THE RESURRECTION - A REEXAMINATION OF THE EVIDENCE - Part Three

LESSON THREE

THE EVENTS AS THEY TOOK PLACE IN THEIR ORDER

A QUICK REVIEW OF WHAT WE HAVE EXAMINED IS IN ORDER

Welcome again to our continued examination of the trial, execution, burial, resurrection, and appearances of the Messiah to His disciples, which we have faithfully recorded for us by the evangelists in the four Gospels, and retold by Paul and others at different parts of their letters recounting various details of these in their letters.

Again, we will take a brief reexamination of what we covered in the last and most recent part of our study previously the last time we gathered for our study. We will also examine independent sources for additional information which corroborates the oldest records – the Gospels.

We will glean from them how Jesus’ detractors and others, who were not disciples of His, reacted to these events. The information before us is astonishing, because it does not come from supporters of Jesus, but from hostile witnesses, whose writings corroborate the Gospel accounts of those events.

We now return to where these events took place, and pick up where we last left off, following Pilate’s delivery of Jesus to be scourged, after releasing the insurrectionist and murderous thief, Bar Abbas, and surrendering Jesus to be executed by crucifixion.

As we return to Jerusalem, we witness a long procession of Roman troops commanded by a Centurion, Sadducees led by their priests and allies among the elders, a large number of civilians, and at its front, three men, one badly beaten and bleeding from His open wounds on His back and torso; carrying their cross beams to the place of execution.

At one point, it appears from the record that upon reaching the gate to exit the city, while attempting to continue walking with His heavy burden; Jesus who has carried His own cross beam thus far, is so weak from dehydration, loss of blood, heat exhaustion, and the trauma He has suffered; that He cannot carry it and collapses, so they press a passerby named Simon of Cyrene to carry Jesus’ cross for Him to the place of execution outside of the city walls.

Upon arriving at Golgotha, just outside of the city, they offer Jesus wine mixed with gall, but after tasting it, Jesus refuses to drink it.

Now before us are a great throng of people, who have gathered to witness a Roman execution of three men hanging on three crosses, one of them innocent of the charges brought against Him, yet convicted on the charge of sedition.

THE EVENTS AS THEY TOOK PLACE IN THEIR ORDER

A REVIEW OF THE PEOPLE AND OCCURRENCES AT THE CROSS

From the cross, Jesus makes what are called His seven last words before dying. In chronological order, they are the following:

1.) His word of forgiveness – “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.”
2.) The word of salvation – “Truly, I say to you, today you shall be with Me in paradise.”
3.) The word of affection – “Woman, behold your Son! Behold your Mother!”
4.) The word of despair – “Eli, Eli, LAMA SABACHTHANI? that is, “MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAST THOUS FORSAKEN ME?”
5.) The word of physical torment – “I thirst.”
6.) The word of triumph – “It is finished!”
7.) The word of committal – “Father, into Thy hands I commit My spirit!”

Matthew and Mark each record only one saying, whereas Luke and John each record three.

Luke says that a Roman soldier who has just approached Jesus to offer this drink, has done to mock Him, saying as he offered the drink, “If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself!”

At another point some hours later, one of those standing by, when he hears Jesus cry out, believing that Jesus is calling upon Elijah the prophet; grabs a sponge filled with sour wine, puts it on a reed, and gives it to Jesus.

In front of Jesus, below looking on, are a great number of people, and we will now break down the approximate number of those present at the execution, among whom are the following, and these are:

FIRST GROUP – JESUS’ FAMILY, ACQUAINTANCES, AND SUPPORTERS:

1.) Miriam, Jesus’ natural mother
2.) Miriam’s sister
3.) John His beloved disciple
4.) Miriam of Magdala
5.) Miriam, the wife of Cleopas
6.) Jesus’ acquaintances
7.) Other women who had come up with Him to Jerusalem
8.) Mary the mother of James the Less and Joseph, and Salome

SECOND GROUP – A ROMAN CENTURION COMMANDING A COHORT:

9.) A Centurion with a full complement of Roman troops guard the site of the crucifixion. Matthew does not disclose the number of troops, but only mentions the Centurion and those who were with him.

But from historical records, we can get an idea of the great number of troops that were present at the crucifixion, because of the following data:

A Centurion commands a Roman Cohort, or Battalion, and a Roman Cohort numbers between five Centuries of 480 troops to as high as six Centuries of 800 crack fighting troops.

The exact number of troops present depends whether the centurion in question is a Primus Pilus of the First Cohort, and if he is, then the full complement of troops under his command would be as many as six Centuries comprised of eight hundred professional troops of the finest of Caesar’s legions.

