Summer Tekufah
Today, June 21, is the longest day of the year. In fact it is 6 hours and 31 minutes longer than the shortest day of the year, which falls in December (the winter solstice). It is commonly known as the Summer Solstice and for those living north of the equator, it marks the start of summer.
How many hours of sunlight would one enjoy on this day? Well, the answer to that depends on where you live. The farther north you are, the more hours of sunlight you'll have. For example, if you live in Fairbanks, Alaska, on the Summer Solstice you would have 24 hours of sunlight!
What is the significance of this day, in terms of the Mazzaroth? Well, the Summer Solstice is a heavenly event, which is biblically referred to as one of the four tekufot. Tekufot (plural of Tekufah) is the Hebrew word which refers to the "seasons", or literally the "circuit" in the heavens. More accurately, as I explained in my February 11, 2019 blog, the Tekufot mark the beginning of the four seasons.
The first Tekufah of the year is the Spring Tekufah, which is key in determining the beginning of the Biblical year. And today is the second Tekufah of the year - being the Summer Solstice (in the Northern Hemisphere).
On the Spring and Fall Tekufot, day and night are equal in length. Since the heavenly bodies determine the length of the day, the Tekufot are clearly a heavenly event. The Summer and Winter Tekufah are the longest and shortest days of the year, respectively.
The original Hebrew word Tekufah appears in four places in the Bible:
1) 2 Chronicles 24:23 - Tekufah is translated as "end of the year" in this passage.
2) Exodus 34:22 - Tekufah is translated as "year's end" in this passage. (The Spring Tekufah is the end of the Biblical Year.)
3) Psalm 19:4-5 - Tekufah is translated as "line" or "circuit" in this passage.
4) 1 Samuel 1:20 - Samuel was born at one of the Tekufah, translated as "time" in this passage.
In Bible times, being able to accurately determine the four Tekufot was extremely important. We can know this not only because of the connection with the Tekufah with the Biblical calendar, but also because ancient artifacts have been discovered which are devices for determining the Tekufot. For example, in the Qumran caves, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were largely found, a limestone device was also found which archaeologists have found was for determining the Tekufot.
Today, June 21, is the longest day of the year. In fact it is 6 hours and 31 minutes longer than the shortest day of the year, which falls in December (the winter solstice). It is commonly known as the Summer Solstice and for those living north of the equator, it marks the start of summer.
How many hours of sunlight would one enjoy on this day? Well, the answer to that depends on where you live. The farther north you are, the more hours of sunlight you'll have. For example, if you live in Fairbanks, Alaska, on the Summer Solstice you would have 24 hours of sunlight!
What is the significance of this day, in terms of the Mazzaroth? Well, the Summer Solstice is a heavenly event, which is biblically referred to as one of the four tekufot. Tekufot (plural of Tekufah) is the Hebrew word which refers to the "seasons", or literally the "circuit" in the heavens. More accurately, as I explained in my February 11, 2019 blog, the Tekufot mark the beginning of the four seasons.
The first Tekufah of the year is the Spring Tekufah, which is key in determining the beginning of the Biblical year. And today is the second Tekufah of the year - being the Summer Solstice (in the Northern Hemisphere).
On the Spring and Fall Tekufot, day and night are equal in length. Since the heavenly bodies determine the length of the day, the Tekufot are clearly a heavenly event. The Summer and Winter Tekufah are the longest and shortest days of the year, respectively.
The original Hebrew word Tekufah appears in four places in the Bible:
1) 2 Chronicles 24:23 - Tekufah is translated as "end of the year" in this passage.
2) Exodus 34:22 - Tekufah is translated as "year's end" in this passage. (The Spring Tekufah is the end of the Biblical Year.)
3) Psalm 19:4-5 - Tekufah is translated as "line" or "circuit" in this passage.
4) 1 Samuel 1:20 - Samuel was born at one of the Tekufah, translated as "time" in this passage.
In Bible times, being able to accurately determine the four Tekufot was extremely important. We can know this not only because of the connection with the Tekufah with the Biblical calendar, but also because ancient artifacts have been discovered which are devices for determining the Tekufot. For example, in the Qumran caves, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were largely found, a limestone device was also found which archaeologists have found was for determining the Tekufot.
Uwe Glessmer and Matthias Albani, "An Astronomical Measuring Instrument from Qumran", The Provo International Conference on the Dead Sea Scrolls, Technological Innovations, New Texts, and Reformatted Issues, edited by Donald W. Parry and Euguene Ulrich (Boston: Brill, 1999), p. 442.
Another notable "device" for determining the Tekufot - and for worship (which may have been pagan, but also may not have been) - was Stonehenge. Archaeologists admit that one possible reason why Stonehenge may have been built (some 5000 years ago) was to mark solstices and equinoxes (Tekufot). This connection is suggested because the sun rises over the structure's Heel Stone and hits the altar dead center during the summer solstice.
The following graphic from NASA shows what a summer solstice might have looked like back when Stonehenge was fully intact:
The following graphic from NASA shows what a summer solstice might have looked like back when Stonehenge was fully intact:
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How very interesting!
ReplyDeleteLot of daylight in Canada right now!