Creation of Time

God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate day from night; they shall serve as signs for the set times—the days and the years; and they shall serve as lights in the expanse of the sky to shine upon the earth.” And it was so. God made the two great lights, the greater light to dominate the day and the lesser light to dominate the night, and the stars. And God set them in the expanse of the sky to shine upon the earth, to dominate the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that this was good. And there was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.

And some say that [when the moon was reduced in size] she became totally dark, and [God] decreed upon her that she would only shine from the light of the sun. [The moon] said to [God]: Master of the Universe, [how can it be that] because I spoke a correct matter to you, I should be diminished? God said to [the moon]: If so, I will in the future, in the days of the messiah, return your light. As it is written "And the light of the moon will be as the light of the sun"(Isaiah 30:26). [The moon] said to [God]: I have sinned [by challenging you]. Forgive me. [God] said to [the moon]: I forgive you. [The moon] said to [God]: How will I know that you have forgiven me? [God] said to [the moon]: And you will rule by day and night. [The moon] said to [God]: Master of the Universe, what benefit is there if I shine at day when [the sun] appears? [After all], you have called me the small light, as it says "and the small light" (Genesis 1:16). [God] said to [the moon]: The righteous will be called after your name: Jacob the Small [son] (Genesis 26:15), David the Small (I Samuel 17:14). [The moon] said to [God]: Master of the Universe, if the righteous are also called small, what sign of forgiveness is this for me? Once God saw that [the moon's] mind would not be settled, he increased her multitude [of stars]. As it says: "And the stars" (Genesis 1:16). And due to her honor, [God] increased her multitude [of stars], as a ruler who walks forth and the wealthy [dignitaries] of the land walk with him.

10 days, 21 hours, and 204 parts are the excess of the days of the solar year over the days of the lunar year; and the intercalation is introduced to equalize the days of the solar || year with the days of the lunar year. The sun and the moon begin (their courses) at the new moon of Nisan, the sun goes before the moon at its Teḳuphah; and Aries begins to serve before it by day, and all the constellations serve thereafter according to their order. The moon goes in the opposite direction and Aries begins to serve before it by night, and all the constellations serve thereafter according to their order, until the year of the small cycle, until the year of intercalation (comes round). (When) the intercalated month comes round it supersedes (or thrusts aside) the new moon (of Nisan) and remains at the new moon of Shebaṭ, and so on until the twelve intercalated months (come round) when the sun and the moon are equal (again) at the commencement of the eve of the fourth day in the hour of Saturn in the hour when they were created. Between each Molad (conjunction of the moon and sun) there are only 36 hours, 40 minutes, and 73 minims (parts).