In
Matthew 12:40 Jesus compared his death to the time that Jonah was in the
belly of the whale, three days and three nights. Did Jesus mean three days and
three nights literally? How was it to be calculated? There can only be two
possibilities. Either the days and nights were calculated sequentially from
evening to morning to equal one day, or the reference is more general relying
on any portion of a day to equal an entire day.
In
considering possibilities one thing is certain, all four gospel accounts
clearly show Jesus being crucified on the day prior to the Sabbath (Friday) and
Christ rising very early on the first day of the week (Sunday). Any
death/burial sequence must end early on Sunday, and place Jesus' death on
Friday. The starting point can only be sometime during Thursday's Passover meal
and garden events afterward, or during Friday's crucifixion at the ninth hour
(the hour of Christ's death).
To
consider the possibility that some part of Thursday's events constitutes the
beginning of Christ's first night in the earth, one must rely more on
figurative analogy than literal fact. The most likely point of reference for
such a consideration would be the agony in the garden. There alone, Jesus sweat
great drops of blood and cried out to God with loud cries and tears, asking God
that if it were possible, to let the cup pass from him (Hebrews 5:7). This
prayer was repeated three times, ending each time with the declaration,
"Nevertheless, not my will but Thine be done!" God heard him in that
Jesus feared, and the matter was settled with fixed finality.
The
Bible refers to events as finished when the matter is settled in heaven even
though it is not yet finalized on the
earth (see Rev. 12). Paul speaks of God in Romans 4 as He Who "calls
things that are not as though they were". The surrender of Christ in the
Garden to the will of God is certainly the fixed point of no return concerning
the death of Christ. This night in the garden, Jesus entered into his covenant of
death with his Father. In a figure, it might be possible to construe this as
the figurative night of his death and his entrance into 'the heart of the
earth'. Certainly, if there is to be any kind of fulfillment of spending three
nights in the heart of the earth, the events in the garden must be construed to
be the first night.
The
alternative to Thursday night Christ's first night in the heart of the earth is
to rely on a portion of a day being recognized as a day in entirety (day and
night). This is probably a more realistic solution because of the great weight
of scriptural evidence in the usage of the terms 'three days' and 'third day'.
A brief overview of a few of these general statements may be useful for this
discussion.
Genesis
40:13 states that Pharaoh's birthday was on the third day, fulfilling Joseph's
prophesy in a three day period. In Judges 14:12, Samson set forth a riddle which was to be answered in
seven days. When the answer came the text says, "the men of the city said
unto him on the seventh day before the sun went down (v18)." This
circumstance is clearly one in which the time-frame mattered, and the deadline
was anytime before the sun went down
on the seventh day.
A
more poignant illustration is found in 2 Chronicles 10:5, 12. King Rehoboam
commanded Jereboam to come "after
three days" but he came on the
third day. In verse 12, the king's words were repeated saying, "Come again
to me on the third day".
Interpretation? After three days is
fulfilled when the event occurs on
the third day. This is important in reflecting upon the use of three days in
the cultural setting of Israel. While it seems to be a standard (there are 61 references
to three day timetables in Bible history), the usage is more general and less
of a description of exactly 24 hour days. Three days are used to refer to
activities that cover a portion of any day, whether the earliest hours of one
day, or the last hours of another.
Ezra
the priest decreed a holy convocation in three days which clearly required the
men to assemble by, or on the third day (Ezra 10:8). Queen Esther proclaimed a
three day fast before she would come before the king. The account clearly
states that she approached the king on
the third day.
When
"three days" are used in the Gospels, most of the references are to
the resurrection of Jesus. Most frequently, in a reference to the temple being
rebuilt in three days as a prophecy of the resurrection of Christ (Mt. 26:21;
27:40; Mk. 14:18; 15:29; Jn. 2:19-20). The time-frame for the temple to be rebuilt was
clearly within three days. Sundown on
the third day after its 'destruction' would be the deadline for it to be
'rebuilt'. Any time before sundown of the third day would qualify. The first
day would be reckoned on the day it was 'destroyed'.
These
reckonings also reflect the understanding of the resurrection prophecies that
the unbelieving chief priests had heard. When they mocked Jesus on the Cross
they quoted it and when they made their request of Pilate to set a watch over
Jesus' tomb they referenced it. Their request was until the third day, "Sir, we remember that this deceiver
said, After three days I will rise
again. Command therefore that the sepulcher be made sure until the third day", (Matt. 27:63b-64). This is very similar
to the patterns expressed in the Old Testament.
A
brief look at the term 'third day' is also beneficial at this point. A very
clear parallel usage of third day is found in Leviticus 19:6. "[The
sacrifice] shall be eaten the same day you offer it, and on the morrow: and if
ought remain until the third day, it shall be burnt in the fire." Here we
clearly see a three day pattern for a temple sacrifice. The day of the
sacrifice is considered day one, the day after the sacrifice is day two and the
third day started the beginning of the next day. Jesus, the sacrificial lamb
easily falls within this three day parameter if he were sacrificed on day one
(Friday) lay buried on day two (Saturday) and was raised again on the third day
(Sunday). This is the traditional view.
An
additional note of interest concerning the Leviticus 19 passage is how the
construction in the law defines corruption of a sacrifice. Any portion that
remained until the third day was to be burned with fire because of corruption.
"For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine
Holy One to see corruption (Psalm16:10)." The sacrificial implication is
too clear to ignore. Jesus was the sacrificial lamb, and his resurrection was
the only means for him to escape the corruption in the grave that the law
considers to begin on the third day.
Reflecting
on all the information, it is most likely that the Passover feast started on
Thursday evening with Jesus being arrested that evening. Friday was the day of
preparation for the High Sabbath Day, a
Sabbath in conjunction with the Passover/Feast of Unleavened Bread. On Friday,
Jesus was tried before Pilate and Herod and was Crucified. The Hour of the
crucificixion was the sixth hour and continued until Jesus' death at the ninth
hour. (Many scholars believe that the morning hour was set at sunrise. This
being the case, the sixth hour was noon and the ninth hour was 3pm. using the time frame of today.) Sunset established the end
of day and beginning of night, this would have been anytime from the twelfth
hour to the fourteenth hour, depending upon the actual time of sunset. Using
the Levitical method for calculating sacrifices, Christ died around the time of
the afternoon sacrifice, the same time the Passover lambs were killed the
preceding day.
Using
these assumptions, Friday, daytime was
the first day, and Friday, evening was the first night. Jesus continued in the
grave throughout the entire day and evening on Saturday, the second day, and he
rose from the dead sometime at or prior to sunrise on the third day, or the
first day of the week.
From
the biblical text, it is difficult to construct a Thursday Crucifixion because
the Sabbath was the reason for getting the bodies off the crosses, and Sunday
follows the Sabbath pretty directly. This conclusion impacts the interpretation
of Jonah's three days and three nights in the belly of the whale in Jesus'
comparison to his own death. Three days and nights would necessarily be a
general reference similar to many of the three day sequences in the scriptural
record. The simple interpretation is, one day equals "evening and
morning" and a partial day is credited as a whole day, meaning a day in
its entirety. Certainly, there is nothing in the text to suggest that Jesus'
usage of the "three days and three nights" reference was not in
keeping with the general cultural understanding of the Jews and should not be
subjected to a scrutiny that makes it mean something more than in other Old
Testament references, historically speaking.