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155

The first biblical chronology

by T. W. M. van Berkel

Features of the first biblical chronology

   The first biblical chronology precedes a series of predictions, which run from March 14, 1557, until a moment which reads in French is called: au commencement du septiesme millenaire.1

   In the first biblical chronology, the period is described which ran from the creation of Adam until the birth of Jesus, by means of the mentioning of biblical persons. Next, the length is given of the period which ran from the birth of Jesus Christ until the foundation of the Islam.

   At the beginning of the first biblical chronology, it is mentioned that no pagan calculations as delivered by Varro were used, but astronomic calculations, data which are taken from the Bible and further the “weak understanding”.2

   At the end of the first biblical chronology, it is mentioned that the calculations might be contested, since they differ from the ones, made by Eusebius.3 Next comes a reference to the foundation of the Islam. From that moment, it should be quite easy to verify which eras have passed and if the calculations regarding the future are correct for all mentioned countries. The year in which the Islam was founded (621 AD), is not mentioned.

   The transitions in the first biblical chronology are marked with the names of biblical persons. The length of each period is given with the restriction "about", except for the period David - Jesus (in table 1, the “about” is marked with the ± symbol).

   The first biblical chronology is not closed with the mentioning of the time span, covered by it. It is up to the reader to calculate this time span.

Table 1. First biblical chronology
(Epistle to Henry II)

Period Variant -a-(years) Variant -b-(years)
Adam - Noah ± 1242 ± 1242
Noah - Abraham ± 1080 ± 1080
Abraham - Moses ± 515 ± 516
Moses - David ± 570 ± 570
David - Jesus 1350 1350

The findings of Christian Wöllner Ph.D. (1926)

   In Das Mysterium des Nostradamus (1926), the German astronomer Christian Wöllner Ph.D. briefly discussed the first biblical chronology. He wrote that there were no problems during the translation of the text of the first biblical chronology in German. He has summed up the periods and time spans, as given in the Epistle to Henry II.

   Wöllner has not written anything about backgrounds of the first biblical chronology, errors, sources or correspondences with astrological structures. He closed his discussion by saying that this chronology has two time spans: 4757 years and 4758 years.4

The findings of prof. Brind’Amour (1993)

   Prof. Pierre Brind’Amour (1941-1995) investigated which sources were used in the compilation of the first biblical chronology. The results of this investigation are described in the chapter Chronologie de l’Ancien Testament in Nostradamus astrophile (1993, p.171-177). Brind’Amour discussed biblical sources. Nostradamus astrophile does not contain one single allusion to an investigation which astrological sources are corresponding in one way or another with time data in the first biblical chronology.

a. The period Adam - Noah

   In the investigation of the period Adam - Noah, Brind’Amour’s view was that the indication “Noah” refers to Noah’s age at the time of the outbreak of the Deluge. Basing himself upon Genesis 7,11, he assumed that at the time of the outbreak of the Deluge, Noah was 600 years old.5

   Brind’Amour compared the given time span of the period Adam - Noah, 1242 years, with time data in the Septuagint in Genesis 5 and Genesis 7 and established that, according to these bible books, the period Adam - Outbreak Deluge lasted 2242 years, a time span which was also used by Eusebius. The French text of the description of the period Adam - Noah reads: le premier homme Adam fut deuant Noë enuiron mille deux cens quarante deux ans. (tr.: Adam, the first man, existed about a thousand two hundred and forty-two years before Noah). Basing himself upon the time span in the Septuagint and the assumptions of Eusebius, Brind’Amour supposed that in the current text of the Epistle to Henry II, the word deux was not included and that originally this text might have read as follows: le premier homme Adam fut deuant Noë enuiron deux mille deux cens quarante deux ans (tr.: Adam, the first man, existed about two thousand two hundred and forty-two years before Noah).6

   It is not always possible to establish an exact chronology of biblical persons and events. A number of bible verses contain time data which are in conflict with time data in other bible verses. In other cases, phrasings of time data can be interpreted in several ways. In Nostradamus astrophile, Brind’Amour did not discuss this, but this does not mean by definition that during his investigation he did not encounter these problems.

