Passover as Preparation Day

Richard Ritenbaugh, asserting that there is far more corroboration of evidence for the existence of Jesus Christ and his life experiences than that regarding Alexander the Great or Julius Caesar, lampoons the smug, self-important 'scholars' who craft contorted, mind-bending, absurd theories of supposedly more believable explanations for the "impossible" resurrection of Christ. Tacitus and the Talmud, both highly respected non-Biblical sources, corroborate the veracity of the events of the Crucifixion. Nevertheless, crackpot theories abound, attempting to explain away this event, including: (1) the women, confused about direction, went to the wrong tomb, (2) the disciples stole the body and then claimed He was resurrected, (3) the disciples colluded on a bogus deception, (4) someone else died on the cross in His place, and (5) the whole event of the crucifixion, as well as the multiple occasions in which He talked to people, was a powerful mass hallucination, (6) Jesus was not really dead but preserved Himself with a drug-induced coma, allowing Him to later escape from the tomb. Pilate, the Centurion, and Joseph of Arimathea all corroborated the stark reality of Christ's death. The precautions Pilate took to seal the tomb refutes any notion of the disciples stealing the body. The vast number of eye witnesses precludes any notion of a hoax or collusion on the part of fanatic followers. The once timid followers of Christ were emboldened by His resurrection, and were now willing to put their lives on the line. Twenty-seven separate documents—the books of the New Testament—provide evidence of Christ's death, burial, and resurrection, providing far more evidence than the minimum required in a court of law. All of this testimony gives us confidence and hope of a resurrection for us as well.

David C. Grabbe:  In the face of the Bible's consistent teaching, theologians justify their breaking of the Sabbath and their worship on Sunday by saying that they are honoring the day of Christ's resurrection. ...

Many of us have been members of the church of God for decades, and because of our long association with God's festivals, we forget that new members have little or no idea how to keep them and can be intimidated about what God requires of them during these appointed times. Richard Ritenbaugh points out the foundational principles new members need to keep in mind in observing the Feasts of God throughout the year.

John Ritenbaugh, suggesting that all of us in the church of God had a misconception about this day, focuses upon an understanding of the Last Great Day. The New Testament is needed to put the true stamp of authority to the Holy Days of the Old Testament. In John 7:37, this address was given on the last day of the feast, the day before the Last Great Day. Jesus Christ was crucified on a Wednesday on the Passover, the 14th of Abib, in the afternoon in 31AD (before an annual high holy day) and was resurrected on a Sabbath. We calculate this event using the Hebrew calendar, using the customary postponements. All days, from Passover to Tabernacles, are named in the Bible, except for the Last Great Day, having received its name from the Radio Church of God. From John 7-9, we learn that the Jews invariably misunderstood Jesus Christ's doctrines, having been muddled by their worldly traditions. The Feast of Tabernacles represents a time when God's government will extend over the entire earth. The seventh day of the Feast of Tabernacles is indeed a great day. The Feast of Tabernacles is only seven days long. The eighth day was a separate festival, apart from the Feast of Tabernacles, which can only derive its significance in the New Testament, namely the Day of Judgment, the Great White Throne Judgment, the second resurrection, a time Christ will judge.

David C. Grabbe:  In last week's essay, we traced the connection between manna and "the true bread from heaven," Jesus Christ (John 6:32). ...

Richard Ritenbaugh observes that over two billion people faithfully observe an annual "holy week," consisting of Palm Sunday, Good Friday (the supposed time of the crucifixion), and Easter Sunday. Human tradition and Bible truth do not square. The overwhelming historical chronological evidence clashes with the traditions of billions of people. The sovereign God has been in control of history from the beginning of mankind. God makes things happen when He wants them to happen and in the way they happen. Whether the event happened in 30 AD or 31 AD, the crucifixion occurred on a Wednesday rather than a Friday. Extensive scholarship into the lunar eclipses occurring near the death of Herod, the ascendancy of his son Archaleus, and the reign of Tiberias Caesar corroborates this conclusion. Scripture gives us internal evidence with the accusation that Jesus could tear down a temple constructed by Herod 46 years earlier. Other internal evidence comes from the careful marking of the Holy Days occurring during Christ's three and one half year ministry (prophesied by Daniel's seventy weeks prophecy) in both the synoptic gospels and John's Gospel. The crucifixion took place in the middle of a literal week, with Christ remaining in the grave a full three days and three nights, and resurrected at the end of a Sabbath at sunset. Nowhere in any of the gospels does it say Christ rose on Sunday morning, but that He had already risen. The triumphal entry (labeled by the world as Palm Sunday) actually occurred on Thursday, Nisan 8. Jesus was selected as Passover Lamb on Nisan 10 (John 12:28).

