Chapter 1.

Good Wednesday

 

 

This chapter is copied from another book by Roger W. Gruen, “The BIBLE Says THAT?”.  Why?  Because, to understand the chronology of Holy Week, one must first establish, with precision, the day of the week on which Christ was Crucified.  Once that has been ccomplished, one can correctly interpret some vague verses that refer to events that precede the “Last Supper”.

 

 

Jesus was Crucified on Wednesday, April 3, A.D. 30; not on the following Friday. 

 

To see this, we need to place in order some of the events of Holy Week, the week preceding Christ’s Resurrection.  And, we must differentiate between the way we presently reckon days of the week and the way the Jews of Jesus' day accounted days of the week.  So, we have attached "(USA)" or "(JWH)" to day-of-week references in the following discussion. 

 

Here's how we know Christ died on a (USA) Wednesday afternoon. 

 

 

 

Jesus Was In His Tomb

3 Days And 3 Nights.

 

First, we know Jesus rose on Easter Sunday, the first day of the week following His death on the Cross.  Second, Jesus clearly predicted that He would be in His tomb 3 days and 3 nights.  Here is what He said in Matthew's hearing ...

... 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.  (Matthew 12:40)

 

Third, Jesus was placed in His tomb shortly after sundown, as a new Jewish day was beginning.  So, the pattern of His stay in the earth was night 1, day 1; night 2, day 2; and night 3, day 3, exactly 3 Jewish days.  From these facts, we can step back through Holy Week and prove to ourselves that Jesus was slain on Wednesday afternoon. 

   

No other day of the week fits Jesus’ prophecy.  Every other day either leaves Jesus in the ground for more than 3 days and 3 nights or for less than 3 days and 3 nights, and Jesus said He would be in the earth 3 days and 3 nights.  Some might protest, saying, “If so, Jesus completed His stay in the tomb shortly after  (USA) Saturday sundown at the very beginning of the first Easter, (JWH) Sunday.”  True.  The Gospels tell us He was gone Sunday morning at sunrise, but they do not say how long He had been gone.  For sure, the angel did not roll the stone away from the door of the tomb to allow Jesus to come out.  No, He was already gone.  The angel rolled back the stone to let devout women and men see that the tomb was empty.  In His resurrection body, Jesus was able to pass through locked doors without opening them.  The rock walls of His tomb could not hold Him.  As we shall see, He was wound up in grave cloths like an Egyptian mummy, but He floated through these windings and through the walls of His crypt with ease.  

 

 

 

Not Every Sabbath

Is a Saturday Sabbath.

 

To grasp the truths of the Scriptures explored below, we must understand that not every Sabbath is a Saturday Sabbath.  You’ve been taught that a Jewish Sabbath begins at (USA) Friday sundown and extends to (USA) Saturday sundown.  True, but your Bible teaches that there are many non-Saturday Sabbath days also.  For instance, in Leviticus, God set forth rules for the new Jewish nation.  Every 7th year, the Jews were to refrain from their normal employments for the whole year and spend their time studying God's Word intensely.  This was a whole year of Sabbaths.  And, after 7 sets of 7 years, the 50th year was to be a “Year of Jubilee”.  It, too, was a year of Sabbath days.  So, the 49th and 50th years were to be a 2 year period of Sabbaths. 

 

More important to this discussion, however, is the fact that certain special holy days were also observed as Sabbaths.  Such was (JWH) Thursday of Holy Week.  John makes special mention of it. 

The Jews therefore, because it [(JWH) Wednesday] was the preparation [a day to get ready for (JWH) Thursday, the first day of the “Feast of Unleavened Bread”], that the bodies [of Jesus and the 2 men crucified with Him] should not remain upon the cross on the sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was an high day,) besought Pilate that their legs might be broken [to ensure their immediate death by suffocation], and that they might be taken away [for burial].  (John 19:31)

 

We shall see, by carefully comparing Scripture passages, that Jesus’ body was removed from His Cross  before sunset (USA) Wednesday, because (JWH) Thursday, a special non-Saturday Sabbath, was about to begin.  Then, (JWH) Friday was a day of commerce followed by (JWH) Saturday, a regular Saturday Sabbath, followed by Easter Sunday, the first day of a new week and a new world. 

