king in the 107th year of the kingdom of the Greeks.

Daniel 8:1-22 reveals the times of Daniel, with a promise that God would bring an end to Israel’s oppression. Antiochus VI Epiphanes, took the Seleucid throne of Syria in 175 BC. In 167 BC that there was a revolt in Jerusalem, where he sent troops to suppress, halting the daily Temple sacrifices [Dan. 8:11] and polluting it, 167-164 BC. His attempt to blot out Judaism ultimately led to a reaction, led by Judas Maccabee and his cohorts, who won a series of dynamic military victories over the Seleucids to reclaim and purify the Temple three years later.

As a forerunner of the end-times Anti-Christ, Antiochus IV seemed successful in promoting his secular agenda. Circumcision and Sabbath-observance were being extinguished. Greek paganism under him, attempted to eliminate the true worship of Almighty God. But God chose Israel to bring the Messiah into the world, and He chose Jerusalem, for the location of His earthly Temple, as the place where the true Lamb of God would offer his life for all Mankind. The temple, the people of Israel, and Jerusalem were to be preserved together until the glorious arrival of Jesus Christ. Once the Messiah came to fulfill his ministry, the Temple would be razed in A.D. 70, as Jesus prophesied in [Matt. 24], but in 164 BC the temple had to be cleansed for God to fulfill His plan. A new aspect of this study compares the solar and lunar eclipses marking the 70 AD temple destruction with the Blood Moon Tetrad of 168-166 BC. Adding the Biblical Astronomy of the Solar and Blood Moon Lunar eclipse data provides a level of scientific verification to the historical data of this period previously not seen. Much of what was prophesied by Daniel has came to pass, but the complete story has not yet been fulfilled. This certainly puts a heightened focus on the current events leading to the Third Jerusalem Temple.

To accomplish this required the faithful of Israel to stand against Antiochus‘ IV political and military pressure. Among the resistance was the priest Mattathias, who fled Jerusalem to the mountains with his sons. Others joined them, and they began raids removing pagan altars. When Mattathias neared death, he appointed his son Judas Maccabeus as the rebel captain, whose power and influence grew in their battles against pagan enemies. Judas’ men fasted and believed God to defeat the armies Antiochus sent against them, and God aided their righteous efforts, so that in under 3 years the brave warriors of Israel prevailed.

Figure 2.

The Triumph of Judas Maccabeus, Rubens 2.

Antiochus VI Epiphanes, plundered the Jerusalem Temple in 169 BC and desecrated it in late 167 BC by commanding that sacrifices be made to Zeus on an altar built for him. Finally, Judas and his men reached Jerusalem. Upon seeing the desolation, the profaned altar, the gates burned, they made a great lamentation, rending their clothes and casting ashes on their heads. In only three days, 80,000+ were lost in a massacre of young and old, with many of these meeting a violent death, and a similar number sold into slavery, [2 Macc. 5:11-14]. They proceeded to cleanse the entire area, built a new clean altar, made new holy vessels, and put the lampstand, table, and altar of incense into their rightful places. On the 25th of Kislev, in the year 164 BC, when the Temple was rededicated they celebrated its cleansing and dedicated it anew to the living God, with great rejoicing. No pagan tyrant will ever be able to withstand Almighty God. This event is celebrated in the annual Hanukkah festival. As Jon Nessle suggests: “if we count back 2300 days from 164 BC, it brings us to the month of Av on the Hebrew Calendar in 170 BC.”3

Was the Sanctuary trodden underfoot for 2300 days by Antiochus IV? This is a feasible thesis, and a purpose of this study is to investigate whether the Biblical Astronomy supports it, which we consider below. Antiochus wished to conquer Egypt, but he had to stabilize his empire first, including Israel. His plan was to consolidate its cultural and religious aspects. During his return from the military campaign in Egypt via Jerusalem, Antiochus left a swath of destruction burning many houses, killing and enslaving tens of thousands of Jews and attacking the Jerusalem Temple, the center of life in Israel. The Syrian soldiers robbed the temple treasures and on 15 Kislev, 167 BC Antiochus IV, illustrating why he took the title “Epiphanes” (God Manifest), erecting a statue of the Greek god Zeus etched with his own face in the central altar of the Jerusalem Temple, (1 Macc. 1:54). Then on 25 Kislev, 167 BC he desecrated the most holy place in the temple while destroying the holy scrolls.

As Rev. Nessle states regarding the 2300 days: “In my analysis of the prophecies of Daniel, I showed that this time span very well could be the entire time span that the sanctuary was trodden under-foot by the army of Antiochus IV. We know from Maccabees that the end point of the “desecration of the Temple was on Kislev 25, or Dec. 16th, in 164 BC.”4 This initiated the Hanukkah festival when the Temple was rededicated, due to the desecration of the abomination by Antiochus IV, as a forerunner of the end-times Anti-Christ.

The prophecy in Daniel 8 is in two parts, “the first section covers the Persian Empire up through the reign of Antiochus Epiphanes whose desecration of the Temple was the first mention in Daniel of the Abomination that took place in the Temple.”5

Figure 3. Jerusalem Temple model-70 AD.

“A prominent feature is that it gives a time span of 2300 days. This is exactly 78 Lunar months. When one compares with the Book of Maccabees, the time span does not fit the total length of time the Temple was actually desecrated. In (2 Macc. 1:54-59) Antiochus set up the abomination; the 15th of Kislev and sacrificed on 25th of Kislev [12/6/167 BC]. The Temple was cleansed three years later [2 Macc. 4:52, 25th of Chisleu 12/16/164). But there is more. The phrase “trodden underfoot,” is also included. History records that the Temple was rededicated on the 25th of Kislev in 164 which was the inception of the Jewish Feast of Hanukkah. If we consult Parker and Dubberstein’s ancient Jewish calendar, we can see that the years 170 and 167 had Intercalary 13th months (II Adar) in them. So counting back 78 months from the Temple cleansing and the end of the abomination desolation, brings us to the end of the 5th month Av, in 170 AD. Antiochus IV fought the Egyptians in the Battle of Mt. Kasios in early November in 170 AD. Parker and Dubberstein tell us that would have been in the middle of the 8th month. The beginning of the 2300 days was the 26th of Av (the month Av is always 30 days long). This date would have been 80 days before the battle. The [orbis.stanford.edu] website calculates that a Roman Legion would take about 50 days to travel 300 miles from Damascus to the Battle site of Pelusium via Jerusalem (at speed of Ox Carts). So it is not implausible at all that the Sanctuary was “trodden underfoot” by advanced elements from Antiochus in the Summer of 170.”6

Since Antiochus is a type of the Anti-Christ, this qualifies as a “preliminary fulfillment” of this prophecy, yet to be completed by the end-times anti-Christ. We can see however how Antiochus IV fulfills the prophecies of Daniel 8;

13 Then I heard one saint (angel) speaking, and another saint (angel) said unto that certain {saint} which spake, How long {shall be} the vision {concerning} the daily {sacrifice}, and the transgression of desolation, [reference to the “Abomination of Desolation”] to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot? 14 And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; [Exactly 78 Lunar Months*] then shall the sanctuary be cleansed. [Time span includes all the parts of verse 13] {insertions by Jon Nessle in red} 7

*A numerical note on the 2300 days equaling 78 lunar months is that (78=6 x 13), 6 as the number of man destitute of God multiplied by the number of rebellion or apostasy.8 These are fitting links since Antiochus IV was a type of the end times Anti-Christ and he instigated this version of the Abomination Desolation. Also the relation between lunar months and this Blood Moon Tetrad marking key dates as the Temple was being trodden underfoot during the 2300 days is notable. Other elements of the history of these events are recorded in the Book of Maccabees and in our timeline below.

This explanation says that the entire temple defilement lasted 2300 days, or six years plus 110 days, about 6 1/3 years from 170-164 BC, not a complete 7 year period as is many times assumed.

