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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | 3 days and 3 nights as a Hebrew idiom | Matt 12:40 | gospelmidi | 2288 | ||
[Please add comments to Glenn M. Miller's note.] QUESTION: Jesus said he was going to be in the earth (buried) for three days and three nights. If he died on Friday and rose on Sunday morning, how is this three days and three nights? ANSWER: This is one of the easier ones...the Jews counted PART of a day or night as a WHOLE day or nite, so part of Friday, all of Sat, part of Sun would be 'three days and three nights'--it was a Hebrew idiom of the day... We do the same thing of course...if I say I worked at the office all day, 'all day' normally doesn't mean 24 hours...it means most of the daylight hours or whatever... This fits with the other predictions that says 'on the third day'... [Another person comments:] Thus, the meaning and implication of the phrases "Full Day", "Whole Day" and the word "Day", can and normally does change with a change in whatever it has been used with reference to. For instance, if I say: "I stayed in America, for three days and three nights", now the word "day" is being used here in the absolute sense. Thus, one day and one night, should be a full circle. Dont you think so? [Glenn M. Miller replies:] It is important to recognize first off, that the issue of "Don't you think so?" needs to be answered definitively 'no'... Idiomatic expressions in other cultures don't have to make ANY sense to us at all. Our job as readers of the literature from another culture is to try to understand THEIR idioms, rather than judge them. So, with that in mind, let me answer the request above for the data that supports my original statement ("What is the source of this information about the referred Jewish tradition?") Although I cannot list it all, let me give the main references available. Let me cite data from three sources: the OT, the Rabbinix, and one NT passage. 1. The OT data (to show that 'on the third day' equals 'after three days') Gen 42.16: "And he put them all in custody for three days. 18 On the third day, Joseph said to them, "Do this and you will live, for I fear God" and they are released ON that day [from the context of verses 25-26]. In this case the 'for three days' meant only 'into the third day.' 1 Kings 20.29: "For seven days they camped opposite each other, and on the seventh day the battle was joined." In this case we have 'for seven days' mean[ing] only 'into the seventh day'. 2 Chr 10.5: "And he said to them, 'Return to me again in three days" (NAS) with verse 12: "So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam on the third day as the king had directed, saying, 'Return to me on the third day.'" In this case 'in three days' is equivalent to 'on the third day.' Esther 4.16: "Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maids will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish." And then in 5.1: "On the third day Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the palace, in front of the king's hall." In this case, "on the third day" is equivalent to "for three days, night or day". 1 Samuel 30.12: "He ate and was revived, for he had not eaten any food or drunk any water for three days and three nights. 13 David asked him, "To whom do you belong, and where do you come from?" He said, "I am an Egyptian, the slave of an Amalekite. My master abandoned me when I became ill three days ago." In this case "for three days and three nights" somehow was fulfilled when his master left him 'three days ago'. "Thus, the Old Testament gives the picture that the expressions 'three days,' 'the third day,' and 'three days and three nights' are used to signify the same period of time." [NT:CALC:73] 2. The Rabbinical literature also manifests this idiomatic range: Rabbi Eleazar ben Azariah, tenth in the descent from Ezra was very specific: "A day and a night are an Onah ['a portion of time'] and the portion of an Onah is as the whole of it" [J.Talmud, Shabbath 9.3 and b.Talmud, Pesahim 4a] This understanding was used in the numerous correlations between Jonah 1.17 ('in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights') and the OT passages cited above [e.g. Mid.Rabbath on Genesis 56 (on 22.4); Genesis 91.7 (on 42.17-18)]. 3. There is one NT passage that indicates this Jewish idiom. Matt 27.63: "Sir," they said, "we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, 'After three days I will rise again.' 64 So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day." Note that 'after three days' was somehow equivalent to 'until the third day' (not 'until the fourth day'). This data should demonstrate the rough equivalence of the NT phrases. Hope this helps, Glenn M. Miller |
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2 | Did I offend you? | Matt 12:40 | EdB | 2618 | ||
Gospelmidi, in your response I sense some issues, if I in any way offended you please accept my most sincere and humblest apology. Please excuse my tardiness to respond to the points raised, but I needed time to verify what I believe to be correct was in fact correct. The theory I presented was not my own, but I was first lead to it by a Messianic Jewish Rabbi. I was unable to contact him to verify my conjecture so I went to another very reliable Messianic Jew. That person then referred me to still another Jewish scholar and both agree that the Passover is called a Sabbath. Therefore I feel fairly comfortable in making that connection. Jews do call the Holy convocation of Passover a Sabbath. It is called Shabbat Gadol or High Sabbath or Shabbaton. Also the day before the Passover is called the day of preparation. Now as far as crucifixion taking place on Friday, let us reason together using your original premise or “Hebrew Idioms”. First let us establish some facts and then proceed from there. First we know Jesus died on the cross in the ninth hour Matthew 27:45-50. Secondly we know the on the morning of the “First day of the Week” the tomb was empty Matthew 28:1-6. Thirdly we know that Jesus said that just as Jonah was in the belly of a whale for three days and three nights so would the Son of Man be. Matthew 12:40. Now those are the facts and I think we all agree to those. Now examine the popular teaching that Jesus was crucified on Friday. The Bible places time of death as some time after 3 PM and before the next day which starts at 6PM. Let’s figure Joseph and his servants was able to place Jesus in the grave within an hour of His death. We