 

Let's examine in sequence some of the events of Holy Week:

 

* (USA) Tuesday evening, at the beginning

  of (JWH) Wednesday.

 

Jesus and His Apostles held their Passover

Feast 1 day earlier than usual.  Just as many today celebrate Thanksgiving more than once, the Jews of Jesus’ day might attend more than one Passover Feast on more than one evening.  The Apostle John corroborates the fact that Jesus held His last Passover a day early in 2 pivotal verses.   First, at the beginning of his description of this event, now called the “Last Supper”, John says it occurred ...

... before the feast of the Passover ...

(John 13:1)

Thus, John indicates the supper took place earlier than normal.  Second, John says that after supper when Judas left to betray Jesus ...

... some [of the Apostles] thought Jesus was telling him to buy what was needed for the festival ...  (John 13:29 NIV)

Thus, John indicates that the official celebrations of the Passover and the “Feast of Unleavened Bread” were yet in the future.  These verses, and other considerations we shall discuss, verify that the “Last Supper” was held one day before the date set for the Passover Meal in the Laws of Moses.

 

Why?  Because Jesus wanted to share the feast with His men before He went to the Cross, and He knew He would be on the Cross about 9:00 the next morning.  On this occasion, Jesus washed the feet of His Apostles, instituted the Lord’s Supper, dispatched Judas to work his wicked act of betrayal, gave a farewell address, and led His Apostles in the singing of a hymn, before He led them to the Garden of Gethsemane, where He was arrested.

 

* (USA) and (JWH) Wednesday, daylight

  hours.

 

On this most important day in history, the ancient practice of offering animal sacrifices for the forgiveness of sins reached its climax.  It had been instituted by God in the Garden of Eden.  When Adam and Eve first sinned, they were ashamed, and they were afraid of God.  But lovingly, God gave them a way to rid themselves of their guilt and the stain sin had placed on their souls.  He explained that when a man sins, he deserves to die and suffer in Hell eternally, but such a man could transfer his sins to a substitute, an appropriate animal, that would die in his stead, leaving him sin-free and Heaven-bound.

 

God had the worried couple erect an altar and charge it with fire.  He showed them how to select an appropriate animal.  He had them lay their hands on its head and pray, asking God to transfer their sins to it.  As He slit the animal’s throat, He caught some of its blood in a cup and sprinkled it about the base of the altar.  Then, He showed Adam and Eve how to divide the animal and offer it as a sin-sacrifice to Himself, thus absolving them of their sins.  In a further act of love, God made coats of skin for them and clothed them. 

 

Adam and Eve made sure that their offspring knew how to offer sin-sacrifices.  And so, for centuries, believers transferred their sins to sacrifice victims and trusted that their sin-stains were erased as the sin-bearing animals were slain and sacrificed.

 

At noon on this unique Wednesday, the ancient animal-sacrifice system closed.  A horrific event occurred.  The Earth was enveloped in a “plague of blackness”.  No one could light a torch.  Flames of candles and lamps and fires were extinguished.  Hours of darkness ensued.  Gloom and doom could be felt.  During this blackout, a new sin-sacrifice system was inaugurated.  Jesus became the Ultimate Sacrifice Victim, the Perfect Sin-Bearer.  All the sins of all believers of all times were heaped on Him; all the sins of ancient believers, all the sins of Christians, even the sins Christians would commit in the future were laid on Him.  The nails in His hands caused savage muscle spasms in His arms and shoulders.  The spikes in His feet sent vicious shockwaves up His legs.  The thorns pounded into His skull made His head throb with pain, and the lash wounds on His backside burned intensely.  But, more than all these, the mountain of sin that was pressed on the only One who had never sinned caused Him immeasurable anguish.  The human facet of Jesus cried out, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me?”  Soon, Jesus died and the Final Sin-Sacrifice was complete. 

