Objection: There is no relevant luni-solar calendar in existence that calculates the Sabbath by the phases of the moon, not in Rabbinical Judaism, not in Karaite Judaism, not in Samaritanism. All of these calendars support the unbroken weekly cycle.
Rebuttal: This is correct. However, this in no way proves that the modern weekly cycle comes from Creation. The Jews themselves admit that the calendar they now use is of recent origin, the original calendar given at Creation, being set aside under intense persecution during the fourth century. “The present Jewish calendar was fixed in the fourth century.” Letter by Louis Finkelstein, Jewish Theological Seminary of America, to Dr. L. E. Froom, Feb. 20, 1939.
Furthermore, Scripture does say that Yahuwah's calendar is luni-solar, and does NOT say that there is an unbroken cycle of seven day weeks. Scripture trumps Judaism, the Karaites and the Samaritans. Rabbinical Judaism did not come into existence until the Babylonian captivity. It began in Babylon by the Rabbis that did not return to Israel. The Karaites and Samaritans came much later in history, and based their calendar on the one of the Babylonian Rabbis. When the first step is wrong, the last step will be wrong.
Israel adopted the unbroken weekly cycle because Yahushua took the true Sabbath from their remembrance. Lamentations 2:6. Yahushua took it from them due to their apostasy. Ezra and Nehemiah took a tiny contingent of Israelites BACK to Israel, and the true Sabbath was restored to them. The Israelites that remained in Babylon remained in apostasy, in fact, even adopting many pagan practices. That is why there are eggs on the Jew's table at Passover, and they observe their sabbath from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday (along with many other pagan/Babylonian traditions). These are traditions that they cannot find in Torah because they are the pagan traditions of men. These traditions were added to the faith of the "Jews" by the Talmud, the writings of men.
The Babylonian "Jews" tried to gain control of the calendar early on, but as long as Jerusalem was the religious center for Israel, the Jerusalem Rabbis held control. Please read the following excerpt...
Babylonian Rabbis Divorce the Sabbath
While the influence of Rome caused the early Christians to adopt a continuous seven-day week with the Sabbath on every seventh day, the Israelites came under a more subtle influence.
Following the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D., the Palestinian Israelites struggled hard to retain control of the sacred calendar. Notes the Encyclopedia Britannica:
The calendar was originally fixed by observation, and ultimately by calculation. Up to the fall of the Temple (A.D. 70), witnesses who saw the new moon came forward and were strictly examined and if their evidence was accepted the month was fixed by the priests. Eventually the authority passed to the SANHEDRIN and ultimately to the PATRIARCH. When necessary, a second “Adar” was inserted in order that the reaping of the corn should come at Passover. Gradually observation gave place to calculation. The right to determine the calendar was reserved to the PATRIARCHATE; the JEWS OF MESOPOTAMIA tried in vain to establish their own calendar but the prerogative of Palestine was zealously defended.
Continues the encyclopedia --
So long as Palestine remained a religious centre, it was naturally to the homeland that the Diaspora looked for its calendar. Uniformity was essential, for if different parts had celebrated feasts on different days confusion would have ensued. IT WAS NOT UNTIL THE 4TH CENTURY A.D. THAT BABYLON FIXED THE CALENDAR...The Talmud speaks of various New Year’s Days. It may be regarded as certain that in Palestine the New Year [Rosh Hoshana] began in NISSAN (cf. Exod. xii. 2) and IN BABYLON in TISHRI (volume 4, article “Calendar”).
What is not realized by many is that control of the calendar implied ultimate POLITICAL AUTHORITY in Judaism. In other words, whoever controlled the calendar also controlled the destiny of the Israelite people -- for good or for evil!
“In the period after 70 C.E.” writes Herschel Shanks, “THE RABBIS ABROGATED THIS AUTHORITY TO THEMSELVES. In the story that appears in the Talmudim, Rabbi Hananiah, an emigre Judean scholar, tried to assert the SUPREMACY OF BAYLONIAN JEWRY by asserting its right (that is, his own right while in Babylonia) to intercalate the calendar. His attempt was unsuccessful because it was SEVERAL CENTURIES TOO EARLY. This authority remained for some time with the rabbis in the land of Israel” (Christianity and Rabbinic Judaism, p. 197).
Notes Shanks --
All this BEGAN TO CHANGE IN THE THIRD CENTURY C.E. Ultimately the rabbis of Babylonia themselves cited, in retrospect, the return of one of their own, Rav (Abba), to Babylonia in 219 C.E., as the BEGINNING OF A NEW ERA in the relative status of the two great Jewish communities: “We have made ourselves [or, consider ourselves] in Babylonia like Eretz Israel -- from when Rav went down to Babylonia.” While this may seem to telescope a long drawn out process into one identifiable event, the fact is that the date designated in that statement indeed POINTS ACCURATELY TO THE EARLY THIRD CENTURY, when Babylonia’s star began to rise (ibid., p. 262).
While the control of the calendar remained in the hands of the Palestinian Israelites it was inviolate; but when control passed to the Babylonian Jews events transpired that affected the calendar and the keeping of Yahushua Almighty’s true Sabbath day. The environment that brought this about is discussed by Herschal Shanks in the following pages of his book –
As we enter the third century, we find that the Jews of Babylonia have at their head an EXILARCH (resh galuta, “HEAD OF THE DIASPORA”) with [false] claims to Davidic lineage...But the exilarchate did not rule the Babylonian Jewish communities single-handedly. Alongside the exilarch a new framework of leadership -- THE RABBIS OF BABYLON -- emerged.
Continues Shanks:
If the rabbis of Babylonia were PRUDENT in their relationship with the exilarch, they were EVEN MORE CAUTIOUS in defining and publicly stating their attitude toward the GOVERNMENT. As we have already noted, it is in Babylonia [not Palestine] that we encounter the well-formulated principle that “THE LAW OF THE GOVERNMENT IS LAW” (ibid., pp. 263-264).
Shanks brings out the fact that there were very marked differences in the ATTITUDE TOWARD GOVERNMENT and the preservation of Jewish religion and life between the Palestinian Israelites and Babylonian Jews. The Palestinian Israelites jealously guarded their religion and way of life while the Babylonian Jews were clearly willing to accommodate the government of their area and COMPROMISE certain principles they held. This included the Sabbath day.