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"High Sabbaths" were weekly Sabbaths (Saturdays) that occurred during a festival week.
The 1st and 7th days of festival weeks were also sabbaths, but they were lesser sabbaths. The reason is that the Law allowed certain work to be done on these festival sabbaths, the work that was necessary to prepare the feast for that day (Exodus 12:16). So these sabbaths were less strict, ergo they were "lesser" or "smaller" sabbaths.
However, the law was much more strict about the weekly Sabbath law, that no work of any kind could be done, not even to prepare the feast on a feast day, thus it was a "High Sabbath" because the Sabbath commandment superseded (was higher than) the festival commandments. So on the Preparation (Friday) of a festival week, enough food had to be prepared for 2 days and the people had to rest from all work on the weekly Sabbath.
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
The 1st and 7th days of festival weeks were also sabbaths, but they were lesser sabbaths. The reason is that the Law allowed certain work to be done on these festival sabbaths, the work that was necessary to prepare the feast for that day (Exodus 12:16). So these sabbaths were less strict, ergo they were "lesser" or "smaller" sabbaths.
However, the law was much more strict about the weekly Sabbath law, that no work of any kind could be done, not even to prepare the feast on a feast day, thus it was a "High Sabbath" because the Sabbath commandment superseded (was higher than) the festival commandments. So on the Preparation (Friday) of a festival week, enough food had to be prepared for 2 days and the people had to rest from all work on the weekly Sabbath.
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
Was Jesus crucified on Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday?
Easter Week Chronology
Paschal Week Chronology
6 days before Passover
Friday – Nisan 8 – late afternoon - Jesus arrives in Bethany from Jericho
Friday – Nisan 9 – sunset – Sabbath supper at home of Simon
5 days before Passover
Saturday – Nisan 9 – Sabbath - Jesus rests in Bethany; multitudes come from all over to see Jesus and Lazarus; chief priests and Pharisees plot to arrest both Jesus and Lazarus
4 days before Passover
Sunday – Nisan 10 – Palm Sunday, Jesus enters Jerusalem; lambs selected for Passover; Jesus cleanses Temple for the 2nd time
3 days before Passover
Monday – Nisan 11 – Jesus teaches the multitudes
2 days before Passover
Tuesday – Nisan 12 – Jesus’ denunciation of Jerusalem; Mt. Olivet discourse
1 day before Passover
Wednesday – Nisan 13 - no record in Gospels how Jesus spent the day; possibly in Bethany and last night spent there
Wednesday – Nisan 14 – at sunset Jews begin to search their homes with candles for leaven
Passover
Thursday – Nisan 14 – morning – no leaven eaten after 10:00 a.m.
Thursday – Nisan 14 –noon– leaven ceremonially destroyed by burning or by dispersing to the winds
Thursday – Nisan 14 – afternoon – lambs sacrificed from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.; Seder prepared
1st Day of Unleavened Bread
Thursday – Nisan 15 – evening – Seder eaten (roasted Passover lamb and 1st Passover Chagigah eaten {breast and shoulder of voluntary thank-offering}); the Lord's Supper instituted
Thursday – Nisan 15 – night – Jesus arrested, brought before priests and elders
Friday – Nisan 15 – morning – Jesus brought before Pilate
Friday – Nisan 15 – 9:00 in the morning – Jesus crucified
Friday – Nisan 15 – 12:00 noon– darkness
Friday – Nisan 15 – 3:00 in the afternoon – Jesus dies
Friday – Nisan 15 – late afternoon – Jesus' body placed in tomb
Friday - Nisan 15 - before sunset women purchase and prepare spices for Jesus' burial (festival sabbaths allowed certain work necessary for preparation for the feasts, shops were allowed to be open to provide pilgrims with necessary items to keep the feast); High Sabbath preparations made
Sabbath (a "High Day")
Friday – Nisan 16 – sunset – High Sabbath begins (2nd feast at which mandatory 2nd Passover Chagigah is eaten which Pharisees would have been excluded from eating had they become defiled that morning)
Friday – Nisan 16 – night – women rest
Saturday – Nisan 16 – Sabbath – women rest
Saturday - Nisan 17 - night - Rabbinic Law requires that work not be resumed during night following Shabbat
1st Day of the Week
Sunday – Nisan 17 – morning early – women come to tomb, Jesus is risen
Primary Sources: The Gospels, Talmudic Tractate "Pesachim," Josephus "Antiquities."Secondary Sources: The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, Alfred Edersheim; The Temple and It's Services, Alfred Edersheim; Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus, Joachim Jeremias; Sketches of Jewish Social Life, Alfred Edersheim; Daily Life in Bible Times, Packer/Tenney/White; Manner and Customs of Bible Times, Ralph Gower and many more.
