What Day Did Jesus Die On

When Did Jesus Die? The Year, Day & Time

There has been much speculation concerning the day and year of Christ’s crucifixion and death, owing to the absence of clear day-to-day linkage in the stories of the four Gospels. We know that Jesus died on Preparation Day because it is mentioned in each of the four Gospel narratives. But was it a Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday when that happened? In addition, what hour did Jesus die? There has even been discussion over the year in which he passed away. To figure out the day of Jesus’ death on the cross, we must piece together the evidence from his four Gospels and our understanding of his historical period and cultural context.

Cultural Information to Keep in Mind

1. The gospel writers were more concerned with depicting Jesus as a person than they were with the precise chronology of his appearance. Dates have become increasingly important in today’s environment in order to provide proper news coverage. However, the Gospel authors were more concerned with the events themselves than they were with the precise date of the occurrences. They were attempting to introduce Jesus to a variety of audiences rather than providing a thorough biography. It was the day before the Sabbath that was designated as the Day of Preparation.

This is the day on which Jews prepared meals and completed all of the tasks that were prohibited from being completed on the Sabbath but that still needed to be completed.

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What the Gospels Say about Jesus’ Burial

The Gospel of Matthew contains the most detailed account of Jesus’ death and burial (Matthew 27:31-62). In this tale, we learn about Joseph, a wealthy man from Arimathea “who had himself become a follower of Jesus,” according to one piece (Matthew 27:57 b). In Matthew 27:58-61, it is said that Joseph approached Pilate and begged for permission to bury Jesus’ body. “The next day, the day after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate,” we are told in Matthew 27:62. Joseph followed out this plan on Preparation Day.

In the Jewish calendar, it was Preparation Day (i.e., the day before the Sabbath).” (Matthew 15:42 a.) … Consequently, Joseph purchased some linen material, brought the corpse down from the casket, wrapped it in the linen, and buried it in a tomb dug into the rock.

Jesus died on the Day of Preparation, as confirmed by Luke and John: “Then he carried it down, wrapped it in linen fabric, and buried it in a tomb cut into the rock, in which no one had yet been lain.” As it happened, it was Preparation Day, and the Sabbath was about to begin” (Luke 23:54).

As it happened, they placed Jesus there since it was the Jewish day of Preparation and because the tomb was close by (John 19:42).

What Day Did Jesus Die? Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday?

Over the years, academics have developed a variety of hypotheses about what occurred during the days of the week preceding up to Jesus’ death on the cross. These versions each offer a different day for Christ’s death, such as Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday.

• Wednesday The fact that Jesus was crucified on a Wednesday permits for Him to have been buried for three full days and nights
• Nevertheless, this also means that He resurrected on the fourth day. Furthermore, the Triumphal Entry would have taken place on Saturday, the day of Sabbath rest
• Instead, it took place on Thursday. With a Thursday crucifixion, the Triumphal Entry is moved to Sunday, which makes more sense and removes the necessity for a “quiet day” (a day during thePassion Weekwhen no events were recorded). On the other hand, we know that the Pharisees hurried to put Jesus in the tomb on The Day of Preparation (John 19:34-42), which is Friday, and before the Sabbath began at nightfall (the Jews timed days from the beginning of the nightfall to the beginning of the nightfall). Upon closer examination of the facts, we find that Friday is the most consistent with the Gospel narratives and the historical context. According to the New Testament, Jesus rose from the grave on the third day—not necessarily after three complete, literal days—and was buried on the third day (e.g.,Matthew 16:21
• Acts 10:40). As previously stated, Jesus had to be hustled inside the tomb on the day of preparation because of the crowds. In contrast to a Friday crucifixion, which would demand a “quiet day” (most likely Wednesday), this day gives the Sanhedrin the opportunity to make plans for Jesus’s arrest and following trials. As a result, the day is just “quiet” since we haven’t documented anything significant

What Time Did Jesus Die?

According to Matthew Henry’s interpretation, Jesus was nailed to the crucifixion between the third and sixth hours, which corresponds between nine and twelve o’clock in the morning. After then, he died shortly after the ninth hour, which was sometime between three and four o’clock in the afternoon. Commensurate with the aforementioned practice, the Jews throughout the time of Christ measured days from dusk to nightfall. The Matthew 27:46 KJV, which is the “ninth hour,” can be translated into the Matthew 27:46 NIV, which is the “three o’clock in the afternoon,” according to Bible experts.

Timing of Jesus Death in Mark, Luke, and John

• The Gospel of Mark 15: 33:34, 37 “At midday, darkness descended across the entire region, lasting until three o’clock in the afternoon. Also, about three o’clock in the afternoon, Jesus said, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” in an obnoxiously loud voice. (which translates as ‘My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?’). “Jesus breathed his last with a piercing scream.”
• Matthew 23:44-46 ” It was now around midday, and darkness descended upon the entire region until three o’clock in the afternoon since the sun had ceased shining. And the temple’s curtain was split in two by the earthquake. I put my spirit into your hands,’ Jesus said with a resounding voice, calling out to the Father. At the moment he stated this, he exhaled his final breath.” (See also John 19:14-16.) “It was approximately midday on the day of Passover preparations, and it was the day of Passover preparations. ‘Your king has arrived,’ Pilate said to the Jews. They, on the other hand, cried out, “Take him away!” Take him away from me! ‘Put him to death!’ ‘Do you want me to crucify your king?’ Pilate was the one who inquired. ‘We do not have a monarch other than Caesar,’ the leading priests responded. Eventually, Pilate gave him over to them, and they crucified him.”

What Year Did Jesus Die?

