The Holy Spirit revealed to
a group of believers that Jesus was crucified and died on August 17, 1 BC. This is equivalent to Av 30, 3760 in the
Jewish calendar. The revealed
crucifixion date is a proleptic Gregorian date and was a Thursday. In September 2003, I finally proved that the
revelation is correct, twenty years after I first heard it. Details about the proofs can be found at http://www.geocities.com/peacecrusader888/jesuscrucify1.htm.
The followers of Jesus
belonged to a group or sect called The Way (Acts 18:25-26, 24:14, 22). As will be illustrated and explained in this
webpage, The Way observed Sabbath also, not on Saturday as the Jews do though,
but on Sunday. Table 1 and Table 2 will
help to illustrate this.
Table
1. Events from crucifixion to discovery
of empty sepulcher.
|
Proleptic |
Day of Week |
Jewish |
Event |
|
August 17, 1 BC |
Thursday |
Av 30, 3760 |
Crucifixion of Jesus, preparation
day for next day’s high day and the Saturday Sabbath |
|
August 18, 1 BC |
Friday |
Elul 1, 3760 |
New Moon Festival, a high
day |
|
August 19, 1 BC |
Saturday |
Elul 2, 3760 |
Saturday Sabbath of the
Jews |
|
August 20, 1 BC |
Sunday |
Elul 3, 3760 |
Sunday Sabbath of the
followers of Jesus |
|
August 21, 1 BC |
Monday |
Elul 4, 3760 |
Discovery of empty
sepulcher |
Jesus was crucified, died, and was buried in a sepulcher on August 17, 1 BC, a Thursday. Four days later, at dawn of August 21, 1 BC, a Monday, Mary Magdalene and company found the sepulcher empty. Jesus was therefore in the sepulcher for three complete days and three complete nights. The Bible mentioned that it was the first day of the week, and was the day after the Sabbath. The following verses from the Holy Bible, King James Version, state that it was the first day of the week:
Matthew 28:1 – “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 sepulcher.”
Mark 16:1-2 – “And when the sabbath was past, Mary
Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices,
that they might come and anoint him.
And the very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came
unto the sepulcher at the rising of the sun.”
Luke 24:1 – “Now upon the first day of the week, very
early in the morning, they came unto the sepulcher, bringing the spices which they
had prepared, and certain others with them.”
John 20:1 – “The first day of the week cometh Mary
Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulcher, and seeth the stone
taken away from the sepulcher.”
The time when they went to the sepulcher are stated as: “it began to dawn,” “at the rising of the sun,” “very early in the morning,” “early, when it was yet dark”.
Two verses state that this
first day of the week was just past sabbath:
Matthew
28:1 - “In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of
the week”
Mark
16:1-2 – “And when the sabbath was past … And the very early in the morning the
first day of the week”
Which sabbath is referred to
in these verses? The Saturday Sabbath
of the Jews or a Sunday Sabbath that the followers of Jesus could have been
observing? Mark 16:1 states “And when
the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome,
had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him.” The verse states “And when the sabbath was
past” when the women “had bought sweet spices”. When could have they bought the spices? Since the crucifixion happened the day before the sabbath, the
buying must have been done after the crucifixion and after the sabbath.
It must have been getting
dark when Jesus was buried in the sepulcher.
The women did not have sweet spices nor have they the time to buy them
because the shops were already close.
Shops are open only in the morning and don’t reopen anymore in the
afternoon before the sabbath.
On Friday, it was the New
Moon Festival, the high day mentioned in John 19:31 which was a sabbath. The shops were close. The women still had not bought the sweet
spices. On Saturday, it was the weekly
Sabbath of the Jews. The shops were
close so the women still had not bought the sweet spices. On Sunday, although the shops were open, the
women did not buy the spices because it was their (the followers’)
sabbath. As their sabbath, they must
have gone on worship and studied the scriptures. They must not have done any shopping at all even though the shops
were open. When their sabbath ended at
sundown, the shops were open. This was
already Monday, and it was nighttime.
This was the time when the women had bought the sweet spices. They now had the spices to anoint Jesus when
they came to the sepulcher at dawn.
In Jerusalem, the trading
hours in the marketplace or “souk” are as follows:
Open in the morning until about noon (morning
session)
Close from about noon until about 4 or 5 pm
Reopen from about 4 or 5 pm until about 7,
8 or 9 pm (evening session)
This schedule of trading
hours is true from Sunday to Thursday.
The evening session is not worked on Fridays because, by sunset, it is
already Sabbath. Some shops open on
Saturday evening about one hour after sunset because the Sabbath has just
ended.
In Table 2, the scenario
shown in Table 1 is illustrated again but in details with the trading in the
marketplace included. The day in the
Jewish calendar starts at 6 pm or sunset (on sabbath) and comprises one whole
nighttime followed by one whole daytime.