Table 1. Book of Maccabees 9

1 Mac 1:10 175 BC. 137th Seleucid year; Antiochus begins reign

1 Mac 1:10-15 *171 BC. desolating covenant to worship Greek gods

26th of month AV, 170 BC- 78 Lunar months prior to the cleansing of the Temple in 164.

Antiochus fought the Egyptians in the Battle of Mt. Kasios early November/mid-8th month 170 BC. [Seleucid year 143]

1 Mac 1:20-28 169 BC; plunders Jerusalem temple

1 Mac 1:54-59 15th of Kislev, 167 BC; set up abomination 25th of Kislev 12/6/167, then sacrificed abomination of desolation in the Seleucid year 145

2 Mac 6:1, 2 “compel the Jews to forsake the laws of their fathers and cease to live by the laws of God. Also polluted the Jerusalem temple calling it the temple of the Olympian Zeus.”

1 Mac 4:42-58 25th of Chisleu 12/16/164; sanctuary cleansed; Antiochus died in Seleucid year 148. 10

2 Mac 10:1-8 Sanctuary purified

1 Macc. 1:20-28
²⁰ After his conquest of Egypt, in the year 143, Antiochus turned around and advanced on Israel and Jerusalem in massive strength. ²¹ Insolently breaking into the sanctuary, he removed the golden altar and the lampstand for the light with all its fittings. ²² Together with the table for the shewbread offering, the cups, the golden censers, the veil, the crowns, and the golden decoration on the front of the Temple, which he stripped of everything. ²³ He made off with the silver and gold and precious vessels; he discovered the secret treasures and seized them. ²⁴ and, removing all these, he went back to his own country, having shed much blood and uttered words of extreme arrogance. ²⁸The earth quaked because of its inhabitants and the whole House of Jacob was clothed with shame.

Key points of this record of Antiochus plundering and defiling the Jerusalem Temple in the 2300 days from 170-164 BC, are highlighted in the general celestial markings of the Blood Moon Tetrad of 168-166 BC. We will find added meaning as we compare this Blood Moon Tetrad to the the Solar and Lunar eclipses surrounding the Temple destruction in 70 AD.

Figure 4. Blood Moon over Jerusalem

The Blood Moon Tetrad of 168-166 BC.

The Solar and Lunar eclipse activity during this period from 168 BC to 166 BC is noteworthy around the desolation and plundering of the Temple at Jerusalem by Antiochus IV. Although there may have been other eclipse activity during this 3 year period, the focus of this study is the Blood Moon Tetrad and Solar eclipses starting in mid-168 BC. This Tetrad includes 3 Total Lunar Eclipses in 167-166 BC. Notably the Solar and Blood Moon lunar eclipses are paired in tight intervals starting with the first Total Lunar Eclipse of this Blood Moon Tetrad. 11

Total Solar Eclipse
On July 5th there was a Mercury-Regulus conjunction in Leo. On July 17th 168 BC, there was a Total Solar Eclipse with Sun and Moon in Cancer. Later in July of 168, a Jupiter-Mercury-Regulus Alignment occurred in Leo. These opening signs in Leo are similar to the opening signs of the 2016 Solar and lunar eclipses on Hebrew Feasts and Holy Days. [see Table 2 below].

Total Lunar eclipse
The first Total Lunar Eclipse of this Blood Moon Tetrad occurs on Dec. 27th, 168 BC, after the Winter solstice. The Blood Moon and Neptune were in Scorpius, with the Scorpion signifying the war Antiochus IV was bringing to Israel. The Sun was in Capricorn, with Saturn in Libra. Mars was unified with Leo the Lion, while Jupiter was in Virgo showcasing the signs of the Celestial Sphinx. Venus the Bright and Morning Star was in Sagittarius, whose arrows were aimed at Antares the heart of the Scorpion-enemy.

Partial Solar Eclipse
About 2 weeks after the first Blood Moon and opening the New Year on Jan. 10th, 167 BC, there was another Solar Eclipse with the Sun and Venus in Capricorn, close to the border of Aquarius. Mercury was in Sagittarius. Mars-Micheal was in Leo with Jupiter in Virgo, depicting the signs of the Celestial Sphinx, as seen at the birth of Christ. This was the first of 4 luni-solar eclipse pairs in this Tetrad.

Partial Solar Eclipse
Opening the Summer season on June 7th of 167 BC, was another Solar Eclipse, two weeks prior to the Summer Solstice Total Lunar Eclipse. Sun was in Gemini, with Mercury. Jupiter was near Mars in Virgo. Venus was in Cancer with Saturn in Libra. If we take into account the next solar eclipse a month later we can see the Second Blood Moon of this Tetrad bracketed tightly between these two Solar Eclipses.

Total Lunar eclipse
The 2nd Blood Moon of the Tetrad, was a Total Lunar Eclipse, June 21st, 167 BC, at the Summer Solstice. The Sun was in Gemini, and Saturn in Libra. Mercury and Venus in Leo, with a Jupiter-Mars union in Virgo again emphasizing the Celestial Sphinx. Mercury-Gabriel was heralding the Bright and Morning Star in Leo the Lion of the tribe of Judah, while the King Planet Jupiter was unified with Mars-the Warrior Archangel standing against the forces of Antiochus IV.

Partial Solar Eclipse
The following month on July 7th, 167 BC there was another Solar Eclipse, forming a pair of solar eclipses bracketing this Blood Moon. In July of 167 BC, the Sun was in Cancer, with Saturn in Libra. Mercury and Venus were in Leo, with Jupiter and Mars in Virgo again marking the Celestial Sphinx.

Partial Solar Eclipse
On Dec. 1st there was another key Solar Eclipse, which gets our attention 1st because it occurred only 5 days after Antiochus set up the abomination on Nov. 26th, or the 15th of Kislev, sacrificed 10 days later on 25th of Kislev or 12/6/167 BC. Venus and Mars were in Capricorn as the righteous sacrifice opposed to Antiochus’ abomination. The Sun was in the Bow of Sagittarius with arrow aimed at the heart of the Scorpion enemy. Mercury was near Neptune in Ophiuchus showing the ongoing conflict between the Serpent bearer and Scorpius. Saturn was in Libra. Then only 10 days later the 3rd Total Lunar Eclipse of this Blood Moon Tetrad followed.

Total Lunar eclipse.
167 BC closes out with a Third pair of Eclipses in December. followed by the 3rd Blood Moon of this Tetrad, with a Total Lunar Eclipse on Dec. 16th. On Dec. 14th, 167 BC, the Blood Moon and Jupiter were at Virgo’s Feet, moving towards Scorpio. The Sun in Sagittarius, Mars and Venus in Capricorn, and Saturn in Libra. This sign in mid-Dec. 167 BC with the Moon at Virgo’s Feet, recalls the Rev. 12 sign, at the birth of Christ. It is notable that this Blood Moon on Dec. 16th foreshadows the cleansing of the Temple and the initiation of Hannukah, 3 years later on Dec. 16th, 164 BC, or the 25th of Chislev. This is verified in 1 Macc. 4:54 below where “the altar was dedicated, at the same time of year and on the same day when the Gentiles had originally profaned it.”

Annular Solar Eclipse
The year 166 BC also witnessed eclipse activity starting the 28th of May with a Partial Solar Eclipse. The Sun and Mercury are in Gemini, with Mars and Venus in the Bull of Taurus. Saturn is in Libra, with Jupiter is at Virgo’s feet. Here we see a 4th pair of tightly packed eclipses wrapping up this Blood Moon Tetrad.

Total Lunar eclipse
This was followed the next month by the final Blood Moon of this Tetrad, in a Total Lunar Eclipse on June 11th, with the Moon in Aries less than two weeks from the Summer Solstice. The Sun is still in Gemini, with Mars and Venus in the Bull of Taurus. Mercury has now moved into Cancer.

Annular Solar Eclipse
Later on Nov. 20th, 166 BC there was a Annular Solar Eclipse, framing the final Blood Moon of the Tetrad. The Sun, Moon and Neptune were in Ophiuchus. Jupiter was in Libra, with a Mercury-Saturn union in Scorpio. Venus in the Bow of Sagittarius. Mars was in Virgo protecting Israel.

