Matthew 12
40 For 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.
According to all four Gospels, the crucifixion took
place on a Friday and the resurrection on the following
Sunday. From this it would seem that Jesus was buried
for three days (Friday, Saturday, Sunday).
Luke writes that according to prophecy, Yehoshua
was to rise on the third day.
Luke 24
45 Then opened he their understanding, that they
might understand the scriptures,
46 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus
it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:
While it is true that according to Jewish
law part of the day is equivalent to a full day,
Matthew's Yehoshua promised to be buried specifically
for three days and three nights. By the
use of the phrase "three days and three nights," Matthew's Yehoshua indicated
that he expected to be buried for three consecutive
periods between dawn and dark (day) and dark and
dawn (night), or approximately seventy- two hours.
The Scriptures employ the phrase "three days"
in a more general sense than that expressed by "three
days and three nights." For example, "three days" does
not necessarily include the period of day or night at
either the beginning or end of the total time to
be indicated. When the phrase "three days" is
meant to specifically include three days and three
nights, and this is not evident from the text,
it must be stated as such.
Esther 4
16 Go, gather together all the Jews that are present
in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days,
night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise;
When the phrase "three days and three
nights" is stated, it includes either all
three days and all three nights or can be deficient
in only parts of a day or night at the beginning
or end of the entire period, but never of a full segment
of day or night out of twenty-four hours.
Yehoshua did not have to be buried exactly seventy-two
hours, he did have to be buried at least on parts of
three days and three nights. Yehoshua died on a Friday
at the ninth hour, which corresponds to about
3 P.M. The claim is made that Yehoshua rose three
days later, on a Sunday. This would mean that
he was buried during the daylight hours of three
different days. If this was true, he was buried
for only two nights.
The Gospel of John indicates that Yehoshua's promise to
rise after being buried three days and three nights
was never fulfilled.
John 20
1 The first day of the week (Sunday) cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and
seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre.
John says that Yehoshua, having risen before
the dawn of Sunday morning, was buried for only two
days and two nights, -- one full day (Saturday),
part of another (Friday), and two nights (Friday and
Saturday nights).
There is another way to calculate this, but it is even less generous.
Genesis 1
5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And
the evening and the morning were the first day. (It takes an evening
and a morning to make a day)
Leviticus 23
32 It shall be unto you a sabbath of rest, and ye shall afflict your
souls: in the ninth day of the month at even, from even unto even,
shall ye celebrate your sabbath. (This is to merely show that a full day
is counted from one even to the next even. Even being evening.)
This would make Friday evening and Saturday morning, one day, and Saturday evening.... well, it would stop there, because according to John: Mary Magdalene went to the sepulchre early, when it was still dark. So you would get a day and a half at best.
Plus:
Matthew 27
51 And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;
52 And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,
53 And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.
The Jewish historian Flavius Josephus, writing during the second half of the first century AD, produced two major works: History of the Jewish War and Antiquities of the Jews, and he had not one word to say about this most extraordinary occurrence. Fifty days after the alleged event, Peter was giving a speech recorded in Acts 2, but said nothing about the saints rising. Paul, who spoke at great length (1 Corinthians 15) to convince his listeners that Yehoshua's resurrection had occurred, had nothing to say about it either.
The appearance of these bodies "unto many" must have been the sensation of a lifetime for the residents of Jerusalem. If this remarkable event actually happened, why did only Matthew report it? About twenty percent of the gospels is repetition so it is not as if New Testament writers did not like to repeat what others have written; repetition of the most mundane events occurs everywhere, so why didn't Mark, Luke, John, Peter, or Paul write about the dead bodies of the saints marching through Jerusalem, appearing unto many?
Also, how come Matthew doesn't think we should know the names of the saints that rose from their graves? Why doesn't he tell us with whom the bodies of the saints met, and what they said--assuming they said anything, and where they went after their appearance unto the many? Did the bodies of the saints dutifully return to their graves after a polite visit, or did they remain for years among the residents of Jerusalem? Is there proof of veracity for this event that has so many unanswerable questions?
|