MANY ARE CONFUSED OVER THE TIMELINE WHEN JESUS WAS ARRESTED AND WAS CRUCIFIED. The Gospels Have Four Interpretations Of The Events And They Seem To Differ In What Is Recorded. Judges have said that this is more reflective of a truth account rather than one that is made up and everyone agrees to tell the story.

Jesus died on the Day of Preparation, as the Paschal Lamb, in the last hours of Nisan 13, which concluded on a Wednesday. Nisan 14 began that evening. The difficulty lies in understanding the difference between the Gregorian calendar and the Jewish sacred calendar. The following provides a timeline from the Last Supper to the resurrection, including when the risen Lord Jesus Christ permitted Thomas to touch Him after preventing Mary from doing so when He appeared to her at the tomb on the first day of the week, Sunday morning.

The final week of Jesus’ earthly life is not just a sequence of events; it is a direct fulfillment of the Torah’s calendar, especially the instructions in Exodus 12 and Leviticus 23. By reconstructing the Passion Week with a Nisan 13 crucifixion and a literal 72-hour burial, we find a flawless prophetic alignment. Jesus is the Lamb of God who died "between the evenings" on the day of Preparation for the Passover according to the Jewish tradition. He was buried between the two evenings on Nisan 14 corresponding to Exodus 12:6 and rose exactly three days and nights later, fulfilling the sign of Jonah (Matthew 12:40).

 Tuesday Evening (Start of Nisan 13)

At sunset Tuesday evening, Nisan 13 began. Jesus shared the Last Supper with His disciples (Luke 22:15-20). This was not the official Passover meal, but a covenantal meal preceding His betrayal. That night, He went to Gethsemane, was arrested, and endured multiple trials.

 Wednesday Afternoon (Still Nisan 13)

"Now it was the day of Preparation of the Passover..." (John 19:14—ESV).

"And at the ninth hour Jesus cried... and breathed His last" (Mark 15:34-37—ESV).

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

 

The High Sabbath was to begin a day later, but Pilate may not have consented if they had waited until the morrow. The festival was known as the feast of Passover, not the feast of Unleavened Bread. However, the High Sabbath is for the feast of Unleavened Bread, which began the following Thursday evening. This was the first of seven High Sabbaths for the year.

 

Jesus was crucified and died just after the ninth hour, or 3 PM. This timing matches the start of "between the two evenings" (Exodus 12:6), explained as the time between the beginning of sundown and sunset. According to Josephus, the lambs were killed between approximately 3 PM and 5 PM on the afternoon prior to the start of Nisan 14; that is, the day of Preparation. Jesus' death came just before the moment the national slaughter of lambs began, fulfilling His role as the forerunner and true Passover Lamb (1 Corinthians 5:7). As the people began preparing their lambs for roasting and eating that evening, Jesus had already completed His sacrifice.

 

Burial Before Dark

Deuteronomy 21:23 required the body of an executed man to be buried the same day, for a body shall not remain all night on the tree. Moreover, the High Sabbath would have been mentioned to emphasize the urgency, as the Sabbath began the next day at evening time, marking the beginning of Nisan 15.

 

Joseph of Arimathea laid Jesus in the tomb before darkness fully set in (Luke 23:50-54). This occurred after sunset but before complete nightfall. Sunset marked the beginning of Nisan 14, the day of Passover, a memorial day that lasted until sunset the following day.

 

Wednesday Sunset to Thursday Sunset (Nisan 14)

"And they shall eat the flesh that night... with unleavened bread" (Exodus 12:8—ESV).

 

This is the official day of Passover. The Jewish people roasted and ate their lambs on Wednesday night, at the start of Nisan 14, as commanded in Exodus 12. Jesus was already in the tomb. The women, after resting briefly, bought and prepared spices during the daylight hours of Thursday (Luke 23:56). This day was not a Sabbath but a day of memorial and work was permitted.

 

Thursday Sunset to Friday Sunset (Nisan 15)

" On the first day you shall have a holy convocation; you shall not do any ordinary work" (Leviticus 23:7—ESV).

 

Nisan 15, the First Day of Unleavened Bread, was a High Sabbath. Work and travel were prohibited. The women rested, as did all who honored the Lord God, in obedience to the commandment (Luke 23:56).

 

Friday Sunset to Saturday Sunset (Nisan 16)

"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy" (Exodus 20:8—ESV).

 

This was the regular weekly Sabbath. Again, the women rested. Jesus remained in the tomb, completing the second full day and third full night since His burial.

 

Saturday Sunset to Sunday Dawn (Nisan 17)

“When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him” (Mark 16:1—ESV).

"Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb.... He is not here; for He is risen, as He said" (Matthew 28:1, 6—ESV).

 

Jesus rose from the dead before dawn on the first day of the week. He had been in the heart of the earth for exactly 72 hours—Wednesday late afternoon to Saturday late afternoon. The women arrived at the tomb early Sunday morning, approximately 12 hours after Jesus had already risen. They were too late.

 

"Do Not Touch Me"

"Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father:..." (John 20:17 NKJV).

 

Jesus, having risen on the first day of the week, needed to ascend as the "firstfruits" offering (Leviticus 23:10-11). On the day after the Sabbath during Unleavened Bread, the high priest waved the first sheaf of the harvest before the Lord. Jesus fulfilled this typology perfectly, needing to remain untouched until His priestly presentation was complete.

 

Eight Days Later: Thomas

"Then He said to Thomas, 'Reach your finger here... Do not be unbelieving, but believing'" (John 20:27—WEB).

 

Now, the Feast of Unleavened Bread had concluded (Leviticus 23:6). Jesus appears again and allows Thomas to touch Him. The ceremonial requirements are fulfilled; the priestly wave offering is complete.

 

Conclusion

This timeline shows Jesus’ death on Nisan 13, burial between sunset and dusk on Nisan 14, resurrection on Nisan 17, and full compliance with all prophetic feasts. He died at the start of "between the evenings" (3 PM), was buried before dark, and rose 72 hours later. The women, acting lawfully, prepared spices on Nisan 14, rested on the double Sabbath (Nisan 15 and 16), purchased more spices on Saturday evening (the start of the first day of the week), and arrived at the tomb too late. Jesus' statements to Mary and Thomas align with the Firstfruits offering, closing the prophetic loop with exacting detail.

 

"Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us" (1 Corinthians 5:7—NKJV).

 

Arriving At Truth Is Easier When Meditating The Law Of God