   An example of conflicting information which can be interpreted in several ways, is Noah’s age at the time of the outbreak of the Deluge and at the time of his death. In Genesis 7,6, it reads that Noah was 600 years old when he, his family and the animals moved into the Ark. In Genesis 7,10, it reads that this took seven days. In Genesis 7,11, it reads that the waters came over the earth at the 17th day in the 2nd month in Noah’s 600th year of life. The remark “600th year of life” indicates an age of 599 years. In Genesis 8,13, it reads that the water levels were low at toe 1st day in the 1st month in Noah’s 601st year of life. The remark “601st year of life” indicates an age of 600 years. In Genesis 9,28-29, it reads that after the Deluge, Noah lived for 350 years and died at the age of 950 years. If the remark “after the Deluge” is interpreted as “after the outbreak of the Deluge”, the age of Noah fits to Genesis 9,28-29 and Genesis 7,6.

   The author of this essay combines Genesis 7,6, in which it reads that Noah’s age at the time of the outbreak of the Deluge was 600 years, with Genesis 5,32, in which it reads that Noah’s age at the time of fathering Sem was 500 years. As a result, basing myself upon these verses, I assume that the period Noah - Outbreak Deluge lasted 600 years.

Table 2. Septuagint: Period Adam - Outbreak Deluge
(Van Berkel, 2005)
7

Septuagint Period Years
Genesis 5,3 Adam - Seth 230
Genesis 5,6 Seth - Enos 205
Genesis 5,9 Enos - Cainan 190
Genesis 5,13 Cainan - Malalehel 170
Genesis 5,15 Malalehel - Iared 165
Genesis 5,18 Iared - Enoch 162
Genesis 5,21 Enoch - Mathusalem 165
Genesis 5,25 Mathusalem - Lamech 167
Genesis 5,28 Lamech - Noach 188
Genesis 7,6 Noach - Outbreak Deluge 600
Total 2242

b. The period Noah - Abraham

   According to the first biblical chronology, the period Noah - Abraham lasted about 1080 years. Brind’Amour observed that this time span differs 10 years with the 1070-year time span of the period Arphaxad - Abraham in Genesis 11 in the Greek version of the Septuagint and limited himself with observing this difference.8

   While verifying the time span of the period Noah - Abraham with time data in the Septuagint, Brind’Amour did not include the period Outbreak Deluge - Arphaxad. Quite strange, since first, according to Brind’Amour, the period Adam - Noah ran from the creation of Adam until the outbreak of the Deluge. One expects that while verifying the next period (Noah - Abraham), the verification would start with time data, counting from the outbreak of the Deluge instead of a birth which took place after the Deluge. Second, while verifying the time span of the period End Deluge - Abraham in the second biblical chronology, Brind’Amour completed his verification calculations, based upon the Vulgate, with the time span of two years of the period End Deluge - Arphaxad, mentioned in Genesis 11,10, a time span which is also given in Genesis 11,10 in the Septuagint.9

   The time data regarding the length of the period Outbreak Deluge - Arphaxad are in conflict with each other. In Genesis 11,10, it reads that Sems age at the time of fathering Arphaxad was 100 years, followed by the words “two years after the flood”. Because of this additional remark, the age of Sem, given in Genesis 11,10, does not fit to time data in Genesis 5,32 and 7,6. According to Genesis 5,32, the age of Noah at the time of fathering Sem was 500 years. According to Genesis 7,6, the Deluge began when Noah was 600 years old, which means that at that time, Sems age was 100 years. According to Genesis 7,11 and 8,13-14, the Deluge lasted one year and ten days. At the end of the Deluge, Sems age was 101 years. The remark “two years after the flood” means “two years after the end of the Deluge”. This means that Sems age around the time he fathered Arphaxad was 103 years. The author of this essay assumes that the period Outbreak Deluge - Arphaxad lasted 3 years, basing himself upon time data in Genesis 5,32, 7,11, 8,13-14 and the additional remark “two years after the flood” in Genesis 11,10.

   According to the Greek text of the Septuagint, the time span of the period Arphaxad - Abraham is not 1070 years as Brind’Amour wrote, but 1170 years. On p.173 in Nostradamus astrophile, it reads that Nachor’s age at the birth of Tharé was 79 years. In the Greek text of the Septuagint, 179 years is given. The age of 79 years is given in the Alexandrian version of the Septuagint. In that version, the time span of the period Arphaxad - Abraham is 1070 years.