Partial Lunar Eclipse
Finally on Dec. 6th there was a Partial Lunar Eclipse closing out 166 BC, with the Moon grazing by Jupiter in Libra. Jupiter is at Scorpio’s border joining Saturn in Scorpio, with Mercury and Neptune in Ophiuchus. The Sun and Venus were in Sagittarius. This was 1 year to the day after the sacrifice of the Abomination Desolation on 25th of Kislev or 12/6/167 BC. 12

1 Macc. 1:37-57 documents the year 168 BC that witnessed the plundering of Jerusalem, and the halting of sanctuary services, not to mention the abomination desolation under the decree of Antiochus IV.

1 Macc. 1:54-57

⁵⁴ On the fifteenth day of Chislev in the year 145 the king built an appalling abomination on top of the altar of burnt offering; and altars were built in the surrounding towns of Judah. ⁵⁶ Any books of the Law that came to light were torn up and burned. ⁵⁷ Whenever anyone was discovered possessing a copy of the covenant or practicing the Law, the king’s decree sentenced him to death.

1 Macc. 4:49-59

⁴⁹ They made new sacred vessels, and brought the lamp-stand, the altar of incense, and the table into the Temple. ⁵⁰ They burned incense on the altar and lit the lamps on the lamp-stand, and these shone inside the Temple. ⁵¹ They placed the loaves on the table and hung the curtains and completed all the tasks they had undertaken. ⁵² On the twenty-fifth of the ninth month, Chislev, in the year 148 they rose at dawn ⁵³ and offered a lawful sacrifice on the new altar of burnt offering which they had made.

⁵⁴ The altar was dedicated, to the sound of hymns, zithers, lyres and cymbals, at the same time of year and on the same day on which the Gentiles had originally profaned it.

⁵⁵ The whole people fell prostrate in adoration and then praised Heaven who had granted them success.

⁵⁶ For eight days they celebrated the Dedication of the altar, joyfully offering burnt offerings, communion and thanksgiving sacrifices. ⁵⁸ There was no end to the rejoicing among the people, since the disgrace inflicted by the Gentiles had been effaced. ⁵⁹ Judas, with his brothers and the whole assembly of Israel, made it a law that the days of the Dedication of the altar should be celebrated yearly at the proper season, for eight days beginning on the twenty-fifth of the month of Chislev, with rejoicing and gladness; [164 BC]

Thus was fulfilled that which was spoken by Daniel, “then shall the sanctuary be cleansed” (8:14). This began the Feast of Hanukkah (meaning “dedication”), that Israel celebrated in Jesus’ day (John 10:22-23) and every December until today. (1 Macc. 1-6 and 2 Macc. 3-10.)

After three years of struggle, the Greek armies retreated from Jerusalem, and the Maccabees entered the Holy Temple which the Greeks had defiled, reconsecrated it to God, and began again the Temple service. Among other things, they wanted to relight the olive oil candlestick (Exodus 25), but could only find one day’s supply of undefiled oil – and it would take eight days to make and bring more oil. Miraculously, the Menorah stayed lit for 8 days (Talmud, Shabbat 21b), allowing enough time for new oil to be prepared and brought. The significance of the miracle is that it demonstrated that the Hand of God was present. The faithful were overjoyed, because the Hand of God meant everything to them. This
is what Hanukkah represents: remaining close to God; and the rejection of Hellenization. The priests instituted the festival of Hanukkah to honor the miracle. This became known as the festival of lights, and the purpose for lighting the Hanukkah-Menorahs. This Hanukkah-Menorah, is a special version of the original seven-branched Menorah, with eight candles, commemorating the miracle of the oil lasting eight days, and the ninth to hold the central candle used to light the others. The military victory would not be celebrated if not for the miracle of the oil.

Roman Destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD.

Over the last 2000 years the history of Blood Moon Tetrads starting in Peter’s Sermon opening the

Age of Grace, [Acts 2:20] has seen a steady progression of Bible Prophecy related to Israel, being

progressively fulfilled. This includes prophecies of the Jerusalem Temple’s Destruction spoken by

Jesus, marked with Blood Moons fulfilled in 70 AD. We witnessed the dispersion of the Jews around the world, as we have seen the Jews return to a reformed State of Israel in 1948-1950, marked by a Blood Moon Tetrad. In 1967-68 we saw the 6-day war with Egypt, when Jerusalem was first reclaimed under Israel’s control, since 70 AD, also marked by a Blood Moon Tetrad, all leading to the next logical step of prophecies to re-build a Third Jerusalem Temple. A chart of the Blood Moon Tetrads over the last 2000+ years is available in our blog post @ Biblical Blood Moon Calendar. The following summary from this link, shows the 70 AD Roman Temple Destruction as Jesus Prophesied, alongside the 2016 Solar and Lunar Eclipses.

Table 2.
Solar & Lunar Eclipses from 69-71 AD. 2016 Solar & Lunar Eclipses omitting Adar 2:

Jupiter-Regulus Conjunction 10/15/69 in Leo

Partial Lunar Sukkot 10/18/69

Total Solar Nisan 1 3/30/70 Total Solar Eclipse 3/9/2016 on Nisan 1

Penum lunar Passover 4/14/70 Penum Lunar Eclipse-Passover 3/23/2016/Nisan 14

Rev. 12 Sign of the Woman 8/27/70

Annular Solar Rosh Hash 9/23/70 Annular Solar Eclipse 9/3/2016/Trumpets Feast

Penum lunar Sukkot 10/08/70 Penum Lunar Eclipse 9/16/Sukkot/9-16 to 9/23/16

Partial Lunar Purim 3/4/71

These dates may look familiar to those following my Biblical Astronomy Blog [blog.try-god.org], as the first 2 Total Solar Eclipses of 2016 form the continuation of Solar and Lunar signs on Hebrew Feast and Holy days after the Blood Moon Tetrad of 2014-15. Due to a lack of consensus on the appearance of Aviv Barley in Israel, the alignment of these solar eclipses with Hebrew Feast and holy days went mostly unnoticed in 2016. But they are key as they represent a direct link to the Aug. 21^st, 2017 Pan-American Total Solar eclipse. An intriguing detail about the 2nd Blood Moon of each lunar triple bracketing the 2014-2015 Blood Moon Tetrad is that it was visible over Jerusalem. This provides a direct link with Blood Moon Tetrad to the razing of the Jerusalem Temple in the Hebrew Sabbath years of 586-587 BC and 69-70 AD. Nebuchadnezzar burnt the Temple in 587-586 BC [2 Chron. 36:17-20], and in 69-70 AD, Titus and his Roman legions burnt the Temple. In both cases Jerusalem lay desolate for the next 50 years on the Jubilee Calendar. 13

With the solar and lunar eclipses marking the 69-70 AD destruction of the Jerusalem Temple, 70 AD was the last year Jerusalem was under control of Israel until the Blood Moon Tetrad of 1967-68. These Luni–Solar Eclipses of 2016 mirror exactly the 69-70 AD solar and lunar eclipses on holy days and Hebrew feasts. Its also noteworthy that the triple union of Jupiter-Regulus marking the birth of Christ, is linked to the Temple destruction in Jerusalem foretold by Christ [Matt. 24:2], since the next Jupiter-Regulus conjunction did not recur till Oct. 15th, 69 AD. 14