During this video, Doug Bookman, a New Testament professor at Shepherds Theological Seminary, shows why biblical academics have reached an agreement about the year Jesus died. “It all boils down to this. Pilate served as prefect of Judea and Samaria from 26 A.D. to 36 A.D., according to the evidence we have. So that’s our view out the window. The following question is: On what day of the week did Passover occur during the year that Jesus died? In the opinion of the majority, it occurred on Thursday or Friday.

Given all of this, the vast majority of researchers will agree that it leads to one of two conclusions: ” Theory 1: Jesus died about the year 30 A.D.

“At this point, the argument becomes pretty technical,” says Bookman of the situation.

I am convinced that the year 33 A.D.

3 Significant Events Shortly After Jesus’ Death

Matthew 27:51-54, Matthew 27:51-54 As a result of this, the temple’s curtain was split in half, from top to bottom. The ground trembled, the rocks cracked, and the tombs burst into flames. Many pious persons who had died were brought back to life by the power of the Holy Spirit. They emerged from the graves following Jesus’ resurrection and proceeded to the holy city, where they appeared to a large number of people. They were startled and cried, “Surely he was the Son of God!” when the centurion and others with him who were guarding Jesus witnessed the earthquake and everything that had transpired.

1. The temple curtain had been ripped in half.
2. We know from the laws of the Old Testament that entering God’s presence was a severe matter.
3. The fact that this curtain was destroyed represented the completion of Jesus Christ’s accomplished work on the cross, which eliminated the barrier between sinful humans and holy God by becoming the ultimate High Priest and the ultimate sacrifice on behalf of all people.
4. 2.
5. John Gill’s remark on the event states that “this was a demonstration of Christ’s authority over death and the tomb.” When Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after his death, he demonstrated that he had destroyed both the power of death and the permanence of the grave.
6. In addition to its grandiose claims, this event is noteworthy because it is a narrative predicting Christ’s second coming to collect the remainder of his people.
7. 3.

Jesus is brought back to life from the dead. This text in Matthew glosses over such a remarkable occurrence, but Christ’s resurrection is told in greater detail in Matthew 28, which is the gospel of Matthew (as well as inMark 16,Luke 24, andJohn 20). Photograph courtesy of Joshua Earle via Unsplash.

The Day Christ Died – Was it on a Thursday or Friday?

Following the teachings of Jesus, Christian tradition places his final lunch with his followers on Thursday evening and his crucifixion on Friday, which we name “Good Friday.” We now know that there is a one-day holiday. Wednesday night was Jesus’ final dinner, and he was crucified on Thursday, the 14th of the Hebrew month Nisan, the following day. The actual Passover dinner was served on Thursday night, at sundown, to mark the beginning of the 15th of Nisan. That Passover supper was never consumed by Jesus.

• on Thursday afternoon, according to his family.
• This alternate chronology allows all of our parts from our different sources, including the Synoptic Gospels, the Gospel of John, and the Gospel of Peter, to fit together seamlessly and accurately.
• Everyone concluded that the allusion to “the Sabbath” had to be referring to Saturday, which meant that the crucifixion had to have taken place on a Friday.
• In the year 30 AD, Friday, the 15th of the Jewish month of Nisan, was also a Sabbath, resulting in two Sabbaths occurring back to back – Friday and Saturday – for the first time in recorded history.
• As is typically the case, the gospel of John retains a more exact chronology of what transpired during the time period under consideration.
• John is well aware that the Jews would be gathering for their customary Seder supper on Thursday night.
• Some have even suggested that Jesus may have eaten the Passover feast a day early, knowing full well that he would die the next day.

However, the truth remains that Jesus did not partake in the Passover supper in 30 CE.

He had been hurriedly interred in a tomb until after the celebration, when formal and complete Jewish funeral procedures could be carried out in accordance with tradition.

As an example, in Luke, Jesus tells his disciples at the final meal: “I sincerely want to share this Passover with you before I suffered, but I will not share it until the fulfillment of this Passover in the kingdom of God” (Luke 22:14).

Furthermore, all of our sources state that Jesus shared “a loaf of bread” with his followers, using the Greek term (artos) that refers to an ordinary loaf, not the unleavened flat bread or matzos that Jews eat during their Passover feasts.

If this meal had been the Passover supper, Paul would have wanted to say something like that, but he doesn’t want to.

Sanhedrin 67a and 43a)

April 3, AD 33: Why We Believe We Can Know the Exact Date Jesus Died

In our book, The Final Days of Jesus: The Most Important Week of the Most Important Person Who Ever Lived, Justin Taylor and I make an educated guess as to the date of Jesus’ crucifixion, but we do not argue for or against it. For a variety of factors, virtually all academics think that Jesus was executed in the spring of either AD 30 or AD 33, with the majority preferring the former. As a result of the astronomical data, the alternatives are reduced to AD 27, 30, 33, or 34). However, we would want to present our case for the date of Friday, April 3, AD 33, as the precise day on which Christ died in our place as atonement for our sins.

However, this does not rule out the possibility of understanding or importance.

No one makes this argument more forcefully than Luke, the Gentile physician who became a historian and inspired recorder of early Christianity.

The Year John the Baptist’s Ministry Began

In Luke’s account, John the Baptist began his public ministry soon before Jesus did, and the author provides us with a historical reference point for when the Baptist’s ministry began: “in the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar’s reign.” (See Luke 3:16). It is known from ancient Roman history that Tiberius succeeded Augustus as emperor on August 19, AD 14 and was approved by the Roman Senate on the same day. He reigned until the year AD 37. “The fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar’s reign” appears to be a straightforward date, but there are some ambiguities, beginning with when one begins the calculation.

Most likely, Tiberius’ reign was measured from the day he assumed office in AD 14 or from the first day of January of the following year, AD 15 (whichever came first).

