Seasons

Concise Bible Dictionary:

When God created the lights in the firmament He said, “Let them be for signs and for seasons,” and it is well known that the different seasons on the earth are in great measure caused by the days being longer or shorter, and thus having more or less of the heat of the sun. After the flood, God declared that while the earth remained the seasons should continue (Gen. 8:22²²While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease. (Genesis 8:22)); these fall approximately thus:

1. Seedtime

Cold

Winter

Falling in October to March

2. Harvest

Heat

Summer

Falling in April to September.

These seasons must overlap each other in Palestine, and are somewhat different in the hill country from what they are in the plains and valleys. Seed-time follows what was called “the early rain,” in October and November, and continues till January. Harvest commences in sheltered places as early as the beginning of April: in the hill country it is a month later; and in the north it extends to the end of July. The rains of November clothe the fields with grass. In January oranges, citrons, and lemons are ripening. In February and March, apple, pear, plum, and apricot trees are in blossom. During May, in some places, apricots and melons are ripe. In June, figs, cherries, and plums begin to ripen, but August is the chief month for fruit. The vintage extends through September. In August the great heat begins to dry up the vegetation, and it gradually changes the whole scene into what appears to be a dry and barren land; but the early rains soon show that it is only the surface that is parched.

In places there are masses of choice wild flowers, and where the land is well cultivated, it is now, as formerly, very productive. “Twenty thousand measures of wheat” year by year were sent to Hiram in exchange for timber (1 Kings 5:11¹¹And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand measures of wheat for food to his household, and twenty measures of pure oil: thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by year. (1 Kings 5:11)). Wheat, honey, oil and balm were sent to Tyre as merchandise (Ezek. 27:17¹⁷Judah, and the land of Israel, they were thy merchants: they traded in thy market wheat of Minnith, and Pannag, and honey, and oil, and balm. (Ezekiel 27:17)). Barley also is produced plentifully.

The Jewish Calendar here given follows the order usually found in books of reference, but the climate and seasons have somewhat altered. Some of the names of the months apparently point to the time of the year in which they fell. Thus Abib signifies “budding” or “ear of corn;” Zif, “blossom;” and Bul, “rain.” See MONTHS and RAIN.

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	Seed-time to occupy	October and November.
	Winter to occupy	December and January.
	Cold to occupy	February and March.
	Harvest to occupy	April and May.
	Summer to occupy	June and July.
	Heat to occupy	August and September.

Sacred	Civil	English Months	Jewish	Seasons	Feasts	Antitypes
Months	Months		Months
10	4	December January	Tebeth 29 days	Mid-Winter
11	5	January	Sebat	Winter
		February	30 days
12	6	February March	Adar 29 days	Cold Latter Rain Spring	14. Purim
					15. or Lots
					Esther 3:7; 9:26
1	7	March	Abib or Nisan 30 days	Barley Harvest	14. Passover	Christ our Passover
		April			16. Firstfruits of Barley	The Resurrection
					15-21. Unleavened Bread
2	8	April	Zit or Iyar	Summer
		May	29 days
3	9	May	Sivan	Wheat	6. Feast of Weeks	Decent of the Holy Spirit
		June	30 days	Harvest	Pentecost	Acts 2
					First fruits of wheat
4	10	June	Tammuz	Hot Season
		July	29 days
5	11	July	Ab	Principal month for fruit
		August	30 days
6	12	August	Elul	Vintage general
		September	29 days
7	1	September	Ethanum	Seed time	1. Feast of Trumpets	Israel awakened, afflict their souls, receive their Messiah
		October	or Tisri	Early rain	10. Day of Atonement
			30 days		15-21 Tablernacles
8	2	October	Bul or Marchesvan	Rainy month
		November	30 days
9	3	November	Chisleu	Winter begins	25. Feast of Dedication
		December	30 days

	In 1887			Mean of all the highest and lowest			Rain
	Highest	Lowest	Mean	Highest	Lowest	Mean	Inches
January	78	32.5	55.2	63.4	44.9	54.1	5.74
February	77	37	57	64.3	44	54.2	2.27
March	89	37	63	67.9	46.6	57.2	0.89
April	97	43	70	78	52.9	65.5	0.07
May	98	45	71.5	80.2	56.3	68.3	0.95
June	89	58	73.5	83.9	62.7	73.3	0
July	89	62	75.5	85.9	66.1	76	0
August	92	64	78	88.5	69.1	78.8	0
September	90	61	75.5	86.6	67.3	77	0.08
October	100	57	78.5	88.2	63.8	76	0
November	82	52	67	77.8	57.2	67.5	1.84
December	76	46	61	70.1	50.9	60.5	5.22
MEAN	88.1	49.5	68.8	77.9	56.8	67.3	1.42

Bible Handbook:

The Jewish Rabbins divided the year into six seasons, and their arrangement prevails throughout the lands of Scripture even to the present day. The descendants of Ishmael, roaming a free and unconquered people in the deserts of Arabia, have continued circumcising their sons when thirteen years old, after the example of their great progenitor Ishmael, who was circumcised at that age (Gen. 17:25²⁵And Ishmael his son was thirteen years old, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. (Genesis 17:25)); they also observe the seasons, as is done generally in the east, according to the ancient order noted in Genesis 8:22²²While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease. (Genesis 8:22). An uninterrupted continuance of the seasons is secured on Divine authority, so long as the “earth remaineth.” The seasons commenced in the middle of the months.

