Editing Hebrew calendar (section)

===Worked example===
Given the length of the year, the length of each month is fixed as described above, so the real problem in determining the calendar for a year is determining the number of days in the year. In the modern calendar, this is determined in the following manner.{{efn|The following description is based on the article "Calendar" in Encyclopaedia Judaica (Jerusalem: Ketter, 1972). It is an explanatory description, not a procedural one, in particular explaining what is going on with the third and fourth ''deḥiyyot''}}

The day of Rosh Hashanah and the length of the year are determined by the time and the day of the week of the Tishrei ''molad'', that is, the moment of the average conjunction. Given the Tishrei ''molad'' of a certain year, the length of the year is determined as follows:

First, one must determine whether each year is an ordinary or leap year by its position in the 19-year Metonic cycle. Years 3, 6, 8, 11, 14, 17, and 19 are leap years.

Secondly, one must determine the number of days between the starting Tishrei ''molad'' (TM1) and the Tishrei ''molad'' of the next year (TM2). For calendar descriptions in general the day begins at 6&nbsp;pm, but for the purpose of determining Rosh Hashanah, a ''molad'' occurring on or after noon is treated as belonging to the next day (the first ''deḥiyyah'').{{efn|So for example if the Tishrei molad is calculated as occurring from noon on Wednesday (the 18th hour of the fourth day) up until noon on Thursday, Rosh Hashanah falls on a Thursday, which starts Wednesday at sunset wherever one happens to be.}} All months are calculated as 29d, 12h, 44m, {{fraction|3|1|3}}s long (MonLen). Therefore, in an ordinary year TM2 occurs 12 × MonLen days after TM1. This is usually 354 calendar days after TM1, but if TM1 is on or after 3:11:20&nbsp;am and before noon, it will be 355 days. Similarly, in a leap year, TM2 occurs 13 × MonLen days after TM1. This is usually 384 days after TM1, but if TM1 is on or after noon and before {{fraction|2:27:16|2|3}}&nbsp;pm, TM2 will be only 383 days after TM1. In the same way, from TM2 one calculates TM3. Thus the four natural year lengths are 354, 355, 383, and 384 days.

However, because of the holiday rules, Rosh Hashanah cannot fall on a Sunday, Wednesday, or Friday, so if TM2 is one of those days, Rosh Hashanah in year 2 is postponed by adding one day to year 1 (the second ''deḥiyyah''). To compensate, one day is subtracted from year 2. It is to allow for these adjustments that the system allows 385-day years (long leap) and 353-day years (short ordinary) besides the four natural year lengths.

But how can year 1 be lengthened if it is already a long ordinary year of 355 days or year 2 be shortened if it is a short leap year of 383 days? That is why the third and fourth ''deḥiyyah''s are needed.

If year 1 is already a long ordinary year of 355 days, there will be a problem if TM1 is on a Tuesday,{{efn|This will happen if TM1 is on or after 3:11:20 am and before noon on a Tuesday. If TM1 is Monday, Thursday or Saturday, Rosh Hashanah in year 2 does not need to be postponed. If TM1 is Sunday, Wednesday or Friday, Rosh Hashanah in year 1 is postponed, so year 1 is not the maximum length.}} as that means TM2 falls on a Sunday and will have to be postponed, creating a 356-day year. In this case, Rosh Hashanah in year 1 is postponed from Tuesday (the third ''deḥiyyah''). As it cannot be postponed to Wednesday, it is postponed to Thursday, and year 1 ends up with 354 days.

On the other hand, if year 2 is already a short year of 383 days, there will be a problem if TM2 is on a Wednesday.{{efn|TM2 will be between noon and {{fraction|2:27:16|2|3}}&nbsp;pm on Tuesday, and TM3 will be between {{fraction|9:32:43|1|3}} and noon on Monday.}} because Rosh Hashanah in year 2 will have to be postponed from Wednesday to Thursday and this will cause year 2 to be only 382 days long. In this case, year 2 is extended by one day by postponing Rosh Hashanah in year 3 from Monday to Tuesday (the fourth ''deḥiyyah''), and year 2 will have 383 days.