And that day was the preparation, and the sabbath drew on.
Parallel translations
- WEB It was the day of the Preparation, and the Sabbath was drawing near.
- BSB It was Preparation Day, and the Sabbath was beginning.
- NKJV That day was the Preparation, and the Sabbath drew near.
- NASB It was a preparation day, and a Sabbath was about to begin.
- NLT This was done late on Friday afternoon, the day of preparation, as the Sabbath was about to begin.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
It was the day of Preparation as the Sabbath drew near. The timing explains the haste of burial and the women's later return.
Overview
Luke marks the day of Preparation before the Sabbath, when work had to cease at sundown. This explains why the burial was hurried and why the women waited to complete their task. The careful chronology grounds the resurrection account in real time and place, framing the events with historical precision.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Matt 27:62Now the next day, that followed the day of the preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees came together unto Pilate,
- John 19:31The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was an high day,) besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.
- Mark 15:42And now when the even was come, because it was the preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath,
- John 19:42There laid they Jesus therefore because of the Jews’ preparation day; for the sepulchre was nigh at hand.
- John 19:14And it was the preparation of the passover, and about the sixth hour: and he saith unto the Jews, Behold your King!
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Luke shows Jesus the Savior for all — outsiders, the poor, the nations — the one who, on the Emmaus road, opened all the Scriptures to show they were about himself.
How Luke 23:54 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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