Table
2. Events from crucifixion to discovery
of empty sepulcher in the proleptic Gregorian calendar in year 1 BC and the
Jewish calendar in year 3760.
|
Jewish Calendar |
Part of Day |
Proleptic Gregorian Calendar |
Event |
||
|
Date |
Day of Week |
Date |
Day of Week |
||
|
Av 30 |
Thu |
SR-NN |
Aug 17 |
Thu |
Preparation day for next day’s
sabbath (John 19:31) and the weekly Saturday Sabbath; shops open |
|
Av 30 |
Thu |
NN-SS |
Aug 17 |
Thu |
Crucifixion, death and
burial of Jesus; preparation day for next day’s sabbath (John 19:31) and the
weekly Saturday Sabbath; shops close |
|
Elul 1 |
Fri |
SS-MN |
Aug 17 |
Thu |
New Moon Festival, a high
day, a shabbaton; first night of Jesus in the sepulcher; shops close |
|
Elul 1 |
Fri |
MN-SR |
Aug 18 |
Fri |
New Moon Festival, a high day,
a shabbaton; first night of Jesus in the sepulcher; shops close |
|
Elul 1 |
Fri |
SR-NN |
Aug 18 |
Fri |
New Moon Festival, a high
day, a shabbaton; first day of Jesus in the sepulcher; shops close; Jews are
in the synagogue |
|
Elul 1 |
Fri |
NN-SS |
Aug 18 |
Fri |
New Moon Festival, a high
day, a shabbaton; first day of Jesus in the sepulcher; shops close |
|
Elul 2 |
Sat |
SS-MN |
Aug 18 |
Fri |
Weekly Sabbath of the
Jews, their seven day; shops close; second night of Jesus in the sepulcher |
|
Elul 2 |
Sat |
MN-SR |
Aug 19 |
Sat |
Weekly Sabbath of the
Jews, their seven day; shops close; second night of Jesus in the sepulcher |
|
Elul 2 |
Sat |
SR-NN |
Aug 19 |
Sat |
Weekly Sabbath of the Jews,
their seventh day; Jews are in the synagogue; shops close; second day of
Jesus in the sepulcher |
|
Elul 2 |
Sat |
NN-SS |
Aug 19 |
Sat |
Weekly Sabbath of the
Jews, their seventh day; shops close; second day of Jesus in the sepulcher |
|
Elul 3 |
Sun |
SS-MN |
Aug 19 |
Sat |
Weekly Sabbath of the
followers of Jesus, their seventh day; shops open an hour after sunset until
about 7 or 8 pm; third night of Jesus in the sepulcher |
|
Elul 3 |
Sun |
MN-SR |
Aug 20 |
Sun |
Weekly Sabbath of the followers
of Jesus, their seventh day; third night of Jesus in the sepulcher |
|
Elul 3 |
Sun |
SR-NN |
Aug 20 |
Sun |
Weekly Sabbath of the
followers of Jesus, their seventh day; shops open in the morning; third day
of Jesus in the sepulcher |
|
Elul 3 |
Sun |
NN-SS |
Aug 20 |
Sun |
Weekly Sabbath of the
followers of Jesus, their seventh day; shops reopens about 4 or 5 pm; third
day of Jesus in the sepulcher |
|
Elul 4 |
Mon |
SS-MN |
Aug 20 |
Sun |
First day of the week for the
followers of Jesus; shops open until 7 or 8 pm, Mary Magdalene et al. bought
sweet spices (Mark 16:1-2); resurrection of Jesus, must have happened before
midnight |
|
Elul 4 |
Mon |
MN-SR |
Aug 21 |
Mon |
First day of the week for
the followers of Jesus |
|
Elul 4 |
Mon |
SR-NN |
Aug 21 |
Mon |
First day of the week for
the followers of Jesus; discovery of the empty sepulcher at dawn; shops open
in the morning |
|
Elul 4 |
Mon |
NN-SS |
Aug 21 |
Mon |
First day of the week for the
followers of Jesus; shops reopens about 4 or 5 pm |
Note: The yellow color indicates daytime, and the
blue color, nighttime.
SS (sunset or 6 p.m. to 12 midnight), MN (12 midnight to 6 a.m.), SR (sunrise,
6 a.m. to 12 noon), NN (12 noon to sunset or 6 p.m.)
The seventh day is the weekly sabbath. To the Jews, it was from sunset of Friday to sunset of Saturday. To the followers of Jesus, as shown above, it was from sunset of Saturday to sunset of Sunday. This is the reason why the followers of Jesus were not able to visit His sepulcher on Sunday morning. It was their sabbath. And it was not until Monday evening after their sabbath and when the shops were open that Mary Magdalene and company were able to buy the sweet spices that they used to anoint Jesus when they went to the sepulcher. They could not have done it that evening because it was already dark. So the earliest opportune time that they went to the sepulcher was at dawn of Monday. Three days had passed since the crucifixion and they would like to do the Jewish rituals for the dead as soon as possible which they had not done because of the series of sabbaths.
It can be concluded that:
1. Sabbath is observed on the seventh day of the week by both the Jews and the followers of Jesus.
2. The followers observed Sabbath on Sunday.
3. The first day of their week is Monday.
File sundaysabbath.htm last updated:
October 10, 2003
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