Saturday evening, when the Sabbath ended, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome went out and purchased burial spices so they could anoint Jesus’ body. Very early on Sunday morning, just at sunrise, they went to the tomb. On the way they were asking each other, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?”
But as they arrived, they looked up and saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled aside. When they entered the tomb, they saw a young man clothed in a white robe sitting on the right side.
The women were shocked, but the angel said, “Don’t be alarmed. You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead! Look, this is where they laid His body. Now go and tell His disciples, including Peter, that Jesus is going ahead of you to Galilee. You will see Him there, just as He told you before He died.” — Mark 16:1-7, NLT
He is risen!
April 8, 2007 By
The NLT is the only version (that I know of) that calls the “Sabbath†“Saturday.†The Sabbath that ended is clearly identified in all versions, including the NLT, as a “special Sabbath,†a “high day,†according to Lev. 23:4-8. This special Sabbath was not the weekly Sabbath on Saturday, but an annual Sabbath on Thursday, the 15th day of the first month. Wednesday was the Passover day (also a day of preparation for the annual Sabbath), the 14th day of the first month.
The woman did not go shopping for spices Saturday evening; they went to buy spices on Friday, a day of preparation for the weekly Sabbath.
Yes, early Sunday morning when the woman came, Jesus was already risen, for He rose at the end of the Sabbath in order to fulfill the ONLY sign given to identify the TRUE Messiah, the sign of Jonah. Jesus was in the grave from Wednesday to Saturday, exactly three days and three nights. The Jesus who was in the grave from Friday to Sunday does not meet the only sign given and is therefore a false Jesus.