There is reason to believe, and the evidence of the Gospels themselves support this, that because of the highly charged nature of Jesus’ execution – the almost riotous mob and the chief priests and their families; the political instability attached to any messianic figure, and Rome’s and the Sanhedrin’s need to quell such activities, and those connected to them; and the possibility of zealot action making its appearance – indeed, the entire unpredictability of all of these, including Pilate’s own need to keep public order so as to curry much needed favor with Rome; there are present at the site of Jesus’ execution a great number of Roman troops commanded by a Centurion, perhaps even a full Cohort of between 480 to 800 troops, to guard the perimeter of Golgotha.

But whether a full Roman Cohort of 5 or 6 Centuries, each equaling 80 to 160 troops, totaling between 480 and 800 ; are present at the execution, or just a single Century of either 80 or 160 troops are present; the number present guarding Jesus and the robbers surrounding the perimeter is considerable.

THIRD GROUP – JESUS’ DETRACTORS AND ENEMIES:

10.) The robbers crucified at Jesus’ right and left
11.) The chief priests, the scribes, and elders allied to them
12.) Those passing by hurling abuse at Jesus, who wag their heads at Him, and taunt Him from a distance

FOURTH GROUP – A LARGE PROGRESSION OF ONLOOKERS FOLLOWING THE PROCEEDINGS, WHO WITNESSED JESUS DIE:

13.) A great multitude of the people, as Luke calls them, among whom, are women who mourn the Master greatly; to whom Jesus addresses Himself, as Simon the Cyrenian carries His crossbeam for Him, saying:

“Daughters of Jerusalem, stop weeping for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children.
“For behold, the days are coming when they will say, ‘Blessed are the barren, and the womb that never bore, and the breasts that never nursed.’
“Then they will begin TO SAY TO THE MOUNTAINS, ‘FALL ON US,’ AND TO THE HILLS, ‘COVER US.’
“For if they do these things in the green tree, what will happen in the dry?”

The reason to make a distinction between these and the first group of women is because these are Judean natives of Jerusalem, whereas Jesus’ family, like Jesus and most of His disciples, were natives of the town of Nazareth in the region of Galilee.

It is this great group of people of whom Luke writes that seeing Jesus die, they leave the scene and return to their homes mourning greatly and beating their breasts as they go along.

It is apparent that they do not support the high priests and their crowd who had shouted for Jesus’ execution inside of Pilate’s quarters earlier.

IN TOTAL, A GREAT NUMBER OF PEOPLE WITNESSED JESUS DIE

So, the records establish these events are witnessed by a great number of people which we’ve broken down to four distinct groups; encompassing a diverse number of Judean Jews, Galilean Jews – some supporters others, enemies of Jesus – Romans, and yes, even a group of Gentile converts to Judaism from the region of Galatia; who all witnessed these events first hand.

The words of Peter speaking to a Roman Centurion and his family and servants in the city of Caesarea come to mind, as we recall the number of people who witnessed Jesus’ death on the cross:

And opening his mouth, Peter said:
“I most certainly understand now that God is not the one to show partiality, but in every nation the man who fears Him and does what is right, is welcome to Him.
“The word which He sent to the sons of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus the Messiah (He is Lord of all) – you yourselves know the thing which took place throughout all of Judea, starting from Galilee, after the baptism which John proclaimed.
“You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good, and healing all who were oppressed by the devil; for God was with Him.
“And we are witnesses of all the things He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem. And they also put Him to death by hanging Him on a cross.
“God raised Him up on the third day, and granted that He should become visible, not to all the people, but to witnesses who were chosen beforehand by God, that is, to us who ate and drank with Him after He arose from the dead.
“And He ordered us to preach to the people, and solemnly to testify that this is the One who has been appointed by God as Judge of the living and the dead.
“Of Him all the prophets bear witness that through His name everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins.”

We hear also the testimony of Paul – the learned Pharisee – boldly speaking before King Agrippa II, Princess Bernice, Festus the Roman Governor, and Paul’s and Jesus’ detractors from the high priest:

“For the king knows these matters, and I speak to him also with confidence, since I am persuaded that none of these things escape his notice; for this has not been done in a corner.”

It can be safely surmised by the evidence at hand, from the records, and those who have witnessed the events; that several hundred people, perhaps even as much as fifteen hundred; witnessed Jesus die between two criminals, and that these things have not occured in a corner, but out in the open, where many witnesses have actively taken part in the events unfolding which we are examining.

A RECAP OF THE INCREDIBLE SIGNS WHICH FOLLOWED JESUS’ DEATH FROM SOURCES OUTSIDE OF THE GOSPELS, EVEN HOSTILE ONES

In his Gospel narrative Matthew recalls more than the other Evangelists in greater detail, events which overtook Jerusalem and its surrounding environs, including the whole earth, the day Messiah died.