So John the Baptist’s ministry began anywhere between the middle of AD 28 and the beginning of AD 29.

The Year Jesus’s Ministry Began

Because the Gospels appear to suggest that Jesus began his ministry not long after John, the most likely date for Jesus’ baptism would be late in AD 28 at the absolute earliest, according to the calculations above. Nevertheless, it seems more likely that it occurred somewhere around the first half of the year AD 29, because a few months had probably gone between the beginning of John’s career and the beginning of Jesus’ ministry (and the year AD 30 is the latest possible date). As a result, Jesus’ career must have began somewhere between the end of AD 28 and the beginning of AD 30 at the earliest.

The most plausible dates for Jesus’ birth are 6 or 5 BC, which means he would have been roughly thirty-two to thirty-four years old in late AD 28 to early AD 30. This comes well within the range of “about thirty years of age.”

The Length of Jesus’s Ministry

To determine how long Jesus’ public ministry lasted, we must first determine how long Jesus’ public ministry lasted. If Jesus’ public ministry lasted two or more years, it appears that the spring of AD 30 cannot be considered as a plausible date for the crucifixion. The Gospel of John records that Jesus attended at least three (perhaps four) Passovers, which were held once a year in the spring and were as follows:

• In Jerusalem, at the beginning of his public ministry (John 2:13–23)
• In Galilee, during the midpoint of his public career (John 6:4)
• And in Bethlehem, at the end of his public ministry (John 6:4). In Jerusalem, at the conclusion of his public ministry, that is, at the time of his crucifixion (John 11:55
• 12:1), there was a final Passover celebration. And it’s possible that Jesus attended another Passover that wasn’t reported in the Gospel of John, but was documented in one or more of the Synoptic Gospels (i.e., Matthew, Mark, and Luke)

This would make a date of a.d. 30 all but impossible as the date of Jesus’ crucifixion, even if there were only three Passovers in all. As previously stated, the earliest possible date for the beginning of Jesus’ career, according to Luke 3:1, is late in the first century AD. The first of these Passovers (which occurred at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry; John 2:13) would happen on Nisan 15 in the year 29 (since Nisan is in March/April, around the beginning of a year), which would be the first of these Passovers in the year 29.

If Jesus’ ministry corresponded with at least three Passovers, and if the first Passover occurred in AD 29, this suggests that he could not have been executed in ad 30, as previously thought.

The Passovers in the book of John would thus take place on the following dates:

Nisan 15	AD 30	John 2:13
Nisan 15	AD 31	Either the unnamed feast in John 5:1 or else a Passover that John does not mention (but that may be implied in the Synoptics)
Nisan 15	AD 32	John 6:4
Nisan 15	AD 33	John 11:55, the Passover at which Jesus was crucified

Jesus Was Crucified on the Day of Preparation for the Passover

It is also mentioned by the apostle John that Jesus was crucified on “the day of Preparation” (John 19:31), which corresponds to the Friday before the Sabbath of the Passover week (Mark 15:42). Earlier in the day, on Thursday evening, Jesus had a Passover meal with the Twelve (Mark 14:12), which is referred to as his “Last Supper.” Passover always falls on the fifteenth day of Nisan (Exodus 12:6), according to the Pharisaic-rabbinic calendar that was generally used in Jesus’ day. According to this calendar, Passover begins on Thursday after sundown and finishes on Friday after nightfall.

33, the year in which the crucifixion is most likely to have occurred, the most likely date for Jesus’ crucifixion is April 3 in the year a.d.

Accordingly, we created the following chart in The Final Days of Jesus to indicate the dates for Jesus’ final week in the year a.d.

April 2	Nissan 14	Thursday (Wednesday nightfall to Thursday nightfall)	Day of Passover preparation	Last Supper
April 3	Nissan 15	Friday (Thursday nightfall to Friday nightfall)	Passover; Feast of Unleavened Bread, begins	Crucifixion
April 4	Nissan 16	Saturday (Friday nightfall to Saturday nightfall)	Sabbath
April 5	Nissan 17	Sunday (Saturday nightfall to Sunday nightfall)	First day of the week	Resurrection

Conclusion

The computations in the preceding section may look difficult, but in a nutshell, the reasoning goes as follows:

HISTORICAL INFORMATION	YEAR
Beginning of Tiberius’s reign	AD 14
Fifteenth year of Tiberius’s reign:Beginning of John the Baptist’s ministry	AD 28
A few months later:Beginning of Jesus’s ministry	AD 29
Minimum three-year duration of Jesus’ ministry:Most likely date of Jesus’s crucifixion	AD 33 (April 3)

While this is, in our opinion, the most plausible scenario, it should be noted that many people think Jesus was killed in the year AD 30, rather than the year AD 33, as we have said. If, on the other hand, the beginning of Tiberius’ rule is set at the year AD 14, it becomes nearly difficult to fit fifteen years of Tiberius’ reign and three years of Jesus’ ministry between AD 14 and AD 30, as is the case. As a result, some have speculated that Tiberius and Augustus shared co-regency (combined rule) during the last few years of Augustus’ reign.

As a result, we believe that Jesus was most likely crucified on April 3, AD 33, as previously stated.

Because of this, when we celebrate Easter and walk with Jesus every day of the year, we may be certain that our faith is founded not just on subjective personal confidence, but also on solid historical evidence, which makes our faith a perfectly rational faith.

Crossway’s executive vice president and publisher for books, Justin Taylor, holds this position. Andreas Köstenberger and he have written a book together called The Final Days of Jesus: The Most Important Week in the Life of the Most Important Person Who Ever Lived (Crossway, 2014).

