Three Days and Three Nights
PROBLEM
In Matthew 12:40 Jesus indicated he would be in the tomb for “three days and three nights” an expression in our time and culture that implies three 24 hour time periods, or 72 hours. The rest of the biblical record, however, indicates the time was considerably shorter (Friday afternoon to Sunday morning). How do we harmonize this apparent disagreement? An understanding of Hebrew idiom is necessary to resolve the difficulty.
HISTORICAL FACT AND PROPHECY
When considering the phrase, “three days and three nights” (Matt. 12:40) we must keep an important principle in mind. Interpretation of prophecy can not, must not, dispute fact; instead, fact must be used to interpret prophecy, fact takes precedence. The text in which the above phrase appears is a prophecy, not a record of historical fact.
A. Historical Fact
The historical record concerning the day of Jesus’ death and the day of his resurrection is found in the following texts:
| Matt. 27:62 – 28:6 Mark 15:42 – 16:2 Luke 23:52 – 24:3 John 19:31, John 19:42; |
Crucifixion and burial Day of preparation, Day before Sabbath -> Friday (14 Nisan) |
| John 20:1 1 Cor. 15:4 Acts 10:40 Luke 24:7,21, 46 |
Resurrection First day of week, Day after Sabbath, The third day -> Sunday (16 Nisan) |
It is well documented that the day preceding the weekly Sabbath, the sixth day of the week, our Friday, was designated by the Jews as the Day of Preparation. This no doubt arose from the need to prepare the food and all else that was required for the day of rest -no work being permitted on the Sabbath (Lev. 23:3).
In Luke 23:54, the day of the crucifixion is stated to have been “the preparation,” and it is also explained, “the sabbath drew on. ” Verses 55 and 56 tell of some women preparing “spices and ointments” then resting on “the sabbath day.”
The account in Mark 16:1, 2 relates that “when the sabbath was past” certain women “came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun.” They found the tomb empty. This day, the day of the resurrection, is declared to have been the “first day of the week” (Mark 16:2), our Sunday. The preceding day, therefore, a day identified as a sabbath, must have been a regular, weekly sabbath, the last day of the week, our Saturday. Thus, the day before that, “the preparation,” the day of the crucifixion, would have been Friday.
The phrase, “the preparation of the passover” in John t9:14 may refer to the day preceding the passover as some believe; however, such idiomatic use has not been documented. As others have suggested, this writer understands the phrase to mean “the preparation day of the passover week” – in other words, Friday of the passover week, like our Easter Friday.
Verses 31 and 32 explain that the bodies were to be taken down so they would not remain “upon the cross on the sabbath day,” and they declare Jesus was taken down and laid in a tomb on the “Jew’s preparation day.” In these verses the preparation day of the weekly sabbath is meant. (This is significant when it is stated that the passover of our Lord’s death occurred on a day other than the weekly Sabbath.)
B. Prophecy
Difficulty exists not only between prophecy and fact, but between prophecy and prophecy as well. There is an apparent disagreement between the two prophetic phrases, “three days and three nights” and “the third day.”
1. Matt. 12:40 – … so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
2. Matt. 16:21- …be raised* the third day.
Matt. 17:23-…the third day he shall be raised* …
Matt. 20:19-…the third day he shall rise*.
Luke 9:22- …and be raised the third day.
Luke 18:33- …and the third day he shall rise*.
This difficulty, too, may be resolved by an understanding of Hebrew idiom.
BIBLICAL IDIOM
While the language of the New Testament is Greek, the human agents employed by God through the holy Spirit were mostly Hebrew. Hence, though the thoughts were of divine origin, the words spoken and written came from minds conditioned to Hebrew expression, Hebrew idiom.
In a living language there is a continuous growth and decay of phrases, constructions, and expressions that are contrary to the usual patterns of the language and have a meaning different from the literal one. These are called idioms, and are usually particular phrases which we learn as separate items – easily in our own language, with difficulty in another. For example, consider the literal meaning of these common expressions in our culture:
- to talk turkey
- to put through the mill
- to catch his eye
- to take the bull by the horns
- to get your ducks in a row
- to be taken in
It is clear we must be careful about idiomatic phrases when interpreting the Bible. If we insist at all times on the absolutely literal, it can be a fruitful source of error.