First season or Harvest, from Abib to Sivan — April to June.

Second season or Summer, from Sivan to Ab — June to August.

Third season or Heat, from Ab to Tisri — August to October.

Fourth season or Seed-Time, from Tisri to Chisleu — October to December.

Fifth season or Winter, from Chisleu to Sebat — December to February.

Sixth season or Cold, from Sebat to Abib — February to April.

In the sketch given of the Physical Features of Israel it will be seen that some parts of the land are much more elevated than others; this being the case, the seasons for agricultural purposes necessarily vary more or less for different districts.

Our Lord said that when the fig-tree put forth its leaves summer was nigh (Matt. 24:32³²Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: (Matthew 24:32)). This would agree nearly with the month of May.

Winter is spoken of as unsuitable for flight from the doomed city (Matt. 24:20²⁰But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: (Matthew 24:20)). The feast of the dedication is also said to be in winter. It was not safe for ships to sail on the Mediterranean Sea in winter (Acts 27:12¹²And because the haven was not commodious to winter in, the more part advised to depart thence also, if by any means they might attain to Phenice, and there to winter; which is an haven of Crete, and lieth toward the south west and north west. (Acts 27:12)). Paul speaks twice of wintering in certain places in Asia Minor, as if it was difficult to travel then.

The above occurrences are the only intimations of the seasons in the New Testament. We give the traditional list of seasons, usually found in books of reference; and also some statistics of actual observations in the land. It will be seen that these modern statistics do not always agree with the traditional list. For instance, Bul is called the rainy month; the word occurs only once (1 Kings 6:38³⁸And in the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, was the house finished throughout all the parts thereof, and according to all the fashion of it. So was he seven years in building it. (1 Kings 6:38)) and is supposed to signify ‘rain’; but the statistics show that there is much more rain now in December and January. The early rain and the latter rain are also placed to months in which there appears now to be but little rain; but the terms ‘early’ and ‘latter’ may refer to when the rain is most valuable, and not when it is most plentiful. The climate and seasons may have somewhat altered.

It was foretold that the land of promise should “drink water of the rain of heaven.” They should have rain in due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that they might gather in the corn, the wine, and the oil (Deut. 11:11-14¹¹But the land, whither ye go to possess it, is a land of hills and valleys, and drinketh water of the rain of heaven: ¹²A land which the Lord thy God careth for: the eyes of the Lord thy God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year even unto the end of the year. ¹³And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken diligently unto my commandments which I command you this day, to love the Lord your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, ¹⁴That I will give you the rain of your land in his due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil. (Deuteronomy 11:11‑14)).

Dr. Barker gives the average quantity of rain during nine years in Jerusalem as 56.5 inches, which is a great deal more than given in the statistics. As to the temperature at Jerusalem, Dr. Barker gives the highest during five years (1851-5) as 92°, and the lowest 28°; the mean average during the year being 66.5°. The average temperature in January was 49.4°, and in August 79.3°.

Seed time commences as soon as rain has fallen at the end of October or early in November, and continues till January. Harvest in low, protected parts begins at the end of March or early in April; in the hill country it is a month later; and in the north, from June to the end of July. The rains of November clothe the fields with grass. In January citrons, oranges, and lemons are ripe. In February, apple, pear, plum, and apricot trees are in blossom. In May, apricots and melons are ripe in the warm parts. In June, figs, cherries, and plums begin to ripen; but August is the chief month for fruit: the grape, fig, pomegranate, and peach are in their prime, and the vintage extends through September. In August the great heat begins to dry up vegetation, which continues until the whole scene changes to what appears to be a dry and barren land; but the early rains soon show again that it is only the surface that is parched. All are agreed that under better cultivation the land would be very productive.

The six seasons, named in Genesis 8:22,²²While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease. (Genesis 8:22) are arranged to occupy two months each, and to follow thus: —

Such seasons must necessarily over-lap each other. It is said that the same divisions still exist among the Arabs.

The months were arranged by the new moon becoming visible. New moon to new moon occupies about 29½ days, and it will be seen that the months were alternately 30 and 29 days, which agreed with the changes of the moon very well; but the whole twelve months amounted to only 354 days — 11¼ days short of the solar year. This must have been discovered very soon, because of the first fruits of the barley and wheat harvest having appointed times for their presentation in the temple. In three years a month would be lost, and an additional month was from time to time added, called Ve-adar, the ‘added Adar.’

Jewish Calendars and Its Antitypes

Sebat, Tammuz and Ab are not named in Scripture. The names in italics are used by Josephus and others.

Temperature and Rain in Israel

In 1887 rain fell only 43 days in the year. The most prevalent winds were West and South West.

The above observations were taken at Sarona, north of the great orange groves of Jaffa, 1.5 miles from the sea shore, and about 55 feet above the level of the sea; taken by Herr J. Dreher and arranged by Jas Glaisher, Esq. F. R. S. The degrees are Fahrenheit. From Quarterly Statement of Palestine Exploration Fund, 1890.