Pilgrimage, Book 2 · Chapter 4
CHAP. IIII.
Of the Iewish Computation of Time, and of their Festiuall daies.
THe day amongst the Iewes was (as amongst vsus) Naturall and Artificiall: this from Sunne-rising to Sunne-setting, to which is opposed Night, the time of the Sunnes absence from our Hemisphere: that comprehended both these, called of the Greekes foreign containing one whole reuolution of the Sunnes motion to the same point of the Horizon or Meridian, in 24. houres. This aPlin.l.2.c.77. Fabrit.Paduani Catena temp.an.28. Scal.de Emend. Temp.l.1.Naturall day the Babylonians began at the rising of the Sunne, the Athenians at the setting, the Vmbrians (as the Astrologians) at Noone, the Aegyptians and Roman Priests at Midnight, The Iewes agreed in their reckoning with the Athenians, as did the Galls in bCaes.Com.l.6.Caesars time, reporting Pluto to be the Author of their Nation: and some reliques hereof is in our naming of time by a seuen-night and a fortnight; although otherwise we reckon the day betweene two midnights. The most naturall computation of this naturall day is to follow that order of Nature, wherein darknesse had the prioritie of time, cGen.1.5.and the euening and the morning were made one day, or the first day: which (sayth Hospinian dHospinian de fest.Ethnic.l.1.1.) the Italian and Bohemian Clockes doe yet obserue. The day was not diuided of the first Hebrewes (before the Babylonian Captiuitie) into houres, but was distinguished by Vigiliae, or Watches, of which they had foure; the first began at euening, the second at midnight, the third in the morning, the fourth at noone. Neither is there any Hebrew word signifying an houre; although some interprete the degrees of the Dyall of Ahaz eEsa.38.8.to be houres; some (as Tremellius) halfe houres. Afterwards it was diuided into houres, 12. in the night, and as many in the day; not equall as ours, but longer or shorter, according to so many equall portions of the day or night: so that with them the 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, houre was answerable with our houres of 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, if we consider them in the Aequinoctiall, otherwise they differed from our equall houres more or lesse, according to the vnequall lengthning or shortning of the dayes, but so, that an easie capacitie may conceiue the proportion. These houres sometimes they reduced into foure, the first containing the 1, 2, 3, or with vsus the 7, 8, 9, houres: the second the 4, 5, 6, or after our reckoning 10, 11, 12, of the clocke, and so forwards. This was the Ecclesiasticall Computation, according to the times of Prayers and Sacrifices, imitated still in the Church of Rome in their Canonicall houres. Thus is Marke reconciled to himselfe and the other Euangelists, fMark.15.25. & 33.in relating the time of CHRISTS Passion, the first calling it the third houre when they crucified him, or led him to be crucified, whereas Iohn sayth, That it was about gIoh.19.the sixt houre when Pilate deliuered him. Thus may the parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard be vnderstood, Matth. 20. and other places of Scripture. The night also was diuided into foure Watches, each containing three houres, accordingly.
Seuen dayes were a hSeptimana, res omnibus quidem Orientis populis ab vltima vsque Antiquitate vsitata: nobis autē Europaeis vix tandē …ost Christian smum receptae. Scal. de Emend. T.l.1.weeke, whereof the seuenth was called the Sabbath; others had no peculiar name, but were called the first day of the weeke, or the first day of (or after) the Sabbath, and so of the rest. Their moneths, as with vsus and the Grecians, tooke their name of the Moone, and with them also their measure, reckoning the order of their dayes according to the age of the Moone, and by courses they contained, one 30. dayes, the next 29, and therefore were constrained euerie second or third yeare to intercale, or adde, as in a Leape-yeare, one monethmonth of 22. dayes, and in euerie fourth yeare of 23. dayes. This they called *Vcadar, that is, And-Adar, or Adar doubled.Veadar, because it followed the 12. monethmonth Adar, for the supply of 10. dayes, 21. houres, and 204. scruples, which the 12. moneths of the Moone came short of the yeare of the Sunne. And this they were forced to doe for the obseruation of the Passeouer, and their other Feasts. iAr. Montanus in his Daniel, or 9 booke of Iewish Antiquities saith, That the auncient yeare had twelue moneths, as appeareth by the historie of Noah: but those moneths had no proper names, but of their order, the first, second, third monethmonth, &c. Those names which after they were knowne by, were Chaldean.Before their Babylonian thraldome, foure onelyonly of these moneths were knowne by proper names; the first called Ethauim, the second Bul, the seuenth, which after was made the first, Abib; the eight Zif: but afterwards the rest receiued names, which had beene before distinguished onelyonly by order, and the former names also were altered; that being reckoned the first monethmonth of the yeare, in which befell the 15. day of the Moone after the Aequinoctiall Vernall, and their names follow, Nisan, Iar, Sivan, Thamuz, Ab, Elul, Thischri, Marcheschvan, Cisleu, Tebeth, Schebath, Adar.
