Christian Charity at Christmas

Christmas, being celebrated by 93% of Canadians, is a perfect time of the year to practice the 9 Christian virtues as described in Galations 5:22-23

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law."

There are well worn platitudes about all of these.

Does Santa and commercial Christmas necessarily include or mandate that some or all of these Christian virtues will be achieved?

I want to go beyond these platitudes and knee-jerk responses in this Blog posting.

Consider the Parable of the Good Samaratin of Luke 10:25-37.  Unlike the Pharisee and the Levite who passed by a badly injured victim of crime without stopping, the Samaritin doesn't turn a blind eye to the inconvenient victim of robbery, left for dead at the side of the road.  The Samaratin finds, gives immediate First Aid.  Next, the Samaratin carries the Jewish victim to the nearest inn, nurses him through the night.  In the morning, the Samaratin pays the innkeeper a deposit worth 2 danari, asking the innkeeper to continue caring for the victim after the Samaratin goes, and if the innkeeper incurs even more expenses, the Samaratin will reimburse the innkeeper upon his return.

Wow!  The Samaratin treats the Jewish stranger as if he was the most loved member of his family.

Recently, archeologists found a wooden sign for a roadside inn from the time of Jesus, where the going inn rate was 1/32 of a danari for a one night stay.  On this basis, the Samaritin paid for the Jewish crime victim's room and lodging for 64 nights, more than 2 months, then offered even more if required.

For typical hotel today, we'd usually pay about $100.00 per night, plus another $100 for 3 meal per day at the hotel, for a total of $200 per day.  At 64 nights, the total equivalent bill would be $12,800.00 today.

I have never done anything close to this as charity for my fellow human beings.  The best I can offer as evidence of charity is buying lunch for a homeless person, and groceries for another person panhandling on the street (they had an apartment where they could cook).

Many of us have done "small acts of random kindness", perhaps paying for the coffee of the stranger in line behind us at the drive-through window.  I am all in favor of these opportunities of demonstrating humanity in a crazy, sinful world.

We may have felt smug at the time of this charitable act, but how does this small act of random kindness compare to the Good Samaratin?  If we repeated these small acts every waking hour  for the entire year (ie. 12 times per day X 365 days per year) it would be equivalent to the Good Samaratin's actions.  Who does that today?

No me, how about you?

I now see my charitable actions of the past were nothing compared to the Good Samaratin.  The Good Samaratin gave the equivalent of 320 times greater than my greatest charity.  Our annual tithe doesn't even cover what the Good Samaratin willingly paid for his culturally imposed enemy of that day (ie. the Jews).

I am nothing compared to the Good Samaratin.  The greatest charity I have ever done is nothing when compared to the Good Samaratin.

The Good Samaratin was under the Law, and did the required charity and brotherly love for neighbours towards a sworn enemy (ie. a Jew).

Even though I fancy myself a Born Again Christian, I don't meet the standard of the Law, let alone the heightened interpretation of the Law provided by Jesus during His Sermon on the Mount.

Do I ever see myself meeting this high standard?

I don't know.  If any of us were suddenly thrust into a similar situation today, would most of us shrink into the night after dialing 911?  Would we comfort and care for the victim while awaiting the ambulance, even if it meant getting a stranger's blood on our hands &/or clothes?  Would we push through the barriers of patient confidentiality in the formal medical system so as to ensure the system is taking good care of the crime victim we had discovered?  Would we intervene and advocate for the patient if we could identify some shortfall, or crack in the health care system into which the victim had fallen?  Would we fund some optional treatment that was withheld from the victim but that would enhance his recovery if someone authorized it and funded it?

I am afraid I would fail the full challenge.  How about you?

My only hope is to continue my voyage of learning from and following the Bible, and the real life examples modeled by Jesus Christ.

Thank God that I can earn salvation through believing in the blood of Jesus Christ, and removing iniquity from my life.

In the interim, I must rely on my confession, just like the publican did, that I am a sinner, that I fall short of God's standard as described in God's 26 Commandment for Christians, and fall short of the example provided by Jesus' parable of the Good Samaratin.

