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Study Section 14: The Day of Christ’s Crucifixion

14.1 Connect.

You ever wondered how, if Christ was crucified on “Good Friday” and put in the tomb late in
the afternoon that He could have been in the tomb for three days before He arose on Sunday
morning before daybreak? Any way you count, it would end up about a day and a half. We
know for sure Christ rose on the first day of the week, don’t we? That would be Sunday. And
we also know that Christ was buried just before the Sabbath on Friday night beginning at 6:00
PM. So how do we make all this to fit together? Is the Bible in error about three days in the tomb?

Some people say, well, it really doesn’t matter. The important thing is that Jesus died, was buried, and
rose again. But I Corinthians 15:4 tells us that He rose again on the third day! It must matter, because
the number of days in the tomb is mentioned in multiple places throughout Scripture. Jesus told His
disciples that He would be in the tomb for three days and three nights (Matthew 12:40). So let’s see if
we can figure this out….

14.2 Objectives.

1. The student should be able to propose the various days of Christ’s crucifixion to determine
on which day He possibly was crucified.

2. The student should be able to discuss the Garden of Gethsemane to observe Jesus’ prayers
as the disciples slept.

3. The student should be able to explain why Jesus almost died in the Garden before the crucifixion.

14.3 The controversy over the day of Christ’s crucifixion (Matthew 12:40)

Jesus told the Pharisees who were seeking a sign from Him that the only sign would be: “For as
Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be
three days and three nights in the heart of the earth”. The Jews held that a day begins at dusk
(around 6:00 PM) and lasts 24 hours because God first created night, then day. So, the Jewish
day goes from nightfall to nightfall.

Mark 15:42 states that Jesus was on the cross the day before the Sabbath and was taken down from the
cross quickly and buried before the Sabbath started at around 6:00 PM that evening. The Sabbath was
on Saturday, so that meant Jesus was crucified on Friday.

Think about it! If Jesus was crucified on Friday afternoon just before the beginning of Sabbath, He
would have been buried late Friday afternoon. He would have then spent the night and day in the tomb
on Saturday (Sabbath) which is one night and day. Then He arose on Sunday before dawn, which would
be night and day, day two. If Jesus was crucified on Friday, how could He fulfill the prophecy that He
told the Pharisees of being in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights?

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