The Hebrew yeare, before Moses, began kH spinian, Ar. Montanus in his Daniel, and others, begin the world in Autumne; but our English Church and Ioseph Scalliger suppose the world was created in the Equinoctial vernall. And of this opinion is R Iehosua, Basil, Ambrose, Hierome, Augustine, Bed …, Isidorus, Damascen, and other later Diuines & Astronomers, whose reasons Hospinian laboureth to confute, & adhuc sub Iudice his est.at the new Moone next after the Autumnall Aequinoctiall, that being supposed by some to be the time wherein the World was first created, euerie Plant and Tree hauing the fruit and seed ripe: and this reckoning of the yeare, in ciuile affaires, is obserued of the Iewes vntounto this day: and from hence they began their Iubilee and seuenth Sabbaticall yeare, least otherwise they should hauehave lost two yeares profits, not reaping the fruit of the old yeare, nor sowing in the next. Their Ecclesiasticall or festiuall yeare began at the Spring, as wee hauehave said asore, by the commaundement of GOD, at and in remembrance of their departure out of Aegypt at the same time, Exod. 12. as with vsus wee hauehave an Ecclesiasticall yeare moueable, according to the fall of Easter, differing from the Ciuill beginning at our Lady, as with others at Christmasse or New-yeares day.
lIos.Scal.de Emend, Temp.lib.4.Scaliger thus obserueth concerning the Iewish yeare. The Iewes (sayth he) vse a double reckoning of their yeare; one after the course of the Moone, the other after the Tekupha's or course of the Sunne. Tekupha *Tekupha is the fourth part of a yeare.aunciently was that moment in which the passed yeare ended, and the following began. But the later Iewes diuided the yeare of the Sunne into foure equall parts, each whereof consisted of 91. dayes, 7. houres ½. And they diuide the said yeare into 12. equall parts, each containing dayes 30. houres, 10. 30. They begin at the fifteenth of Aprill, moued by the authoritie of R. Samuel an ancient Criticke, who ascribed the first Tekupha to that monethmonth which before they began in Autumne: the reason was, because at that time Moses led the Israelites out of Aegypt. The moderne Iewes are so superstitious in the obseruation of their Tekupha's, that they esteeme it danger of life to alter their reckoning of them. They also attribute to each of them his proper element, as to the Tekupha Tamuz (the Summer Solstice) the Fire; and he which should drinke or eat in the moment of that Tekupha, they thinke should be taken with a burning feauer. Tekupha Nisan is on the fifteenth of Aprill, Tekupha Tamuz on the fifteenth of Iuly, Tekupha Tisrs on the foureteenth of October, Tekupha Tebeth on the foureteenth of Ianuarie. In times passed they obserued superstitiously the beginnings of euerie monethmonth, thinking, that then the Sunne entred into that Signe which was attributed to that monethmonth. Now they only obserue the foure Tropicall signes. Such is their folly, as though now the entrance of Aries were not more then fiue and thirtie dayes before the Tekupha of Moses. But their leaden braines know not what Tekupha is, nor why, nor when it was instituted. So much Scaliger.
If the new Moone happened after noone, then the moueth and their New-Moone Feast began the next day, and the yeare likewise, which began at the New Moone. Although, in regard of vse, some dayes were more holy then other, yet had eueryevery day appointed Sacrifices lExod.29.38. Num.28. Leu.23.morning and euening.
Their Feasts were either weekely, of which was the Sabbath; or monethly, euerie New Moone; or yearely, of which were the Easter or Passeouer, Pentecost or Whitsontide, the Feast of Tabernacles: These were chiefe, to which were added the Feast of Trumpets, of Expiation, and (as some accompt) of the Great Congregation *At the end of the Feast of Tabernac.. To these we may reckon the seuenth yeares Sabbath, and the yeare of Iubilee. These Feasts GOD had prescribed to them, commaunding, that in those three principall Feasts euerie male (as the Iewes interpreted it, that were cleane, and sound, and from twentie yeares of their age to fiftie) should appeare there where the Tabernacle or Temple was, with their offerings, as one great Parish. Deut. 16. hereby to retaine an vnitie in diuine worship, and a greater solemnitie, with encrease of ioy and charitie; being better confirmed in that Truth, which they here saw to be the same which at home they had learned, and also better strengthened against the errors of the Heathen and idolatrous Feasts of Deuils. To these were after added vponupon occasions, by the Church of the Iewes, their foure Fasts, in memorie of their calamities receiued from the Chaldaeans, their Feast of Lotts, of Dedication, and others, as shall follow in their order.
They began to celebrate their Feasts at Euen: so Moses is commaunded, mLeu.23.32.From Euen to Euen shall ye celebrate your Sabbath: imitated in the Christian Euensongs on holy Euens: yet the Christian Sabbath is by some supposed to begin in the morning, because CHRIST did rise at that time.