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?
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.
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
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...".
Interpreting Three Days and Three Nights
In the Old Testament, Esther calls a fast for 3 days and three nights in Esther 4:16, so as to prepare for Esther going before the King. In Esther 5:1, Esther goes before the King on the 3rd day (ie. not after the 3rd day is over). Therefore to count properly, as defined by the Bible, we must have at least a part of the day or night to count it.
This same counting as Esther used is also used for the 8 days after birth for the male baby circumcision (Gen. 17:12; Lev. 12:3; Philippians 3:5); even if just a minute of a day remains, it counts as a full day.
Assuming Jesus died at 3 PM on a Thursday, and assuming Jesus spirit was immediately in the "heart of the Earth" immediately after His spirit left His body.
We then count Thurs afternoon (partial) as Day #1, Thursday evening as Night #1, Friday in the day as Day #2, Friday night as Night #2, Saturday in the day as Day #3, and Saturday night as Night #3.
We therefore have compliance to Mat 12:40, and similar with our assumption of crucifixion on Thursday at 3 PM.
Jesus in the Tomb, in the Heart of the Earth
[Luk 23:52-54 KJV] 52 This man went unto Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. 53 And he took it down, and wrapped it in linen, and laid it in a sepulchre that was hewn in stone, wherein never man before was laid. 54 And that day was the preparation, and the sabbath drew on.
The phrase "...and the sabbath drew on." is Strong's G2020 epiphōskō, the exact same word as used in Mat 28:1 to describe "...as it began to dawn...".
[Mat 28:1 KJV] 1 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.
Therefore the timing of Luke 23:54 when Jesus was left in his tomb, was just before sunrise Friday morning. This means that Jesus died at 3 pm on Thursday, Preparation day, Passover began at sundown on Preparation Day (Thursday evening). Passover ran from sundown on Preparation Day, through the night, and had to be all cleaned up and put away before sunrise the next day, Friday. Feast of Unleavened Bread, the High Holy Day, ran from sunrise on Friday to sunrise on Saturday.
The weekly sabbath for the 7th day of the week is on Saturday. This created the strange occurrence of having a high sabbath (Unleavened Bread) immediately followed by the weekly Sabbath on Saturday.
This is why the women were blocked from properly serving and caring for Jesus' body from Thursday 3 PM when He died, until Sunday morning at sunrise. That is why the women were recorded by Mat 28:1 as coming at Sunday sunrise to wash and embalm His body, but found that He had already risen.
Luke 23:54 and Mat 28:1 are two of 14 biblical proofs that God's day begins at sunrise. The current custom of the day starting at sundown, as practiced by most Jews and all Muslims, is a Babylonian corruption of God's calendar. See God's Day: When does it Start (Part 1 of 5)? May 17, 2019 Blog Posting https://et-manitoulin.blogspot.com/2019/05/gods-day-when-does-it-start.html?m=1
Jesus died at 3:00 PM on Preparation Day, Nisan 14, before Passover began that year. According to our modern Gregorian calendar, Jesus most likely died at 3 PM on Thursday April 14, 32 AD. Sunrise is at 07:12 AM Israeli Standard Time (06:12 AM Israel Daylight Time, +03:00 GMT).
By the time the received the approval of Pontius Pilot, got Jesus down off the cross, transported Him inside, it was just before sunrise on Friday; Passover was almost completely over.
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.
[Luk 24:21 KJV] "21 But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, today is the third day since these things were done."
What is all included in "... these things..."?
Verse 14 says: "...all these things which had happened."
Verse 19 adds: "Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people:"
Verse 20 adds: "...And how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to death, and have crucified him."
Not expressly mentioned in Luke, the Bible described also:
- Mat 27:51 the ripping of the Temple veil, the darkness, & the earthquake.
- Mat 62:62-66 going to Pilot on the High Holy Day of Unleavened Bread (ie. after Passover was over), and the securing of permission for the Roman guard and seal on the stone door for Jesus' tomb.
It is clearly stated in Luke 24:21 that today (Sunday, First day of the week) is the third day since "these things".
Jesus resurrected slightly before sunrise on Sunday morning. This road to Emmaus 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 (High Holy Day of Unleavened Bread) is the actual day of "these things".
Therefore again, 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 Jesus' burial would become unclean, so if they touched His body, there is no rush, you can't do Passover, nor Unleavened Bread.
However, there is another reason to rush.
[Deu 21:22-23 KJV] 22 And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death, and he be to be put to death, and thou hang him on a tree: 23 His body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt in any wise bury him that day; (for he that is hanged is accursed of God;) that thy land be not defiled, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.
I suggest they were expected to finish all work before sundown (approximately 6:08 pm Israeli Standard Time in Jerusalem at time of year), the starting point of Passover, if at all possible. That gave them no more than 3 hrs. from when Jesus died at 3:00 PM Thursday.
According to Luke 23:54, the actually finished getting Jesus' body into the tomb by sunrise Friday. Even though they couldn't celebrate the high sabbath of Unleavened Bread, they still couldn't work; neither of Friday (Unleavened Bread), nor Saturday (weekly sabbath), so they planned to return Sunday morning at sunrise to finish the necessary steps with Jesus' body (washing, wrapping, embalming with spices and ointments). That's why they came, as described in Mat. 28:1
*** Updated 2025-04-04, 2025-4-22 ***
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