then have from 4Pm to 6Pm or one partial day. Starting at 6PM and going through 6Pm would be the Jewish Saturday or the Sabbath. So we have 1 full night and 1 full day. Then at 6PM Saturday we now begin the Jewish Sunday so we have another full night and since the Tomb was empty on the Sunday morning sometime after 6AM we will count another partial day. Lets add it up 2 partial days (going with the idiom factor we count them as 2 days), 1 full day and 2 nights. The results would be 3 days and two nights. We are short 1 night either full or partial. Since Jesus clearly said he would be in the heart of the earth 3 days and 3 nights something must be wrong, we need at least one more night. I submit the only way we can get that night is move the crucifixion back to Thursday instead of Friday. To further emphasize my point I made the statement that if Jesus was crucified on the Friday the Jews would be violating a Holy Convocation Sabbath. The point was brought up that while that was true, however the Romans held no respect for the Sabbath and the they were the ones that crucified Jesus. Scripture is very clear here, the Jews were active participants in the Crucifixion. Furthermore just walking from Anna’s house to the Temple to Pilate Quarters then to Herod’s Palace then back to Pilate and finally to Golgotha would have more than violated the allotted Sabbath steps. To say nothing of holding a trial on a Sabbath or to stage what I think we can all agree to be a demonstration. Finally a point was made that we have to study and understand the culture of the people at the time a book is written to get the full understanding of the message the book is trying to convey to it’s reader. I think this is exactly what happened. Early church scholars with little or no knowledge of Jewish tradition read that the Jews were anxious to get the men down from the crosses because of the forthcoming Sabbath. Not being aware that Passover and Feast of Unleaven Bread were Sabbaths they assumed it was the weekly Sabbath that was being referred to. Hence we have church tradition. I realize this issue has been a topic of many ongoing debates and will probably not be settled until Jesus Himself sets the record clear. Men far wiser and more learned than I have taken both sides of the discussion and it truly doesn’t effect our salvation one way or the other. I presented my thoughts on the subject so that others could, if they so decided, use it as an answer to the question about what appears to be a conflict in the Bible’s account of the Crucifixion and Resurrection story. I certainly did not to do it to challenge you or to use it as an occasion to attack you. Again if I have caused you any offense please accept my apology. |
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3 | Did I offend you? | Matt 12:40 | gospelmidi | 2632 | ||
EdB wrote: I realize this issue has been a topic of many ongoing debates and will probably not be settled until Jesus Himself sets the record clear. Men far wiser and more learned than I have taken both sides of the discussion and it truly doesn’t effect our salvation one way or the other. _____________________ Hello EdB, I appreciate your "tone of voice" here, so I will relax a bit. Messiah Jesus is our Passover, and in Him, days, months, and years are irrelevant. So let's see how far I can travel this road in agreement with you. Inasmuch as Dec. 21 is the longest day of the year in Jerusalem, after Mar. 22, evening begins no earlier than 6PM and the morning no later than 6AM. But for the sake of convenience, we will agree on 6PM and 6AM. Then the first hour is from 6AM to 7AM, and the ninth hour, when Jesus died, from 2PM to 3PM. That gives Joseph of Arimathea from at least 3 hours to a little over 4 hours to complete Jesus' burial. Thursday crucifixion matches the 3 days and 3 nights of Mt 12:40 perfectly: until 6PM Thursday - one day until 6AM Friday - one night until 6PM Friday - one day until 6AM Saturday - one night until 6PM Saturday - one day until sometime before dawn Sunday - one night. On the first day of the week, the women came early to the tomb, while it was still dark (Mt 28:1; Jo 20:1), and found that He had risen. We agree so far. BUT... He was raised on the third day. To nail down the meaning of "the third day," we need to look at other occurrences of this phrase. Be persuaded that it does not mean, "three days later." "And there was evening and there was morning, one day... a second day... a third day." (Gen 1:5, 8, and 13). "Come, let us return to the Lord. For He has torn us, but He will heal us; He has wounded us, but He will bandage us. He will revive us after two days; He will raise us up on the third day that we may live before Him." (Hos 6:1-2). So "day one" is the day of the event, and the "third day" is two days later. "The third day" is used similarly in: Gen 42:17-18 Ex 19:10-11 Lev 7:16-17 Lev 19:6-7 Num 29:12,17,20 Judg 20:21,24,30 I Sa 20:12 II Sa 1:1-2 Esth 4:16 and 5:1 Mt 16:21 Mt 17:23 Mt 27:64 Mk 9:31 Mk 10:34 Lu 9:22 Lu 13:32 Lu 18:33 Lu 24:7 Lu 24:21 Lu 24:46 Ac 10:40 Ac 27:17-19 I Co 15:3-4 If you want a contrary interpretation of "the third day," look at Gen 40:13,20 and I Ki 12:5,12 (II Ch 10:5,12). But with these two exceptions, "the third day" is idiomatic in the scriptures, meaning, "the day after tomorrow." Therefore, my never-humble opinion is that Jesus died between 2 and 3PM on Friday, and He rose again before dawn on Sunday, "the day after tomorrow," or "the third day." I base this on the context of all the rest of scripture, excluding Mt 12:40 (plus Gen 40:13,20 and I Ki 12:5,12, if you wish). So what are we to do with this pesky prophecy from the Messiah Himself? I prefer to leave it as one of those unanswerable conundrums, a paradox we will have to wait until that Day to understand. Any human interpretation will never settle this debate, any more than man can establish peace in Jerusalem. If that won't satisfy the western mind, which demands closure on every issue and an answer for every riddle, the best I know is to use the Hebrew idiom, "an evening and a morning," meaning a day or a part of a day. Then, "3 days and 3 nights" can be s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d to mean three 24-hour days or parts of a 24-hour day. Friday until sunset, Saturday until sunset, and thereafter until His resurrection satisfies that definition. But I'm not sure about that, either. It appears to be a question to hold on to until Jesus comes. |
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