By putting these birth signs of Christ together with the physical Temple being destroyed, it recalls Jesus’ words in [Jn. 2:19-20] where Jesus links the Temple’s destruction, wherein he was standing when he said “destroy this temple,” with the “temple of his body.” Christ embodied the Temple in two aspects; first as the Bride of Israel when he spoke this prophecy, and later in the Church of Gentile Christians communing with the Heavenly Father spiritually after the Day of Pentecost in the Age
of Grace, [Eph. 2:11-22]. Since Jesus superseded the physical Temple in his Spiritual body of the Church, the Jerusalem Temple on the Mount will not be seen again until its daily sacrifices are restored prior to Jesus’ 2nd Coming. The 69-70 AD solar and lunar eclipses marking the Roman’s destruction
of the Temple are reflected in the solar and lunar eclipses of 2016, leading to the 2017 rewind of the Great Wonder of Rev. 12:1-2. Amazingly, another version of this Rev. 12 celestial wonder takes place on August 27th, in 70 AD, in between the 4/14/70 Passover Lunar Eclipse, and the 9/23/70 Rosh Hashanah Solar Eclipse! Wow, that (9/23 date) sure keeps popping up…

Figure 5. The Rev. 12 sign on August 27th, 70 AD: With a Jupiter-Venus union. 15

The woman has a crown of twelve stars, with Jupiter and Venus in such close union they appear to merge into one star just as they did in 2 BC, except this time in the lower rear paw of Leo. The Sun is clothing Virgo and the Moon near her feet. The planets Jupiter and Venus are also aligned with Mercury-Gabriel and the King Star Regulus in Leo. What is extraordinary with this version of the Rev. 12 Sign is that it occurs in the center of the solar and lunar eclipses falling on Hebrew Feast and holy days as they also marked the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple in 70 AD.

Just as these signs of the Celestial Sphinx are evident in the Blood Moon Tetrads of 168-166 BC with Antiochus, and 70 AD in Titus’ destruction of the Jerusalem Temple, by types of the Anti-Christ, they were also present not only at the birth of Christ, on Sept. 11th 3, BC, but also the Rev. 12 signs on 9/23/17. This of course supports our thesis of the Celestial Prelude. The reader can refer to previous studies on the Celestial Sphinx and the Celestial Prelude to gain added context for these subjects.

As we can see these celestial signs of the end-times lighting up the sky, we are encouraged and rejoice in the Hope of our quickly returning Lord Jesus Christ.

God Bless!

Footnotes

1. “Bust of Antiochus IV” [https://everipedia.org/wiki/Altes_Museum/].
2. The Triumph of Judas Maccabeus [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Paul_Rubens]
3. “Analysis of Prophecies in Daniel.” [ppg. 15-16.] Jon Nessle
4. The Abomination of Desolation and other Prophetic terms of Biblical Eschatology. Jon Nessle.
5. “Analysis of Prophecies in Daniel.” [p. 15-16] Nessle
6. IBID
7. Ibid p.14
8. Number in Scripture, E.W. Bullinger
9. 1 & 2 Books of Maccabees
10. The sources of the dates above are a small representation which agree with Matthew Henry* and Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown. The Scofield Reference Bible, (Congregational), 1909; The New Bible Commentary, (Presbyterian influence), Inter-Varsity Fellowship, 1953; The Wycliffe Bible Commentary, Moody Press, 1962; The Ryrie Study Bible, Moody Press, 1986.

11. Dates for Solar and Total Lunar Eclipse data are From NASA [https://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEcat5/SE-0199–0100.html]

12. Planetary union and zodiac data are from Starry Night Pro Software program.
13. Number in Scripture, ppg. 237-38, E.W. Bullinger
14. http://www.777thsabbath.com/page97.html
15. Stellarium Astronomical Software on Aug. 27th, 70 AD

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Biblical Cosmology and the Precession of the Equinoxes

Biblical Cosmology and the Precession of the Equinoxes

Biblical Cosmology is focused on the Godly origin and structure of the Universe, viewing he laws of causality and Space-time in the context of the Creator as the First Cause. The traditional concept of the history of Cosmology reads as a timeline of the “discoveries” of the greatest scientists. Men like Ptolemy, Galileo, Copernicus, Kepler, Newton, Einstein and Hubble are the beacons of scientific progress, and certainly human science owes these men much. According to conventional history, the idea of a heliocentric “universe” or solar system, originated with the ancient Greeks, specifically Aristarchus of Samos back in the second century BC. This idea however, did not catch on in a big way until Copernicus, who while reviewing some of Aristarchus’ ideas, seized upon this concept and ran with it. He did this at his own peril due to the prevailing worldview of his time, especially that of the Roman Catholic Church, based on a geocentric view of the solar system espoused by Ptolemy, which held sway in intellectual and religious circles for over 1500 years. The graphic below from Harmonica Macrocosmica [A. Cellarius, Amsterdam 1660] depicts a Sun centered Copernican view of the cosmos.

This post on Biblical Cosmology will show that the idea of a heliocentric “universe” predates the 2nd Century BC and Aristarchus, by at least 1300 years, and its genuine roots are found in the Scriptures of the Old Testament. From a strictly historical perspective, this is somewhat of a radical statement, sure to have many critics, but once the following Biblical evidence is viewed in light of the principles of Biblical Astronomy, the foundations of this statement are inescapable. The subject of this blog states the case of potential revisionist power that Biblical Astronomy can have on the conventional view of the History of Astronomy. For Christian believers, knowledge of these truths provide a key historical view of the impact of the Biblical Patriarchs on the ancient world, which has been obscured by thousands of years of Astrology, pagan myth and yes, even human science. By restoring some of the original historical luster to these heroes of the Faith, [Heb. 11] we gain a fuller perspective of their mighty stand on the truth of God’s Word, as they upheld its general precepts including the Principles of Biblical Astronomy.

Our awareness of the history of Biblical Astronomy gains new insight as we consider the Biblical context of the Patriarchal astronomers, starting with Adam regarding their view of the heavens. God’s revelation and His Intelligent design of the cosmos, was taught to Adam personally and was handed down to the Biblical Patriarchs during Adam’s 930 year life span. In the Creator’s Revelatory Astronomy, the Patriarchs viewed the poles, ecliptic and Equator all relative to the orientation of earth’s axis, showing an aspect of precession as part of the Creator’s plan to depict a figurative geocentric position of earth’s central importance in the firmament. The earth, is not the literal center of the firmament, but because it is the object of the light shed by the other celestial bodies [Gen. 1:14-16], it is the figurative focal point of God’s Creation as man’s garden home. This is an aspect of the idea of the Sun’s dual year, since the solar year depicts a heliocentric, or sun-centered solar system, noting it’s daily illumination from earth’s view, as the central light of heaven. Thus the key implications of precession are seen, not only in the ages decreed by the Sun’s residence in one of the 12 signs of the zodiac, but also in the Biblical message that each zodiacal sign holds in relation to the returning Promised seed-Jesus Christ.

The Earth is thus the figurative center of Creation, as the object of the three-fold celestial light shed from the heavens. The purpose and beauty of this three-fold heavenly light is to illuminate the Earth, which God initiated with the two aspects of the Sun’s annual and precessional cycles, as seen in Joseph’s two dreams in Gen. 37:6-11. Joseph’s dreams reveal the basic correspondence of the 12 signs of the zodiac with the 12 tribes of Israel, among other things. Since the ancient view and knowledge of the Solar cycles, celestial signs, eclipses, and asterisms were based on line-of-sight relationships, that only have meaning from an Earth-bound view, over time this devolved into the view that the Earth was the literal center of all Creation, forming the basis of later geocentric theories, like those of Ptolemy. Similarly, as the figurative representation of the Sun as source of life, became literalized by the heathens, it resulted in the idolatrous Astrology of Sun worship inherent through much of ancient mythology and religion.