 

God had used the ancient sacrifice system as a schoolmaster to teach believers that they could off-load their sins to a sacrifice victim.  Each of those sacrifices pointed to the Cross.  The relief granted by them was valid, but temporary.  Ultimately, all of those pre-Cross sins were laid on Jesus and permanently erased.  Just as John the Baptist noted at the onset of Jesus’ ministry, Jesus became, and He still is, “the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world”.

 

As Jesus endured the Cross from 9:00 A.M. until 3:00, most Jews were not aware of the import of this event.  They were preoccupied with preparations for their Passover Feasts, scheduled for sundown.  When God cloaked the world with darkness, all these activities ceased.  God was transferring all the sins of all believers of all times to Jesus.  He allowed no one to see the agony of the Savior.  When the transfer was completed, Jesus exclaimed, “It is finished!”  When daylight returned, Jesus died.

 

It was 3:00 o’clock.  Sundown was coming.  The Jews were hard-pressed to complete their preparations for Passover.  Hurriedly, they killed their Passover Lambs, not connecting that act to the fact that their Messiah, the “Lamb of God”, had just been killed on Mount Calvary. 

 

In just a few days, Jesus would rise from the grave and organize His followers into the New Testament Church.  The members of this body would tell everyone, “The days of animal sin-sacrifices are over.  The Ultimate Sacrifice was made when Jesus died on the Cross.  Henceforth, to rid yourself of the stain of sin, go to the Cross in your prayers.  Confess your sins to Jesus.  Lay them on Him, the Ultimate Sin-Bearer.  Then, Jesus will forgive you and fill you with His righteousness.”

 

Two of Jesus’ followers, Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, were members of the Sanhedrin, the Jew’s high court.  These men and some helpers removed Jesus’ body from the Cross.  It was not an easy undertaking, and to comply with Mosaic Law, it had to be done by sundown. 

 

When Joseph heard that Jesus had died, he went to Pilate to ask for permission to bury Him.  When he arrived at Pilates’s headquarters, he had to wait for an audience with the Governor.  Then, Pilate sent an officer to Mount Calvary to verify that Jesus was dead.  Joseph waited.  When the officer returned and said it was so, Pilate gave Joseph the permission he sought.  Then, Joseph gathered together his helpers.  They purchased grave cloths and spices and set these and some tools and a large basin of water on a cart and had draft animals pull it to Calvary.

 

The men uprooted the Cross and laid it on the ground.  They freed Jesus’ body and placed it on their cart.  And, Joseph led them into a nearby cemetery garden which included a tomb he owned.  All this was done by sundown with little time to spare.

 

* (JWH) Thursday.

 

As the sun set, (JWH) Thursday began.  Most Jews were participating in Passover Feasts.  But, Joseph, Nicodemus and their helpers would not be able to join in such celebrations.  They were ceremonially unclean.  They had touched the remains of a dead man.  Anyway, they needed to get Jesus’ body ready for burial.

 

It was still light.  They solemnly washed Jesus’ body.  Then, they carefully wound strips of linen cloth around Him, sprinkling in sweet-smelling spices.  As they worked they recited traditional prayers and Scripture verses.  They felt impelled to hurry as the light faded, but they were also hesitant to place Jesus in the tomb.  They had been greatly inspired by Him, and suddenly, He was gone.  As the sky dimmed, they placed His body in Joseph’s tomb and rolled a great stone to its door.  They departed with heavy hearts.

 

Matthew says, the men placed Jesus ...

... in his [Joseph’s] own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock: and he rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre, and departed.  And there was Mary Magdalene, and the other Mary, sitting over against the sepulchre.  (Matthew 27:60-61)

 

Mark says ...

... Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses beheld where he was laid.  (Mark 15:47) 

    

Luke, speaking of Joseph taking care of Christ's body, says ...

... 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.  And that day was the preparation [day (for the Passover Feast)], and the [“High Day”] sabbath drew on.  And the women also, which came with him from Galilee, followed after, and beheld the sepulchre, and how his body was laid.  And they returned ...  (Luke 23:53-56)

 

And, John says ...

Then took they the body of Jesus, and wound it in linen clothes with the spices, as the manner of the Jews is to bury.  Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden; and in the garden a new sepulchre, wherein was never man yet laid. There laid they Jesus therefore because of the Jews' preparation day; for the sepulchre was nigh at hand.  (John 19:40-42)

 

At sundown (USA) Wednesday, a new Jewish day had begun.  It was the first day of the seven-day “Feast of Unleavened Bread”, a holy “High Day”, a special, non-Saturday Sabbath.

 

Each family celebrating Passover made a final check of their premises to be sure that any leavening agent of any kind had been cast out.

 

Next, each father made sure that his entire family was inside the residence for the night.  Then, he took a bowl holding blood, which he had collected when his Passover Lamb was slaughtered, to the front door of his home.  He dipped a sprig of hyssop into the bowl and sprinkled the blood; first, on the lintel (the top) of the doorframe and then on each side of the frame.  Unwittingly, he had drawn in the air a sketch of Jesus’ Cross with the sprig that had been dipped in the blood of his Passover Lamb.

 

Since thousands of Jewish families came to Jerusalem for Passover Week, many of them rented hotel rooms or pitched tents on campgrounds near the Temple.  They had to improvise, placing the blood of their lambs on the doors to their rented rooms or the entrances to their tents.

 

Then, each family ate their Passover Feast.        During the meal, the older family members told      the younger how God had delivered the      Israelites from slavery in Egypt.  They      recounted the series of judgments God had      laid on the Egyptians to force Pharaoh to free the Jews.  Especially, they focused on the last judgment -- when the firstborn of each family in Egypt was to be slain in one night -- and how God had told each Israelite father to sacrifice a Passover Lamb and sprinkle its blood on the doorframe of his hone -- and how God had pledged, “When I see the blood, I will pass over you.  Your firstborn will not die.”

 

This ritual foreshadowed an important teaching of the New Testament Church, which would soon be formed.

Let us draw near [to God] with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled [with the Sacrificial Blood of Jesus] from an evil conscience ...

(Hebrews 10:22)

The Church would proclaim, “If you will, prayerfully, go to the Cross, confess your sins to Jesus, and ask Him to take them away, He will sprinkle your heart with His Sacrificial Blood, He will cleanse you of all your sins, and He will fill you with His righteousness.  And, God will pass over you in the Final Judgment.”

 

* (USA) and (JWH) Thursday, the  daylight

  hours of the “High Day” Sabbath.

 

Matthew says ...

Now the next day, that followed the day of the preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees came together unto Pilate, saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again. 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.  Pilate said unto them, Ye have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can.  So they went, and made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch. (Matthew 27:62-66)

 

Also that day, some of the women among Jesus’ followers decided that Jesus had not received a proper burial.  They had watched as Joseph and Nicodemus hurriedly washed Jesus’ body and wrapped it in grave cloths interspersed with spices, but they felt Jesus deserved a better burial.  So, they formulated a plan to re-wash Jesus’ body, anoint it with ointments, and re-wrap it carefully.  That day being a “High Day” Sabbath, they could not begin their preparations for their visit to the tomb.  They had to wait till the shops opened on (USA) Friday.

 

* (USA) and (JWH) Friday, the daylight

  hours, a day of commerce.

 

Mark says ...

... when the [“High Day”] sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him.  (Mark 16:1)

 

This passage pinpoints when these Christian women bought a supply of spices and ointments, that is, after the Thursday, “High Day” Sabbath.  And, Luke tells us they needed some time to prepare what they had purchased for Jesus’ re-burial.  He says that on that day of commerce the ladies ...

