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Sequencing The Last Days of Jesus
Potential solution to an inherent problem
The Jewish Sabbath begins at sundown on Friday. The Bible tells us of the mad rush to try and crucify Jesus before the onset of the Sabbath that evening. Thus, most scholars assume Jesus was crucified on a Friday. Most Bibles (such as the Ryrie Study Bible that I own) contain headings inserted by editors naming the last days of the Jesus through to crucifixion. "Friday" is the heading for the day of the crucifixion. Catholics celebrate the feast of "Good Friday" marking the execution and death of Jesus.
But it's problematic placing the death of Jesus on Friday. Matthew tells us Jesus was in the tomb three days and three nights. Matt. 12:38-40. Further, John and Luke tell us Jesus rose from the dead on the "first day". John 20:19 and Luke 24:12. The first day of the Jewish calendar is Sunday, not Monday. Catholics recognize this. They celebrate the resurrection of Jesus on "Easter Sunday". However, only two days and nights elapse from a Friday daylight crucifixion to a Sunday resurrection. How is it possible for Jesus to have been crucified just prior to the start of the Sabbath yet have been in the tomb for three days and nights upon his Sunday resurrection?
I see only one solution to the conundrum, Jesus was executed on a Thursday. But how can a Sabbath start on Thursday? Recall that the Romans executed Jesus during the Passover feast in Jerusalem. The first and last days of the Jewish Passover feast (15 and 21 Nisan, respectively) are special High Sabbaths. In fact, John states that the Passover in question was a "high day". John 19:31. I take this as an indication that the Sabbath before which they executed Jesus was not an ordinary Sabbath but, rather, a special "high" religious holiday.
This solution fits nicely with another piece of the Jesus story from the Gospels: Mary Magdalene and the other ladies rushing to his tomb at first light to perfume the body. Why the rush three days after the execution of Jesus? Shouldn't they have found time to make it to the tomb for this important act earlier than three days? However, with the new timeline, the ladies would have been restricted to close proximity to the house for the two days following the execution of Jesus because these constituted a double Sabbath (Friday--High Sabbath for Passover & Saturday--normal Sabbath). Under religious law, Sunday at first light afforded the ladies their first opportunity to visit the tomb under the theory proposed above.
JJR
8-20-09
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