Table 3. Period Outbreak Deluge - Abraham, Alexandrian text Septuagint
(Van Berkel, 2005)

Septuagint Period Years
Genesis 11,10 Outbreak Deluge - Arphaxad 3
Genesis 11,12 Arphaxad - Caïnan 135
Genesis 11,13 Caïnan - Salé 130
Genesis 11,15 Salé - Héber 130
Genesis 11,16 Héber- Phaleg 134
Genesis 11,18 Phaleg - Réu 130
Genesis 11,20 Réu - Sarug 132
Genesis 11,22 Sarug - Nachor 130
Genesis 11,24 Nachor - Tharé 79
Genesis 11,26 Tharé - Abraham 70
Total 1073

c. The period Abraham - Moses

   According to the first biblical chronology, the time span of the period Abraham - Moses was 515 or 516 years. Basing himself upon a time span in Exodus 12,40, Brind’Amour interpreted the indication “Moses” as a reference to the beginning of the Exodus. He observed a difference of 10 or 11 years with a time span of 505 years, calculated by Eusebius.10 According to Brind’Amour, Eusebius related a time span of 430 years between the Promise to Abraham and the Exodus, given in Galatians 3,17, with time data in Genesis 12,4 (Abraham’s age of 75 years at the time of the Promise) and Exodus 12,40 (a period of 430 years). Together, Genesis 12,4 and Exodus 12,40 are supposed to cover a time span of 505 years (75 + 430). Next, Brind’Amour observed that a time span of 400 years living in Egypt is mentioned in Genesis 15,13 and Acts 7,6.11

   Brind’Amour does not discuss the causes of the differences of 10 or 11 years between the time spans of the period Abraham - Moses in the first biblical chronology with the time span of 505 years, established by Eusebius.

   While studying Brind’Amours investigation, the author of this essay discovered that Eusebius’ calculation of the time span of the period Promise to Abraham - Exodus is 215 years off. This mistake does not change the fact that Eusebius counted with 505 years and that this time span corresponds to some extent with the 515/516 years in the first biblical chronology. However, it is worthwhile to discuss this matter, especially since a mistake of 215 years is at stake. In Nostradamus astrophile, nothing is written about this.

   In Genesis 12,4 it reads that at the age of 75, Abraham left Charran and moved to Chanaan with Sara, his wife, and Lot, his cousin. In Genesis 12,10, it reads that at a certain moment they went to Egypt, because there was famine in Chanaan. They stayed in Egypt for some time. No time data are given. The 430 year stay in Egypt, given in Exodus 12,40, is not the one which is described in Genesis 12,10. The stay in Egypt, mentioned in Exodus 12,40, began when Jacob, Abraham’s grandson, was 130 years old and moved into Egypt, with his family, because of famine, an episode which is described in Genesis 47,9. The period which runs from Abraham’s birth until the end of the stay in Egypt (i.e. the beginning of the Exodus), lasted 720 years, which is 215 years more than supposed by Eusebius.

Table 4. Period Abraham - Beginning Exodus
(Van Berkel, 2005)

Septuagint Period Years
Genesis 21,5 Abraham - Isaac 100
Genesis 25,26 Isaac - Jacob 60
Genesis 47,9 Jacob - Egypt 130
Exodus 12,40 Egypt - Beginning Exodus 430
Total 720

d. The periods Moses - David and David - Jesus

   Brind’Amour could not find biblical foundations for the time spans of the periods Moses - David and David - Jesus in the first biblical chronology.

e. The time span of the first biblical chronology

   Brind’Amour concluded that the time span of the first biblical chronology is 5757 years, basing himself upon a time span of 2242 years for the period Adam - Noah. He also wrote that, if one assumes that this period lasted 1242 years, the total of the first biblical chronology is 4757 years.