The peculiarity of these events was that they coincided with the death of Jesus, and was witnessed by a large number of people – both supporters and detractors of the Galilean Rabbi/Messiah.

In his magnum opus, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, Alfred Edersheim writes of the events in the following manner:

“And now a shudder ran through Nature, as its Sun had set. We dare not do more than follow the rapid outlines of the Evangelistic narrative. As the first token, it records the rending of the Temple-Veil in two from the top downward to the bottom; as the second, the quaking of the earth, the rending of the rocks and the opening of the graves.., while the rending of the Veil is recorded first, as being the most significant token to Israel, it may have been connected with the earthquake, although this alone might scarcely account for the tearing of so heavy a Veil from the top to the bottom. Even the latter circumstance has its significance. That some great catastrophe, betokening the impending destruction of the Temple, had occurred in the Sanctuary about this very time, is confirmed by not less than four mutually independent testimonies: those of Tacitus, of Josephus, of the Talmud, and of earliest Christian tradition. The most important of these are, of course, the Talmud and Josephus. The latter speaks of the mysterious extinction of the middle and chief light in the Golden Candlestick, forty years before the destruction of the Temple; and both he and the Talmud refer to a supernatural opening by themselves of the great Temple-gates that had been previously closed, which was regarded as a portent of the coming destruction of the Temple”

And Josephus, the Jewish historian, writes about this in his mammoth work, the Jewish Wars:

“Thus also, before the Jewish rebellion, and before those commotions which preceded the war, when the people were come in great crowds to the feast of unleavened bread, on the eighth day of the month Xanthicus [Nisan] and at the ninth hour of the night, so great a light shone round the altar and the holy house, that it appeared to be bright day-time; which light lasted for half an hour. This light seemed to be a good sign to the unskillful, but was so interpreted by the sacred scribes as to portend those events that followed immediately upon it. At the same festival also, a heifer, as she was being led by the high priest to be sacrificed, brought forth a lamb in the midst of the temple. Moreover, the eastern gate of the inner, [court of the temple,] which was of brass, and vastly heavy, and had been with difficulty shut by twenty men, and rested upon a basis armed with iron, and had bolts fastened very deep into the firm floor, which was there made of one entire stone, was seen to be opened of its own accord about the sixth hour of the night. Now, those that kept watch in the temple came thereupon running to the captain of the temple, and told him of it; who then came up thither, and not without great difficulty was able to shut the gate again. This also appeared to the vulgar to be a very happy prodigy, as if God did thereby open them the gate of happiness. But the men of learning understood it, that the security of their holy house was dissolved of its own accord, and that the gate was opened for the advantage of their enemies. So these publicly declared, that this signal foreshewed the DESOLATION that was coming upon them”

Jerome, in his Letter to Hedibia, writes that the gigantic lintel of the temple – a huge stone that was 30 feet long and weighed thirty tons – had broken and splintered, and fallen – an event he connects with the rending of the Veil in the temple. About this, Edersheim comments:

“it would seem an obvious inference to connect again this breaking of the lintel with an earthquake”

To appreciate the meaning and significance of the temple veil rending from top to bottom, and the other events connected to Jesus’ death, which occurred precisely at the time when Jesus breathed His last and gave up His spirit; there are additional details worth examining.

The temple veils were sixty feet long, thirty feet wide, being the thickness of a man’s hand and wrought in seventy-two squares. These veils were so heavy that it took 300 priests to manipulate each one.

No human being could rend this veil, and it appeared that the earthquake, which brought down the lintel, caused the veil itself to rend from top to bottom.

But whether it was from natural or miraculous causes, it was from divine intent, as now God had shown His displeasure of the corrupt priesthood, and with one stroke, given to the nation the most direct sign of His displeasure with that priesthood whose end would come within that generation on the 9th of the month of Hebrew month of Av in the year 70 of that era.

One Internet writer – William F. Dankenbring in his well written article comments that:

“The Veil being rent from top to bottom was such a terrible portent because it indicated that God’s Own Hand had torn it in two, His Presence thus deserting and leaving that Holy Place.”

Another sign this pointed to was the irrevocable fact that with the coming of the Messiah, the Law itself has changed, as was expected at the time Messiah made His appearance to Israel, and that the old Aaronic Priesthood with its sacrificial cult system had come to an end with the death of the Messiah, and replaced with Melchizedek’s Order.

The Levitical line of Aaron and its priesthood presided by the corrupt Sadducees – the high priest Joseph Caiaphas and his father in law, former high priest Annas – had ended and been superseded by a new and higher order.