John Ritenbaugh observes that someone had recently taught that Passover, rather than the Night to be Much Observed, should be designated the first day of Unleavened Bread. Leviticus 23:5-6 designates two separate festivals: the Passover (on Abib/Nisan 14) and the Feast of Unleavened Bread (on Abib/Nisan 15; see also Numbers 28:16-18). Deuteronomy 16:6 indicates that the Passover took place on the eve of Nisan 14 at ben ha arbayim (twilight). Numbers 33:3 clearly shows that the departure from Egypt took place on Nisan 15, the day after the Passover. Exodus 12:18 delineates that the eating of unleavened bread runs from the end of Nisan 14 (at ba erev - the end of the day) to the end of Nisan 21 (at ba erev). John 13:29; Matthew 26:5; John 19:31; 40-42 plainly prove that Christ, the disciples, the chief priests, the Jews, and Nicodemus did not consider the Passover a holy day, but a preparation day.

John Ritenbaugh links inextricably the time frame for the covenant with Abraham (the Selfsame Day), the events of the Passover, the Exodus, the Night to be Much Observed, and the events of Christ's Passover meal with his disciples leading to his crucifixion. Clear connections relating to the bread and wine symbols, the ratification of the covenant, and the sacrifices are convincingly drawn. The mistaken inference made by some about a wavesheaf offering in Joshua 5 ignores the prohibition against a foreigner's grain (Leviticus 22:25), a blemished offering (Leviticus 23:12) and against animal sacrifices until peace could be established (Deuteronomy 12:11). The wavesheaf offering (Leviticus 23:15) is reckoned from the weekly sabbath within the Days of Unleavened Bread and not immediately before when an annual sabbath follows immediately.

When did Jesus rise from the rich man's tomb? The world says Sunday, but the Bible says otherwise!

A scriptural explanation of the time of Christ's death, burial and resurrection, showing that He died on a Wednesday and rose from the dead on the Sabbath.

In this sermon on the death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ, Richard Ritenbaugh, using three consecutive Psalms (22-24), affirms that Jesus Christ was the antitype, perfectly fulfilling the Old Testament types, slain as the Lamb of God on Passover, Nisan 14, resurrected with the cutting of the wavesheaf at the conclusion of the Sabbath, and ascended to His Father at the time of the waving of the sheaf.

John Ritenbaugh distinguishes worldly or carnal scholarship (based upon snobbish, oneupmanship esoteric elitism) from godly scholarship, characterized by an unassuming, childlike unconcern for status, seeking to impress God instead of other people. Using worldly scholarship to establish a late Passover doctrine on the basis of one isolated scripture (II Chronicles 35:10-11) both removes the incident from context and violates the simplicity of Christ, blurring the clear distinction between the original (domestic) Passover from the traditional (Temple) Passover. Unfortunately, reinterpretation and alterations have significantly distorted the meaning of Passover and Unleavened Bread.

John Ritenbaugh insists that the vital key in establishing Bible doctrine is to allow the Bible to define its own terms and establish its own evidence rather than turning to secular historians or Protestant, Catholic and Jewish theologians. Using subtle diversion and subterfuge, some proponents of the fifteenth Passover, like desperate criminal lawyers, muddle up otherwise clear, day and night issues by surreptitiously inserting modern English language usage, which begins the day at midnight. Honest biblical investigation leads to the conclusion that two separate occurrences are memorialized in Exodus 12:12-17 — Passover and Unleavened Bread.

Jesus said He would be three days and three nights in the tomb, but that is impossible in a Friday crucifixion-Sunday resurrection scenario. Herbert Armstrong explains from the Bible when our Savior rose from the grave.