Three Days, Three Nights

They asked for a sign. After all the miracles they had seen--the blind could see, the deaf could hear, the lame could walk, the dumb could talk, lepers were cleansed, the demonized were delivered, and even the dead had come back to life--the religious leaders of Jesus' day wanted proof that he was who he claimed to be. They wanted him to give them a sign that he was the Son of God.

"A sign?" Jesus asked. "A sign. Only a faithless and twisted generation asks for a sign. But if you want a sign, I'll give you one. I'll give you the sign of Jonah."

The sign of Jonah? they may have wondered. What's a sign of Jonah?

"As Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the whale, so shall the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." That was the sign. Over and over again, Jesus made references like that. One time, he said, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." There was great significance in the three days.

But tradition has told us that Jesus died on Good Friday, was in the grave for the Sabbath on Saturday, and rose from the dead on Sunday, the First Day of the week. And to reconcile this tradition with Jesus' statement, an explanation has been invented. Since he was in the ground for parts of three different days--Friday night, Saturday, and Sunday morning--that counts as three days. I'm sorry. 36 hours does not three days and three nights make.

The misconception comes from the fact that the High Priests and leaders of the Jews didn't want the bodies of the crucified to remain on the cross for the Sabbath. Since Saturday was the Jewish Sabbath, that means the crucifixion took place on Friday. Right? But there are problems with a Friday-Saturday-Sunday order of events. If Jesus died on the afternoon before the Sabbath, and rose from the dead on the morning after the Sabbath, then on what day did the women buy spices for his body (Mark 16:1) after the Sabbath, but prepared them and afterward rested on the Sabbath (Luke 23:56)? No matter how you look at it, there aren't enough days in the traditional Friday-Saturday-Sunday scenario for those things to take place.

Is there a reasonable explanation that fits both the chronology of events and Jesus' promise to be in the grave 72 hours?

Consider this: Jesus took the Last Supper with his disciples on Tuesday night, the Day of Preparation for the Passover. He was arrested around Midnight and tried through the night by the Priests and Pharisees. On Wednesday morning, he was taken before both Pilate and Herod and found innocent, but condemned at the insistence of the Jewish leaders. He was crucified at 9 AM on Wednesday morning, hung on the cross for 6 hours, and died at 3 PM as the Passover lambs were being sacrificed. Joseph of Arimathea quickly recieved permission to take the body down, and before sunset he placed the body of Jesus Christ in his own tomb.

Jesus' body lies in the tomb on Wednesday night and all day Thursday. That's one night and one day.

Jesus' body lies in the tomb on Thursday night and all day Friday. That's two nights and two days.

Jesus' body lies in the tomb on Friday night and all day Saturday. That's three nights and three days.

And after sunset on Saturday, when the Sabbath ended and the First Day of the Week began, Jesus was resurrected and translated from the tomb. The guards placed their by the High Priest stood watch over an empty grave for nearly twelve hours before the angel appeared and rolled back the stone!

Wait, wait, wait, you might say. If the Sabbath is on Saturday, how can Wednesday be the day before the Sabbath? I'm so glad you asked.

During the holy week of Passover and Unleavened Bread, the day after Passover is the First Day of Unleavened Bread, a High Holy Day and observed as a Sabbath. If Jesus died on Wednesday; Thursday was a Sabbath, Saturday was a Sabbath, and Friday was the day between the Sabbaths on which the women went to the market to buy spices, spent the day preparing them, and then rested on the Weekly Sabbath before going to the tomb on the First Day of the week.

And did Passover ever fall on a Wednesday during the years considered by scholars to mark the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ? Only once, in 31 AD. On our calendar, Jesus died on Passover, April 25th, and rose from the dead on Firstfrutis, April 29th. More about Passover, Unleavened Bread, and Firstfruits later!