By

Teno Groppi

Did Jesus die on "Good Friday"? The Roman Catholic church says He did. That alone is cause to investigate the  truth   of the matter.

 The Catholic Case:

            And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: (1 Cor. 15:4)

That's it, that's their case. They claim that because it says "the third day" that Christ died on Friday, was entombed on Saturday, and arose Sunday. Partial days can occasionally count as a day (Luke 13:31-33).

If this was the only verse in the Bible dealing with the time of the crucifixion and resurrection, their claim couldn't be falsified.  However, there are several other scriptures that "suggest" that the Catholic church  doesn't know which day of the week it is.

Hallelujah Christ Arose!

Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils. (Mark 16:9)

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 sepulchre. 6 He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. (Matt. 28:1 & 6)\

Notice one oft' overlooked key fact. It does NOT say that Christ arose early the first day. It says He "was risen", past tense, He was already  risen while it was still dark.  Most likely, as will be shown more convincingly later, He arose at 6:00 PM Saturday evening, just as it became Sunday. The Jews went by the Bible and made their days "the evening and
the morning", thus the day started at 6:00 PM.

If Jesus arose before Sunday, this alone blows the entire Catholic claim and proves that they can't count to three. But there is more.

Three Days and Three Nights

Matt 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. (Matt. 12:40)

So much for the "partial day theory", it can be filed between the evolution theory and the gap theory. "Three days and three nights" is definitive and specific.

Jesus answered, Are there not twelve hours in the day?  (John 11:9)

Not to a Catholic, apparently.

Jesus was crucified in the afternoon and buried in the evening.  If  it were Friday, there's no possible way to fit "three days and three nights" in before Sunday, much less Saturday.

However, if He were crucified on Wednesday afternoon, and buried in the evening as it became Thursday, it would be exactly "three days and three nights" until he arose in the evening as Saturday turned into Sunday.

High Day

The problem that confuses the Catholic church is that a Sabbath is mentioned.  Sabbaths greatly confuse Catholics, who celebrate the Sabbath on Sunday (the first day), when any first grader can see that throughout the Bible the weekly Sabbath was Saturday (the last day).  Christ became our Sabbath rest in the New Testament, we no longer have a Sabbath day.  We honour the Lord on the first day of the week because that was the example set by the early church, but there is no special significance to one day over another.

The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was an high day,) besought Pilate that their legs might be 
broken, and that they might be taken away. (John 19:31)

The Catholic church sees a Sabbath day there and knowing that the body must be buried before then, they have Christ going into the tomb on Friday night to beat the deadline. They mistakenly assume it's talking about the Old Testament Saturday (At least they got that much right for once, but even when they're right, they're wrong!) and try to cram 72 hours into 36 or less.

What they didn't notice was that this was an high day, not a normal weekly Sabbath. The high day was the Passover!  It fell on Thursday, and the days of unleavened bread followed (Lev 23:5-7, Num 28:16-17).

Searching the Scripture, we find that the phrase "day of preparation" is never used in the context of a regular Sabbath day.  The day of "preparation" is always speaking of a special Sabbath such as the Passover. 

 A Sabbath lasted from 6 PM until 6 PM on the following day. (John 19:42)

A Biblical day is THAT twenty-four hour period. (Leviticus 23:32; Genesis 1:5, 8)

Not only does that allow the "three days and three nights" to work out precisely, but it thoroughly vindicates the King James Bible use of the word "Easter" in Acts 12:4.  The experts say that "pascha" should've been rendered "Passover", but we can see that the Passover was the day before the days of unleavened bread, which they were in at the time of the Acts account.  Passover had already passed over, it had to have been the heathen holiday Easter (Astarte, Oester, Ishtar) being referred to.

Spices In Between

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. 2 And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun. (Mark 16:1-2)

And that day was the preparation, and the sabbath drew on.  And the women also, which came with him from Galilee, followed after, and beheld the sepulchre, and how his body was laid.  And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the sabbath day according to the commandment. (Luke 23:54-56)

How could the Sabbath be past (Mark) if they had to prepare the ointments before the Sabbath (Luke)?  Easy, there were two Sabbaths, the Passover high day (Thursday), and the Saturday Sabbath.  The ladies bought the spices on Friday, between the two Sabbaths.  The Spice stores would've been closed on Thursday and Saturday. Friday was the only possible day they could've bought them.  The Catholic cramming of three days into one, and making two Sabbaths into one, makes this into a contradiction.

Fortunately, the King James Bible gets it right when you "live... by EVERY WORD of God" (Luke 4:4).

Teno Groppi

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