Putting Christ Back Into Christmas

I wish everybody "Merry Christmas"!

Only 67.3% of Canadians were associated with a Christian religion in 2011.

In spite of that, approximately 93% of people in USA and 92% in Canada celebrate Christmas with their family in 2019.

However, only 73% feel that Christmas is a religious holiday, down from 82% a decade ago.

Smaller still is the number of people who are "Rapture Ready" True Christians, likely less than 5% of N. American population who will make it to Heaven.

I have heard people belly ache (and felt it myself at times past)  about the commercialization of Christmas, and the questionable family traditions adding to that feeding frenzy.

Have you thought about how much of God's family traditions are incorporated into your family traditions?

Have you thought about, or wished you could somehow rewind the tape, and put some more Christ back into your family Christmas celebrations?

Before you shrug your shoulders, say "Oh well!", and flip the channel to something more interesting, here is an opportunity to actually do something about your important thoughts about restoring Christ to Christmas.

During your family gathering, for those who are brave, when there is a lull in the conversations, that is your cue to speak up and say in a loud, confident voice:

 "I have an important question for everybody..."

If you said it loud enough the first time, all heads will turn and silence will soon follow.  If not, repeat it again, more forcefully.

When you have everybody's attention, I suggest as follows:

"I am glad to see everybody who came together as a family for Christmas.  I also think about those who didn't make it to this year's celebration.

While I enjoy our family traditions, I think we need to put more Christ back into our family's Christmas celebrations.

I found this article on the Internet.  I'd like to read it out loud to all of you.  If I say something that causes you to have an important thought, please speak up immediately and share your thoughts with all of us.  As soon as you interrupt me, I will stop reading, and we will all listen to your thoughts.  When we are finished discussing your ideas, I'll continue reading.

Is everybody OK with what I have proposed?"

Here is the document I suggest you read out loud:

God's Love & His 26 Commandments for Christians

Please leave your comments below on what you decided to do, your reasons, and what was the end result.  This will be an interesting experiment.

God's 26 Commandments for Christians

God's 26 Commandments for Christians is a summary of 300+ Bible verses, arranged into 26 commandments (Exodus 20 for Commandments 1-10, plus 16 additional commandments from Jesus' teachings, and other important Bible verses); all of which are essential to Salvation, and being an obedient, True Christian.

This document is intended for those interested in becoming a Christian, luke-warm Christians who want to get serious, deceived Christians who want to take the scales away from their eyes and open their ears, and veteran Christians who want to further renew and strengthen their faith.

The final and ultimate source is the Bible.  This document follows the Bible, and is believed to be fully compliant with all Bible teachings.

This is Version 36, a new update as of 2024-3-17, re-written with the helpful suggestions of many that were received over the last few months.

I have also added some new words to the intro, so that people don't stop reading in the first sentence; hopefully considering the whole document.

The document is stored in this Blog's Document section (see "Documents" tab at the top of this Blog ), so it is easy to find later on when this introductory posting is buried someplace in ancient memories.

Please provide me your comments & feedback so I can continue the improvement process.

This Blog posting can also be accessed by the simple shortcut:   https://bit.ly/GodLaw

Crucifixion & Resurrection Timeline

At our Sabbath Bible study, we tried to make sense of the timeline for the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  This has been debated and studied for almost 2,000 years.  Have we got it figured out yet?

In the Biblical sequence under analysis in this Blog posting, there are  5 main steps:

• Crucifixion
• Death
• Burial
• Resurrection
• Jesus' conversation on the Road to Emmaus

I think we made excellent progress during the Bible study, and will add some new datapoints and viewpoints through this Blog posting.  However  you will have to judge for yourself.

A Roman Catholic friend sent me two links for the RC viewpoint on this matter.  I have never understood how they figured that Jesus was crucified on Friday and resurrected on Sunday, yet claim He was in the heart of the Earth for 3 days and 3 nights.

There are a number of Bible verses we must consider (searched Bible for "third day" and "three days", then selected those that prophesied about Jesus, &/or His crucifixion &/or His resurrection, producing the following 22 references:

[Jon 1:17 KJV] 17 Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. 