Plate I. Jupiter-Saturn Conjunction cycle

Another major influence on precession in the History of Astronomy was the Jupiter-Saturn Conjunction cycle. This was thought to open a window on the precession of the equinoxes, according to the base 60 mathematical pattern. The ancient Astronomy of numerous cultures including the Maya, Romans, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Chinese, and astronomers of ancient Egypt, calculated precession using this conjunction cycle in Pisces. The Chinese Zhuanxu Calendar is thought to have started in 1953 BC, linked with a significant predawn all-planet alignment on March 5th. According to astronomers Kevin Pang and John Bangert of the Jet Propulsion Labs, in an ancient text written by Liu Xiang [77-79 BC], this alignment took place near the Pegasus Square, [Plate II, below] between the two fish of Pisces. Pang stated: “While the beginning of a day is dawn, a five-planet conjunction occurring at dawn, with a new moon, and the start of spring would truly be the beginning of all cycles. For calendar makers, such a moment would also be an ideal starting point for counting days, months, years and planetary periods.” 1 The idea of a Jupiter-Saturn triple union taking place with a planetary alignment, indicates a possible termination point, where all solar system planetary cycles were in agreement early in their cycles. This idea agrees with Jupiter-Saturn triple unions occurring in Pisces only once every 800 years, showing how this Conjunction series subdivides the 25,920 year precessional cycle. Since 30 cycles of Jupiter-Saturn triple unions taking place in Pisces, totals a period of 24,000 years, it serves to generally break down this long cycle of precession, into 2000 year ages.

Figure 1. The Precession of the Equinoxes

There was also a greater 260–year cycle based on Jupiter-Saturn Conjunctions, anciently utilized by the Mayans to break down the very long cycle of the precession of the equinoxes. Thompkins states that: the “Maya also had a cycle of 942,890 days, or 2,582 years, equlling 130 Jupiter-Saturn Conjunctions.”2

Twice this cycle [5,163 years], not only gave the equivalent of the greater 260-year cycle of Jupiter-Saturn conjunctions, but 100 of these greater 260-year cycles was equal to 26,000 years, often reckoned the length of the precession by the ancients, as seen in Figure 1 above. This agrees with evidence from Egyptian astronomy via their Dendera Zodiac.

The graphic of the Dendera Zodiac below shows the Pegasus Square, as a square scroll laid between the two Fishes, of Pisces with “Axis E” of this famed Egyptian Zodiac running through the corner of it. As we stated in our website study on the Stars of the Dendera Zodiac: the main Taurus-Scorpius Axis of this zodiac, with the Leo-Aquarius axis, match the main axes that identify the Age of Taurus in the Bible, in Numbers 24:7-9. The context of Numbers 2 shows us the order of 12 tribes of Israel in their wilderness encampment, matching the zodiacal order of the 12 signs/constellations on the ecliptic. In this way, the Dendera Zodiac not only provides key archaeological evidence that the ancient Hebrews and Egyptians both utilized a practical understanding of the precession of the equinoxes, but in the Hebrew’s case, they applied it directly to their belief in the prophecy of their coming redeemer, with Nature’s verification of their stellar gospel, in support of their Old Testament Holy Scriptures. Thus, the Zodiac of Dendera [See poster in the upper right margin of this blog Page] also provides strong supporting evidence from the history of Biblical Astronomy as to the belief in a coming redeemer, since this ancient Egyptian zodiac prophesies in very specific ways not only concerning the time he would appear, but also concerning his unique sacrifice via the very same celestial imagery utilized in the Bible. This important theme is set forth in John Lash’s realization of the presence of a 5^th axis on this Zodiac, seen in Spica, the brightest star in Virgo. 3 The Hebrew name for Spica [Al Zemach]-the Branch/offspring of God, [Jer. 23:5-6] is embodied in God’s only begotten Son– Jesus Christ. Spica is only one of just two stars specifically marked on the Dendera Zodiac, the other being Sirius, the central star linked with the flood stages of the Nile, and the Sothic Calendar, registering one of the oldest historical calendar dates, 4241 BC. The 1461-year Sothic calendar also conforms to the 260-day pattern of the Tzolkin Calendar [260 x 1461] the same as 365.25 x 1040 days, adhering also to the pattern of Jupiter-Saturn conjunctions, as they break down the windows of the precession of the equinoxes through the ages.

Plate II. Axis “E” on the Dendera Zodiac

Lash’s comments concerning this 5^th Dendera Axis are enlightening when viewed in context of the history of the Hebrew’s in ancient Egypt with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Moses, as a forerunner of Christ, and Lawgiver of Israel, who lead them through the wilderness unto the Promised Land. As Lash states in his unpublished
book, The Skies in Memory:

“Whoever designed the Dendera Zodiac was looking ahead in time to our [Piscean] age, when the spring equinox occurs under the tail of the western fish, because this is the time that the entire cycle culminates. With the spring equinox at this position in Pisces, the axial cross locks into unique alignment with the Galaxy.” Lash goes on to say that he considers the star “Spica… to be the master key to the Dendera Zodiac…” 4

The Dendera Zodiac marks our Piscean Age with the first appearance of the Branch and offspring of God, seen in how the axis referenced above, coincides with the star Spica and the opening of the Age of the Fishes.

The following chart shows how precessional ages correlate to the Biblical Administrations, revealing a consistent progression of themes as God’s Plan of the Ages unfolds. This provides the overarching context for God’s plan of redemption and restoration of Mankind and Creation, through the redeeming work of Christ-the centerpiece of the Ages.

Plate III.

**Precessional Ages Aligned with Biblical Administrations**
Zodiacal Sign	Biblical Administrations	Heavens & Earth	Precess Age Start Dates	Scripture
Sirius	Angels First Estate	First		Gen.1:1-2
Gemini	Original Paradise	Second	6480-4320 BC	Gen. 3:8ff
Taurus	Bible Patriarchs	Second	4320-2160 BC	Gen. 3:23ff
Aries	O.T. Law	Second	2160-7 BC	Ex. 19:16ff
Pisces	Christ/Grace/Revelation /Millennium	Second	7BC-now	Matt. 3:11ff Acts 2:1ff IThess. 4:13
Aquarius	Final Paradise	Third	2153 AD	Rev. 21

This march of the precessional ages is recorded in certain ancient star maps like the Dendera zodiac, from ancient Egypt, in a recognition of the axes built into its structure. God designed triple Conjunctions of Jupiter-Saturn as individual markers and movements in a grand celestial Symphony of the Ages, ultimately leading to Christ’s Birth. The 1953 BC triple union of Jupiter-Saturn took place in the sign Aquarius, marking the Birth of Abram. As the Father of Many Nations, and progenitor of the believer’s line, Abraham via his offspring, Isaac and Jacob would bear the promised seed. This triple Conjunction confirmed that Christ came out of the nation of Israel, constituting the 12 tribes of Jacob, whose name God changed to Israel, to reflect their spiritual inheritance.

This is the spiritual message the heavenly Father intended to be communicated over the face of the Earth, a far cry from the “astrological ages” promoted in various cultural myths throughout history. Only with a Scriptural view of the precession of the equinoxes in its true Biblical context, can we gain the wisdom that God has stored for us in Creation’s master temporal cycle. Although at times we see the true light shining through the broken symmetry of mythology and sometimes even Astrology, we gain an unobstructed view when we take heed to the two part harmony of God’s written Word, with His celestial gospel. This approach truly provides the missing history that archaeo-astronomy has longed for.

Figure 2. Earth’s Axis and Precession

As part of the Creator’s grand design, the 25,920-year precessional cycle of the sun’s apparent retrograde motion against the backdrop of the tropical zodiac, depicts the Sun’s dwelling in successive zodiacal signs, dictated by the earth’s shifting axis and equatorial pole. Thus, with the precession of the vernal point, or vernal equinox in mind, the Earth is centrally located, depicting the earth’s figurative geocentrism referred to above, but not merely with respect to the solar system. The centrality of the Earth involves a much larger cosmic district than our community roundabout of the solar system. As Genesis 1:16-17 states, not only the Sun and Moon but also the Stars were to shed their light upon the Earth. This encompasses the entire zodiacal structure, the stars of the ecliptic, the Equator and the poles.

With the earth as the figurative center of Creation and the object of the three-fold celestial light shed from the heavens, the purpose and beauty of the cosmos is to shed its threefold light upon the earth, and God began with the dual year of the Sun, as we will see in Psalm 19 and in Joseph’s two dreams in Genesis 37. We find this dual year, in the Sun’s annual and precessional cycles.

