Three Days, Three Nights?
- Brett Tannon Malott
- Apr 15, 2017
- 2 min read
Was Jesus really in the tomb for three days and three nights? If so, how could He have been crucified on Friday and resurrected on Sunday? In Matthew 12:40 Jesus declares, “For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” I personally take the Bible as literally as possible (i.e. Historical-Grammatical Approach), but it must be understood that we are some 2,000 years separated from this event and specifically the culture of the Ancient Near East.
In today’s culture, three days and nights would be understood as seventy two hours or so. But Jewish culture, during the time of Christ and even going back to the sixth century BC, utilized common expressions to mark any part of a day as a complete day, so Jesus being in the tomb for any part of the first day (Friday), all of the second day (Saturday), and any part of the third day (Sunday) could or would be considered three days and nights.
A prime example is from Esther 4:16 and 5:1. Esther mentioned fasting for three days and nights and said that she would then go into the king, which she did, but Esther 5:1 tells us clearly that it was on the third day that she went into the king, not after three days or on the fourth. A secondary example is an event that happens before the Passion Week from Luke 13:32. And He (Jesus) said to them, “Go and tell that fox (King Herod), ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course.’” Finish my course is in reference to Jesus crucifixion and resurrection. In the context of Jesus speaking to the Pharisees (religious leaders of the time), a literal three days does not make any sense, nor did this happen, but more importantly His audience understood this expression to be symbolic.
Lastly, there are several passages (the majority, about 4-1) state that Jesus would rise “on the third day.” If the resurrection occurred after a full 72 hours (3 days) it would have been on the fourth. See Matthew 16:21; 17:23; 20:19; Luke 24:7, 21, 46; and 1 Corinthians 15:4.
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