As if to confirm that indeed this had taken place precisely with the death of Messiah, we have the following from the Babylonian Talmud:

"Our rabbis taught: During the last forty years before the destruction of the Temple the lot ['For the Lord'] did not come up in the right hand; nor did the crimson-colored strap become white; nor did the western most light shine; and the doors of the Hekel [Temple] would open by themselves"

The Jerusalem Talmud records the same event which took place that year which ties in with the occurrences recorded in the Gospels records, but tells it slightly differently:

“Forty years before the Temple was destroyed . . .the gates of the Hekel opened by themselves, until Rabbi Yohanan B. Zakkai rebuked them saying, Hekel, Hekel, why alarmist thou us? We know that thou art destined to be destroyed...”

Another version of the same passage from the Jerusalem Talmud records this incident in the following manner:

''Said Rabban Yohanan Ben Zakkai to the Temple, 'O Temple, why do you frighten us? We know that you will end up destroyed. For it has been said, 'Open your doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour your cedars' '' (Zechariah 11:1)'

The fact that this incident, and the events surrounding it, are recorded in both the Jerusalem Talmud and the more authoritative Babylonian Talmud; is evidence that the knowledge of these occurrences spread throughout the Jewish World of that era.

Further on, William F. Dankenbring makes the following observation in connection to this incredible event:

“For the huge doors of the Temple behind the Veil to open, of their own accord, or in association with the great earthquake, would cause them to pull powerfully against the Veil, and with the lintel falling, at the same time, could have torn it in two from top to bottom.”

These readings from the Talmud indicate that there were more signs that occurred the day Messiah died than we have in the Gospels. We will now examine them one by one.

OTHER SIGNS THAT OCCURRED FROM THE DAY MESSIAH DIED TO THE YEAR OF THE TEMPLE’S DESTRUCTION BY THE ROMANS

For two hundred years preceding the death of Jesus, when the high priest would pick the stone for the lot chosen to determine which one of the two goats would be “for the Lord” and which one would be the Azazel, or scapegoat, a black stone as well as a white stone would be chosen.

But from the year of Jesus’ death until the destruction of the temple forty years later, the stone which was picked repeatedly was black. One writer has placed the odds of this happening at 2 to the fortieth power, or a trillion to one! But the Talmud tells us that it happened.

Another sign the Talmud mentions that is connected to have begun at the precise time of Jesus’ death concerns the Scarlet Cord tied around the horn of the Azazel, part of which would also be tied to temple’s door. This cord is connected to God’s heartfelt admonition with Israel through Isaiah the prophet, where He pleads:

“COME AND LET US REASON TOGETHER,” SAYS THE LORD, THOUGH YOUR SINS ARE AS SCARLET, THEY WILL BE WHITE AS SNOW; THOUGH THEY ARE LIKE CRIMSON, THEY WILL BE LIKE WOOL.”

Every year the scarlet cord on the temple door would miraculously turn white, signifying God’s forgiveness and acceptance of that year’s Yom Kippur sacrifice.

But for forty years preceding the destruction of the temple, this cord never changed color, but remained red; which caused great worry with the people, because it indicated God’s rejection of the sacrifice offered for that year, and what was a worse omen to the people – that they remained without atonement for sins.

The people had come to believe that there was a connection between the scarlet cord as an indicator that the priest’s Yom Kippur sacrifice had been accepted and their sins removed, because for forty years preceding Jesus’ appearance in 30 A.D., the people noticed that every time the high priest’s sacrifice had been accepted and their sins forgiven, the scarlet cord had miraculously turned white.

Another sign of God’s displeasure was that forty years precisely before the destruction of the temple; the Sanhedrin was banished from holding their hearings in the beautifully ornate Chamber of Hewn Stones, and their hearings were relegated to a trading station on the temple mount.

And Josephus mentions that they had to move yet again to a place outside of the temple complex, to a location near a building called the Xystus, so that they were forced to hold their councils outside of the temple itself.