[Mat 12:40 KJV] 40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 

[Mat 16:21 KJV] 21 From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day. 

[Mat 17:23 KJV] 23 And they shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised again. And they were exceeding sorry. 

[Mat 20:19 KJV] 19 And shall deliver him to the Gentiles to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify [him]: and the third day he shall rise again. 

[Mat 26:61 KJV] 61 And said, This [fellow] said, I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to build it in three days. 

[Mat 27:40 KJV] 40 And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest [it] in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross. 

[Mat 27:63-64 KJV] 63 Saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again. 64 Command therefore that the sepulchre be made sure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night, and steal him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first. 

[Mar 8:31 KJV] 31 And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and [of] the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

[Mar 9:31 KJV] 31 For he taught his disciples, and said unto them, The Son of man is delivered into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and after that he is killed, he shall rise the third day. 

[Mar 10:34 KJV] 34 And they shall mock him, and shall scourge him, and shall spit upon him, and shall kill him: and the third day he shall rise again. 

[Mar 14:58 KJV] 58 We heard him say, I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and within three days I will build another made without hands. 

[Mar 15:29 KJV] 29 And they that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads, and saying, Ah, thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest [it] in three days, 

[Luk 9:22 KJV] 22 Saying, The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be slain, and be raised the third day. 

[Luk 13:32 KJV] 32 And he said unto them, Go ye, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures to day and to morrow, and the third [day] I shall be perfected. 

[Luk 18:33 KJV] 33 And they shall scourge [him], and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again. 

[Luk 24:7 KJV] 7 Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again. 

[Luk 24:21 KJV] 21 But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, to day is the third day since these things were done. 

[Luk 24:46 KJV] 46 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: 

[Jhn 2:19-20 KJV] 19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. 20 Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days? 

[Act 10:40 KJV] 40 Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly; 

[1Co 15:4 KJV] 4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

Categorizing all the 22 verses above, we have:

• 13 verses of "... the third day..."
   
• 4 verses of "... in three days..." 

• 2 verses of "... three days and three nights ..."
  
• 2 verses of "... after three days..."
   
• 1 verse of "... until the third day..."
   
• 1 verse of "... within three days ..."

Counting of days between two events has been an age-old problem.  Should you count the day on which the first event occurred, or start counting the day after the first event?  Similarly, should you count the day on which the 2nd event occurred, or just the full days BETWEEN the two events, and EXCLUDING the days of both the first and second events?

Growing tired of these endless arguments, most courts and contracts clearly specify how the counting of days is to be done.  Usually the day of the first event is not counted, and the day of the second event is not counted, so we generally count exclusive of the beginning and exclusive of the end.

God and His Bible has not specifically stated, as far as I can find.

What was Jewish custom at the time of writing the Bible?  I don't think that is important.  Would God allow the misguided and sinful viewpoints of the Pharisees to be referenced and used in the Bible?  God's Bible is God breathed, so is God's Word, and truth.  Therefore I am not impressed, nor guided by what the contemporary pagan customs might have been at that time.  If a Pharisee told me I should zig, then likely zagging is the correct answer.

If we were reading Flavius Josephus, or a Greek or Roman historian, then yes, local context and customs would be important so as to correctly understand the text.

In the 2 verses that say "...after three days...", we should remember that the next day, as well as "100 days after" are both "after" the first event.

Some of these verses do not directly relate to Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection.  Removing false testimony and secondary issues, keeping only the prophecies and eye witness accounts about Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection, we have the following verses:

[Mat 12:40 KJV] 40 For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 

[Mat 16:21 KJV] 21 From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day. 

[Mat 17:23 KJV] 23 And they shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised again. And they were exceeding sorry. 

[Mat 20:19 KJV] 19 And shall deliver him to the Gentiles to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify [him]: and the third day he shall rise again. 

[Mar 8:31 KJV] 31 And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and [of] the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

[Mar 9:31 KJV] 31 For he taught his disciples, and said unto them, The Son of man is delivered into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and after that he is killed, he shall rise the third day. 