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The traditional teaching within the church is that Jesus was crucified on a Friday, and churches commonly observe the Friday before Easter Sunday as the day of Jesus’ death. However, observing the Friday before Easter Sunday as the day of Jesus’ death is a matter of church tradition rather than biblical fact. In the Bible, it is stated unequivocally that Jesus spent three days and three nights in the grave:

Matt. 12:40 for just as JONAH WAS THREE DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS IN THE BELLY OF THE SEA MONSTER, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

In Jewish counting, the terms “day” and “night” relate to periods of light and darkness inside a 24-hour day, respectively. As a result, any portion of the daylight hours counts as a “day,” and any portion of the nighttime hours counts as a “night.” As a result, to include “three days and three nights,” it is necessary to include at least a portion of three different daytime and overnight periods. But, on what day of the week should we start counting down from? While the Bible does not specify the day of the week Jesus died on, it does specify the day on which Jesus resurrected from the grave.

Luke 24:1 But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared.Luke 24:2 And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb,Luke 24:3 but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.

Sunday is the first day of the week according to the Jewish calendar, and according to the Bible, the tomb was discovered empty on a Sunday morning. In order to arrive at the day of Jesus’ death, we must count backward three days and three nights from Sunday to arrive at the day of his death. Sunday daytime, on the other hand, cannot be counted because the Bible states that Jesus was out of the grave before the sun rose on Sunday. For this reason, beginning with the Saturday nighttime period, we count back three daytime periods and three nighttime periods to arrive at the current time.

• On Saturday, one night will be spent and one day will be spent on Saturday, Friday nighttime will be spent and two days will be spent on Friday, and Thursday nighttime will be spent and three days will be spent on Thursday, and Friday daytime will be spent and three days will be spent on Thursday, and so on.

If Jesus remained in the tomb for three days and three nights and then rose from the dead before the break of dawn on Sunday, there is just not enough time for him to have died on a Friday and risen before the break of light on the following Sunday. It is required that Jesus be killed on a Thursday, according to Matthew 12:40. However, wasn’t the day after Jesus’ death a Sabbath? No doubt, but according to the Bible, the day after Jesus’ crucifixion was not a typical Saturday Sabbath, but rather a “high day” Sabbath.

John 19:31Then the Jews, because it was the day of preparation so that the bodies would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.

In the context of feast observances, a special Sabbath day is defined as one that occurs on a certain day of the week, independent of the day of the week on which the feast is observed. Passover commemorates Jesus’ death, and the Jewish festival of Passover is usually followed the next day by another Jewish festival known as the Feast of Unleavened Bread. According to scripture (Lev 23:6-8), the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is always a high day Sabbath, which corresponds to the Bible’s witness that the day after Jesus’ death was a Sabbath.

Following the keeping of the Sabbath on Friday, which was a high holy day, followed the observance of the regular weekly Sabbath on Saturday.

More importantly, according to the Gospel of John (12:12), Jesus paid visits to Martha, Mary, and Lazarus six days before Passover, and the next day (that is, five days before Passover), Jesus entered Jerusalem:

John 12:1Jesus, therefore, six days before the Passover, came to Bethany where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead.John 12:12On the next day the large crowd who had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem,John 12:13 took the branches of the palm trees and went out to meet Him, and began to shout, “Hosanna! BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD, even the King of Israel.”

To put it another way, if Jesus arrived in Jerusalem on the fifth day before Passover, which happened to be a Sunday (as is generally observed), then Passover occurred on a Thursday (counting Sunday to Thursday). By examining lunar data from the second and third decades of the first century, we are able to confirm that the death occurred on a Thursday for the last time. According to lunar activity, Jewish feasts are celebrated on specific days of the week. For example, in the year Jesus died, the day of Passover began Wednesday night and ended Thursday at sunset, and the seven-day feast of Unleavened Bread began the next day, on a Friday.

As a result, if we count from Thursday afternoon to Saturday night, we will discover three days and three nights, just as prescribed by Scripture.

Please watch our lesson from the Gospel of Matthew Bible study for a more in-depth overview of the events that took place during the week leading up to Jesus’ death.

On what day was Jesus crucified?

QuestionAnswer According to the Bible, Jesus was crucified on any given day of the week although it is not specified. Friday and Wednesday are the days on which the majority of people agree. Some, on the other hand, believe that Thursday should be the day, based on a synthesis of both the Friday and Wednesday reasons. Christ stated in Matthew 12:40, “For just as Jonah was swallowed up by a great fish and survived three days and three nights there, so will the Son of Man be swallowed up by a great fish and survive three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” It is still possible, according to those who argue for a Friday crucifixion, that He may have been considered in the grave for three days if He was executed on Friday.

1. In the minds of the Jews of the first century, a portion of a day was regarded to be a complete day.
2. Jesus was executed “the day before the Sabbath,” according to Mark 15:42, which is one of the most persuasive reasons in favor of Friday.
3. An other argument for Friday is that texts like as Matthew 16:21 and Luke 9:22 teach that Jesus would rise on the third day, and as a result, He would not need to stay in the grave for a total of three days and nights as previously thought.
4. Furthermore, according to Mark 8:31, Jesus will be risen “after” three days from the dead.
5. The Thursday argument is an extension of the Friday argument.
6. That difficulty can be solved by adding a day or two to your schedule.
7. He walks into your office on a Thursday morning and you respond, “I haven’t seen you in three days,” despite though it had only been 60 hours since you last saw him (2.5 days).

According to the view written on Wednesday, there were two Sabbaths that week.

According to the Wednesday school of thought, this “Sabbath” was the Passover (see Leviticus 16:29-31, 23:24-32, 39, where high holy days that are not necessarily the seventh day of the week are referred to as the Sabbath).

