Three Days AND Three Nights

Jesus was crucified on Friday. ?? Not likely; more probably it was Wednesday (in the "midst of the week", Dan9:27). Days of the week are not mentioned in the Bible, although the weekly Jewish sabbath is universally accepted as beginning at sunset on Friday and lasting until sunset on Saturday. So many believe the "three days" to be Fri., Sat., and Sun., despite the abbreviated time Jesus would have spent in the tomb--less than 36 hrs. All of Saturday, but none on Friday because His body was taken down just before sunset,, and not much on Sunday because He had already risen when Mary arrived early in the morning following the sabbath.

Jesus said "three days AND three nights", and he said it twice. Matt 12:40. Then John's gospel says it was a "high" sabbath, Jn 19:31. These "high sabbaths", or "days of holy convocation", Lev23:7 were celebrated according to God's directions, and they could occur on any day of the week--not just Saturday. They were going by the Lunar Calendar as well as by instructions from the Torah which called for them to kill the lamb on the 14th day of the first month (Ex12:6), and to have a holy convocation on the day following (Ex12:16).

Each "month" began with a new moon, so on the 14th and 15th it would be full. Their calendar in the sky, so to speak, lasted for just 29.5 days, and resulted in a year of 354 days--eleven days short of a solar calendar year. They would begin that second year just eleven days ahead, but after two years it would be 22 days off, and after three years it would be 33 days off. They corrected this by having a second Month-Adar at the end of every third year; knowing that this correction was not perfect and that the tiny error would eventually have to be dealt with, if they didn't want to have snow in July or a heat wave in February. [The Hebrew months, or moons, were named differently: from Abib(#1) to Adar(#12), and the Chaldean or Aramaic names differed also.]

So, since Jesus is the Lamb-of-God, was he actually crucified on the Day of Passover; on the 14th of that first month Nissan? Go to the head of the class! And the day following was that "high sabbath" which the Apostle John wrote about--it was the first day of Unleavened Bread, which lasted for seven days.. John 18:28,39.

Wednesday, 14th Passover/Calvary

Thur. 15th - Unleavened Bread / High Sabbath

Friday, 16th

Saturday, 17th Regular Sabbath

Sunday, 18th Easter/Firstfruits Resurrection!

Mary came to the tomb on the morning after the regular weekly sabbath. It's this agenda which fits all the facts and still allows time for Him to be in the grave for three days AND three nights.

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