Question: In the years 2014-15 two eclipses of the sun and four eclipses of the moon will fall on the beginnings of Jewish months and on Jewish holidays. Are these signs in the heavens not signs of the soon-coming of Christ?
Answer: An
eclipse of the sun can occur only during the time of the new moon. An
eclipse of the moon can occur only at the full moon. Eclipses of the
sun occur from two to four times a year, rarely more often, which
means that that from two to five lunar months of every year will
begin with an eclipse of the sun. If the Biblical holy days are
assumed to coincide with the astronomical dates of the new and full
moons, eclipses on those days will be common. The dates of the
festivals are defined as corresponding to the astronomical features
that also determine eclipses. The coincidence is one of definition.
The reason coincidence is so rare on the Rabbinical calendar is
because the Rabbinical calendar, through its medieval, post-Biblical
system of postponements, generally shifts the days of the month from
their actual astronomical positions from one to three days. Only
occasionally do the festivals fall on the true new or full moon, when
eclipses occur. Such a convergence is completely fortuitous, and
being based on Rabbincal concerns to create a calendar that contrasts
with Christian dating, can have nothing to do with Bible prophetic
fulfilment. It is a strangely perverse idea to take rarity that is a
result of changing the calendar for questionable motives, to be a
sign of Christ's coming.
We ought also to be suspicious of dating the time of Christ's coming by prophecy. That led to the Great Disappointment in 1844 and we ought to learn a lesson from it. Furthermore, there is every possibility that the coming of Christ will occur before the year 2015. We know not the day nor the hour. Eclipses, being signs in the heavens, although they occur regularly and predictably as the sun, earth, and moon are aligned, serve to remind us that God is a time-keeper and is not slack in His promises.