[Mar 10:34 KJV] 34 And they shall mock him, and shall scourge him, and shall spit upon him, and shall kill him: and the third day he shall rise again. 

[Luk 9:22 KJV] 22 Saying, The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be slain, and be raised the third day. 

[Luk 18:33 KJV] 33 And they shall scourge [him], and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again. 

[Luk 24:7 KJV] 7 Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again. 

[Luk 24:46 KJV] 46 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: 

[Jhn 2:19-20 KJV] 19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. 20 Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days? 

[Act 10:40 KJV] 40 Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly; 

[1Co 15:4 KJV] 4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

Now when we categorize and count the frequency for these relevant verses, we have:

• 11 verses of "... the third day..."
   
• 1 verses of "... in three days..." 

• 1 verses of "... three days and three nights ..."
  
• 1 verses of "... after three days..."

Mark 8:31 is the verse where we find "... after three days ...".  Is it just an anomaly in the KJV and/or English translations?  The KJV Greek uses G3326 meta which means next, after, or following, so the English seems correct.  What do other Biblical versions say?

Courtesy of Bible Hub we have the 28 most common versions of the Bible for Mark 8:31 as follows:

New International Version
He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. 

New Living Translation
Then Jesus began to tell them that the Son of Man must suffer many terrible things and be rejected by the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He would be killed, but three days later he would rise from the dead. 

English Standard Version
And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

Berean Study Bible
Then He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and that He must be killed and after three days rise again. 

Berean Literal Bible
And He began to teach them that it is necessary for the Son of Man to suffer many things, and to be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and to be killed, and after three days to rise again. 

New American Standard Bible
And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

New King James Version
And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

King James Bible
And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

Christian Standard Bible
Then he began to teach them that it was necessary for the Son of Man to suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, be killed, and rise after three days. 

Contemporary English Version
Jesus began telling his disciples what would happen to him. He said, "The nation's leaders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law of Moses will make the Son of Man suffer terribly. He will be rejected and killed, but three days later he will rise to life." 

Good News Translation
Then Jesus began to teach his disciples: "The Son of Man must suffer much and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law. He will be put to death, but three days later he will rise to life." 

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Then He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, be killed, and rise after three days. 

International Standard Version
Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man would have to suffer a great deal and be rejected by the elders, the high priests, and the scribes. Then he would be killed, but after three days he would rise again.
NET Bible 

Then Jesus began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and experts in the law, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

New Heart English Bible
He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And he began to teach them: “The Son of Man is going to suffer many things and to be rejected by the Elders and by the Chief Priests and by the Scribes and he shall be killed, and in three days he shall rise.” 

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man would have to suffer a lot. He taught them that he would be rejected by the leaders, the chief priests, and the scribes. He would be killed, but after three days he would come back to life. 

New American Standard 1977
And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

Jubilee Bible 2000
And he began to teach them that it was convenient that the Son of man must suffer many things and be rejected of the elders and of the princes of the priests and of the scribes, and be killed and after three days rise again. 

King James 2000 Bible
And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

American King James Version
And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.
American Standard Version
And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, and the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

Douay-Rheims Bible
And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the ancients and by the high priests, and the scribes, and be killed: and after three days rise again. 

Darby Bible Translation
And he began to teach them that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders and of the chief priests and of the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise [again]. 

English Revised Version
And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, and the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

Webster's Bible Translation
And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, and the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

Weymouth New Testament
And now for the first time He told them, "The Son of Man must endure much suffering, and be rejected by the Elders and the High Priests and the Scribes, and be put to death, and after two days rise to life." 

World English Bible
He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

Young's Literal Translation
and began to teach them, that it behoveth the Son of Man to suffer many things, and to be rejected by the elders, and chief priests, and scribes, and to be killed, and after three days to rise again;

Doing a frequency analysis, we summarize these 28 Bibles as follows:

• 23 Bible say "... after three days..."
   
• 3 Bibles say "...three days later..."
   