Please keep in mind that in Luke 23:56, the ladies who had purchased spices after the first Sabbath returned and prepared the spices, after which they “rested on the Sabbath,” as the Bible says.

For those who believe in the two-Sabbath perspective, if Christ was crucified on Thursday, then the high holy Sabbath (the Passover) would have began at sundown on Thursday and finished at sundown on Friday, which corresponds to the beginning of the weekly Sabbath or Saturday.

Consequently, the only interpretation that does not violate the biblical narrative of the ladies and the spices while still adhering to a literal understanding of Matthew 12:40 is that Christ was crucified on Wednesday, according to the Wednesday perspective.

After that, on Friday, the women went out to buy spices and returned to prepare them that same day.

Jesus was laid to rest at sundown on Wednesday, which corresponded to the start of the Jewish calendar week on Thursday.

Thursday night (night one), Friday day (day two), Friday night (night two), Saturday day (day three), Saturday night (night three), Sunday morning (day four) (night three).

According to Jewish tradition, Jesus may have woken as early as right after sunset on Saturday evening, which marked the beginning of the first day of the week.

On the other hand, a possible flaw in the Wednesday viewpoint is that Jesus’ followers walked with Him along the road to Emmaus on the “same day” as His resurrection (Luke 24:13).

The period from Wednesday through Sunday is four days.

Is it really that vital to know what day of the week Christ was killed on?

If it were so significant, God’s Word would have made it abundantly plain what day and hour it will occur and for how long.

What is equally significant is the purpose for His death: He died in order to bear the penalty that all sinners are due.

This holds true regardless of whether He was crucified on a Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday. Questions regarding Jesus Christ (return to top of page) When was Jesus crucified, and what day was it?

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7 Clues Tell Us *Precisely* When Jesus Died (the Year, Month, Day, and Hour Revealed)

When it comes to the killing of Jesus, how detailed can we be? Is it possible to pinpoint the precise date? We are in the midst of our yearly commemoration of Jesus’ death and resurrection, which began on Easter Sunday. All of us are aware that something like this occurred in Jerusalem during the first century. That distinguishes Jesus from mythological pagan deities, who were said to have lived in places and at times that no one could pinpoint precisely. When it comes to the killing of Jesus, how detailed can we be?

We have the ability to do so.

Clue1: The High Priesthood of Caiaphas

According to the gospels, Jesus was executed at the behest of Caiaphas, a high priest from the first century who was known for his ruthlessness (Matthew 26:3-4,John 11:49-53). Based on previous accounts, we know that he served as high priest from 18 to 36 A.D., which places Jesus’ death at that time period. However, we may be a little more particular. There’s a lot more.

Clue2: The Governorship of Pontius Pilate

All four gospels agree that Jesus was killed on Pontius Pilate’s orders, according to the New Testament (Matthew 27:24-26,Mark 15:15,Luke 23:24,John 19:15-16). Due to information from other sources, we know when he served as governor of Judea — from A.D. 26 to 36 — and hence can restrict the time period down by several years. Nevertheless, how are we going to narrow the scope to a single day and year?

Clue3: After “the Fifteenth Year of Tiberius Caesar”

The beginning of John the Baptist’s ministry is specified in the Gospel of Luke as follows: In the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar’s reign.the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the desert, where he remained for forty days. This specifies a certain year, namely A.D. 29. Because all four gospels represent Christ’s ministry beginning after that of John the Baptist (Matthew 3, Mark 1, Luke 3, and John 1), we may trim a few more years off our estimated time frame for his birth. The death of Christ has to take place within a seven-year time span: between A.D.

36.

Clue4: Crucified on a Friday

There is unanimous agreement among the four gospels that Jesus was crucified on a Friday (Matthew 27:62, Mark 15:42, Luke 23:54, and John 19:42), immediately before a Sabbath, which was just before the first day of the week (Luke 23:54; John 19:42). (Matthew 28:1,Mark 16:2,Luke 24:1,John 20:1). Due to the fact that Friday was designated as “the day of preparation,” we know it was a Friday. This means that it was the day on which Jews made the preparations they required for the Sabbath, as they were not permitted to work on that day.

According to the Jewish Encyclopedia: Friday is referred to as ‘Ereb Shabbat’ since it is the day before Shabbat (The Eve of Sabbath).

In Josephus’ Antiquitiesxvi.

The day is referred to as “Yoma da-‘Arubta” in Yer. Pesaim iv. 1 of the Jewish calendar (Day of Preparation). There were still a significant number of Fridays between A.D. 29 and 36, despite the fact that six days of the week were eliminated. Is it possible to figure out which one it is?

Clue5: A Friday at Passover

It is also agreed upon by the gospel writers that Jesus was crucified in connection with the yearly festival of Passover (Matthew 26:2,Mark 14:1,Luke 22:1,John 18:39). We get into a slight snag here since the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke characterize the Last Supper on Holy Thursday as a Passover feast (Matthew 26:19,Mark 14:14,Luke 22:15). That would imply that Good Friday occurred the day after Passover was observed. On the other hand, while recounting the morning of Good Friday, John makes it clear that the Jewish rulers had not yet eaten the Passover meal.

• It was still early in the morning.
• As a result, Pilate walked out to meet them.
• There are a variety of options for dealing with this situation.
• Another possibility is that Jesus simply moved the date of the Passover celebration for him and his disciples forward a few days.
• In the event that he announces, “We’re celebrating Passover today,” and it happens to be a day earlier than most people are used to, they would just accept it.
• No matter what Jesus’ movement did, we may use John’s remark about the kidnappers of Jesus to determine what the Jewish authorities or mainstream Judaism were like in those days: They were beginning their Passover celebrations on Friday evening, which is what we would call Friday.
• The following is a comprehensive list of the days between A.D.

