The month of Tevet is the tenth month on the Biblical calendar and coincides with December-January on the Gregorian calendar. The name Tevet is referred to both as “the tenth month” as well as “Tevet as in Esther 2:16. It’s name was adopted during Israel’s captivity in Babylon. Tevet begins with the last days of Hanukkah, which concludes on the second of this month.
The 10th of Tevet (Asarah B’Tevet)
Tevet was the beginning of the end of Israel’s independence as a nation in biblical times. To explain, on the 10th of Tevet, King Nebuchadnezzar’s army besieged Jerusalem. Consequently, the attack led to the end of the First Temple. God instructed the prophet Ezekiel to remember this date (Ezekiel 24:1-2). Even today, people in the Jewish community commemorate this day by fasting from sunrise to sunset on the 10th of Tevet (Asarah B’Tevet).
For years, God sent prophets to warn both the Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah. They urged them to repent of their idolatry and sins and return to God. However, the prophets went unheeded and Samaria, the capital of the Northern Kingdom, fell in 722 B.C. after a three-year siege by Assyria.
Unfortunately, Judah did not learn any lessons from Israel’s destruction and continued to worship idol gods and ignore God’s warnings. Jeremiah 39:1 says that the Babylonian army came up against Jerusalem on the 10th of Tevet in 587 B.C. King Nebuchadnezzar broke through Jerusalem’s walls, three years later, on the 17th of Tammuz. Three weeks later, the First Temple (which Solomon built) was destroyed on the 9th of Av. Consequently, the nation of Israel spent seventy years in captivity before they were able to return to Jerusalem.
Celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ
Tevet is also the month in which Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ (December 25th). As we focus on Jesus Christ in Tevet, we discover that He is the total perfection and completeness of God’s divine order. Colossians 2:9 tells us that all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in Christ. Furthermore, since we are in Christ, we become complete in Him when we accept Him as our personal Savior. We lack no good thing in Jesus Christ because everything is found in Him. Jesus said in Revelation 22:13, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.” Jesus Christ, the Perfection of Divine Order, is our hope—our trust—our everything! We find true completeness in Him alone.
The month of Tevet is a time for reflection and rededication
It is customary at this time to wrap-up the year, so to speak, in preparation for the year ahead. Therefore, Tevet is an opportune time to review what has transpired over the past year. Then, we can determine if we are still on the path God has for us.
Tevet is also a time to remember how sins against God can destroy a nation as well as a people. So, during this month, we should take time to review areas in our lives that need to be newly dedicated or rededicated to the Lord. Then, ask God to direct our steps in the year ahead.
CLICK HERE: Jewish-Gregorian Calendar
READ MORE: God’s Divine Calendar
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