Aimee Herd:
The Elijah List
"Israel as a nation is 'God's time clock,'" –Pastor John Kilpatrick
By now the term "blood moon" is likely no longer alien to you, and may even have been discussed around the water cooler this week.
(Photo by Luc Viatour/via EarthSky.org)
And now that you have the astronomical description for four of them in a row—a "tetrad"—you may be feeling like your vocabulary has experienced a nice upgrade.
But what is all the eschatological (there's another one—'end times') discussion about anyway? What are some of the things being said?
After watching a few messages by Pastors John Kilpatrick and John Hagee—who are both saying the same thing, for the most part—I thought breaking their main points down into a fairly brief article might be of service to some who are curious, but who may not have time to watch numerous sermons.
Not Just Christians
One thing I've noticed in digging into the subject of the coming astronomical event is that the interest is not just found among Bible Believers.
Those in the secular science community are also intrigued—not just by the blood moon tetrad—but also in the fact that it does coincide with major Jewish feast days.
I've found several sites that have not only given a wealth of information on the tetrad, but also on the fact that this and next year's will occur at special times according to the Jewish calendar.
(Graphic via John Kilpatrick Ministries)
That stood out to me—there are those who are not yet Believers who are paying attention… looking, watching and waiting to see if anything significant, God-oriented or major does indeed happen.
The Blood Moon Tetrad Facts and When to Watch
Interesting celestial events already began this week, with the "opposition of Mars"—it's perfect alignment with the sun, and also with Earth.
Next week—on Monday—Mars will be at its closest to Earth in 6 years; you'll be able to see it shining brightly in the night sky. Then on Tuesday morning April 15th (in North America) at approximately 3AM Eastern Time, the moon will be not only full, but there will be a full lunar eclipse as the Earth passes between the moon and the sun. The sun's light that reflects off the moon will then be filtered through Earth's atmosphere—basically all Earth's sunsets at once—and it will cause the moon to appear red like blood.
The blood moon will happen again this year, on
October 8th; and then there will be two more blood moons next year on
April 4 and September 28th—that makes a lunar tetrad.
EarthSky.org describes a lunar tetrad as: "Four successive total lunar eclipses, with no partial lunar eclipses in between, each of which is separated from the other by six lunar months (six full moons)."
The Significance Relating to Israel
According to Hagee and Kilpatrick (as well as others), the moons relate to Israel because the Jewish calendar is mainly a lunar-based calendar. The solar eclipses relate to the world because the rest of the world goes by the solar-based Gregorian calendar.
Now, tetrads aren't necessarily that rare—there was one in 2003—but the fact that each blood moon in this tetrad coincides with major Jewish feast days is rare.
Tuesday's blood moon happens on Passover; October's on Sukkot; next April's on Passover again, and the final blood moon of the tetrad falls on Sukkot once again. That last one is the only one that will be visible by Israel—but because it occurs on Sukkot (the Feast of Tabernacles) many Jews will be outside, sleeping under the stars so-to-speak, in their tents or booths according to the Jewish Feast tradition.
(Photo via John Hagee Ministries)
And not only that, but the final blood moon will also be at perigee—also known as a "super moon" because it is at its closest to Earth on its lunar orbit.
It will be one SUPER BLOOD MOON!
So What? Wait, there's More…
Not only will the tetrad happen, but in 2015 there will also be two solar eclipses. The first one—a total solar eclipse— will fall on March 20th, or Nisan 1 in the Jewish calendar which is effectively their first day of their first month.
The second solar eclipse will be partial, and will occur on September 13th which is Rosh Hashanah; the first of the "High Holy Days" and also known as the Feast of Trumpets.
Why Is Any of This Significant?
Pastor John Hagee notes Genesis 1:14, "And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years."
That is, the sun, moon and stars can also be used by God as a
sign to Earth's inhabitants.
(Graphic via John Kilpatrick Ministries)
Basically the coming tetrad is significant to Israel, and to Christians who love Israel, because of history—Israel's history.
In 21 centuries there have only been 8 (including this coming one) blood moon tetrads that fell on the Jewish Feasts of Passover and Sukkot and the 3 most recent ones occurred during extremely important events for Israel.
Tetrad of 1493-1494 – If you go back one year, you know Christopher Columbus sailed his famous voyage to discover the "new world" in 1492. What many may not realize is that this happened during Spain's Expulsion of the Jews, when the edict came down that all Jews in Spain had 3 months to leave. So the blood moon tetrad of that time happened during great persecution of the Jews.
Pastor John Kilpatrick notes that Christopher Columbus was sympathetic to the Jews and carried some on board his ships to the new world, and that his trip may even have been financed by them.
Because of this, as the tetrad of those years occurred, a bond was formed between Israel and the new world—America.
Tetrad of 1949-1950 – This tetrad happened just a few years after the end of WWII and in 1948, just prior to the tetrad, Israel was formally recognized by the world as a nation.
Tetrad of 1967-1968 – The Six-Day War began when attacks were mounted against Israel and she retaliated; it ended with an Israeli victory.
What Does the 2014 – 2015 Tetrad Signify?
Both Pastors Kilpatrick and Hagee are quick to answer "I don't know." But they add that it is important to WATCH—not just look; but observe, keep vigil, stay alert and most importantly...
...watch and pray.
Pastor Kilpatrick notes that Israel as a nation is "God's time clock," which means these things are important to Christians too.
(Photo by: Fred Espenak of NASA/via EarthSky.org)
Certainly, when you look at Joel 2:31 in the Bible, you can't help but get a little excited considering the celestial events before us!
"The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into
blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD." -Joel 2:31
The thing to remember is, if you are a Christian (you know that Jesus is your Savior and you are living for Him), don't be fearful, but as Jesus said, "Be dressed in readiness and keep your lamp alight." And be ready to share about this great Hope that is in you with anyone who asks.
If in reading about these things, you feel conviction by the Holy Spirit, or you know your heart isn't right before the Lord, then don't wait—get right with the Lord Jesus today, and then rejoice!
If you want to learn more here are some good sources:
Sources: John Hagee Ministries, John Kilpatrick Ministries,EarthSky.org, BibleGateway.com, Wikipedia