• Monday, April 18, the year 29
• Friday, April 7, the year 30
• Tuesday, March 27, the year 31
• Monday, April 14, the year 32
• Friday, April 3, the year 33
• Wednesday, March 24, the year 34
• Tuesday, April 12, the year 35
• And Saturday, March 31, the year 36

As you can see, there are just two candidates remaining on the table: Jesus was crucified on either April 7th, A.D. 30 or April 3rd, A.D. 33, depending on the source. Which one was it, exactly? The year A.D. 33 is generally accepted as the date. There are a significant number of people that support the A.D. 30 date in today’s world. Do the gospels provide us the option of choosing between the two?

Clue6: John’s Three Passovers

During Jesus’ career, the Gospel of John mentions three separate Passovers: the first, the second, and the third.

• Jesus’ first public appearance was during the Passover Seder, which was described in John 2:13, towards the beginning of his career. 2nd Passover: This event is mentioned in John 6:4 and takes place in the midst of Jesus’ career. Passover3: This is mentioned in John 11:55 (and has been referenced several times thereafter), and it occurs near the conclusion of Jesus’ career.

That implies that Jesus’ ministry had to have lasted at least a couple of years longer than that. If we assume it began immediately before Passover1, the inclusion of two additional Passovers reveals that it continued for more than two years at a bare minimum. This suggests that the year A.D. was a year and a half longer than we previously thought. The date of December 30 has been ruled out since there is not enough time between the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar-A.D.

The numbers don’t add up.As a result, the traditional date of Jesus’ death-Friday, April 3, A.D.-was changed to Friday, April 3, A.D. to accommodate a ministry of at least two years.The numbers don’t add up. Can we be any more specific? The number 33 must be considered correct.

Clue7: “The Ninth Hour”

Jesus died about “the ninth hour,” according to the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke (Matthew 27:45-50,Mark 15:34-37,Luke 23:44-46). The “ninth hour” is what we would regard to as 3:00 p.m. in our modern day. This permits us to narrow down the time of Jesus’ death to a very particular point in history: approximately 3:00 p.m. on Friday, April 3, A.D. 33, on the third day of the first month of the first century. Of course, there are a slew of thorough counter-arguments that I haven’t had time to address in this article.

This is the exact moment it occurred.

What Now?

MySecret Information Club invites you to become a member if you enjoy the information I’ve provided here on my website. The Secret Information Club, if you’re not familiar with it, is a free service that I provide only through electronic mail. On a range of intriguing issues related to the Catholic faith, I send out information to my subscribers. If you sign up, you will receive information on what Pope Benedict has stated regarding the book of Revelation as one of the very first things you’ll receive.

If you’re interested in learning more about them, just sign up using this convenient sign-up form: If you have any problems, please contact me through email.

The original version of this item published on April 10, 2013, at the Register.

Was Jesus Crucified on Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday?

Everyone is aware that Jesus was killed on the Friday before Easter, right? And, of course, we’ve always commemorated His crucifixion on the Friday before Easter Sunday, haven’t we, throughout history? Is Friday, however, the proper day? Is a Friday crucifixion permissible according to Scripture? Or do the Feasts of the Lord signal the beginning of a new day? And what about the words of Jesus? Is it feasible that the crucifixion took place on a Wednesday or a Thursday instead of Tuesday? What does the Bible tell about the world?

A Weak Friday

In the Bible, there is virtually little proof that Jesus was crucified on Friday. The following verse provides the most significant support for it: 15:42 (Matthew 15:42) And now that the time had arrived, because it was the day before the Sabbath, which meant it was the preparation day. It is important to remember that the Jewish day began in the evening hours (at dark) and ended at the conclusion of the day’s daylight (signified by nightfall of the next day). Accordingly, on Saturday at nightfall (which we would consider Friday night), the Jews observed their weekly Sabbath, which lasted through Saturday’s late afternoon and evening (which the Jews would consider the beginning of Sunday).

Every weekly Sabbath was preceded by a day of preparation on the day before it.

The day before the Sabbath, according to Mark 15:42, was the day of preparation, and Jesus was crucified on that day. The church has presumed that this occurred on a Friday afternoon, which would have occurred prior to the weekly Saturday Sabbath, as previously stated. Is this, however, correct?

Additional Sabbath Days

In addition to the weekly Sabbath, there are a number of additional Sabbaths to observe. Weekly Sabbaths and extra Holy Days of Convocation were proclaimed by God to be a time of rest for His people, and God decreed rest for His people. These Sabbaths are collectively referred to as “seasons” (Genesis 1:14) or “God’s allotted periods” (Leviticus 23:2), and they include the following: Sabbaths are observed on a weekly basis. The Fifty-two Days of Passover: 7 Shavout, the Feast of the Seventh Day of the Weeks (Pentecost) 1st of Teruah (Twelfth of Teruah) (Feast of Trumpets) 1st of October is Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) Sukkot is celebrated for one week (Feast of Tabernacles) Shimini Atzeret is a one-person band from Israel (8th Day of Assembly) 1 day is equal to 70 Sabbaths.

Because Jesus was crucified on the day of preparation, it was thought to have occurred in the afternoon on Friday the thirteenth.

The Passover Sabbath

In addition to being known as the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of the Passover was observed in honor of the Israelites’ liberation from Egyptian slavery. This feast is established for Nisan 15 (Leviticus 23:6), which might fall on any day of the week depending on the lunar calendar. As a High Sabbath (a day of rest), this feast day is also referred to as a High Day, and it was preceded by a whole day of preparation. John 19:31 (KJV) As a result, because it was the Preparation Day, and because the corpses could not be left on the cross on the Sabbath (because it was a holy day), the Jews petitioned Pilate to have their legs severed and their bodies removed from the cross.