The lambs for passover were selected and set aside on the 10th day of the month, whatever week day that might fall on. In the year of Jesus' passion it fell on a Sunday, ergo "Palm Sunday."
There was no "preparation day" for Passover as the Law (Exodus 12:16) allowed the work necessary to keep the feast to be done on the day of the feast, even on the 1st and 7th days of the feasts, ergo they were lower or lesser sabbaths.
Matthew, Mark, and Luke all state that Jesus ate the Passover with the rest of the nation in Jerusalem on the evening of Nisan 15, the first day of Unleavened Bread.
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
There was no "preparation day" for Passover as the Law (Exodus 12:16) allowed the work necessary to keep the feast to be done on the day of the feast, even on the 1st and 7th days of the feasts, ergo they were lower or lesser sabbaths.
Matthew, Mark, and Luke all state that Jesus ate the Passover with the rest of the nation in Jerusalem on the evening of Nisan 15, the first day of Unleavened Bread.
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
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Did the Sabbath day start at 6pm or midnite? 6pm might make a diff.
6pm might make a diff.
It wasn't until the 4th century that Rabbi Hillel II developed the fixed calendar that is still in use today. But before that, the beginning of years, months, and days was determined by observations made in Israel.
Once the calendar was fixed, the calendar day was considered to have begun at 6:00 p.m., or about sunset.
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
No, twilight in both Hebrew and English refers to the period just after sunset while there is still light, whatever hour on the clock that might occur, and it changes throughout the year, earlier in winter, and later in summer as far as the clock goes.
It is the period also called dusk, and an old term I like is the gloaming.
The ancients didn't have strict time keeping as we do, not having clocks. The day in summer was much longer than the day in winter, sunset varied by as much as 3 hours summer to winter and therefore when twilight would occur would vary as well. For study purposes, we simply divide the day into 12 hours from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and the night likewise, but in reality there was and still is a variance of up to 3 hours in the actual sunrise and sunset and therefore what hour on the clock twilight might occur.
The Hebrew word translated evening is often taken to be referring to this post-sunset period, but what it actually refers to is the period when the sun begins to descend in the sky (12:00 p.m.) until it actually sets (approx 6:00 p.m.). Hebrew doesn't have a word for afternoon. Thus "between the evenings," when the evening sacrifice was made and when the Passover lambs and other festival sacrifices were made, was at 3:00 p.m., or between the time the sun began to go down and the time it actually sank below the horizon.
Unless you understand that the word ereb (evening) in the Bible has a broader meaning than just a particular hour of the day it can be confusing. It can refer to the whole afternoon period from noon to sunset ("from evening to evening"), or it can refer to the period midway between noon and sunset (3:00 p.m. or the time of the evening sacrifice and the time of the evening prayers in the synagogue), or it can refer to the period just before sunset and the ending of the day. Context is key.
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
It is the period also called dusk, and an old term I like is the gloaming.
The ancients didn't have strict time keeping as we do, not having clocks. The day in summer was much longer than the day in winter, sunset varied by as much as 3 hours summer to winter and therefore when twilight would occur would vary as well. For study purposes, we simply divide the day into 12 hours from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and the night likewise, but in reality there was and still is a variance of up to 3 hours in the actual sunrise and sunset and therefore what hour on the clock twilight might occur.
The Hebrew word translated evening is often taken to be referring to this post-sunset period, but what it actually refers to is the period when the sun begins to descend in the sky (12:00 p.m.) until it actually sets (approx 6:00 p.m.). Hebrew doesn't have a word for afternoon. Thus "between the evenings," when the evening sacrifice was made and when the Passover lambs and other festival sacrifices were made, was at 3:00 p.m., or between the time the sun began to go down and the time it actually sank below the horizon.
Unless you understand that the word ereb (evening) in the Bible has a broader meaning than just a particular hour of the day it can be confusing. It can refer to the whole afternoon period from noon to sunset ("from evening to evening"), or it can refer to the period midway between noon and sunset (3:00 p.m. or the time of the evening sacrifice and the time of the evening prayers in the synagogue), or it can refer to the period just before sunset and the ending of the day. Context is key.
