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Bible Clocks

If you have ever read the Gospels, you have seen it, time indicated by hour of the day instead of the familiar, modern, hour of the clock. All time of day references given in the Bible's original languages are written as hours of the day, not hours of the clock.

History

The topic of Bible Clocks brings up many questions about how clocks have worked across history. Could, say, New Testament authors have had access to mechanical clocks? How might they have been built?

The practice of telling time has also changed considerably since NT times. Some of those changes must be understood so they can be undone for various important setups involving advanced uses of Bible Clocks.

• Antikythera Mechanism

  The oldest mechanical device ever found is called the Antikythera Mechanism. The complexity and high function in this device establishes that the Greeks were well advanced as mechanical time keepers. (914 words)

• Greek Water Clock

  The ancient world is well known to have used the flow of water to tell time. This is much less technical than geared machines. There are various issues with using water to tell time. (472 words)

• Horologium

  Public clock towers were also known in the ancient world. The oldest still standing example is in Athens. This ancient stone structure once housed a water clock. This example establishes that the public cared about and used accurate time keeping. (440 words)

• Setting Sundials

  Clocks are usually set to agree with other clocks. Ultimately all time keeping is set by reference to the position of the sun in the sky. This was done in ancient times using sundials. (2,579 words)

• Pendulum Clocks

  Modern clocks begin with Galileo's discovery of the time keeping qualities of the pendulum. Christiaan Huygens was later able harness the pendulum to the gear trains of mechanical clocks. With these 2 inventors the era of modern, accurate, mechanical clocks began. (736 words)

• Astronomy

  The needs of modern Astronomers drove the modern clock making industry. Those needs demanded that they use clocks that measured time from noon. Astronomer's clocks eventually leaked out into popular use, replacing the O'Day system used previously. This article explores the reasons for the change. (895 words)

• Davos Clock

  Davos Clock is the name given by curators at the British Museum to a specific clock in their collection. This is a good example of early modern wood clock making. (399 words)

• Mean Time

  Sundials track time based on direct movement of the sun. The lengths of days measured this way differs slightly from day to day. Sundials are not accurate enough to detect this. But, high quality pendulum based mechanical clocks, and the science that used them, needed day lengths that were the same. (912 words)

• Greenwich Observatory

  Time keeping eventually advanced to the point where clocks needed to be synchronized with each other. Greenwich observatory eventually won out as that synchronization point. (653 words)

• Harrison Clock

  The Harrison clock was perhaps the most important mechanical clock ever made. It flipped the use of clocks from telling time to telling location. The principles are still used in modern GPS systems. (871 words)

• Time Zones

  Modern clocks are not set to the sun in the sky. Instead they are set against the current time of the current time zone. This abandoned the use of a local reference clock in favor of a regional clock. Effects of local time zones may need to be undone when setting up Bible Clocks for some uses. (1,104 words)

• International Date Line

  The International Date Line is the other side of the world from to the Prime Meridian. It has peculiar qualities related to the calendar. (848 words)

• AC Electric Clocks

  After the development of the modern power grid, clocks could be synchronized through power lines. Before quartz movements, this was perhaps the most accurate type of common clock. (703 words)

Theory

This section lays out the theoretical design for Bible Clocks.

• Biblical Prime Meridian: Capernaum

  There are various places in and around modern Israel that are candidates for setting the Bible's Prime Meridian. This article explores the candidates and then suggests Capernaum as the only location with direct textual support. (1,591 words)

Apps

We have put together a Bible Clock app so you can tell time using a Bible Clock using phone or other device.

• About

  The purpose of this website is to reintroduce the time keeping system used to write the Bible. (244 words)

• Contact

  Contact us in the following ways. (154 words)

• Share

  Share this website with this QR Code. (87 words)

• Bible Clock Shows

  This page lists shows and shops where Bible Clocks have been sold. The entries are dated with the most recent shows first. (627 words)

• Index to Scripture References

  This page lists all the scripture references on the bibletribes.org website. Sorted by Bible books. (104 words)

• Site Map

  Use this list of chapters and articles to manage a complete read of everything here. This is listed in normal reading order. (105 words)