Nisan 14 is the date when Jesus was crucified, according to this.

Three Reasons forThursday Crucifixion

I (Shari Abbott, Reasons for Hope* Jesus) believe that Jesus was crucified on Thursday, and I will provide three reasons for this belief, as well as scriptural proof. I will also discuss several of the reasons why a crucifixion on a Wednesday or Friday does not accord with what the Bible tells. Please keep in mind that there are three different points of view on this issue while you read this. Take time to study the Bible and come to your own conclusions, but avoid allowing debates on this topic to become controversial.

What is the most essential lesson to learn from the day of the crucifixion?

God so loved the world that he gave his only born Son, that whomever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. Because God did not send his Son into the world in order to condemn the world, but in order that the world could be saved through him. (See also John 3:16-17.)

Why a Thursday crucifixion?

The first and most compelling argument in favor of a Thursday crucifixion comes straight from the teachings of our Lord. Matthew 12:40 (KJV) Because, just as Jonah spent three days and three nights in the belly of the whale, so will the Son of Man spend three days and three nights in the depths of the earth, according to the Scriptures. For “three days and three nights,” Jesus indicated emphatically that He would be in the”heart of the earth. ” It is my understanding that those words mean exactly what Jesus stated.

Jewish Days

To better comprehend this, I’d like to remind you that the Jewish 24-hour day began at nightfall and finished the following day after the daytime hours of the previous day (unlike our day that starts at 12 am and ends 24 hours later). Genesis 1:5 is a verse that describes the beginning of the creation of the world. Moreover, God named the light Day, while the darkness he designated as Night. The first day began in the evening and continued until the morning. In the Genesis story, God split the 24 hour day into two portions, which were referred to as night and day.

• His remarks were in reference to the two elements that make up a complete day of work.
• The 40 days in the desert were precisely separated into day and night in Matthew’s account: “.
• This plainly states that Jesus did not eat throughout the 40-hour period of daytime and 40-hour period of darkness in the New Testament.
• It all started with a specific time of day (isn’t it wonderful how accurate the Bible is?).

Two Parts to a Jewish Day

In Matthew 4:2, the 24 hour day is divided into two parts, just as it was in Genesis 1. The same is true of Jesus’ statement about the time period following His death and before His resurrection, in which He stated that He would be “in the heart of the earth” for three days and three nights, just as it was in Genesis 1. Understand that Jesus was not referring to His body being buried in an above-ground tomb. Instead, He was referring to His soul, which left His body at the time of His death (3 p.m.) and entered Abraham’s Bosom, which is the center of the earth.

Thursday Crucifixion—Three Days and Three Nights

Follow along with me on this chart as I count down the three days and three nights to the end. (I’ve used this identical chart multiple times throughout the post to make it easier to read and compare as you scroll down the page.) Briefly summarized, precisely as Jesus declared, He remained in the “heart of the earth” for three days—Thursday through Saturday—and three nights—Friday through Saturday and Sunday nights—during the three-day and three-night period.

Remember that the nighttime hours came before the daytime hours, yet Jesus declared that it was “.days and.nights” because He entered into “the center of the earth” at the moment of His death, which occurred during the daylight hours. Let’s see how many there are:

Thursday—3pm Death

THE FIRST DAY IS THURSDAY, NISAN 14.

Friday—A High Holy Day Sabbath

NIGHT 1 is on Friday, Nisan 15, at 8:00 p.m. The Feast of Unleavened Bread is celebrated on the first day of the month of Unleavened Bread. DAY 2 is Friday, the 15th of Nisan. It had been a nocturnal feast on Nisan 15, yet it had been a Sabbath—a time of rest—for the whole 24 hour day from sundown to sundown on Nisan 15.

Saturday— The Weekly Sabbath

THE THIRD NIGHT IS SATURDAY NIGHT, NOVEMBER 16. DAY 3 = Saturday, the 16th of Nisan. It would have been the Day of Preparation for both the High Sabbath/Feast of Unleavened Bread (Friday, Nisan 15) and the weekly Sabbath (Saturday, Nisan 16) on Thursday, Nisan 14. (Saturday, Nisan 16).

Sunday—“when it was yet dark”

The third night of Nisan 17 is on Sunday night (remember this precedes the daytime hours). According to Scripture, Jesus resurrected from the grave before the start of Sunday’s daylight hours: Matthew 28:1 (KJV) To visit the tomb at the conclusion of the sabbath, as the sun rose higher in the sky at the beginning of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary arrived. The Bible says in John 20:1 On the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene arrives at the sepulchre early in the morning, when it is still dark, and witnesses the stone being removed from the sepulchre.

Jesus resurrected from the dead on Sunday night, before the sun came up (nighttime hours preceded the daytime hours).

Thursday Crucifixion—Three Days and Three Nights

Briefly summarized, precisely as Jesus declared, He remained in the “heart of the earth” for three days—Thursday through Saturday—and three nights—Friday through Saturday and Sunday nights—during the three-day and three-night period (remember Sunday night preceded the daytime hours). Matthew 12:40 (KJV) Because, just as Jonas spent three days and three nights in the belly of a whale, so will the Son of Man spend three days and three nights in the center of the earth, according to the Scriptures.

Thursday Crucifixion

In the books of John and Mark, there are two further allusions to the number of days. Jesus used the terms “in three days” and “after three days” to describe his time on earth. There are differences in the counting methods used for each.