Ernest Martin, in his book Secrets of Galgotha, makes the following observations regarding the Sanhedrin’s exile from this hallowed and magnificent place, close to the Holy Place within the temple itself, to a lesser location, and then again to an even lesser locale now outside of the temple precincts:

“If an earthquake of the magnitude capable of breaking the stone lintel at the top of the entrance to the Holy Place was occurring at the exact time of Christ’s death, then what would such an earthquake have done to the Chamber of Hewn Stones (a vaulted and columned structure) no more than 40 yards away from where the stone lintel fell and the curtain was torn in two?”
“There is every reason to believe, though the evidence is circumstantial, that the Chamber of Hewn Stones was so damaged in the same earthquake that it became structurally unsafe from that time forward. Something like this had to have happened because the Sanhedrin would not have left this majestic chamber (to take up residence in the insignificant ‘Trading Place’) unless something approaching this explanation took place”
“If this is actually what happened (and I have no doubt that it did), we then have a most remarkable witness that God the Father engineered every action happening on the day of Christ’s trial and crucifixion. It means that the judgment made by the official Sanhedrin against Jesus within the Chamber of Hewn Stones, was THE LAST JUDGMENT ever given by the official Sanhedrin in their majestic chambers within the Temple! It would show that God the Father demonstrated by the earthquake at Christ’s death that the sentence of the Sanhedrin against Jesus would be the last judgment it would ever make in that authorized place!”

Rabbi Leibel Reznick writes about this in The Holy Temple Revisited:
“Although this was the largest structure on top of the entire Temple Mount, the purpose and function of the Basilica is not recorded anywhere. The TALMUD tells us that when the Sanhedrin (Supreme Court) CEASED TO JUDGE CAPITAL OFFENCES, they MOVED from the Supreme Court chambers to the ‘shopping mall’ (Rosh HaShana 31a). This shopping mall was located on the Temple Mount (Rashi) ... Perhaps this shopping mall was located within the Royal Basilica. Because this area was built on Herod’s extension, it did not have the sanctity of the Temple itself, and commerce would have been permitted”

A further observation is given by William F. Dankenbring that is worth citing here:

“This was also the year they CEASED to judge capital offences! This “authority” was thenceforth removed from their purview, denied to them - another withering rebuke to the sages of the Court which so injudiciously and intemperately MISJUDGED the Messiah Himself!”

We have just examined independent sources, some from hostile sources; confirming that on the day Messiah died, inexplicable events took place from that day until the end of that year.

History teaches us that these events, and several others that continued to occur from that year and for forty years, culminated with the destruction of the temple and city, and the exile and dispersion of Israel for two thousand years.

REACTION BY THOSE WHO WITNESSED THESE INCREDIBLE EVENTS

The Centurion who commands the troops who guarding the place of execution feels the earthquake, and everything happening around them; the weather, the darkened sky, and the manner in which Jesus died; the dignity, forgiveness, love, and care He displayed on that most undignified place of execution; great fear grips him and the troops, and he is heard exclaiming – “Truly this was the Son of God. Truly this Man was innocent.”

And the Gospel Luke records the crowd’s reaction to Jesus’ death and everything that happened around them when He died:

And all the multitudes who came together for this spectacle, when they observed what had happened, began to return, beating their breasts.

Because it is the Day of Preparation for the Passover, and Shabbat approaches at sundown, the legs of the criminals to the left and to the right of Jesus are broken by the Romans in order to accelerate death, so that they will not be left hanging on those crosses during the Sabbath.

But when they approach Jesus, they realize that there is no need to break His legs, because He has already died.

In order to completely verify that Jesus has died, one of the soldiers takes his lance and pierces deep into Jesus’ side, striking a fatal blow to His heart. And immediately blood and water come out.

If Jesus has been unconscious until now, feigning death, or drugged as some claim, the lancing to His side has made sure of His fatality, and proof of it is the blood and water that appears.

Medically this indicates that Jesus has died of heart failure. As He struggled to breath, moving up and down on the cross to gasp for air, His lungs filled with water, putting greater and greater strain upon His already weakened heart.

Eventually His heart could handle the strain no longer and with His lungs filled with water – Pulmonary Edema setting in – He breathed His last.

By the time the Romans approach His body to inspect it Jesus has been dead for some time, proscribing the need to break His legs.

JOSEPH OF ARIMATHEA AND NICODEMUS APPROACH PILATE TO REQUEST JESUS’ BODY SO THEY MAY BURY HIS BODY BEFORE SHABBAT

Gathering enough courage, Joseph, a wealthy and prominent member of the Sanhedrin, who up until now has been a secret follower of Jesus, along with Nicodemus, lead a delegation by evening to Pilate to request the body of Jesus for burial.

Pilate was wondering if Jesus had died by now, and calling the Centurion commanding the troops guarding the place of execution, Pilate is told that Jesus has died, and he releases the body into the care of Joseph and Nicodemus and their delegation.

Bringing a linen cloth with him and having Jesus’ body removed from the cross, Joseph has Jesus’ body wrapped in the linen cloth, and places it in a new unused tomb built into solid rock on the side of a hill in a garden near Golgotha.

The records mention that the women who had followed Jesus and had been at His crucifixion, now follow Joseph and Nicodemus’ delegation, and watch on as the men bury Jesus’ body in Joseph’s tomb, verifying we are told, where they have laid Him.

