Shabbat shalom, Nazarene Israelites.

1. PRAISE REPORTS, PRAYER REQUESTS, ANNOUNCEMENTS:
20 February 5786 (2026)

a. Barley and ministry direction

This week we are posting two update studies in response to some very good questions we received. Some of you have sent calendar questions and some of you are concerned about how some barley inspection groups are declaring the month retroactively. It is a legitimate concern, so it seemed an important topic to address. At the same time, we also want to give some updates on the direction of the ministry and some new goals. As always, thank you to those supporting and praying for the Kingdom work.

2. STUDIES:

a. Important updates!

1. Aviv Barley Firstfruits and Intercalation 2026 Patch!
20 February 5786/2026 is the second day of the 12th Hebrew month. We received several questions about the calendar for the upcoming year. This study explains why this current month is not Rosh HaShanah, why retroactively declaring the month is biblically wrong, why intercalation is necessary for determining the Head of the Year, whether a specific number of months is required for a Hebrew year, and more.

2. Ministry Update! 20 February 5786/2026, 2nd day of 12th Hebrew month:
In this update, Nazarene Israel (Nazarene Judaism) shares current ministry updates and expectations concerning the Stick of Joseph (Ezekiel 37:16-17), the Birkhat HaMinim Orthodox Judaism death curse on Christians (Notzrim), and plans to further our outreach for the House of Judah in keeping with Romans 1:16. Please continue to pray for the mission and the outreach to further Elohim’s Kingdom on earth.

b. This week’s Parasha:

“Parashat Vayelech: Preparing to Enter the Land“
This Parasha continues Genesis 35 dialogue. It speaks about preparing to enter the land of Israel as an ordered nation, how whether we obey or disobey Yeshua Mashiach Nagid determines whether Yahweh Elohim will punish us in the end times, and how partial obedience is counted as lukewarmness.

c. New video shorts:

Short 1: The Illusion of Automatic Salvation

Short 2: The False Peace, the Truth Behind the News

e. Beit Sefer Children’s Publications (Home Page):

(To receive activities in Spanish, please sign up for the Spanish newsletter.)

3. SABBATHS, NEW MOONS, AND CALENDAR EVENTS:

a. Feasts of Yahweh:

The new moon was seen from Israel on 18 February. As of 18 February, we have not received any reports from Israel of an omer’s worth of aviv barley firstfruits that would be ready as a wave sheaf offering on March 8th. Therefore, scenario 1 is no longer an option for Rosh HaShanah 5786/2026. We will now watch for scenario 2 as the next possibility. (As always, dates may vary depending upon confirmation of the new moon sighting or the 30-day default.) Please remain current with Torah Calendar News for updates.

Scenario 2:

The new moon (expected to be visible from Israel on 20 March 2026) is the next scenario for Rosh HaShanah 2026. As always, we must wait for Yahweh’s timing to know when there will be an omer’s worth of aviv barley ready in the Land of Israel by 15-21 days after the start of the new month.

If at the time of the next new moon we are able to determine that an omer’s worth of aviv barley firstfruits would be ready to present as a wave sheaf offering Yom HaNafat HaOmer on 5 April, we will declare Rosh HaShanah. If not, we will post a third scenario afterwards.

Please see Torah Calendar News for full details and latest calendar news updates.

b. Next Hebrew month and Rosh HaShanah timing 5786/2026

The new moon of the next Hebrew month is expected to be visible from Israel on 20 March. Confirmation will be made upon the sighting of the new moon (or the 30-day default count). Upon confirmation, we will announce whether or not this new moon is Rosh HaShanah.

c. Discipleship Meetings: 

New moon discipleship meeting- 21 March 2026 (expected, possible Rosh HaShanah)
(Please remain attentive to TCN for Rosh HaShanah timing)

All meetings are at 8 AM Colombian time (always UTC-5, but watch your Daylight Savings Time adjustments). The Discipleship Meeting is a discussion between disciples. It is generally 1-hour long but may run longer depending on how the Spirit leads. For more on NI’s description of discipleship, please see NI’s Discipleship program.