“Inthree days”—John 2

John 2:19–21 (NIV) Jesus responded by telling them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will rebuild it back to its former glory.” The Jews then said, “Forty-six years have been spent in the construction of this temple, and you want to erect it in three days?” He, on the other hand, spoke of the temple of his body. This counting system employs six half days–three evenings and three mornings–to equal three full days, which is the shortest possible time. The crucifixion on Thursday corresponds with Jesus’ resurrection “in three days.”

1. Thursday day equals 12 hours
2. Friday night and Friday day equals 1 day
3. Saturday night and Saturday day equals 1 day
4. Sunday night equals 12 hours.

Six and a half days plus three days is a total of three days.

“Afterthree days”—Mark 8

Mark 8:31.he started to tell them that the Son of Man would suffer many things, including being rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, as well as being murdered and rising from the dead after three days.he began to teach them that This technique considers each daytime period as a single day, with the resurrection occurring “after three days” according to this method. This begins with the day of Jesus’ crucifixion because the day had not yet come to an end by the time Jesus died in the afternoon.

The crucifixion on Thursday corresponds with Jesus’ resurrection “after three days.” Jesus resurrected from the dead on Sunday after three days, beginning on Thursday (day 1), continuing on Friday (day 2), and ending on Saturday (day 3).

Problems with aWednesdayCrucifixion

Then, in Mark 8:31, he began to teach them that the Son of Man would suffer many things, including being rejected by his father and grandfather, as well as by the chief priests and scribes, and that he would be killed, only to rise again three days later. Every 24-hour period is treated as if it were one day under this method, with the resurrection occurring “three days later.” This begins with the day of Jesus’ crucifixion, because the day had not ended when Jesus died in the afternoon. “After three days,” Jesus is raised from the dead, which makes a Thursday execution logical.

In Three Days and After Three Days— Too ManyDays

2:19 John 2:19 Jesus responded by telling them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will rebuild it back to its former glory.”

1. A half day on Wednesday
2. A full day on Thursday
3. A half-day on Friday
4. A full-day on Saturday
5. A half-day on Sunday.

Total: eight and a half days = four days, which is too many days for a Wednesday crucifixion.

“Afterthree days”—Mark 8

Mark 8:31 (NIV) .he started to tell them that the Son of Man would have to endure many things, including being rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, as well as being slain and rising from the dead after three days. Jesus rose from the dead on Sunday after four days, four days after Wednesday (day 1), four days after Thursday (day 2), four days after Friday (day 3) and four days after Saturday (day 4). This was an excessive number of days for a Wednesday crucifixion.

Problems with aFridayCrucifixion

Matthew 12:40 (KJV) Because, just as Jonas spent three days and three nights in the belly of a whale, so will the Son of Man spend three days and three nights in the center of the earth, according to the Scriptures. A Friday crucifixion takes place over the course of two days and two nights. It doesn’t jive with what Jesus said in the Bible.

In Three Days and After Three Days—TooFewDays

2:19 John 2:19 Jesus responded by telling them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will rebuild it back to its former glory.”

1. Weekends consist of Friday night and Saturday day, with Sunday night and Sunday day consisting of half-days.

Total: four and a half days = two days, which is too few days for a Friday crucifixion.

“Afterthree days”—Mark 8

Mark 8:31.he started to tell them that the Son of Man would suffer many things, including being rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, as well as being murdered and rising from the dead after three days.he began to teach them that After the crucifixion on Friday (day 1) and the resurrection on Saturday (day 2), Jesus rose from the dead on Sunday after just two days—too few days for a Friday crucifixion.

In Conclusion

Two further arguments in favor of a Thursday crucifixion will be discussed next week. Finally, let’s go through the “three days and three nights” that we’ve been counting. When it comes to a sign, Jesus says in Matthew 12:39: “An wicked and adulterous age seeks a sign; and there shall be given to it no sign other than the sign of the prophet Jonas.” With such statements, Jesus declared that the period of “three days and three nights”would serve as a “sign” for the people.

Thursday Crucifixion—Three Days and Three Night

The Day of Preparation officially began on Thursday night. There were several significant events, including Jesus’ Last Supper in the upper room, Jesus’ final speech with His followers, and Jesus’ arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane.

The trials and crucifixion took place during the day on Thursday, and Jesus breathed His last and died at three o’clock in the afternoon.

Review of counting:

Jesus died at 3 p.m. on Thursday, which is Day 1 (afternoon hours). His spirit was transported deep into the earth’s core. His corpse was laid to rest before the sun set. Then the day of the High Sabbath started. NIGHT 1 is the first night of the week on Friday (the High Sabbath) Friday is the second day of the week (the High Sabbath) NIGHT 2 is the night before Saturday night (the weekly Sabbath) Saturday is the third day of the week (the weekly Sabbath) NIGHT 3 is on a Sunday night. On Sunday, Jesus resurrected from the dead before the sun came up.

…He is not here: for he is risen, (Matthew 28:6)

The first and most important reason why I believe the crucifixion took place on a Thursday is because of this. Thursday is the only day that corresponds exactly with Jesus’ statements. Remember that Jesus stated that He would stay “three days and three nights in the center of the earth” before ascending to heaven. The “heart of the earth,” or Abraham’s Bosom, was where His soul was taken at the moment of His death on Thursday afternoon, when he spake these words. His remains was placed to rest in an above-ground tomb (rather than in the ground) before the sun set.

Draw your own conclusions, but keep in mind that it is not about the day of the week on which the crucifixion took place that is important.

All who repent and place their confidence in Him will be granted remission of sins and eternal life.

More than that, brothers and sisters, I disclose to you the gospel which I preached to you, which you also received and in which you now stand, and by which you are also saved, if you hold fast to the word which I preached to you; except you believed in vain.