ב הַחֹדֶשׁ הַזֶּה לָכֶם, רֹאשׁ חֳדָשִׁים: רִאשׁוֹן הוּא לָכֶם, לְחָדְשֵׁי הַשָּׁנָה
The first part of this verse (הַחֹדֶשׁ הַזֶּה לָכֶם, רֹאשׁ חֳדָשִׁים) taught about rejuvenation and renewal through the mitzvah of Sanctifying the New Moon. (See the previous post here.)
The second part of the verse (רִאשׁוֹן הוּא לָכֶם לְחָדְשֵׁי הַשָּׁנָה) teaches that the counting of the months within the repeating cycle of the year begins each year with the month of Nisan.
True, there is repetition in constantly having new months but the character of each month is different. (There’s a moon of early spring, mid- spring, summer, winter, etc.) Not so the year. Each year, the same cycle repeats itself and the start of each year has the same character as the start of the previous year. The Hebrew word for year is שנה. The same word שנה means repetition.
This verse teaches us that the start of the Jewish year is in Nisan, at the beginning of the spring.
There are other verses in the Torah (Shemos 23:16 חג האסיף בצאת השנה – also Shemos 34:22 וחג האסיף תקופת השנה) that teach us that the month of Tishrei, in the fall, marks the start of the year.
RSRH explains as follows:
The “World Year” year begins in the fall. From that perspective (the time of harvest ie. the physical) there is a repeating cycle that starts with fall. It may reach a spring and a summer, but it always returns to the fall. (within that repeating cycle there are Jewish times of renewal at each New Moon, as taught in the first part of the verse.)
The Jewish Year begins in the spring. It may lead to an autumn and winter, but it always returns to the spring, a time of renewal.
We find the same contrast of perspectives in marking the beginning of the day. In worldly matters, the “day” always begins at night. (As we see in Creation “and it was evening and it was morning, one day…”). However in the Temple the “day” begins when the sun comes out.
Taken together, these two perspectives of time teach us about our dual nature. Everything of this world is born at night. It may blossom in the day but it will ultimately sink into the night. Everything Jewish and holy has its origin in light and life. It may endure difficult struggles, but will ultimately find renewal and life. What was born from morning and spring will end with morning, rejuvenated to a new spring.
Shemos 12:2
pages 163-164
