Jesus offered both the fact and the details of His resurrection as the only divine sign to His generation that He was "greater than Jonah" and "greater than Solomon" and that His message should lead its hearers to repentance (Matthew 12:39-42). He said that He would be three days and three nights—a period of 72 hours (John 11:9-10; Genesis 1:5)—in the heart of the earth (the grave), just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the fish (Jonah 1:17). Elsewhere, He said that He would "be killed, and after three days rise again" (Mark 8:31).

The problem with the commonly accepted belief regarding the crucifixion and resurrection is that there are not three days and three nights between Friday afternoon and Sunday morning. We believe the weight of scriptural and historical evidence leads to the conclusion that Jesus died on Wednesday afternoon, was hurriedly placed in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea shortly before sunset that same afternoon (the eve of an annual Sabbath, the first day of Unleavened Bread; John 19:30-31, 42; Mark 15:42-46) and was resurrected by the Father shortly before sunset on Saturday, three days and three nights after being placed in the tomb, exactly as He had said.

This explanation is consistent with the details found in Scripture. It does not require a strained fitting of three days and three nights between Friday evening and Sunday by speculating about parts of days and nights. It reconciles the accounts of the women and the spices, found in Mark 16:1 and Luke 23:56. In the first account, the faithful women obediently rested during holy time and afterward procured the spices. In the second account, the women prepared the spices and afterward rested during holy time. These accounts are reconciled by understanding that there were two periods of holy time during the week in question. Jesus was crucified on the Passover (Matthew 26:18-20; 1 Corinthians 5:7), which was the preparation day (Mark 15:42) for the first annual Holy Day on the Jewish calendar, the first day of Unleavened Bread. The women waited until this day was over, then bought and prepared the spices, then rested again on God's weekly Sabbath day, and then proceeded to the tomb to apply the spices to Jesus' body early on Sunday morning.

They visited the tomb after the holy Sabbaths (plural) of that week (as the original Greek of Matthew 28:1 should be translated). The annual Sabbath (annual Holy Days also are called "Sabbaths" [Leviticus 16:31; 23:24]) was Thursday, and the weekly Sabbath was Saturday. When they arrived at the tomb early Sunday morning, they found it empty and heard the announcement from the angel that Jesus was alive and was not there (Mark 16:6). (From Fundamental Beliefs, pages 17-18).

For More Information: Fundamental Beliefs, Holidays and Holy Days.