   In other publications, Brind’Amour found nothing that corresponds with the total of 5757 years of the first biblical chronology.12

f. The foundation of the Islam and the following years

   Brind’Amour did not discuss the period of 621 years, mentioned next to the first biblical chronology. He also did not perform calculations regarding the number of years up to 1555, the present time or the future.

g. Differences with calculations by Eusebius

   Next to the mentioning of the time span of the period David - Jesus, it reads in the first biblical chronology that its calculations might be contested, since they differ from those, done by Eusebius. Brind’Amour did not discuss this topic separately, but regarding the time span of the first biblical chronology (5757 years), he mentioned that Eusebius maintained 5200 BC as the year in which the world has been created.13

Table 5. First biblical chronology versus Eusebius14

Period First biblical chronology Eusebius
Adam - Noah 1242 2242
Noah - Abraham 1080 -
Abraham - Moses 515 / 516 505
Moses - David 570 -
David - Jesus 1350 -
Total (Brind’Amour) 5757 n.a.
Year of creation 5199 BC

h. Summary

   In other publications, Brind’Amour did not find anything that corresponds with the time span of 5757 years of the first biblical chronology, not even in the case of Eusebius, who maintains that the world has been created in 5199 BC.

   Only in one period (Adam - Noah), Brind’Amour found corresponding time sources: time data in the Septuagint and calculations by Eusebius. The point of view of Brind’Amour is that in the original text of the first biblical chronology, it reads deux mille deux cens quarante deux ans instead of, as printed in the circulating text, mille deux cens quarante deux ans. In this case, Brind’Amour corrected the time span, given in the first biblical chronology. In two other cases (Noah - Abraham and Abraham - Moses), he observed differences, but dit not correct the time spans, given for these periods. Brind’Amour could not find biblical sources which correspond with the time spans of the periods Moses - David and David - Jesus.

   Brind’Amour interpreted the indication “Noah” in the period Adam - Noah as a reference to his age at the time of the outbreak of the Deluge.

   Regarding the time data in the period Noah - Abraham, the time data in the period Arphaxad - Abraham are calculated with data which are not in the Greek text of the Septuagint, as Brind’Amour writes, but in the Alexandrian text. Brind’Amour started his verification with the period Arphaxad - Caïnan (Genesis 11,12). He did not calculate the time span of the preceding period (Outbreak Deluge - Arphaxad).

   In the case of the period Abraham - Moses, Brind’Amour interpreted the indication “Moses” as a reference to the moment on which the Exodus started. He refers to a calculation, done by Eusebius, who based himself upon Galatians 3,17. This verse contains a mistake regarding time data; the question is if Brind’Amour observed this mistake.

   In the Epistle to Henry II, it reads that the first biblical chronology is based upon the Bible, astronomical calculations and the “weak understanding”. Brind’Amour only discussed biblical sources. He did not discuss the first biblical chronology from an astrological point of view and did not write whether or not he investigated the first biblical chronology by means of astrology.

   About the remark in the Epistle to Henry II regarding the verification possibility, given in the year in which the Islam has been founded, it can be said that Brind’Amour did not describe the first biblical chronology from the perspective of a time structure which deals with world history from its creation until its decline.

Table 6. Brind’Amour’s findings15

First biblical chronology Brind’Amour (1993) Remarks (Van Berkel, 2005)
Adam - Noah In the current text of the Epistle to Henry II, there might be a printer’s error (mille instead of deux mille).
The supposed original text corresponds with time spans in the Septuagint, which are also established by Eusebius.
Brind’Amour interpreted the indication “Noah” as a reference to his age at the time of the outbreak of the Deluge. He wrote nothing about conflicting time data regarding Noah’s age in Genesis 7,6 (600 years) and Genesis 7,11 (599 years).
Noah - Abraham The given time span (1080 years) differs 10 years with time data regarding the period Arphaxad - Abraham in the Greek text of the Septuagint (1070 years). Brind’Amour did not include the period Outbreak Deluge - Arphaxad (3 years).
The time span of 1070 years can not be derived from the Greek text of the Septuagint, as Brind’Amour writes, but from the Alexandrian text.
The given time span of the period Noah - Abraham (1080 years) differs 7 years with the corresponding period in the Alexandrian text of the Septuagint.
Abraham - Moses The given time span (515 or 516 years) differ 10 or 11 years with a time span of 505 years, established by Eusebius. Eusebius, basing himself upon Galatians 3,17, added time data, given in Genesis 12,14 (75 years) and Exodus 12,40 (430 years). Brind’Amour interpreted the indication “Moses” as a reference to the beginning of the Exodus (Exodus 12,40). He wrote nothing about a calculation mistake of 215 years in Galatians 3,17, which Eusebius overlooked.
Moses - David; David - Jesus No biblical sources found.
Jesus - foundation Islam; periods after the foundation of the Islam Brind’Amour did not describe these periods.