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
Actually, that's a mis-translation. The Hebrew does not say "in the evening at sunset," it says "in the evening, at the going down of the sun." This refers to the period when the sun has passed the zenith and begins to descend or go down in the sky toward the horizon, or 12:00 p.m. Thus the lambs were slain between the time the sun began to go down and the time it actually set, or between 12:00 and 6:00 p.m., or at 3:00 p.m., when Josephus as well as Talmudic tractates on the Passover state that the Passover lambs were slain.
In fact, because of the number of lambs to be slain, the evening sacrifice was backed up and offered at 1:00 p.m. and afterward they immediately began the offerings for the Passover (tens of thousands during New Testament times) until 5:00 p.m. when the last lambs could be slain and still allow time for them to be prepared and roasted in time for the Seder that night.
This translation of the Hebrew ereb as "evening" is confusing but keep in mind that it can refer to the period from noon to sunset or to any period during that time.
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
In fact, because of the number of lambs to be slain, the evening sacrifice was backed up and offered at 1:00 p.m. and afterward they immediately began the offerings for the Passover (tens of thousands during New Testament times) until 5:00 p.m. when the last lambs could be slain and still allow time for them to be prepared and roasted in time for the Seder that night.
This translation of the Hebrew ereb as "evening" is confusing but keep in mind that it can refer to the period from noon to sunset or to any period during that time.
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
Because in New Testament times the night was divided into four watches for military purposes. The Temple also kept watches throughout the night, a contingent of priests making regular rounds of the Temple precincts to ensure nothing unclean had managed to steal into the courts, polluting the holy places. The two 3-hour watches after sunset were known as the night watch and the two 3-hour watches before sunrise were known as the morning watch. It was sort of a logical place to divide the 24 hour periods. The orthodox churches still observe these watches as times of prayer.
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
I think your difficulty may be arising from trying to understand these things based on your interpretation of the phrase "in the heart of the earth" and assuming it means how long Jesus would be in the tomb. I think that is a problem because on numerous occasions Jesus specifically told the disciples that he would be arrested, rejected by the leaders of the nation, would suffer, and would be crucified and rise on the third day, the third day referring to the third day after he suffered all these things, as he repeatedly taught, not the third day after being buried. Certainly that is the understanding of the disciples Jesus encountered on the road to Emmaus on Easter Sunday after his resurrection, they listed all these events, including Jesus being arrested, rejected, suffering being beaten, crucified and hanging on a cross for six hours, plus including the time he was buried, and they said that Sunday was the third day since all those things had happened. So perhaps the problem is in trying to limit the three days to only the hours Jesus was dead and not including the other things he endured at the hands of wicked men. Sunday morning would be the third day after he was arrested Thursday night.
I am very familiar with the whole controversy. It was one of the two primary disputes among the churches that caused Constantine to convene the Council of Nicea to debate and settle the issues, the divinity of Jesus being the other issue that was tearing the church apart.
I'm afraid that's not quite correct. The problem was that the Quartodecimans were basing their Paschal observance on the Jewish calendar and the ancient date of the Passover on Nisan 14, beginning their feast for the Crucifixion, then celebrating the Resurrection three days later with a feast, whatever day of the week that might fall on. The rest of the churches were observing the Crucifixion on the Friday following the Paschal moon and celebrating the Resurrection on the Paschal Sunday. This created a problem in that churches were fasting while other churches were feasting, which made it impossible for them to fellowship together.
That's a rather biased summation. The Quartodecimans observed the fast and the Lord's Resurrection according to the Jewish calendar (based on Nisan 14), and the rest of the churches observed the fast and the Lord's Resurrection according to the Christian calendar (Sunday following the paschal full moon). That the Christian observance was adopted unanimously at the Council by all the Bishops from all the churches throughout the world is testimony to the rightness of the decision.
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
I am very familiar with the whole controversy. It was one of the two primary disputes among the churches that caused Constantine to convene the Council of Nicea to debate and settle the issues, the divinity of Jesus being the other issue that was tearing the church apart.