Joseph has a heavy stone moved over the only entrance to the tomb, and returning to their homes, they prepare spices and perfumes to complete Jesus’ embalmment after Shabbat, but on Shabbat they rest according to the commandment because they are all righteous and extremely observant Jews.

We stop here and will continue our examination in our next part.

THE EVENTS AS THEY TOOK PLACE IN THEIR ORDER

A HARMONY OF THE EVENTS AS THE GOSPELS PRESENT THEM
Plot to kill Jesus 26:3-5 14:1-2 22:1-2
Judas bargains to betray Jesus 26:14-16 14:10-11 22:3-6
Peter & John sent to prepare for Passover 26:17-19 14:12-16 22:7-13
Fellowship in the upper room 26:20 14:17 22:14
Jesus washes the disciples' feet 13:1-20
The Lord's Supper 26:26-29 14:22-25 22:14-20 I Cor 11:23-29
Jesus predicts his betrayal 26:21-25 14:18-21 22:21-23 13:21-26
Judas leaves 13:27-30
A new commandment 13:31-35
Dispute about the greatest disciple 22:24-30
Jesus predicts the disciples' denial 26:31-32 14:27-28
Jesus tells Simon he prayed for him 22:31-32
Jesus predicts Peter's denials 26:33-35 14:29-31 22:33-34 13:36-38
Jesus warns the disciples to be prepared 22:35-38
Jesus comforts the disciples 14:1-4
Jesus responds to Thomas 14:5-7
Jesus responds to Philip 14:8-21
Jesus responds to Judas not Iscariot 14:22-31
They sing a hymn and leave 26:30 14:26 14:31
The farewell discourse 15:1-16:33
Jesus prays for his disciples 17:1-26
The fellowship enters Gethsemane 26:36 14:32 22:39-40 18:1
Jesus prays in the Garden of Gethsemane 26:36-46 14:32-42 22:40-46
Mob comes to arrest Jesus 26:47 14;43 18:2-3
Judas betrays Jesus with a kiss 26:48-50 14:44-45 22:47-48
Jesus answers the mob with authority 18:4-9
Peter severs the ear of Malchus 26:50-54 14:46-47 22:49-50 18:10-11
Jesus heals the high priest's servant 22:51
Jesus is arrested. The disciples flee. 26:55-56 14:48-52 22:52-54 18:12
Jesus lead to high priest's house 26:57 14:53 22:54 18:13-14
Peter follows at a distance 26:58 14:54 22:54 18:15-16
Peter's 1st denial - doorkeeping girl 26:69-70 14:66-68 22:55-57 18:17-18
Annas questions Jesus 18:19-24
Peter's 2nd denial - by the fire 26:71-72 14:69-70 22:58 18:25
Peter's 3rd denial - relative of Malchus 26:73-75 14:70-72 22:59-62 18:26-27
Guards beat Jesus 22:63-65
False witnesses testify 26:59-61 14:55-59
Caiaphas condemns Jesus 26:62-66 14:60-64 22:66-71
Sanhedrin beats Jesus 26:67-68 14:65
Jesus lead from Caiaphas to Praetorium 18:28
Remorse of Judas 27:1-10 Acts 1:16-20
Jesus before Pilate 27:1-14 23:1-7 18:29-38
Jesus before Herod 23:8-10
Herod's soldiers mock Jesus 15:1-5 23:11-12
Pilate releases Barabbas 27:15-26 15:6-15 23:13-25 18:38-40
Pilate's soldiers crown and mock Jesus 27:27-30 15:16-20 19:1-3
Pilate tries to release Jesus 19:4-7
Pilate questions Jesus again 19:8-11
Pilate tries to release Jesus again 19:12
Pilate sentences Jesus 19:13-15
Pilate delivers Jesus to be crucified 19:16
Jesus carries the cross 19:17
Simon of Cyrene bears the cross 27:31-32 15:20-21 23:26
Jesus speaks to weeping women 23:27-32
Jesus is brought to Golgotha 27:33 15:22 23:32-33 19:17
Soldiers offer Jesus sour wine mix 27:34 15:23
He is crucified on the 3rd hour 15:25
2 robbers are crucified with Jesus 27:38 15:27-28 23:33 19:18
Inscription written by Pilate 27:37 15:26 23:38 19:19-22
"Forgive them…" 23:34
Soldiers divide the garments of Jesus 27:35-36 15:24 23:34 19:23-24
"Behold your mother." 19:25-27
Multitudes mock Jesus 27:39-43 15:29-32 23:35-37
Robbers mock Jesus 27:44 15:32 23:39
One robber rebukes the other 23:40-41
"…you will be with me in Paradise." 23:43
Darkness from 6th to 9th hour 27:45 15:33 23:44-45
"Eloi, Eloi, Lamma, Sabachthani" 27:46 15:34
"I thirst." 19:28
Jesus is offered sour wine on a reed. 27:47-49 15:35-36 19:29-30
"It is finished." 19:30
Jesus cries out 27:50 15:37 23:46
"Into Thy hands I commit my spirit." 23:46
Jesus bows his head and dies 27:50 15:37 23:46 19:30
Temple veil torn from top to bottom 27:51 15:38 23:45
