Blood Moon Rising (this Passover)
“The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes.” (Joel 2:31)
Blood Moon lunar eclipse in Sydney, Australia, on 28th August 2007 (Photo: Peter Gaylard/ Wiki Commons)
The world is preparing itself for a rare astrological event that will commence this Passover. A series of four full lunar eclipses in a row called blood moons (due to the red color of the moons glow) is set to occur over the next two years. Two of the blood moons will take place on the second night of Passover and the other two on the first night of the Sukkot (Tabernacles) holiday.
The term “blood moon” stems from a verse from the Book of Joel (2:31) that describes the moon as turning to blood before the an awesome revelation from God will occur. The issue of blood moons has even spurred a whole literary movement of the topic. Pastor John Hagee authored a Christian bestseller titled “Four Blood Moons,” based on discoveries by Pastor Mark Blitz, leader of El Shaddai Ministry, a “Hebrew Roots” ministry in Tacoma Washington.
Speaking on the topic of blood moons, Biltz told Breaking Israel News: “I believe that the blood moons have great historic and prophetic significance just as they did following 1948 and 1967. In the book of Joel it mentions three times about the sun and the moon going dark and in context it also mentions Divine wrath against all countries who want to divide or part the land of Israel. I believe the moons are like flashing red lights at a heavenly intersection saying to Israel as well as the nations they will be crossing heavenly red lines if they do, and God has more than a pen and a phone in his hand.”
The prophet Joel foretells that a blood moon would mark the day of the Lord. Biltz believes that it then stands to reason that some some significant historical events will take place either right before or shortly after a blood moon is seen. To that effect, Biltz is organizing his yearly trips to Israel to coincide with the moons. His congregation is scheduled to come to Israel this year in April towards the end of Passover and for Sukkot in 2015.
Biltz expressed his excitement for the opportunity. “Imagine the odds. A Super moon, that is a total lunar eclipse, seen in Israel, on Sukkot, at the end of a Shmittah year as well! Incredible,” he exclaimed.
Biltz also predicts that once word gets out everyone will be joining the pilgrimage. “Hotels will definitely sell out,” he said.
Biltz’s congregation is no stranger to Israel. He organizes yearly visits and tours, and he is not shy about his agenda for his tour. “I want them to see the real Israel so we go to Sderot, Hebron, Shiloh, Itamar. We visit Military bases and help clean them. We donated $20,000 worth of jackets last year for the troops and hand delivered them,” Blitz said.
This upcoming tetrad (four complete lunar eclipses without any partial lunar eclipses in between) becomes more of an astrological anomaly as it happens on specific Jewish holidays. Previously in history, the last time the blood moons happened on Passover and Sukkot respectively, major events in Jewish history occurred.
There have only been three tetrads in the past millenium which occurred in the years of 1493-94, 1949-50, and 1967-68. While none of these dates coincided with the Shmita year (allowing the land in Israel to lie fallow) as does the upcoming one, each of them followed a major event in Jewish History.
The expulsion of Jews from Spain took place in 1492.
Israel’s War of Independence War took place in 1948.
The Six-Day War took place in 1967.
The resulting inference has lead many astrological believers to expect great things in the coming few years.
According to NASA, another strange occurrence will take place in 2015. Two solar eclipses will happen on the first day of the Hebrew month of Nissan (March 20) and the second on Rosh Hashanah (September 13). Both of these Jewish dates are considered significant in that they are “New Years” for different aspects of the Jewish calendar. According to Jewish tradition, the first of Nissan is the new year for God and Kings while Rosh Hashanah celebrates the Jewish new year in the Hebrew calendar.
The proximity of these events all corresponding to important dates on the Jewish calendar is rare and has caused various groups to enter into a spiritual frenzy of expectation of some major events.
The science of the blood moon phenomenon is fairly simple. A blood moon is created by a partial lunar eclipse. If the Earth’s shadow covers the moon completely, this is known as a total eclipse. A partial lunar eclipse however, happens when the Earth’s shadow covers the moon only partially. The earth’s atmosphere bends light around its edge and scatters out shorter-wavelength light (green through violet), leaving longer-wavelength light (red, orange, and yellow) in the Earth’s shadow. This is also why sunsets and sunrises generally appear red.
As is the case with most miraculous events that can be explained scientifically, the miracle is not in the natural phenomenon, but rather in its timing falling out on the Jewish holidays and beginnings of the Jewish calendar. With all of the focus Jews place on moons and prophecy, it is somewhat ironic that three of these four lunar eclipses are not visible – even in part – from Israel.
The full moon on April 14th and 15th will be the first of the four blood moons. Each are expected to occur six months apart. The blood moons will be quite a sight to see regardless of whether or not you attribute biblical/religious connotations to the event.
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