The first biblical chronology and the time structure by which it is covered

   Brind’Amour did not discuss correspondences between the first biblical chronology and the existence of the world.

   It looks as if the time spans of the first biblical chronology as they result from the time data in the Epistle to Henry II (4757 and 4758 years) can be related to elements of astrological time structures, described by e.g. the French canon Richard Roussat in Livre de l’estat et mutation de temps (1549).

   In Livre de l’estat..., which is an elaboration of Pierre Turrel’s Le période c’est a dire la fin du monde (1531), Roussat introduces four time structures in order to demonstrate that the end of the world is near. In the first structure, the existence of the world is estimated to be 7000 years and divided in four periods of 1750 years. According to Roussat, Adam was created in 5200 BC. In the second structure, he calculates with series of seven “Great Years”, counting from 5200 BC. A Great Year is a period of 354 years and 4 months, ruled by a planet.

   According to Roussat, from June 1533 to October 1587 a Great Year is running, ruled by the Moon. This Year is the penultimate Year in the third series of Great Years. From October 1587 to February 2242, the last Great Year is running, ruled by the Sun. In the Great Year structure, February 2242 is an important transition moment. Then, unless the world has come to an end, the fourth series of seven Great Years will begin, of which the first Great Year is ruled by Saturn.

   The first biblical chronology has two time spans: 4757 and 4758 years. These time spans differ about 2242 years with the 7000-year existence of the world, mentioned in the first astrological time structure in Livre de l’estat... This leads to the assumption that the first biblical chronology is part of a time structure, in which the existence of the world is estimated to be 7000 years. In this time structure, Adam is created in 4757/4758 BC. The question is if from this time structure the conclusion can be derived that the world will come to an end in 2242 AD. In the series of predictions which are preceded by the first biblical chronology, there is no allusion to the end of the world, but to a great increase of the number of adversaries of Jesus Christ and his church.16

   According to the Epistle to Henry II, the calculations regarding the first biblical chronology are based upon the Bible, astronomy and the “weak understanding”. Astronomy (astrology) seems to be visible in the year 2242 AD, which might be borrowed from the astrological time structure of Great Years, formulated by e.g. Roussat. This does not mean that this part of the Epistle to Henry II is based upon Livre de l’estat... The discussed time data might very well be copied from other publications.

   Regarding the second biblical chronology, my present assumption is that this chronology is part of a different time structure, a time structure in which the number of years of existence of the world is estimated to be 8000 years. In this structure, April 25, 4174 BC is supposed to be the date on which the world has been created. The eighth and last period of 1000 years corresponds with the biblical Kingdom of 1000 years, as described in Revelations. The Last Judgment, after which heaven and earth vanish and a new heaven come as well as a new earth, is not a part of this structure. In the Epistle to Henry II, there is not one allusion to these events.17

The Epistle to Henry II versus the Preface to Cesar

   The assumption that the first biblical chronology is part of a time structure, in which the existence of the world is estimated to be 7000 years and in which 2242 AD is a fatal year, raises a question. The year 2242 might be borrowed from the time structure of Great Years, as formulated by e.g. Roussat. In that structure, 2242 AD is the year in which the third series of Great Years comes to an end and a fourth series of Great Years begins. Roussat assumes that the series of Great Years began in 5200 BC. He does not assume that these series began in 4757/4758 BC, in which the first biblical chronology begins.

   In the Preface to Cesar, there is an allusion to the rulership of the Moon over the penultimate Great Year in the third series of seven, and the rulership of the Sun over the last Great Year in this series. In the Epistle to Henry II, there are no allusions to these rulerships. At the end of the Epistle, there is an allusion to “another rulership of Saturn, who brings a golden era”. This allusion seems to have no arithmetic correspondences with the first biblical chronology, but with the second. It is possible that the year 2242 AD is presented as a year, without the involvement of the structure of Great Years.

