Evening, What does it mean?
What does “evening” mean?
evening (n.)
from Old English æfnung "the coming of evening, sunset, time around sunset," verbal noun from æfnian "become evening, grow toward evening," from æfen "evening" (see eve). As a synonym OF even (n.) in the sense "time from sunset to bedtime," it dates from mid-15c. and now entirely replaces the older word in this sense. Another Old English noun for "evening" was cwildtid.
morning (n.)
"first part of the day" (technically from midnight to noon), late 14c., a contraction of mid-13c. morwenynge, moregeninge, from morn, morewen (see morn) + suffix -ing, on pattern of evening. Originally the time just before sunrise.
As an adjective from 1530s; as a greeting by 1895, short for good morning. Morning after in reference to a hangover is from 1884; in reference to a type of contraception, attested by 1967. Morning sickness as a symptom of pregnancy is from 1793 (Old English had morgenwlætung). Morning glory, the twining plant, is from 1814, so called because the colorful trumpet-shaped flowers open only in the early morning. Morning star "Venus in the east before sunrise" is from 1530s (Old English had morgensteorra "morn-star").
What does the golden bowl say?
IS EVENING THE ENDING OR THE
BEGINNING OF DAY?
Question No. 258:
Tract No. 10, revised edition, says that the evening is the ending, not the beginning, of the twenty-four hour day. But Genesis 5:1 says the evening and the morning were the first day. Does not this statement put the evening in the first part of the day? {8SC1-12:20.10}
Answer:
The Code agrees that according to Genesis 5:1 the evening truly IS the first part of the day. For example, Friday night is the first part of Saturday,
Vol. 8 Symbolic Code Nos. 1-12 20
and Saturday night the first part of Sunday. This Bible fact was recognized by God's people all along the way. But from early in Bible time to this very day, the term "at even" has been used to designate the LAST PART of the day—the afternoon (Ex. 12:6; 16:13; Mark 14:12, 13, 15, 17; John 20:19). Thus this terminology, though in common use, does not in any wise alter the fact that the night which follows the "at even" period and precedes the day, is to be reckoned as the FIRST part of the twenty-four-hour cycle, for "the evening and the morning were the sixth day." Gen. 1:31. It is in this light that the statement on page 17 of Tract No. 10, is to be understood.—8SC1-12:20.10, 11 (See also: 2An:64.2, 3.)
Now let's break the answer down into its constituent parts.
I think it would be most helpful to acknowledge, how many point time destinations can we find in paragraph 11?
1. "…the evening…"
2. "…the first part of the day…"
3. "…Friday night…"
4. "…first part of Saturday…"
5. "…Saturday night…"
6. "…first part of Sunday…"
7. "…'at even'…"
8. "…the last part of the day…"
9. "…the afternoon…"
10. "…the night…"
11. "…'at even' period…"
12. "…the day…"
13. "…first part of the twenty-four-hour cycle…"
14. "…the morning…"
15. "…the sixth day…"
I found 15. Are there any others?
It would be helpful to assign how many hours each of these 15 designations consumes in time. We must be intentionally transparently unambiguously specific. Also, we should not bait and switch in the middle of our answers. Make a commitment to what you are talking about.
Before we continue any further let us consider what is written in Tract No. 10
*******
Now to clear up other points in this connection we shall consider the question:
Is the Evening the Beginning or the Ending of the Day? {10Tr:16.1}
Throughout the Bible, just as in books written in this age, the word "even" means the afternoon of the same day. Wednesday evening therefore means the ending of Wednesday AND the beginning of Thursday, NOT the ending of Tuesday and the beginning of Wednesday, although Wednesday night coalesces with and becomes the night of Thursday. This fact will be readily seen from the following scriptures: {10Tr:16.2}
Early in the morning, "Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord" (John 20:18); "then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week,...came Jesus and stood in the midst." John 20:19. Thus in Jesus's day, the term "evening" was used to designate the last part of the day. {10Tr:16.3}
Again: "And the first day of unleavened bread when they killed the passover, His disciples said unto Him, Where wilt Thou that we go and prepare that Thou mayest eat the passover? And He sendeth forth two of His disciples, and saith unto them, Go ye into the city, and there shall meet you a man bearing a pitcher of water: follow him…and he will shew you a large upper room furnished and prepared: there make ready for us…and in the evening He cometh with the twelve." Mark 14:12, 13, 15, 17. {10Tr:16.4}
Here Mark says that in the fourteenth day, WHEN they killed the Passover lamb, Jesus sent forth two of His disciples, and that AFTER they had prepared the place, and evening of that same day had come, then came Jesus. Thus IN THIS scripture also, we see that the "evening" means, not the beginning, BUT the ending, of the day. {10Tr:17.1}