• 1 Bible says "... in three days..."
   
• 1 Bible says "... after  2 days ..." (yes, after 2 days, that's not a typo by me, it's Weymouth New Testament, see above, strange, I'll admit.)

So it appears that it isn't just the KJV, it's most English Bibles.  It also appears in the Greek.

I therefore conclude that the best translation of Mark 8:31 likely includes "...after 3 days...".

On the Road to Emmaus

Luke 24:21 gives the sole Biblical account of Jesus speaking to a group of men on their way to Emmaus shortly after Jesus rose from the dead.  It is clearly stated that today is the third day since Jesus' crucifixion, death, and burial.

Jesus rose on or slightly before sunrise on Sunday morning.  This conversation with Jesus was likely sometime Sunday morning, shortly after Jesus had risen.

In other words, today (Sunday) is the 3rd. day since, yesterday (Saturday) was the 2nd day since, day before yesterday (Friday) was the 1st day since, and Thursday was the day of the events (crucifixion, death, & burial).

Therefore the crucifixion, death, & burial of Jesus Christ must have occurred on Thursday.

Three Days & Three Nights in the Heart of the Earth

If you handled a dead body, Jews were ceremonially unclean (according to Numbers 9:6-12, and 19:1-22) for at least 7 days, thereby preventing you from celebrating Passover and the High Sabbath for Unleavened Bread.  However, you could celebrate the 2nd Passover on the 14th day of the 2nd. Month (ie. 1 month later).

All of those involved in the burial would become unclean.  I suggest they were expected to finish all work before sundown, the starting point of Passover, if at all possible.  That gave them no more than 4 hrs. from when Jesus died at 3:00 PM Thursday.

Did they make it, or did they have to go into mandatory overtime?  Nobody alive today knows.  We'll have to wait till we get to Heaven for that answer.

How do we cram in three days and three nights in the heart of the earth between His death at 3:00 PM Thursday and 6:30 AM Sunday ( approximate time of sunrise in Jerusalem at that time of year, on or about April 2nd).  Sundown is on or about 7:00 PM.

Sundown Thursday to sunrise Friday is Night #1.  Friday sunrise to Friday sundown is Day #1.  Friday sundown to Saturday sunrise is Night #2.  Saturday sunrise to Saturday sundown is Day #2.  Saturday sundown to Sunday sunrise is Night #3.  That is when Jesus rose from the grave.

So as to have three days and three nights in the heart of the earth, Jesus must have been buried prior to sundown on Thursday.  He would only have a few minutes to a few hours for that Thursday day before sundown.  There is no possible way to get a full three days and three nights due to the overlapping of Luke 24:21, Matthew 28:1, 

Assuming that Jesus was buried just before 7:00 pm Thursday, that means His 3 days and 3 nights would be completed as of 6:30 AM Sunday, just as the Marys were arriving.

A picture is worth 10,000 words, so here is a diagram showing these time sequences.  Note that the top time bar assumes God's day begins at sunrise.  The bottom time bar assumes the day begins as sundown (as present day Jews count the days).

Figure 1: Timeline for Jesus' crucifixion & resurrection.
Click on image to see full size

Biblical Congruence (Update #1)

Is the Bible consistent inside itself (ie. doesn't contradict itself, is congruent)?

While working on another Bible study for another purpose (more on that later), I had a need to compare the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John for the period around Passover and the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

When I saw the following, I stopped a minute, thought about it, and had a private smile between God and me.

Here is what made me smile in appreciation of Bible accuracy, comprehensive detail, and congruency:

Jesus died at 3:00 pm on Preparation Day, then was buried.  At Jerusalem on 14th day of 1st month, sunset is at 7:00 pm.  After sundown is Passover and High Sabbath of Unleavened Bread upon which no work can be done.  Passover must be all cleaned up & over with before next sunrise.

In Mat 12:40 Jesus said:

"For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth."

 Therefore Jesus said He would be "in the heart of the earth" for 3 days & 3 nights.


Matthew 28:1 says:

In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre.

Mark 16:2 says:

And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun.

Luke 24:1 says:

Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them.

