CHAPTER 73
And after this law I saw another law with reference to the smaller luminary whose name is moon.
2. And her circuit is like the circuit of the heavens, and her chariot in which she rides is driven by the wind, and in a measure light is given to her.
3. Every month her ascent and her descent is changed; her days are like the days of the sun, and when her light is equal [full] her light is the seventh part of the light of the sun.
4. And thus she rises. And her beginning in the east comes forth on the thirtieth morning, and on that day she becomes visible and is for you the beginning of the moon, on the thirtieth morning, together with the sun in the portal whence the sun proceeds.
5. And the one half is prominent by the seventh part, and her whole circuit is empty, and there is no light with the exception of the one seventh part of the fourteen parts of light.
6. And on that day when she takes up the seventh part and the half of her light, her light contains one seventh and one seventh part and the half of it. She sets with the sun.
7. And when the sun rises the moon also rises with him and takes a half portion of light, and in that night in the beginning of her morning on her first day the moon sets with the sun, and is darkened in that night, with the seventh and the seventh portions and the half of one.
8. And she will rise on that day with exactly the seventh part, and will come out and become smaller from the rising of the sun and shine the rest of her days, with the seventh and the seventh part.
CHAPTER 74
And I saw another course and law for her, making her monthly course according to that law.
2. And Uriel, the holy angel, who is the leader of them all, showed me all things, and I wrote down all their positions as he showed them to me, and I wrote down their months as they were and the appearance of their lights till fifteen days are completed.
3. And in seven single parts she completes all her light in the east, and in seven single parts she completes all her darkness in the west.
4. And in certain months she changes her settings, and in certain months she goes her peculiar course.
5. And in two the moon sets with the sun, in those two portals which are in the middle, in the third and in the fourth portal.
6. She comes forth seven days, and turns and returns again by that portal through which the sun comes; and in that she completes all her light and recedes from the sun; and enters in eight days into the sixth portal, through which the sun comes forth.
7. And when the sun comes out of the fourth portal she comes out seven days, so that she comes out of the fifth, and returns again in seven days into the fourth portal and completes all her light, and recedes and enters the first portal in eight days.
8. And she returns again in seven days to the fourth portal, through which the sun comes forth.
9. Thus I saw their places, the sun rising and setting according to the order of their months.
10. And in those days, if five years are taken together, the sun has thirty superabundant days; and all the days which belong to him for one of these five years, when they are full, are three hundred and sixty-four days.
11. And the superabundance of the sun and of the stars is six days; of five years, each at six, are thirty days, and the moon recedes from the sun and the stars thirty days.
12. And the moon brings in all the years exact, so that their place neither precedes nor recedes ONE day, but she changes the years with exact justice in three hundred and sixty-four days.
13. Three years have one thousand and ninety-two days; and five years, eighteen hundred and twenty days; so that there will be in eight years two thousand nine hundred and twelve days.
14. To the moon alone belongs for three years one thousand and sixty-two days, and for five years she recedes fifty days, viz. to the sum of these are added sixty-two days.
15. And thus in five years there will be seventeen hundred and seventy days, so that the days of the moon for eight years will be two thousand eight hundred and thirty-two days.
16. For her receding in eight years is eighty days, and all the days she remains behind in eight years are eighty days.
17. And the year is justly finished, in accordance with their stations and the stations of the sun, rising through their portals, through which they rise and set thirty days.
CHAPTER 75
And the leaders of the heads of the thousands, who are over all creation and over all the stars, are also with the four intercalary days, which cannot be separated from their places, according to the whole reckoning of the years, and these serve the four days which are not counted in the reckoning of the years.
2. And on their account men make a mistake in them, for these luminaries serve in reality on the stations of the world, one in the first portal and one in the third portal and one in the fourth portal and one in the sixth portal; and the harmony of the course of the world is brought about by its separate three hundred and sixty-four stations.
3. For the signs and the times and the years and the days, these the angel Uriel showed to me, he whom the eternal Lord of glory had placed over all the luminaries of heaven in the heavens and in the world, that they should rule on the surface of the heavens, and be seen on the earth, and be leaders for the day and for the night, viz. the sun and the moon and the stars and all the serving creatures who keep their course in all the chariots of heaven.
4. The angel Uriel showed me also twelve openings in the circuit of the chariot of the sun from which the feet [i.e. the rays] of the sun come forth; and from them comes the warmth over the earth, when they are opened at times destined for them.
5. There are also some for the winds and for the spirit of the dew, when they are opened at times, standing open in the heavens at the ends.
6. Twelve doors I saw in the heavens, in the ends of the earth, out of which come forth the sun and the moon and the stars and all the deeds of heaven, from the east and from the west.
7. And many window-openings are to the left and to the right thereof, and ONE window in its time produces warmth, like those portals from which the stars come forth as he has commanded them, and in which they set according to their number.
8. And I saw chariots in heaven, running in the world, above and below these portals, in which the stars that never set turn.