Earthquake 27:51
Saints rise, after Christ's resurrection 27:52-53
Centurion glorifies God 27:54 15:39 23:47
Multitude leaves grieving 23:48
Women watch from a distance 27:55-56 15:40-41 23:49
Request that legs be broken 19:31-32
Soldier pierces Jesus' side 19:33-34
Fulfilment of prophecy 19:35-37
Joseph requests body from Pilate 27:57-58 15:42-43 23:50-52 19:38
Centurion reports that Jesus is dead 15:44-45
Joseph takes the body 15:45 19:38
Nicodemus and Joseph prepare the body 19:39-40
Body placed in new garden tomb 27:59-60 15:46 23:53 19:41-42
Two Mary's watch the burial 27:61 15:47 23:54-55
Roman soldiers guard the tomb 27:62-66
Two Mary's prepare spices and then rest 23:56
Angel rolls stone 28:2-4
Women bring spices to tomb at dawn 28:1 16:1-4 24:1-3 20:1
Angels appear to women 28:5-7 16:5-7 24:4-8
Women run to tell disciples 28:8 16:8 24:9-11 20:2
Peter and John inspect the empty tomb 24:12 20:3-9
Peter and John go home 24:12 20:10
Mary Magdalene stands weeping 20:11
Mary sees two angels 20:12-13
Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene 16:9 20:14-17
Jesus appears to other women 28:9-10
Women report to the disciples 16:10-11 20:18
Guards report to the priests 28:11-15
Jesus meets 2 on road to Emmaus 16:12-13 24:13-32
Jesus appears to Simon Peter 1st Cor 15:5 24:34
Two report to disciples in Jerusalem 24:33-35
Jesus appears to disciples without Thomas 24:36-46 20:19-24
Disciples report to Thomas 20:25
Jesus appears to disciples and Thomas 16:14 20:26-29
Jesus appears to seven by the sea 21:1-14
Jesus questions Peter 3 times 21:15-23
Jesus appears to 500 bretheren 1st Cor 15:6
Jesus appears to James 1st Cor 15:7
Jesus commissions the apostles 28:16-20 16:15-18 24:44-49
Jesus is received into Heaven 16:19-20 24:50-53
John's first testimony 20:30-31
John's second testimony 21:24-25
Luke summarizes the 40 day appearances Acts 1:4-11
________________________________________SOURCES CITED:
Matthew 27:26-31, Mark 15:15-20, Luke 23:16, John 19:1-16.
Matthew 27:32, Mark 15:21, Luke 23:26. Jesus had borne His own cross beam to Golgotha – the Place of the Skull – but somewhere along the long arduous walk to His crucifixion, He collapsed and they needed to press the Cyrenian Simon to carry Jesus’ crossbeam the rest of the way for Him. But John is correct, Jesus went out of the city carrying His own cross when He started His trip to the cross (John 19:17).
John 19:20a.
Matthew 27:33-34, Mark 15:23.
Luke 23:34.
Luke 23:43.
John 16:26-27.
Matthew 27:46, Mark 15:34. When Jesus shouted these words from the depth of His soul, He was quoting the prophetic 22nd Psalm by King David that starkly describes in prophetic manner the crucifixion.
John 19:28.
John 19:30.
Luke 23:46.
Luke 23:36-37.
Matthew 27:48. This fulfills Psalm 69:21. See Mark 15:36, and John 19:28, where immediately after Jesus has cried to His Father, He says that He thirsts.
Matthew 27:56-57.
John 19:25.
Luke 23:49a.
Mark 15:41b.
Matthew 27:56. Mark calls these sons James and Joses (Mark 15:40).
Matthew 27:54a.
Below is how a Roman legion is broken down in numbers and divisions:
The Legion was split into 10 Cohorts.
The Cohorts were divided into Centuries.
The First Cohort contained five centuries of 160 'crack troops.'
The other cohorts contained six centuries of 80 men.
The commander of a century was called a centurion.
The centurion in charge of the First Cohort was called the Primus Pilus. He was the best! From an article titled The Roman Cohort, at http://www.caerleon.net/history/army/page4.html See also the following: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_legion where is there is extensive information for those who wish study this further.
Matthew 27:38, 44
Matthew 27:41, Mark 15:31-32,
Matthew 27:39, Mark 15:29, 30,
Isaiah 2:19-21, Hosea 10:8. See Revelation 6:15-17.
Luke 23:27a