   Only in a small number of quatrains, there are allusions to the Moon and the Sun in their function of rulers of Great Years. Brind’Amour found these allusions only in quatrains in the first and the third Century, not in the other Centuries.18 It might be possible that the structure of Great Years, which seems to be echoed in the Preface to Cesar and a number of quatrains in the first and the third Century, does not play a role in the Epistle to Henry II and the eighth, ninth and tenth Century.

The time span of the first series of predictions in the Epistle to Henry II

   The Epistle to Henry II contains three series of predictions. The series of predictions, which is preceded by the first biblical chronology, runs from March 14, 1557 (1547) to “the beginning of the seventh number of thousand” (French: au commencement du septiesme millenaire). Brind’Amour interpreted these words as “the beginning of the seventh millennium” and observes a conflict with a remark in the Preface to Cesar, that humanity at the time of Preface already lives in the seventh millennium.19

   In 1999, the Frenchman Yves Lenoble interpreted the words au commencement du septiesme millenaire as “the beginning of the year 7000 AM” (AM: Anno Mundi, counting from the creation of the world), without investigating correspondences with the first biblical chronology and its context.20 Assuming that Adam has been created in 4757/4758 BC, the year 7000 AM is the year 2242 AD, the year in which, according to the structure of Great Years as formulated by Roussat, the third series is followed by a fourth series and in which, according to the Epistle to Henry II, the number of adversaries of Jesus Christ and his church strongly increases.

   According to these assumptions, the time span of the first series of predictions in the Epistle to Henry II runs from March 14, 1557 (1547) to (February) 2242; a time span of almost 685 (695) years.

The problem “mille versus deux mille

   Brind’Amour supposed that there might be a printer’s error in the text of the period Adam - Noah in the first biblical chronology (mille instead of deux mille), compared with time data in the Septuagint. If we base ourselves upon a time structure in which the world exists 7000 years and the year 2242 is a fatal year, we see that, from an arithmetic point of view, the first biblical chronology makes sense.

   One of the differences between the first biblical chronology and the second is that the second biblical chronology is closed with a total: about 4173 years and 8 months. Because of this total, wrong time data in the second biblical chronology can be corrected to a certain extent.

   In the Epistle to Henry II, the time span of the first biblical chronology is not given. If one verifies the time data of this chronology with e.g. the Septuagint, the discrepancy mille / deux mille is quite clear. The assumption that the word deux is omitted, is at hand. The reason that the time span 1242 can be changed into 2242 is that in the Epistle to Henry II, there is no time span of the first biblical chronology itself.

   If, however, the words au commencement du septiesme millenaire are interpreted as “at the beginning of the year 7000 AM”, it turns out that the first biblical chronology is preceded by a time span, which seems to refer to the existence of the world, and it seems that arithmetically the time spans in the first biblical chronology are correct. If the period Adam - Noah would have lasted 2242 years, as Brind’Amour has borrowed from the Septuagint and Eusebius, the world was created in 5757 BC and the words au commencement du septiesme millenaire would be meaningless. Counting from 5757 BC, the seventh millennium would have started in 242 AD; the year 7000 AM would be the year 1242 AD. Counting backwards from 2242 AD, 4757/4758 BC becomes the year in which Adam was created. Like this, the mentioning of mille deux cent quarante deux ans is correct from an arithmetic point of view, and the word deux is not omitted. On the contrary, if the compilation of the first biblical chronology was started with counting backwards from 2242 AD, we face a deliberate change of facts, borrowed from the Septuagint or from calculations by Eusebius. Like this, a remark of Jacques Halbronn D.Litt. becomes true, that in some cases an error, which looks like a printer’s error, actually is the reflection of the author’s intentions.

The foundation year of the Islam as a benchmark

   It should be easy to verify which era’s have gone by and which predictions are true, keeping in mind the year in which the Islam was founded (621 AD). It looks as if the year 621 AD is a benchmark.

