Was a year the same length of time in the Old Testament as it is today?

Answer 1

No. The Jews recorded time based on the lunar calendar, with each day beginning at sundown. This is the reason the first chapter of Genesis records: "evening and morning, the first day" (Genesis 1:5, 8, 13, 19, 23, 31). Each day begins at sundown, and each month began at the "new" or full moon.

We, in the West, use the "solar" calendar, meaning that our days and years are based on the movement of the Earth around the Sun; but the lunar calendar has 29.5 days per month, so the Jewish calendar usually alternates 29 days for one month and the 30 days for the next month. Their calendar also, rather than a "leap" year, adds a leap month.

Answer 2

Yes. Scientifically the year has to have been the same then as now, in order for us to survive. For the year to be either shorter or longer, the earth has to move into a different orbit, either closer to the sun or farther away, which would mean we either boil or freeze. Furthermore, scientists can look at evidence, such as tree rings, which demonstrate that the year has not changed. And two or three thousand years is far too short a period for plants to adapt to significantly longer or shorter years and to flower and hibernate at just the right time. Finally, in Old Testament times, astrologers and scholars around the world were recording celestial events and measuring time, coming up with the same results as we do now.

Answer 3

Yes and no. Yes, because a year is a year and as far as we know this has not changed. No, because the Israelites (and some others) used a lunar calendar of 355 days (12 lunar months). However, this evened out with the solar year over the long term, since leap months were added as necessary in order to keep the festivals in their proper seasons.