... prepared spices and ointments ...

(Luke 23:56)

 

* (USA) and (JWH) Saturday.

 

Next, Luke tells us these Christian women were constrained from returning to the tomb immediately.  They had to wait out the Saturday Sabbath that occurred after they had prepared the spices.  He says they ... 

... rested the sabbath day according          to the commandment.  (Luke 23:56)

Interestingly, Luke indicates that the Sabbath they rested was a Saturday Sabbath, which was specifically instituted in the Ten Commandments.  It was not a special, festival Sabbath. 

 

Please note.  The traditional chronology set forth for a Good Friday Crucifixion does not allow for the women to buy spices and ointments after a Sabbath and then, prepare them and then, rest a Sabbath before going to the tomb of Jesus on Easter Sunday morning. 

                  

Also, note these words from Leviticus ...

In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the LORD's passover.  And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the LORD: seven days ye must eat unleavened bread. In the first day ye shall have an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein.  (Leviticus 23:5-7)

So, the 15th  of Nisan was a special Sabbath.  It was the first day of the seven-day “Feast of Unleavened Bread”.  It was the day John referred to as a holy “High Day”.

 

The ladies who wished to re-bury Jesus could not forward their project on the 15th, a Thursday Sabbath.  On the 16th they purchased the materials they needed and prepared them.  The 17th was a Saturday Sabbath, so they had to wait till the 18th to return to Jesus’ tomb.  This arrangement of Sabbaths does not occur every year.  Comparing the Jewish calendar to our current calendar, this pattern of Sabbaths did occur in A.D. 27, A.D. 30, and A.D. 37.  One of these must be the year Jesus was crucified.  But, which one?

 

Consider this.  We know that Jesus was alive when “Herod the Great”, who had tried to kill baby Jesus, died.  Secular history tells us Herod died in 4 B.C.  At that time, Jesus, Mary and Joseph were in Egypt.  Matthew explains ...

... when they [the wise men] were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.  When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt: And was there until the death of Herod ...  (Matthew 2:13-15)

 

It seems strange that Jesus was alive in the “B.C.”, the “Before Christ”, era.  That quirk is due to adjustments in our calendaring system over the last 2 millennia.  So, Jesus was probably born in 5 or 4 B.C.  Also, according to Luke 3:23, Jesus was about 30 years old as He began His ministry.  And, a careful reading of the 4 Gospels implies that Jesus’ ministry lasted at least 3 years but not as much as 4.  Therefore, since Jesus was 33 or 34 years old when He was executed, and He was born in 4 B.C., we must choose A.D. 30 as the year of His death.  Wednesday, Nisan 14 in the Jewish year 3790 corresponds to April 3, A.D. 30.

 

* (USA) Easter Sunday morning.

 

Matthew 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.  (Matthew 28:1)

 

This verse is of great significance.  In it, the word translated “Sabbath” is “Sabbaths” in our best source manuscripts for the New Testament.  This is stated in many scholarly texts: Fenton's Translation, Green's Literal Translation, Marshall's Interlinear Greek-English New Testament, and Young's Literal Translation.  Thus, this verse documents the fact that the women waited through 2 Sabbath days before returning to Jesus’ tomb: a  Thursday Sabbath and a Saturday Sabbath.

 

Mark says ...

... very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun.  (Mark 16:2)

 

Luke says ...

... 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.  (Luke 24:1)

 

And, John 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. (John 20:1)

 

What did these Christians see when they looked inside the tomb?  They saw the wrappings, which had been wound around Jesus’ body, strangely undisturbed.  The grave cloths were intact, but there was nothing inside them.  Jesus had floated free from them and through the stone walls of His tomb.