John 20:1 says:

The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre.

Bible Analysis

Mat 28:1, Mark 16:2, Luke 24:1, and John 20:1 all agree that Mary & other women came in the dark, early in the morning of the first day of the week (Sunday) at sunrise, discovering that Jesus was gone, He had risen.

While they all agree, they are not all the same.  All give the same information, but some give additional information.  By this we can be reasonably assured there is no plagerism, nor collusion.  None of them conflict with the others.

The results of this analysis is generally true throughout the 4 Gospels.  Similar analysis is generally true in all other books of the Bible.

Detailed Analysis:  What Day was Jesus Crucified?

Sunrise in Jerusalem at that time of year is 6:26 AM.

We don't know how much earlier Jesus rose from the dead before Sunday sunrise, & before the women arrived; it could have been as short as a few minutes, or as long as many hours.

*** Begin Update #1, 2019-12-10 ***
The following conclusion only considered the Bible verses shown above.  When Luke 24:21 (Jesus on the road to Emmaus) is considered, we are forced to interpret the verses as "days or parts thereof", causing Jesus' crucifixion, death, & burial to have occurred on Thursday, not Wednesday.  For further info on this, see the following Blog posting Crucifixion & Resurrection Timeline   All of the other data and conclusions stand as stated here.
*** End Update #1, 2019-12-10 ***

Counting backwards from Sunday sunrise for 3 days & 3 nights, we get Thursday sunrise.  Therefore Jesus had to be buried some time before Thursday sunrise to meet the 3 day 3 night prophecy. [Update #1 adds "Luke 24:21 however forces us to move away from the interpretation of Mat 12:40 as "full 3 full days and 3 full nights".  Instead we are forced to interpret Mat 12:40 as "3 days (or part thereof) and 3 nights (or part thereof)"]

Roman Catholics (and many other popular cults and sects) erroneously insist that Jesus was crucified on Good Friday and rose on Easter Sunday, yet claim He was dead and buried for 3 days and 3 nights.  They must be using New Math to calculate.  No matter how I count it, there is 39.5 hrs (Friday 3:00 pm to Sunday 6:30 am), more or less, which is 1.65 days duration.  I couldn't make 1.65 days into 3 full days, no matter how hard I tried. [Update #1 adds "It doesn't meet the minimal criteria of 3 part days (unless you assume Jesus rose sometime after sunrise on Sunday, contrary to Mat 28:1), but cannot get 3 nights (or part thereof) in any possible way.]

Therefore Jesus had to have died 3:00 pm Wednesday [Update #1, see above, changes this to Thursday] (not Friday as others assume incorrectly), then the preliminary burial was done Wednesday [Update #1 changes this to Thursday] afternoon & night, but completed before Thursday sunrise [Update #1 changes this to "just before sundown on Thursday"].

If you handled a dead body, Jews were ceremonially unclean according to Numbers 9:6-12, and 19:1-22 for at least 7 days, thereby preventing you from celebrating Passover. However, you could celebrate the 2nd Passover on the 14th day of the 2nd. Month (ie. 1 month later).

All of them were expected to finish all work before sundown, the starting point of Passover.  That gave them no more than 4 hrs. from when Jesus died.

Did they make it, or did they have to go into mandatory overtime?  Nobody alive today knows.  We'll have to wait till we get to Heaven for that answer. [Update #1 forces Jesus' burial team to have Jesus "in the heart of the earth" prior to sundown on Thursday so as to achieve a part day in accordance with Jesus' prophecy of "three days and three nights in the heart of the earth"].

Assuming that Jesus was buried at 7:00 pm Wednesday [Update #1 changes this to "before the 7:00 PM sundown on Thursday"], that means His 3 days and 3 nights would be completed as of 7:00 pm Saturday [Update #1 changes this to "before 6:30 AM sunrise on Sunday"].  That is why Jesus was already gone when the women arrived at 6:30 am Sunday morning.

Accurate and consistent.

Guided by the Holy Spirit, God ensured His Holy Word was accurate, sufficient, and preserved through the years.