“This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you.” Exodus 12:2
God (Jesus who is Jehovah or Yahweh of the Old Testament) implemented a change in the date of the new year just before Israel experienced its first Passover. If you are not familiar with the account please read all of Exodus 12. The first Passover was the day upon which the tenth plague, the death of each first born child and livestock, occurred. The lambs sacrificed on Passover all typified (looked prophetically forward to) Jesus’ death on the cross. Just as the lamb’s blood caused the death angel to “pass over” the first born of Israel, so does Jesus’ blood cause the death angel to pass over us. Jesus’ blood brings life to all men. It was for this reason that God changed the date of the new year. This month, called Nisan or Abib, would henceforth be Israel’s first month of the year.
I believe that God changed the calendar in order to show the significance of this particular month in future years, at least for a time. Notice the wording of Exodus 12:2, i.e, “shall be for you.” God did not require the rest of the world to change their reckoning of times and seasons, only Israel. Passover prophesied the future sacrifice of Jesus, and Israelite, which would bring new life, a “new year” so to speak, to all men. I believe that God has issued this word once again, this time saying that “this month of Tishrei shall be the first month of the year to you.” Today is the second day of Tishrei, the second day of Rosh Hashana, the head of the year. Tishrei 1 was the Feast of Trumpets. Tishrei 10 is Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. Tishrei 15 begins eight days of the Feast of Tabernacles. These are the unfulfilled feast days of God. Visit Stephen Jones’ excellent site for many, many articles on the importance of these feast days.
Tishrei this year began with events both world wide and personal which make me believe that we have entered the time when we will see the revelation of the Sons of God, the first resurrection. The world stands on the precipice of great destruction. May this be, I pray, the beginning of months for us, the beginning of time when God’s Kingdom fully comes to earth through his overcomers.
