D16-17: The Correct Timing Of Yeshua’s Last Supper, Arrest, Crucifixion, Burial And Resurrection (Part 5)

Okay, from today, finally we’re going to examine the incredible events that surrounded Yeshua’s death and how they would have played out on a timeline.

While I’m going through this, keep a couple of things in mind.

First, keep the timing of the springtime feasts in mind as follows:

AVIV 14th: Pesach (1-Day Event)
AVIV 15th: Matza (7-Day Event)
The Day After the 7th Day Sabbath: Bikkurim (1-Day Event)

Second, keep in mind that a Biblical day begins and ends at sunset.

I think it’s especially challenging for us modern folks to wrap our heads around the way the ancients measured times and days because we’re so used to a day technically beginning at midnight and the first meal of our day being breakfast.

This wasn’t the way it was for an ancient Israelite or any other people group during Bible times for that matter.

The first meal of the new day for a Hebrew was always a nighttime meal or what we call “dinner”.

In ancient Israel, what we call “Breakfast” was the middle meal of the day and what we call “lunch” would have been the last meal of the day before the sun set signifying that the day had ended.

Got it? 

Okay, so let’s get started in mapping out the correct timeline of Yeshua’s last supper, arrest, crucifixion, burial and resurrection starting with AVIV 13 (the day before Passover).

AVIV 13 (The Day BEFORE Passover)
The disciples prepare a meal that Christianity calls the last supper but incorrectly thinks was the official Passover meal.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, the Galileans had adopted a custom called SEUDAH MAPHSEHKET in Hebrew which literally translates into the “last supper”.

You can read about it in the Mishina tractate called PESAHIM.

Now keep in mind that the political situation in Yeshua’s time was quite fractured.

The Romans were in power at the time and in order to maintain control, they had divided the Holy Land up into several districts.

The districts we’re all familiar with are Judea situated in the south where Jerusalem was located, Galilee up north where Yeshua and his followers came from, and then Samaria which was situated between Jerusalem and Galilee.

Now in Yeshua’s time, Judaism was extremely fractured with different groups of Jews holding to different traditions including how the Biblical feasts should be observed.

The Judean Jews did things one way and the Galilean Jews along with the Samaritans did things their own way.

And the one custom that the Galilean Jews observed that the Judean Jews did NOT recognize or accept was the so-called “Last Supper” ritual or again SEUDAH MAPHSEHKET in Hebrew.

This ritual was established to commemorate God saving the firstborn sons from death at God’s hand in Egypt (remember it was ONLY the firstborns whose life was ever in danger on that night).

After this special evening meal was eaten, the participants would then fast for 24 hours before eating the official Passover meal.

It is because of this approximate 24-hour fast that this ritual is called “The Last Supper”.

It has nothing to do with this being the last dinner that Yeshua would have eaten before he was arrested and sentenced to death.

So again, this last supper was eaten FIRST, and then 24 hours later, the normal Passover meal was eaten.

There are actually quite a few essays and books out there that talk about these two Passover Seders, the one that was prepared on Passover (Aviv 13) and the official Passover (Aviv 14).

Unfortunately a lot of this material isn’t very clear on a couple of points.

They don’t really make it clear that the “Last Supper” Passover Seder was ONLY observed by Galilean and Samaritan Jews.

The scholarship also really isn’t clear in terms of the religious/political situation in Yeshua’s day.

Anyways, I’m getting off on a tangent that’s getting a bit too long.

Let’s get back on track.

So the SEUDAH MAPHSEHKET was prepared on AVIV 13 (the day before Passover) BUT and this is a big “but”, it was NOT eaten on Aviv 13th!

Got that?

It was eaten soon after the sun set and the day switched over from AVIV 13th to AVIV 14th (Remember a Hebrew day begins in the evening).

In other words, the SEUDAH MAPHSEHKET or the Last Supper was eaten as the first meal of the day on AVIV 14 (Thursday evening).

Therefore, technically speaking this Last Supper was eaten on Passover day because it was eaten on AVIV 14th.

Are you with me here?

Stay focused because this is crucial.

This meal called SEUDAH MAPHSEHKET which literally translates into “Last Supper” is that famous Last Supper which has become renown all over the world.

This is the very meal where Yeshua instructed his disciples to eat unleavened bread and wine as symbols of his body and blood in establishing the New Covenant.

BUT and again this is a whopping humongous “but”, this is absolutely NOT the traditional Passover Seder that is eaten at the END of Passover day.

Got that?

So this is the timeline we’ve confirmed so far.

AVIV 13: The Last Supper Meal In Commemoration of the firstborns is Prepared
AVIV 14: The Last Supper Meal Is Eaten (In the evening, it is now Passover)

Now a lot happens during and immediately after the Last Supper is eaten.

Judas betrays Yeshua.

Yeshua is tried and convicted.

His sentence is finalized by Pontus Pilate.

Yeshua is taken to be beaten and then crucified.

ALL of these events take place on AVIV 14th (Passover Day) which is a Thursday.

Yet we’re still not finished.

There are still a lot more momentous events that will occur on AVIV 14th (Passover Day).

While hanging on the cross, at around 3pm in the afternoon on Passover Day (AVIV 14), Yeshua breathes  his last breath WHILE…

…at the same time the slaughter of the Passover Lambs begins at the Temple.

Between the hours of 3pm and 6pm, about a quarter of a million lambs are killed and their blood collected BEFORE the sun sets and day switches over to AVIV 15 (the start of the Feast of Unleavened Bread).

While the Passover lambs are being slaughtered, the women are in a mad rush to get the Roman soldiers to remove Yeshua’s dead body from the cross lest his corpse lie exposed for two days (if you’re confused why I’m saying 2 days here, just hold your horses, I’ll get into this later).

 The women’s prayers are answered and Yeshua is taken down before the cross and put in the tomb BEFORE sundown which means it is still AVIV 14.

In other words, it is still Passover Day.

Simultaneously, while this is happening, the now butchered Passover lambs have been placed in ovens all around Jerusalem for the hundreds of thousands of pilgrims who have flocked to Israel for the feasts.

Again, it is still Passover Day (AVIV 14).

However, shortly after, three shiny stars slowly but surely begin to manifest in the sky signaling the switchover from AVIV 14 (Passover) to AVIV 15 (The Feast of Matzah) and the sun finally sets.

AVIV 15th, the 1st Day Of Unleavened Bread has arrived (technically Thursday evening according to our modern calendars but since a new day begins after the sun sets according to the Hebrew mindset, it would not be entirely wrong to call this Friday.)

Let’s stop here for now and pick up again the next time we meet.