   In 1927, the Frenchman P.V. Piobb observed that the number 621 plays an important role in the first biblical chronology: the period Adam - Noah (1242 years, i.e. 2 x 621 years) and the period Jesus - foundation Islam (621 years).21 Assuming that the first biblical chronology is part of a time structure which spans 7000 years and the year of creation is 4757/4758 BC, once again the number 621 is brought into the limelight. In this structure, the seventh millennium begins in 1242 AD, 621 years after the foundation of the Islam in 621 AD.

T. W. M. van Berkel
De Meern, April 10 and 19, 2005

Notes

1 See: facsimile-Chomarat-2000, p.155. In the 1668-Amsterdam-edition, it reads March 14, 1547 instead of March 14, 1557. Retour

2 Varro: Marcus Terentius Varro (116 vChr - 27 vChr), a leading Latin scholar, author and poet. In his most important work, Antiquitates rerum humanarum et divinarum (41 volumes), he discussed cultural history and religious history. Retour

3 Eusebius: Eusebius of Caesarea (± 265 - 339), aka: Father of Church History. He wrote the Chronicorum, a historic work. Volume 2 was translated by St. Jerome (Sophronius Eusebius Hiëronymus, 331 [347] - 419 [420]). In 1483, Jerome’s translation was published in Venice and entitled De temporibus (Gruys, Royal Library, The Hague, NL, to Van Berkel, August 29, 2002). In Livre de l’estat..., page 95 contains a reference to De temporibus. Retour

4 Wöllner, p.10, in: Amadou, p.315. Retour

5 Brind’Amour 1993, p.173 and 175. Retour

6 Brind’Amour 1993, p.173. Retour

7 In this article, two online-publications of the Septuagint have been used, which contain the English translation of the Greek version of the Septuagint by Sir Lancelot C.L. Brighton in 1851: The Septuagint LXX: Greek and English and The Septuagint Bible Online. The names of the Patriarchs in tables 2 and 3 are copied from Brind’Amour. Retour

8 Brind’Amour 1993, p.173. Retour

9 Brind’Amour 1993, p.175. Retour

10 Brind’Amour 1993, p.173-174. Retour

11 Brind’Amour 1993, p.173-174. Brind’Amour wrote that according to some scholars, Abraham’s age at the moment of the Promise was 76 years, which might be the explanation for the 1-year difference in the time spans, given in the first biblical chronology. Retour

12 Brind’Amour 1993, p.174. Retour

13 Regarding the year in which the world was created, Turrel based himself upon calculations by his compatriot Bede and by Eusebius (Brind’Amour 1993, p.193). In Livre de l’estat... it reads on p.68: ainsi que dit Bede en ses vers vulgaires: lesquelz ay bien voulu icy reciter & son tels: Vnum tolle, datis ad milia quinque ducentis, Nascenti Domino totdat Beda a prothoplausto. Ce sont, du commencement du Monde, 5199. This page does not contain a reference to Eusebius. Retour

14 Cf. Brind’Amour 1993, p.171-177. Retour

15 Cf. Brind’Amour 1993, p.171-177. Retour

16 ... qui sera apres au commencement du septiesme millenaire profondement supputé, tát que mon calcul astronomique & autre scauoir s’a peu estédre,oú les aduersaires de Iesus Christ & de son eglise, commenceront plus fort de pulluler... (facsimile-Chomarat-2000, p.155). Retour

17 Van Berkel: The second biblical chronology. To be available at michel.nostradamus.free.fr. Retour

18 In the quatrains 01-25, 01-48, 01-56, 01-62 and 03-97, Brind’Amour found allusions to the Moon and the Sun in their function of rulers of Great Years (Brind’Amour 1993, p.193-195). In his interpretation of quatrain 03-92, he writes about “the seventh millennium, ruled by the Moon” and the eighth millennium (about which he wonders if this millennium starts in 1800 AD), which millennium, according to him, is marked by the return of Saturn and a golden age (Brind’Amour 1993, p.194, en 1996 [1994], p.454-455), something which is only mentioned in the Epistle to Henry II. Brind’Amour describes a seven-fold millennium-structure, used by Turrel in combination with the four periods of 1750 years (Brind’Amour 1993, p.183-184). However, neither in Nostradamus astrophile, nor in Les premieres Centuries ou prophéties, he discusses the construction of this structure. Perhaps he refers to a millennium-structure, in which the Moon rules the seventh millennium and Saturn the eighth? If on the other hand he meant the rulership of the Moon over the penultimate Great Year, it should be noted that in the structure of Great Years as described by Roussat, this rulership is succeeded by the rulership of the Sun, not by the rulership of Saturn, and that Brind’Amour is in conflict with his interpretation of quatrain 01-48, in which according to him is an allusion to the subsequent rulerships of the Moon and the Sun. Retour