Jesus Himself was born in Bethlehem of Judea, lived with His parents for a time in Egypt, most likely within the large Jewish Community in Alexandria, and later, settled with His family in Nazareth in the region of Galilee (Matthew 2:1-23), because Jesus’ parents were natives of Nazareth (Luke 1:26). Her relative Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist, were from a hill country in the region of Judah (Luke 1:39).
Luke 23:48.
This group of Galatians Paul mentions in his letter, witnessed the crucifixion (Galatians 3:1).
Acts 10:34-43.
Acts 26:26.
Matthew , Mark 15:33, 38, Luke 23:44-45.
This work is perhaps the greatest and most complete biography on the life of the Messiah ever written by a Jewish believer out side of the Gospels themselves. It provides a wealth of knowledge from rabbinical – Mishnaic, Midrashic, Talmudic, and independent sources of the time – a veritable wealth of Judaica as only one steeped in the training and study of these would be able to write.
Alfred Edersheim, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, page 610.
Flavius Josephus, The Jewish Wars, IV,5,3.
Alfred Edersheim, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, page 610, op cit.
William F. Dankenbring, THE MYSTERIOUS EVENTS OF THE YEAR 30 A.D.! http://www.ensignmessage.com/archives/mysteriousevents.html
Hebrews 7:12.
Jeremiah 31:33. This is what is meant by Isaiah 2:1-4, and why Jesus said He did not come to abolish the Law, but to fulfill it (Matthew 5:17-20, Luke 16:16-17).
Hebrews 7:11, 15-19, 26-28. Fulfilled is the establishment of Messiah’s Melchizedekian Priesthood, as He sits at the right hand of God; awaiting a time of complete restoration for Israel and all of mankind, when God has made Jesus’ enemies a footstool underneath His feet (Psalm 110:1-7); what is called in Judaism the Olam Ha Ba – the Messianic Age, or Days of the Messiah. Paul alludes to this time in 1Corinthians 15:24-28. In Romans 8:22 he writes that all of creation groans awaiting this golden Messianic Age.
Talmud Babylonia, Yoma 39b, Soncino Version.
i.e., 40 years before 70 A.D., or in 30 A.D.
The Holy Place.
The gates.
Talmud, Yoma 39b. Jacob Neusner’s landmark English translation of the Talmud titled, The Talmud of the Land of Israel, translates this passage in the following manner: "Forty years before the destruction of the Temple, the western light went out, the crimson thread remained crimson, and the lot for the Lord always came up in the left hand. They would close the gates of the Temple by night and get up in the morning and find them wide open"
Jerusalem Talmud, Sota 6.3, (Zechariah 11:1)'.
William F. Dankenbring, THE MYSTERIOUS EVENTS OF THE YEAR 30 A.D.! http://www.ensignmessage.com/archives/mysteriousevents.html
N. Federoff and T. Peterson, Talmudic for the Messiah in 30 C.E., at http://www.windowview.org/hmny/pgs/talmuds.30ce.html
Isaiah 1:19.
This would make the year 30 A.D., the year Jesus made His public appearance to Israel, and some say; the year He was crucified, because the temple was destroyed in the year 70 A.D.
Flavius Josephus, Wars of the Jews, V,4, 2.
Ernest Martin, Secrets of Galgotha, page 230-231.
As quoted by William F. Dankenbring in his excellent article, The Mysterious Events of the Year 30 A.D. ! at the following URL: http://www.ensignmessage.com/archives/mysteriousevents.html Jason Aronson, Inc., Northvale, New Jersey, 1993, p.69

William F. Dankenbring in his excellent article, The Mysterious Events of the Year 30 A.D. ! at the following URL: http://www.ensignmessage.com/archives/mysteriousevents.html
Matthew 27:54, Mark 15:39,
Luke 23:47.
Luke 23:48.
John 19:31-32.
John 19:33.
John 19:34.
This would have to be before Shabbat, perhaps an hour or two before sundown.
Matthew 27:57-58.
Mark 15:44-45.
Matthew 27:60, Mark 15:46b.
John 19:41
John 19:42.
Matthew 27:59-60, Mark 15:45b-46, Luke 23:53-54.
Matthew 27:61, Mark 15:47, Luke 23:55,
Luke 23:56a.
Luke 23:56b.________________________________________