Note: If the monthly Discipleship Meeting coincides with the weekly Shabbat Meeting, the Shabbat Meeting will take precedence, and new moon discussion will be combined with the Shabbat meeting. However, in the case of a Feast Day Meeting coinciding with a Shabbat meeting, the Feast Day Meeting will take precedence.

d. Why the Firstfruits Torah Calendar?

We often receive inquiries about why NI observes the Hebrew months at different times from the other calendar groups (such as the Messianic, Karaites, and Rabbinical groups). There are several reasons, but the main reason is that we begin the calendar year with the (true) Firstfruits of barley. In contrast, other groups take a sheaf from the main harvest, and falsely call them the “first” fruits (when they are more like the “main” fruits.)

Because of this, most Messianic and the Karaite groups will usually be a month (or even two) late. Learn all about the Firstfruits Torah calendar, (and how the Jewish, Karaite, Messianic, and the equinox calendars violate Scripture) in our studies on the biblical calendar.

Note: Roman-Greco and rabbinic calendar dates are utilized for those who are learning, and for publishing purposes. It should be noted that neither the Hillel II Jewish calendar, nor the Roman-Greco calendar are Yahweh’s calendar described in Scripture. Nazarene Israelites should be following the Torah Calendar (the Firstfruits Calendar) and keeping Rosh Hashanah accordingly.

e. Aviv barley, wave sheaf, and witnesses:

Current witness qualification:
Currently, sister Becca Biderman of Ancient Path New Moon is the only barley inspector who seems to understand what a proper wave sheaf is, and why you should not let the true Firstfruits fall to the ground, (so you can take your “first” fruits offering from the middle of the harvest, as other groups do).

For reasons explained in our studies, NI does not support Messianic doctrine. (For more on this topic, please see NI’s 2025 explanation in “Babylon Mystery Calendars“.) However, as far as barley inspections, Becca documents her barley inspections and her definitions of aviv barley seem accurate according to our understanding of Scripture.

Other barley groups:
There are several other groups whose barley witnessing we cannot recommend. These groups ignore Deuteronomy 16:9, they define “Firstfruits” as a random sheaf from the middle of the harvest, and they add rules and definitions that Yahweh does not add, (in violation of Devarim 4:2). Due to these errors, these calendar groups are generally always a month (or sometimes two months) late in observing the feasts.

New moon witnesses:
Several groups sight the first crescent sliver of the new moon well. Various new moon witnesses are recorded each month in the new moon reports. Again, while several groups accurately witness the new moon, to our knowledge, only sister Becca Biderman publishes accurate barley reports.

Declaring Rosh HaShanah at the correct time:
As we explain in our studies (see list above), there only needs to be enough aviv barley ready for the Omer (Wave Sheaf) Firstfruits offering by either the 15th or the 21st day of the first month. As explained in our studies, it is a disaster if we declare Rosh HaShanah too late, because it would force farmers in the land of Israel who have the earliest ripening barley to do one of two things:

A) Either they must break Devarim (Deuteronomy) 16:9 and begin harvesting their crop BEFORE the Firstfruits offering has been presented unto Yahweh for the nation. Or
B) Lose all or part of their barley crop, while they wait an extra month for the leaders to declare Rosh HaShanah!

By declaring the true Firstfruits unto Yahweh Elohim as He commands, and keeping His appointed days according to His perfect timing, the farmers do not need to lose their crops; neither are they encouraged to break any of Yahweh’s commandments.

For studies on declaring Rosh HaShanah, aviv barley, and the Torah Calendar, please see section 2b.
For more on the current barley inspections, please visit NI Torah Calendar News

4. NAZARENE ISRAEL REVELATION NEWS:

We encourage you to check the news each week, to follow the trends of the four horses. Also, if you have never gone through the permanent links, we urge you to read them. Click here to read the Nazarene Revelation News on the website. (You must be logged in to view.)