9. And one is greater than all, and this one courses through the whole world.
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CHAP. 73, 1. This and the following chapter treats of the course of the moon.—2. Cf. 72:4, 5. In a measure, cf. 72:37, and vs. 3, and 74:3; 78:4, 6, 7.—4. Beginning, i.e. her reappearance, or new moon. Thirtieth mornings, with reference to the course of the sun. The periods of the moon are from twenty-nine to thirty days; and on the twenty-ninth she is in conjunction, and again appears on the thirtieth. At conjunction sun and moon are in the same portal.—5. From new moon to full moon is fourteen (or fifteen) days, and the same number from full moon to new moon again.
For this period she has fourteen portions of light, and consequently changes during the lunar month of thirty days, each day one half of one of these fourteen parts. In a month in which there are fifteen days to full moon the first day shows a light that is one of the seven parts attributed to the one half of the moon.—6. But when there are fourteen days to full moon, then on the first day she takes one fourteenth and one twenty-eighth, equal to three twenty-eighths of light.—7. But this becomes visible only when the moon has assumed yet one fourteenth of light additionally. In the beginning of the morning she sets, as the day for the moon begins in the evening.—8. Thus the moon increases day by day, by one seventh of one half, or one fourteenth of light; cf. 78:6 sqq.
CHAP. 74, 1. The above was the special law on the motions of the moon in a month; now follows the more general law on her motions during a series of months and the year.—2. Uriel, cf. 72:1. Of them all, i.e. either of all the luminaries or of all the phases of the moon, Appearance of light, i.e. how much light appeared.—3. Cf. chap. 73 and 78.—4. The position of the moon with reference to the sun. Peculiar, i.e. independent of the course of the sun.—5. In two months her course is not peculiar, but is with the sun, viz. when she is in the third and in the fourth portal, the former corresponding to the sign of Libra and Pisces, the later Aries and Virgo. When the sun is in Aries and Libra the new and full moon are in the same portals.—6. Refers to the third portal, as the next verse shows. For seven days she goes through the portals from the first, until she reaches the third, in which the sun is, and her light is then full; and then continues for eight days to the sixth portal.—7, 8.
The fourth portal, in which is new moon. In returning to it in fourteen days there is in it full moon; then goes to the first portal, and returns to the fourth in fifteen days.—10. He now enters on the difference between a solar and lunar year. According to 78:15, 16 there are six months with thirty and six months with twenty-nine days, i.e. three hundred and fifty-four days in a lunar year. But the year has three hundred and sixty by counting twelve months at thirty days, to which are added four intercalary days in the equinoxes and solstices. Accordingly the difference between the solar and lunar year is six days without, and ten days with, these additional days. Thus without intercalary days the sun gains on the moon in five years thirty days, although when full the sun really has every year three hundred and sixty-four days, and not three hundred and sixty, as he counts to get the thirty days in five years.—11. Repeats this more plainly.—12.
As the author stands, or wants to stand, on biblical ground, and is conservative over against all innovations, he defends the lunar year as the best, as the Israelites followed that alone before the exile; cf. De Wette, Archäologie, 4 ed., p. 236, and Winer, R. W. sub voc. Jahr. Three hundred and sixty-five days, i.e. with the intercalary days.—14. In three years the difference between the solar and lunar years at ten days (cf. vs. 8) will be exactly one month. In five years the difference is fifty days, which sum is reached by adding to these, i.e. to the thirty days in three years the intercalary days intervening between the 1092 days of the three years, and the 1820 of the five years.—16. Accordingly, too, in eight years she recedes eighty days.—17. Conclusion, cf. vs. 12 and 75:2.
CHAP. 75, 1. This treats of the intercalary days, the stars, and the sun. The importance of the four intercalary days was noticed in 74:10, and is repeated here in the statement that the guardians of the other days were also over these four. Who these leaders are is uncertain; not angels, but probably higher stars, for they are called luminaries in verse 2; cf. 72:3; 80:6. These, i.e. the heads of the thousands, the chiliarchs.—2. Most men, not knowing the mystery of the intercalary days, make mistakes accordingly; cf. 80:7; 82:4, 5, 6.—3. But notwithstanding this ignorance it is the absolute truth that there are such days, because the angel Uriel, who is over all these phenomena, 72:1, showed them to Enoch. Rule, cf. Gen. I. 15-18. Chariots, cf. 72:5.—4. In the chariot of the sun—for the chariot from the appearance is considered a circuit, i.e. round,
72:5,—there are twelve openings, from which heat descends when these are opened. In this manner he explains how the sun does not give an equal amount of heat at all times, as at different times a greater or less number of these openings are closed.—5. Some, i.e. openings; but these are in the ends of heaven, entirely distinct from those just mentioned; cf. chap. 76 and 34-36. This verse is probably the work of an interpolator, as it entirely interrupts the sense, but was easily suggested by the context.—6, 7.
Besides the well-known twelve portals there are many window-openings, on which see 72:3, 7.—8, 9. Different from the stars just mentioned, that rise and set, are the never-setting stars, those continually on the horizon at nights. What the special one is cannot be decided, since it is not even certain whether he refers to one of the setting, or of the never-setting stars. In the first case Dillmann thinks of the morning star, and of the Great Bear in the second. Did not the connection occasion some difficulty Hoffmann’s idea that the sun alone can here be meant would be very probable.
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