 

Hallelujah!  Jesus is risen.  That's the important

fact.  But, considering the evidence, it seems certain that Christ died for our sins on Good Wednesday, April 3, A.D. 30.

 

 

 

Addendum

 

The chronology detailed herein is disputed because some Bible verses seem to invalidate it.  As stated above, we believe that Jesus entered Jerusalem in glory on Palm Sunday, was Crucified on Wednesday, and presented Himself as the Risen Lord on the first Easter Sunday.  But, let’s look at some Bible passages that are used to discredit this timeline.

 

Consider this passage from Matthew ...

On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Where do you want us to make preparations for you to eat the Passover?” He replied, “Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, ‘The Teacher says: My appointed time is near. I am going to celebrate the Passover with my disciples at your house.’” So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and prepared the Passover. When evening came, Jesus was reclining at the table with the Twelve.  (Matthew 26:17-20 NIV)

 

At first reading, verse 17 seems to say that the Apostles waited till Nisan 15, the “High Sabbath” that began the “Feast of Unleavened Bread”, to prepare for their Passover Meal.  That is not conceivable.  Since the 15th was a High Sabbath, no Jew would have prepared a festive meal on that day.  Normally, the Jews prepared their Passover Meal during the daylight hours of Nisan 14 and ate it during the twilight hours at the beginning of the 15th.

 

What really happened during Holy Week in A.D. 30?   As always, preparations for Passover and the “Feast of Unleavened Bread” were complicated, thorough and exhausting.  Each residence had to be cleansed of any residue of leaven.  Anything that had touched a food or beverage containing leaven had to be scrubbed.  The strictest Jews insisted on using a special set of pots and pans and utensils and tableware for preparing the Passover and all the meals they would eat during the following week. 

 

In A.D. 30, the Passover Meal and the meals for the “High Sabbath” were prepared on Wednesday.  To ensure that these meals had no contact with leaven, the cleansing of leaven was completed on Monday and Tuesday, and all meals prepared on Tuesday were made without leaven to ensure that any leftovers would not corrupt the foods prepared on Wednesday.  Thus, the “unofficial” start of the “Feast of Unleavened Bred” was Tuesday.  “Young’s Literal Translation of the Bible” supports this conclusion.  It says Matthew 26:17 should read, “... on the first [day] of the unleavened food ...”, distinguishing that day from the “High Sabbath” that began the 7 day “Feast of Unleavened Bread”.

 

So, it was on Tuesday evening, the start of Nisan 14, that the Apostles and Jesus celebrated Passover, one day earlier than normal.  Jesus wanted to have this “Last Supper” with His disciples before He went to the Cross on Wednesday.

 

Similarly, Mark addresses the preparations for the “Last Supper”.

... the first day of unleavened bread, when they killed the passover, his disciples said unto him, Where wilt thou that we go and prepare that thou mayest eat the passover? (Mark 14:12)

 

Again, we know Mark did not mean that Jesus and His

disciples waited until Nisan 15 to prepare their Passover Meal.  So, Mark must have been referring to the “unofficial” start of the unleavened bread celebration on Tuesday.  Therefore, verse 12 means, “On the day the Jews began preparing and eating unleavened bread in anticipation of the ‘Feast of Unleavened Bread’ celebration during which their Passover Lambs would be killed, Jesus and His Apostles made plans for their Passover Meal.”

 

And, Luke relates the events of Holy Week in like manner.

Then came the day of unleavened bread, when the passover must be killed.  (Luke 22:7)

Again, “the day of unleavened bread” refers to the “unofficial” beginning of the celebration, and “when the passover must be killed” refers to the Passover Meal preparations on Wednesday.

 

Also note, Mark opens chapter 14 with this statement ...

Now the Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread were only two days away ...

(Mark 14:1  NIV)

This passage comes after a recitation of numerous activities that transpired on Tuesday morning.  So, the phrase, “two days”, must mean “after today and tomorrow are over, Passover and the ‘Feast of Unleavened Bread’ will begin.”