Similarly, as the figurative representation of the Sun as the source of life became literally deified by the heathens, a result was the idolatry of Sun worship inherent in much of ancient world myth and Astrology. The Earth, of course, is not the literal center of creation, but God created it as man’s garden home and as the object of God’s Love and care for His human family, He showers humanity with His greatest Love as witnessed in this threefold celestial Light. Let’s take a more detailed look at what Scripture tells us about the precession of the equinoxes.

We can see how the geographic and magnetic poles on Earth are reflected in the North Poles of the ecliptic and the Equator, in the heavens as seen in Figure 3. below.

Figure 3. Precession of the Equinoxes

The Sun’s Cycle of Precession

Let’s begin with some initial Biblical evidence of precession in Psalm 19, as an introduction to the significance of the Sun’s “dual year,” or its annual and precessional cycles, the two prime standards for astronomical time. This differentiates the Sun’s dual year, first seen in it’s annual cycle, spending one month in each sign of the 12 Zodiacal signs, versus the retrograde precessional cycle, where it spends a “great month” or 2,160 solar years in the 12 signs of the ecliptic. As the Sun moves through all 12 signs of the tropical zodiac, the Sun completes its cycle of the “great year,” in about 25,920 solar years. The sixth verse of the 19^thPsalm briefly refers to this apparent retrograde motion of the Sun:

Psalm 19:6
His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.

“His going forth is from the end of the heaven… a reference to the Sun’s path through the ecliptic, so called because all the solar and lunar eclipses occur on this course. The words “going forth” in Hebrew are mowtsa [*H4161], meaning the dawn, the east, a gate, the rising of the sun. ⁵⁵

Thus it refers to the place or gate of the rising of the Sun, also known as the vernal point of the Spring Equinox, the sign of the zodiac where the sun rise occurs, indicating the sun’s retrograde precessional movement, because the sun rises in a different “gate,” or successive zodiacal house on average every 2,160 years. The sun’s annual cycle, or solar year is seen in “his circuit” above, which in the Hebrew is (*H8622) tequphah: rendered, “at the end of the year” [2 Chron. 24:23],6 an obvious reference to this annual solar cycle. Thus we have in brief, a Biblical contrast between these two solar cycles. The record of Joseph’s dreams in Genesis 37 will take us into greater depth on the Biblical testimony of precession. Joseph’s second dream in Gen. 37: 9-11 reveals a precessional context, with its use of stellar terms, especially the “eleven stars making obeisance” to his star or sign of the Bull, Taurus. These 12 “stars” of Joseph’s dream correlate with Jacob’s 12 sons in Gen. 49 forming the Sidereal zodiac. One can also view the precession of the Vernal equinox as the Sun in retrograde against the fixed background of the sidereal zodiac of the stars. Thus, Joseph’s second dream reveals astronomical truth that his first dream with an agricultural theme, does not.

Genesis 37:5-11
And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more. [6] And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed: [7] For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance [H7812] to my sheaf. [8] And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign [H4427] over us? Or shalt thou indeed have dominion [H4910] over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words. [9] And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance [H7812] to me. [10] And he told it to his father and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down [H7812] ourselves to thee to the earth? [11] And his brethren envied him; but his father observed the saying.

Taurus the Bull, as Joseph’s sign in the Hebrew zodiac was split into its two horns, representing his sons Ephraim and Mannasseh [Num. 2:18-20 & Deut. 33:17]. This was done to substitute for the rebellious tribe of Dan, made in the circle of the twelve Hebrew tribes, the twelve signs of the Sidereal zodiac. This allowed for the Levitical 13th tribe to be placed in the center of the zodiac’s circle, with the pattern of the stars mirrored in the seed of Israel, as they camped around their Tabernacle in the wilderness of Sinai during their forty years of wandering. This relation of the Levitical 13th tribe to the Sun, could be a symbolic reference to the Intercalation of a 13th month to align the solar and lunar cycles in the Hebrew Calendar. The Levites, being the priestly tribe, had the charge of the affairs for the Tabernacle, housing the Ark of the Covenant. An aspect of the Tabernacle’s celestial plan can be found in the edifice of the wooden framework that provided a foundation upon which the Tabernacle’s curtains [H3407]7 (Ps. 104:2-3, Isa. 40:22, Ex. 26:26-36), hung. They were assembled from 48 units, each ten cubits high, and 1.5 cubits wide…⁶ This implies the structure of these 12 zodiacal signs including their 36 decans, (12+36=48) divided into ten degree decans, showing not only God’s celestial order in the tabernacle of the Sun [Ps. 19:4], but also marking the earthly Tabernacle as the focal point reflecting the spiritual light of God’s presence among His people during the Old Testament. This was established in the priestly order of service instituted in the Temple by King David, with 24 courses of priests, each serving two times during Israel’s calendar year, totaling 48 weeks. When the three weeks of Passover, Pentecost and the Feast of Tabernacles are included, wherein all the priests served, we have the 51 weeks of Israel’s luni-solar year, divided according to sacred and civil standards. The sacred year began in Nisan, the month of the spring Passover, while the civil year in the fall started with the seventh month Tishri 1, the Day of Trumpets signaling the onset of Israel’s holiest month. This depicts the Creator’s light reflected in the celestial structure of creation, ruling over the Hebrew timekeeping, manifest in the sacred priestly service and architecture of the Old Testament Tabernacle and Temple, fulfilled in Jesus Christ as the King and High Priest, after the order of Melchizedek.

The Ark represented the fullness of the presence and power of God that could be manifested on Earth, amid the men of the Old Testament Law. As the “Sun” of the Hebrew Zodiac, the risen Morning Star will enliven humanity as their Savior and enlighten them as the light of the world. Here we see the Sun functioning as a “solar collector” as it moves through the various 12 houses in precession, reflecting the stellar light of their age upon the Earth. Once again we find Biblical evidence regarding the Hebrew zodiac, structured as the earliest known heliocentric model, as seen in the Menorah Solar System, far ahead of Aristarchus of Samos (270 BC), the first of the ancient Greeks to re-submit the idea of a Sun centered cosmos. With the light of the world at the center of the Hebrew zodiac, we see the roots for a Sun-centered solar system that Copernicus gets credit for, in spite of the neolithic antagonism of the Roman Catholic Church centuries after his death. This idea was first put forth and established with the Hebrew Menorah, which was structured on a celestial plan of the ancient solar system of seven celestial bodies, with the Sun as the central candlestick [Rev.1:20], embodied in Christ as the light of the world, always enlightening the Earth.

The Hebrew Menorah

A key to understanding this part of Genesis 37 is found as we take notice of details in the record, specifically the obeisance made by the sun, moon, and the eleven stars to Joseph’s sign of Taurus the Bull. The first dream makes no reference to Joseph’s parent’s who are represented as the Sun and Moon in the second dream. Their praise of Joseph’s star is added to that of the eleven stars of his brothers. The meaning of the Hebrew word (*H7812 shachah) to bow down, is to depress, prostrate oneself (in homage to royalty or God), to bow oneself down, to humbly beseech, worship or to do obeisance.⁸This word is used as indicated in verses 7, 9 & 10 above, in reference not only to the sheaves of the field, but also to the sun, moon and eleven stars, with Joseph being the twelfth. Here we can see an image of the Hebrew zodiac foreshadowing the prophecy of Jacob over his twelve sons in Genesis 49, as an image of the Sidereal zodiac, seen as both the sheaves (earthly seed; Gen. 13:15-17) and stars (heavenly seed; Genesis 15:4-6), both relating to prophecies concerning Israel. Here we can see a record where the witness of the Stars lines up with the witness of the Scriptures according to the revelation of God to Joseph, to preserve the line of the promised seed of Israel, that the enemy was trying to wipe out with the famine that took Jacob to Egypt. We also find these two seeds mirrored in the horizontal and vertical fish of Pisces.