I'm afraid that's not quite correct. The problem was that the Quartodecimans were basing their Paschal observance on the Jewish calendar and the ancient date of the Passover on Nisan 14, beginning their feast for the Crucifixion, then celebrating the Resurrection three days later with a feast, whatever day of the week that might fall on. The rest of the churches were observing the Crucifixion on the Friday following the Paschal moon and celebrating the Resurrection on the Paschal Sunday. This created a problem in that churches were fasting while other churches were feasting, which made it impossible for them to fellowship together.
That's a rather biased summation. The Quartodecimans observed the fast and the Lord's Resurrection according to the Jewish calendar (based on Nisan 14), and the rest of the churches observed the fast and the Lord's Resurrection according to the Christian calendar (Sunday following the paschal full moon). That the Christian observance was adopted unanimously at the Council by all the Bishops from all the churches throughout the world is testimony to the rightness of the decision.
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
"Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; but they were kept from recognizing him.
He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?”
They stood still, their faces downcast. One of them, named Cleopas,asked him, “Are you the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?”
“What things?” he asked.
“About Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him ... it is the third day since all this took place."
From the chief priests arresting Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane on Thursday night, to being handed over to be sentenced to death on Friday morning, to being crucified and hanging on a cross for 6 hours on Friday, to being buried on Friday evening, to the resurrection on Sunday morning ... for all this to take place I count three days.
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?”
They stood still, their faces downcast. One of them, named Cleopas,asked him, “Are you the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?”
“What things?” he asked.
“About Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him ... it is the third day since all this took place."
From the chief priests arresting Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane on Thursday night, to being handed over to be sentenced to death on Friday morning, to being crucified and hanging on a cross for 6 hours on Friday, to being buried on Friday evening, to the resurrection on Sunday morning ... for all this to take place I count three days.
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
It might not be a good idea to get doctrine from Yahoo. The sabbath that John was referring to being a high day was the weekly sabbath which commandments superseded the festival commandments. Festival sabbaths were considered lower or lesser sabbaths because on those sabbaths the law allowed certain work to be done, that work which was necessary to eat the feast:
"And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation, and in the seventh day there shall be a holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you." Exodus 12:16
For that reason, these festival sabbaths were considered lesser sabbaths, not as strict as the weekly sabbath when no work could be done at all, not even to prepare a feast on a feast day. And of the three week-long festivals each year, at least one feast day would fall on a weekly Sabbath, and the people would have to prepare enough feast to last for two days, because the weekly Sabbath was a High day and it's commandments could not be violated, not even to prepare for an ordained feast.
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
"And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation, and in the seventh day there shall be a holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you." Exodus 12:16
For that reason, these festival sabbaths were considered lesser sabbaths, not as strict as the weekly sabbath when no work could be done at all, not even to prepare a feast on a feast day. And of the three week-long festivals each year, at least one feast day would fall on a weekly Sabbath, and the people would have to prepare enough feast to last for two days, because the weekly Sabbath was a High day and it's commandments could not be violated, not even to prepare for an ordained feast.
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
The law allowed the Jews to do that work which was necessary to observe the feast even on the first and seventh days of the feast when other work was not allowed. Because there were so many pilgrims in Jerusalem for the feasts, particularly for the Passover, shops would be open to allow the pilgrims to purchase the necessary items and prepare them for the feasts, especially on the Preparation before the weekly Sabbath when they would need to purchase and prepare the feast for two days. So the shops would have been open on Friday, even though it was the first day of Unleavened Bread and a festival sabbath, offering all the things needed for the feast for two days, as the law itself allowed. After seeing where Jesus' body was laid late on Friday afternoon, the women would have been able to purchase whatever they needed before the shops closed Friday and the Sabbath commenced.
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
I referenced Exodus 12:16 which states that on the festival sabbaths certain work was allowed to be done, so the festival sabbath commandments were less strict. On weekly sabbaths however, no work at all could be done, not even on a feast day to prepare the feast, thus the weekly sabbath commandments were more strict and Friday continued to be the Preparation when enough food had to be prepared for two days, even during a festival week. This was the way Exodus prescribed the festival sabbaths be observed, it was the practice during Temple times, and is still the common practice in Judaism to this day.
Can you cite any Scripture or can you point to historic or modern-day practice that shows the annuals sabbaths were more holy than (their commandments overrode) the weekly Sabbaths?
And yes, Jews most certainly do capitalize Shabbat (Hebrew word for the weekly Sabbath).
In Christ,
Pilgrimer
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