I wanted to encourage Paul Phelps by saying that I concur with his uncommon view that the ministry of Jesus could have been as short as 1.5 years, for the same reasons he cited.
 
In fact, my conclusions on the timing of the birth and death of require this length.  If we go by the best astronomical proof for his birth at 3BCE according to what Revelation 12 literally depicts would be in the sky at Jesus' birth, and go until the well-supported figure of 30 CE for his death, some 40 years before the destruction of the temple in 70 CE (40 years according to the Talmud during which all the miracles of the Temple services had ceased, no doubt as a warning to that generation that they were in trouble as Jesus warned would happen for missing their hour of visitation)...you are left with only 31.5 years of life, and 1.5 years of ministry, from just after his 30th birthday at Tabernacles 28 CE until Passover 30 CE.  In fact, Michael Rood teaches that Jesus' ministry literally fulfills the 70 weeks of Daniel 9 (cut off after 62 weeks in the 63rd week, and visible for most of the remainder of the 70 weeks up until Pentecost 30 CE), which I find quite satisfying, without denying there are also the day-for-a-year fulfillments of the 70 weeks as well.

Tim McHyde
http://www.EscapeAllTheseThings.com
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