Joseph’s first dream had a terrestrial interpretation which was seen in [Gen. 45: 8 & 26], where the same Hebrew word used in verse 8, for “dominion” (maschal), is used with an immediate application to Joseph’s political position as “ruler throughout all the land of Egypt.” This was fulfilled when Jacob brought his family to Egypt according to God’s direction [Gen. 46:3-4], where Joseph was Grand Vizier.

The second dream however, being celestial in nature, shows a clear distinction from the first dream, indicating that there is another aspect of these signs of the ecliptic that we, as students of Biblical Astronomy, need to be aware of. The usage of (*H7812) here in Genesis 37, in relation to Joseph’s sign of Taurus, is distinctly different than in Genesis 49:8, where it states regarding Judah that: “thy Father’s children shall bow down (*H7812) before thee.” Obviously, even though the same Hebrew word is used for the homage that Jacob’s children would give to both Judah and Joseph, it cannot mean for the same reason.

The homage due Judah in Genesis 49 has a distinct celestial significance since the Messiah came from this tribe [Rev. 5:5]. You can view my Biblical Astronomy DVD for added insight in a detailed look at Gen. 49:8 in the triple Conjunction of Jupiter-Regulus marking the birth of Christ. For our purposes here Judah’s dominion refers to the Sun’s annual cycle through the zodiac seen in the Great Sphinx, where the woman’s head in Virgo, and the body of Leo the Lion are married, joining the two ends of the zodiac in this famous guardian of Giza. This also depicts one way that the Great Sphinx prophesies of the birth of Christ.
[What does this say for precession?]

The regal lion represents the homage due to Leo, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the king of the Hebrew zodiac, seated on David’s throne; [Luke 1:32], born from Virgo the Woman and queen-Israel the earthly seed. Conversely, Joseph’s dominion refers to the Sun’s cycle of precession, and its dominion over the Sun, Moon, and the eleven Stars. The rule of the precessional cycle as the master cycle of the heavens is seen here in its Biblical context, as the Sun, Moon and Stars are interpreted in light of where the Sun rises at the vernal equinox in each precessional age, setting the over-arching context for each of the 2160 year ages. The precession of the equinoxes occurs due to the Sun’s annual path on the ecliptic in all 12 signs of the zodiac taking a solar year to complete, but at the end of that year the Sun does not return to the same point in the sign where it began the year, but is a little behind it… about 1 degree every 72 years. This takes about 25,920 years for the sun to complete this vast retrograde circle through all 12 signs on the ecliptic.

Genesis 37:10b-11 “Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth? And his brethren envied him; but his father observed the saying.

Jacob’s response to Joseph’s dream is enlightening because Jacob himself and [Rebecca] are represented by him, to be the Sun and Moon, who together “made obeisance” to Joseph’s sign–Taurus, in his dream. This shows the Sun’s solar year and Moon’s lunar year, along with the star’s sidereal year, all in subjection to the base 60 standard of the Sun’s abode in precessional cycles. Jacob’s reference to the Sun and Moon in the dream as, “I and thy mother” shows the marriage of the solar & lunar calendars, harmonized according to the phi ratio, synchronized to the fifty-year Jubilee cycle of Israel. This accents the custom of Intercalation by the Biblical Patriarchs, Jacob and Joseph prior to Moses. When we consider the influence of Joseph as the Grand Vizier of Egypt in this record in Genesis 37, we find some of the earliest recorded incidents of Intercalation of the luni-solar calendar harmonized according to the phi ratio. Thus on one level, this record of Joseph’s dream underscores the kinship between the cycles of the Sun, Moon & Stars in view of both precession, and in light of the annual feasts Hebrew calendar. This sets the stage for later Biblical evidence of the Intercalation of months according to the Mosaic standards set in Num. 9:11ff. The record of the second Passover carried out by King Hezekiah in II Chron. 30:1ff, is an example of the insertion of a second Adar (13th) month. This was done usually when the two years had gotten too far out of synch.⁸

This insight into the record of Joseph’s dreams in Genesis 37 provides a basis for the Astronomy of the Biblical Patriarchs, especially their knowledge of the twelve signs of the zodiac, the harmonizing of the solar and lunar years, all in the ruling context of precession. We must be mindful that the Biblical Patriarchs were the experts of Biblical Astronomy because their gospel was the Stars. They had not received the written Scriptures as of yet, but they knew the “Covenant of Day and Night,” as Jeremiah [33:25] called it, better than anyone and were privy to its hidden mysteries, whose surface we are only scratching! Their astronomical expertise was carried into ancient Sumeria in Ur of the Chaldees, as seen in the “Tower of Babel,” [Gen. 11] record as the basis of ancient Babylonian Astronomy and was later perverted in their Astrology. This astronomical expertise of the Biblical Patriarchs like Abraham is one reason why Jacob “observed the saying,” of Joseph’s dream as Genesis 37:11 says.

The Hebrew word for “observed” [*H8104–shamar], means: “to keep, guard, preserve, protect, retain, to observe as a covenant the commandments of God [Gen. 17:9-10, 18:19], and to revere.”⁹ It refers to the careful attention paid to the obligations of a covenant, as Abraham gave orders to “Keep the Way of the Lord.” The details of this Covenant of day and night, written in the stars are exactly what Jacob was protecting. When he noted the details of his beloved son’s celestial dream, he took great care to scrutinize the Word of the Lord as it came in this dream. After all, he was only following his Grandfather’s instructions, to keep the way of the Lord, for their Patriarchal Administration. In the oracle of Balaam in [Num. 24] below he is beholding the glory of Israel’s wilderness encampment, and he identifies three of the four tribes at the cardinal points of the compass; Aquarius in verse 7, with the water buckets, Taurus the wild Ox in verse 8, and Leo the Lion in verse 9.

Num. 24:2-9 [ESV]

²And Balaam lifted up his eyes and saw Israel camping tribe by tribe. And the Spirit of God came upon him, ³and he took up his discourse and said, “The oracle of Balaam the son of Beor, the oracle of the man whose eye is opened,[a] ⁴the oracle of him who hears the words of God, who sees the vision of the Almighty, falling down with his eyes uncovered: ⁵How lovely are your tents, O Jacob, your encampments, O Israel! ⁶Like palm groves[b] that stretch afar, like gardens beside a river, like aloes that the Lord has planted, like cedar trees beside the waters. ⁷Water shall flow from his buckets, and his seed shall be in many waters; his king shall be higher than Agag, and his kingdom shall be exalted. ⁸God brings him out of Egypt and is for him like the horns of the wild ox; he shall eat up the nations, his adversaries, and shall break their bones in pieces and pierce them through with his arrows. ⁹He crouched, he lay down like a lion and like a lioness; who will rouse him up? Blessed are those who bless you, and cursed are those who curse you.”

The cycles of the Sun and Moon bowing down to Taurus tells us that the precessional Age of Taurus is indicated, which is consistent with the witness of Numbers 23-24, that detail the precessional markers or cardinal points for this age. This precessional knowledge filtered through ancient Egypt and was applied along with the Sothic Calendar, during the Age of Taurus, as many archaeo-astronomers have documented. Even as Abraham is historically recorded among the first teachers of the ancient Egyptians, there were others before him. As Jacob’s grandfather, Jacob also would have been schooled in this Academy of Patriarchal Astronomy. This exerted a powerful influence on the Astronomy of the ancient Near East. We find this knowledge applied in the stellar alignment of many ancient Egyptian temples oriented to zodiacal signs signifying the related precessional age, providing strong evidence that the Biblical Patriarchs not only knew of the precessional cycle, but also applied it in a spiritual context, like their wilderness encampment around their Tabernacle.

As the discovery of the Antikythera Device has rewritten the modern understanding of astronomy in ancient Greece and Rome, so the mysteries of God’s Word will continue to transform human knowledge as more light is shed on these long hidden truths…

Footnotes

1. Pang and Bangert-Jet Propulsion Labs
2. Secrets of the Great Pyramid, Peter Thompkins
3. Atlantis Blueprint, Colin Wilson and Rand Flem-Ath, ppg. 171-172.
4. Skies in Memory, John Lash
5. Strong’s Concordance [H4161], James Strong
6. Ibid, [[H8622]
7. Ibid, [H3407]
8. Ibid, [H7812]
9. Ibid, [H8104]

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The Blood Moon Tetrad of 168-166 BC and the Abomination of Desolation

The Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse Tetrad and the Destruction of the Jerusalem Temple

Figure 1.