19 Brind’Amour 1993, p.196-197. Regarding the Preface: facsimile-Chomarat-2000, p.35: qu’encores que nous soyon au septiesme nombre de mille qui paracheue le tout [...] (tr.: while we are now in the seventh millennium, which fulfills everything [...]). Retour

20 Lenoble: Nostradamus et l’éclipse du 11 Août 1999. Internet: michel.nostradamus.free.fr/nlen1.html
   In the Epistle to Henry II, the indication septiesme millenaire occurs twice: preceding the first biblical chronology and in the second series of predictions which comes next to the second biblical chronology. According to that chronology, there are about 4173 years and 8 months between the creation of the world and the birth of Jesus. This series of predictions run from January 1, 1606. The text: & cela sera proche du septiesme millenaire que plus le sanctuaire de Iesus Christ , ne sera conculqué par les infideles qui viendront de l Aquilon , le monde aprochant de quelque grande conflagration,combien que par mes supputations en mes propheties le cours du temps aille beaucoup plus loing. (tr.: this will be close to the seventh millennium that the sanctuary of Jesus Christ is no longer attacked by the pagans from the North, when the world approaches a great conflagration, although according to my calculations in my prophecies the course of history goes much further). This could be a reference to the seventh millennium, which runs from 1827 to 2827 AD, or to the year 7000 AM, i.e. the year 2827 AD. The remark that the course of history goes much further might correspond to the year 3797, mentioned in the Preface to Cesar.
   Brind’Amour always used the word millénaire in the meaning of a millennium (Brind’Amour 1993, for example in the chapter Millénaires et grandes années, p.187-197). Contemporary French dictionaries show that the French word millénaire means: a thousand year existence, or: an era of a thousand years, a millennium. The French word for the numbers of thousand is millier. In the Epistle to Henry II, the word miliade is used (facsimile-Chomarat-2000, p.154). The third line of quatrain 10-74 contains the words grand eage milliesme. In contemporary French, the word millième means: a one-thousand part (0,001). It looks as if in quatrain 10-74, the word milliesme is used because of its rhyme to the word septiesme in the first line and the meaning is: millennium. It looks as if it is possible that also the word millénaire has other meanings than the meaning of a millennium, which might justify Lenoble’s interpretation.
   Roussat once used the word miliaire to indicate a millennium (Roussat, p.139). Retour

21 Piobb, p.15. Retour

Bibliography

      - R. Amadou: L’astrologie de Nostradamus - dossier. Poissy, 1992 (1989).
      - Sir Lancelot C.L. Brenton: The Septuagint LXX: Greek and English (1851). Internet: www.ccel.org/bible/brenton.
      - Sir Lancelot C.L. Brenton: The Septuagint Bible online (1851). Internet: www.ecmarsh.com/lxx.
      - Prof. P. Brind’Amour: Nostradamus astrophile. Ottawa, 1993.
      - Prof. P. Brind’Amour: Les premières Centuries ou Prophéties. Geneva, 1996 (1994).
      - M. Chomarat (publisher): Les Prophéties, Lyon, 1568. Lyon, 2000.
      - Ieanson. I. (publisher): Les vrayes Centuries et Propheties de maistre Michel Nostradamus. Amsterdam, 1668.
      - Microsoft (publisher): Encarta Winkler Prins basisencyclopedie 2002. Utrecht, 2001.
      - P.V. Piobb: Le secret de Nostradamus et de ses célèbres prophéties du XVIe. siècle. Paris, 1927.
      - R. Roussat: Livre de l’estat et de mutation de temps. Paris, 1981 (1550 [1549]).



 

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