A. Old Testament Idiom
1. Ex. 19:10, 11 – “sanctify them today and tomorrow … the third day the LORD will come down…” The third day is here defined as the day after tomorrow.
2. Gen. 42:17, 18 – Verse 17 states Joseph kept his brothers in prison “all together into ward three days.” Verse 18 states Joseph spoke “unto them the third day,” and in the following verses, he released them that same day (the third day).
3. 1 Sam. 20:12 – Again, the day after tomorrow is referred to as “the third day.”
4. I Kings 20:29 – Israel and Syria camped opposite each other “seven days.” Yet, “in the seventh day the battle was joined.”
5. II Chron. 10:5, 12 (I Kings 12:5, 12) – In verse 5 Rehoboam told the people of Israel to “come again unto me after three days.“ In verse 12, they return, “on the third day” and restate Rehoboam’s orders as “come again to me on the third.”
6. Esther 4:16; 5:1 – In 4:16 Esther asked the Jews to “fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night and day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; and so will I go in unto the king”, Yet, in 5:1 it is stated “on the third day” Esther went into the king.
7. I Sam. 30:12, 13 – An Egyptian found by David’s men “had eaten no bread, nor drunk any water, three days and three nights“ In verse 13 he told David he was deserted “three days agone.”
B. New Testament Idiom
1. Luke 13:32 -”I do cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected. As in the Old Testament, the third day is defined as the day after.
2. There are four passages that describe the resurrection as occurring “after three days” (in the Kiv Mark 9:31 and 10:34 were mistranslated. The Greek phrase is identical to that in Mark 8:31).
a. For three of the passages there are parallel accounts which help our understanding:
| – “after three days” | – Mark 8:31 | Mark 9:31 | Mark 10:34 |
| – “the third day” | – Matt. 16:21 | Mark 17:23 Luke 9:22 | Mark 20:19 Luke 18:33 |
b. In the fourth passage – Matthew 27:63, 64 – it is recorded that the Pharisees told Pilate how Jesus had predicted, “after three days I will rise again.” In verse 64, they asked that the tomb “be made sure until the third.”
From these texts it may be seen that the expression “after three days” was equivalent to “the third day” in the idiom of Israel in Jesus’ day.
CONCLUSION
This study has shown we must be ever careful when we are dealing with ancient idiomatic expressions. We must not apply modern literal meanings. Hebrew reckoning is as distinct from our reckoning as is their practice of commencing the day at sunset and ours to begin it at midnight. These different modes of expression are peculiar to the respective peoples and languages and must be taken into account.
From the evidence of both the Old and New Testaments, we find it was Jewish idiom to equate “three days,” “on the third day,” and “after three days.” Apparently, this custom was derived from the practice of counting a part of a day as a whole day-and-night. This practice is corroborated by the Rabbinic literature. Today, in the U.S.A., if we say an event happened “on the third day,” we mean it occurred sometime during the third day. If we state it took place “after three days” we mean after three days have passed. And, if we say “three days and three nights,” we mean three 24 hour periods or 72 hours. Yet Christ and the Apostles used all these expressions in reference to the same period of time.
Therefore, understood in the context of Biblical idiom, the phrase “three days and three nights” presents no problem to a Friday crucifixion and a Sunday resurrection, as recorded in the Gospel accounts.
Based on the idiom of the time, “three days and three nights” may be thus explained:
- The first night and day Jesus was in the tomb was from about the tenth hour (4:00 pm) of the day of preparation, Friday, to the evening, the end of the day (6:00 pm).
- The second night and day was from the beginning of Sabbath (Friday night) to the end (Saturday evening).
- The third night and day was from end of Sabbath (Saturday night) to the resurrection early in the morning of the “first day” (Sunday).
– R.E. Evans
* Note: There is no Greek word for “again” in these verses as rendered in the KJV, it should be omitted.