Again: "And it came to pass, that AT [[ Not IN ]] even the quails came up." Ex. 16:13. As quails do not fly at night, they therefore had to come to the camp BEFORE sunset, the time which Moses calls "even"—the ending of the day, not the beginning of the night. {10Tr:17.2}
These Bible facts show that the Lord's command concerning the Passover lamb, "Ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day…and…shall kill it IN the evening" (Ex. 12:6), means that the lamb was to be killed in the afterNOON of the fourteenth day. Consequently, to call Friday night "Sabbath evening," as some do, is unbiblical and unreliable, as is an
Opinion Based on Implication, a House Built on a Sandy Foundation. {10Tr:17.3}
The statement, "that same night He was taken by wicked hands, to be crucified and slain" (The Great Controversy, p. 399), does not mean, as some think, that He was crucified that night, but rather it means simply, just as it says, that He was "taken" to be crucified. Accordingly, though "taken that same night," He could have been crucified days after, if need be, and as actually was the case. {10Tr:17.4}
Likewise, neither does the statement, "On this last evening with His disciples" (The Desire of Ages, p. 643), mean that it was the last evening before He was crucified, but rather that it was the last evening WITH His disciples before His death.—10Tr:16.1-18.1
*******
Next, we should ascertain whether we are regarding Biblical or Roman time reckoning. What did I witness? Bro. Houteff is using Roman names to differentiate between days. However, when referring to sections of points in time within a 24-hour day period the time reckoning being acknowledged is Biblical reckoning. So that a new day begins at sunset.
"At even" and "evening" "…has been used…" plus the Bible references given to support the point in time after the sunsets.
Do not let the word "afternoon" throw you off. The word "afternoon" if we are reckoning in the current Roman time setting we are socialized into it is from "high noon" 12:00 pm to Sunset. Now examine more closely how the sentence is constructed.
"But from early in Bible time to this very day, the term "at even" has been used to designate the LAST part of the day—the afternoon (Ex. 12:6; 16:13; Mark 14:12, 13, 15, 17; John 20:19)."
Question: The "afternoon," is it the last part of the day roughly about 6 hours from noon to sunset (at the equator) OR does it run the necessary 12 hrs as the last portion of one 24hr day period to complete the whole day?
The way that sentence is constructed seems to be advertising that "the last part of the day" must have the remaining 12 hrs left and not just from noon to sunset. But it is not. In his answer Bro. Houteff is committed to the Bible time reckoning of the Gen. 1:5 model. The last part of the day is the daylight portion which began with sunrise. What brings difficulty to the Hebrew mind is that we have been socialized into dividing time into 4 sections beginning the day at Midnight, Morning, afternoon, and evening.
The word "afternoon" appears only once in the Bible
Jg 19:8—And he arose early in the morning on the fifth day to depart: and the damsel's father said, Comfort thine heart, I pray thee. And they tarried until afternoon, and they did eat both of them.
However, the word "noon" appears 13 times.
Ge 43:16; vs. 25; 2Sa 4:5; 1Ki 18:26; vs. 27; 20:16; 2Ki 4:20; Ps 55:17; So 1:7; Jer 6:4; Am 8:9; Zep 2:4; Ac 22:6.
Thus we see that "noon" has never changed both anciently or at present.
Thus "the night" must be referring to 12 hrs of the absence of daylight in a 24hr period. And "the day" depending on the context can either be referring to the presence of daylight for 12 hrs in a 24hr period or the entire 24hr period of time.
You must nail it down, and be consistent and specific. It stands to reason logically that Sabbath evening begins and occurs during sunset Friday to the dawn of Saturday Roman time reckoning. If not then Sabbath is the only 24hr period without an evening.
Let's compare this with our common understanding of our day.
Day and Night
There are 24 hours in a day. The day is divided into day(time) and night(-time). Daytime is from sunrise (this varies, but we can say approximately 6am) to sunset (we can say approximately 6pm). Night-time is from sunset to sunrise.
Every day starts precisely at midnight. AM (ante-meridiem = before noon) starts just after midnight. PM (post-meridiem = after noon) starts just after midday. This means that 12am and 12pm have no meaning.
This diagram shows the cycle of a 24-hour day and the words we use to describe its parts. The day starts at midnight (at the bottom of the diagram).
Credit: EnglishCLUB
In God's reckoning, the new day starts at sunset, not at midnight. And the evening instead of lasting for six hours now lasts 12 hours. Thus Gen. 1:5 is satisfied which begins at sunset and runs till dawn.
Another witness to the illustration above with a simpler image.
This is either true or false.
Here are some graphics depicting biblical events in relation to time.