Bust of Antiochus IV at the Altes Museum in Berlin. 1

1 Macc. 1:7-10 [175 B. C. 137th Seleucid year; Antiochus IV begins his reign]

Figure 2.

The Triumph of Judas Maccabeus, Rubens 2.

Figure 3. Jerusalem Temple model-70 AD.

*A numerical note on the 2300 days equaling 78 lunar months is that (78=6 x 13), 6 as the number of man destitute of God multiplied by the number of rebellion or apostasy.8 These are fitting links since Antiochus IV was a type of the end times Anti-Christ and he instigated this version of the Abomination Desolation. Also the relation between lunar months and this Blood Moon Tetrad marking key dates as the Temple was being trodden underfoot during the 2300 days is notable. Other elements of the history of these events are recorded in the Book of Maccabees and in our timeline below.

Table 1. Book of Maccabees 9

1 Mac 1:10 175 BC. 137th Seleucid year; Antiochus begins reign

1 Mac 1:10-15 *171 BC. desolating covenant to worship Greek gods

26th of month AV, 170 BC- 78 Lunar months prior to the cleansing of the Temple in 164.

Antiochus fought the Egyptians in the Battle of Mt. Kasios early November/mid-8th month 170 BC. [Seleucid year 143]

1 Mac 1:20-28 169 BC; plunders Jerusalem temple

1 Mac 1:54-59 15th of Kislev, 167 BC; set up abomination 25th of Kislev 12/6/167, then sacrificed abomination of desolation in the Seleucid year 145

1 Mac 4:42-58 25th of Chisleu 12/16/164; sanctuary cleansed; Antiochus died in Seleucid year 148. 10

2 Mac 10:1-8 Sanctuary purified

Figure 4. Blood Moon over Jerusalem

The Blood Moon Tetrad of 168-166 BC.

Partial Solar Eclipse
On July 5th there was a Mercury-Regulus conjunction in Leo. On July 17th 168 BC, there was a Partial Solar Eclipse with Sun and Moon in Cancer. Later in July of 168, a Jupiter-Mercury-Regulus Alignment occurred in Leo. These opening signs in Leo are similar to the opening signs of the 2016 Solar and lunar eclipses on Hebrew Feasts and Holy Days. [see Table 2 below].

Solar Eclipse
About 2 weeks after the first Blood Moon and opening the New Year on Jan. 10th, 167 BC, there was another Solar Eclipse with the Sun and Venus in Capricorn, close to the border of Aquarius. Mercury was in Sagittarius. Mars-Micheal was in Leo with Jupiter in Virgo, depicting the signs of the Celestial Sphinx, as seen at the birth of Christ. This was the first of 4 luni-solar eclipse pairs in this Tetrad.

Solar Eclipse
Opening the Summer season on June 7th of 167 BC, was another Solar Eclipse, two weeks prior to the Summer Solstice Total Lunar Eclipse. Sun was in Gemini, with Mercury. Jupiter was near Mars in Virgo. Venus was in Cancer with Saturn in Libra. If we take into account the next solar eclipse a month later we can see the Second Blood Moon of this Tetrad bracketed tightly between these two Solar Eclipses.

Solar Eclipse
The following month on July 7th, 167 BC there was another Solar Eclipse, forming a pair of solar eclipses bracketing this Blood Moon. In July of 167 BC, the Sun was in Cancer, with Saturn in Libra. Mercury and Venus were in Leo, with Jupiter and Mars in Virgo again marking the Celestial Sphinx.

Solar Eclipse
On Dec. 1st there was another key Solar Eclipse, which gets our attention 1st because it occurred only 5 days before Antiochus set up the abomination on Nov. 26th, or the 15th of Kislev, sacrificed 10 days later on 25th of Kislev or 12/6/167 BC. Venus and Mars were in Capricorn as the righteous sacrifice opposed to Antiochus’ abomination. The Sun was in the Bow of Sagittarius with arrow aimed at the heart of the Scorpion enemy. Mercury was near Neptune in Ophiuchus showing the ongoing conflict between the Serpent bearer and the Scorpius. Saturn was in Libra. Then only 10 days later the 3rd Total Lunar Eclipse of this Blood Moon Tetrad followed.

Partial Solar Eclipse
The year 166 BC also witnessed eclipse activity starting the 28th of May with a Partial Solar Eclipse. The Sun and Mercury are in Gemini, with Mars and Venus in the Bull of Taurus. Saturn is in Libra, with Jupiter is at Virgo’s feet. Here we see a 4th pair of tightly packed eclipses wrapping up this Blood Moon Tetrad.

Partial Solar Eclipse
Later on Nov. 20th, 166 BC there was a Partial Solar Eclipse, framing the final Blood Moon of the Tetrad. The Sun, Moon and Neptune were in Ophiuchus. Jupiter was in Libra, with a Mercury-Saturn union in Scorpio. Venus in the Bow of Sagittarius. Mars was in Virgo protecting Israel.

1 Macc. 1:54-57

1 Macc. 4:49-59

⁵⁴ The altar was dedicated, to the sound of hymns, zithers, lyres and cymbals, at the same time of year and on the same day on which the Gentiles had originally profaned it.

⁵⁵ The whole people fell prostrate in adoration and then praised Heaven who had granted them success.

Over the last 2000 years the history of Blood Moon Tetrads starting in Peter’s Sermon opening the

Age of Grace, [Acts 2:20] has seen a steady progression of Bible Prophecy related to Israel, being

progressively fulfilled. This includes prophecies of the Jerusalem Temple’s Destruction spoken by

Table 2.
Solar & Lunar Eclipses from 69-71 AD. 2016 Solar & Lunar Eclipses omitting Adar 2:

Jupiter-Regulus Conjunction 10/15/69 in Leo

Partial Lunar Sukkot 10/18/69

Total Solar Nisan 1 3/30/70 Total Solar Eclipse 3/9/2016 on Nisan 1

Penum lunar Passover 4/14/70 Penum Lunar Eclipse-Passover 3/23/2016/Nisan 14

Rev. 12 Sign of the Woman 8/27/70

Annular Solar Rosh Hash 9/23/70 Annular Solar Eclipse 9/3/2016/Trumpets Feast

Penum lunar Sukkot 10/08/70 Penum Lunar Eclipse 9/16/Sukkot/9-16 to 9/23/16

Partial Lunar Purim 3/4/71

Figure 5. The Rev. 12 sign on August 27th, 70 AD: With a Jupiter-Venus union. 15

As we can see these celestial signs of the end-times lighting up the sky, we are encouraged and rejoice in the Hope of our quickly returning Lord Jesus Christ.

God Bless!

Footnotes

1. “Bust of Antiochus IV” [https://everipedia.org/wiki/Altes_Museum/].
2. The Triumph of Judas Maccabeus [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Paul_Rubens]
3. “Analysis of Prophecies in Daniel.” [ppg. 15-16.] Jon Nessle
4. The Abomination of Desolation and other Prophetic terms of Biblical Eschatology. Jon Nessle.
5. “Analysis of Prophecies in Daniel.” [p. 15-16] Nessle
6. IBID
7. Ibid p.14
8. Number in Scripture, E.W. Bullinger
9. 1 & 2 Books of Maccabees
10. The sources of the dates above are a small representation which agree with Matthew Henry* and Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown. The Scofield Reference Bible, (Congregational), 1909; The New Bible Commentary, (Presbyterian influence), Inter-Varsity Fellowship, 1953; The Wycliffe Bible Commentary, Moody Press, 1962; The Ryrie Study Bible, Moody Press, 1986.

11. Dates for Solar and Total Lunar Eclipse data are From NASA [https://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEcat5/SE-0199–0100.html]

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