1SC6:6
2SR:22
The Hour of Each Event. {10Tr:9.4}
Anciently, the timepiece was regulated at twelve, sunset. Midnight and noon were at the sixth hour, and morning at the twelfth hour. From this original system of timekeeping, the record in connection with the trial and with the crucifixion is made as follows:—10Tr:10.1
The Hours of the Night
________________________________
(Sunset) 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12
¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯
{10Tr:13.2}
The Hours of the Day
________________________________
(Sunrise) 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12
¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯
—10Tr:13.2, 3
So now my advice is if you cannot with all honesty do it mentally print out the Day and Night illustration. Then write out all 15 numbered points of time and literally place them where they belong. And for those who love to bait and switch in the middle of a conversation, it is imperative that you physically go through the exercise after committing how many hours each of the 15 points consume in time and then begin to place them on the Day and Night illustration. By then you will behold that the "bait-and-switch" game is over.
Or you can examine closely this priceless inspired gem directed by the prophet and tell me what you see? My eyes have been blessed. This illustration is the KEY to the puzzle.
Do you see what I see?
One 24hr period according to this illustration above has two evenings, the first and the second. I suppose you would have a hard time trying to find this archaic Bible fact on Google. But you can find it in the "golden bowl."
Even though we have our definite direct answer let us test it. If it is true it will stand up to the test and if you are afraid or too Proud to test what you believe, how do you know it is true?
Now that we know the 15 individual constituent parts and have previously assigned how many hours each consumes let now the prophet's equivalences prevail. We are going to combine what the prophet does, "…it is written…"
No. 1 and 2 are combined or made equivalences.
"…the evening truly is the first part of the day."
And the two biblical examples follow
No. 3 and 4 combined.
"…Friday night is the first part of Saturday…"
and No. 5 and 6 are combined.
"…Saturday night the first part of Sunday.…"
Two biblical time reckoning examples prove why No. 1 and 2 are combined. Therefore all 6 examples are speaking of the same thing in the same way on different days.
Affirming, "This Bible fact was recognized by God's people all along the way." Now notice what follows this sentence. A but. What does "but" mean? All should know. But just in case.
but (adv., prep.)
No. 7, 8, and 9 are equivalences. They are combined by the prophet in that context.
Old English butan, buton "unless; with the exception of; without, outside," from West Germanic *be-utan, a compound of *be- "by" (see by) + *utana "out, outside; from without," from ut "out" (see out (adv.)). Not used as a conjunction until late Old English, "on the contrary." Senses attested in early Middle English include "however, yet; no more than." As an introductory expression, early 13c. As a noun, "an objection, an exception" from late 14c.
Credit: etymonline.com
No. 7, 8, and 9 are equivalences. They are combined by the prophet in that context.
“…But from early in Bible time to this very day, the term ‘at even’ has been used to designate the last part of the day—the afternoon (Ex. 12:6; 16:13; Mark 14:12, 13, 15, 17; John 20:19).”—8SC1-12:20.11
[7.] “ ‘at even’ ” =
[8.] “the last part of day” [[the presence of daylight portion of the day]] =
[9.] “the afternoon.”
Then follows a further explanation by comparison using No. 10 - 15.
"…Thus this terminology, though in common use, does not in any wise alter the fact that the night [[ 12 hour period {10Tr:13.2} ]] which follows the "at even" period [[ the afternoon, 6 hours ]] and precedes the day, is to be reckoned as the first part of the twenty-four-hour cycle, for "the evening and the morning were the sixth day."
No. 10 “…the night…”, is not combined with
No. 11 “…'at even' period…”,
No. 12 “…the day…” are not combined. These are not equivalent because phrases such as “…which follows…”, and “…and precedes…” are used. However,
No. 10 and No. 13 are equivalent having a duration of 12 hours each. But
No. 1 and 14 are not. These twelve-hour periods follow one after the other in order to produce No. 15 “…the sixth day…” a full 24-hour period.
What have we learned? That there are two sections in a 24hr period that are referred to as “evening” divided by Sunset. And there are two sections of time divided by sunrise referred to as morning. We need not guess or assume anything. We just need to respect the facts. After the truth is made known and you still decide and want to hold on to error that is your God-given right. But time will never turn an error into truth. Tares, not wheat, take pleasure in error.
P.S.
Throughout the Bible, just as in books written in this age, the word "even" means the afternoon of the same day. Wednesday evening therefore means the ending of Wednesday AND the beginning of Thursday,…—10Tr:16.2
…Consequently, to call Friday night "Sabbath evening," as some do, is unbiblical and unreliable,…—10Tr:17.3
Therefore, if Friday night cannot be Sabbath "evening" because it "is unbiblical and unreliable" then the only logical option left must be Sabbath afternoon is Sabbath evening.
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