Common Figure of Speech/Colloquial Language?

rstrats

Member
Sep 18, 2006
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The Messiah said that He would be three days and three nights in the "heart of the earth".

There are some who think that the crucifixion took place on the 6th day of the week with the resurrection taking place on the 1st day of the week.

And of those, there are some who think that the "heart of the earth" is referring to the tomb or at the earliest to the moment when His spirit left His body).

However, a 6th day of the week crucifixion/1st day of the week resurrection allows for only 2 nights to be involved.

To account for the lack of a 3rd night, there may be some of those mentioned above who try to explain the lack of a 3rd night by saying that the Messiah was using common figure of speech/colloquial language.

I'm simply curious if anyone who may fall in the above group of believers might provide examples to support the belief of commonality; i.e., instances where a daytime or a night time was forecast or said to be involved with an event when no part of a daytime or no part of a night time could have occurred. That is the only issue with which this queston is concerned.
 
But, you already knew that there were no examples worded the way you want them worded.
Yes, that has been the case so far. I'm just thinking that maybe someone new looking in may know of examples, though.

It's as though you expect someone to have written, "Just as we believe one part of a day is a whole day," or "Just as Jesus was in the grave for parts of two days and one full day, and we count that as three full days and nights."
I've never said or implied that.
But, you'll never find that because they all belonged to the same culture and were writing to others of that culture. They obviously didn't need to make explicit mention of any of that. But, from the examples I gave, we can clearly see that they did believe a part of a day was considered as a full day.
And I agree that that was a practice of the time and maybe still is. But that's an issue for a different topic.
 
Yes, that has been the case so far. I'm just thinking that maybe someone new looking in may know of examples, though.
I think, then, that we can agree that any examples would have to be extra-biblical.

I've never said or implied that.
My apologies.

And I agree that that was a practice of the time and maybe still is. But that's an issue for a different topic.
It would be interesting to know if it still is a practice, but yes, that's a different topic.
 
"And after SIX days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, And was transfigured before them: (Matt 17:1)

"And after SIX days Jesus taketh with him Peter, and James, and John, and leadeth them up into an high mountain apart by themselves: and he was transfigured before them". (Mark 9:2)

"And it came to pass about an EIGHT days after these sayings, he took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray. (Luke 9: 28)

Luke was a doctor so he was very EXACT about what he said. The three Gospels are not contradicting one another. One of the writers is using the terminology of the day. He is most likely counting from the point when Jesus was last talking (which could be an evening), and perhaps the morning when they ascended the mountain (he is INCLUDING that morning in his count). So, Luke states it was EIGHT days later, while Matthew and Mark say SIX days later.
I truly believe that is what occurred also when they say he was in the grave for "three days". He was there "part" of one day (in the afternoon), a full day, and then the morning on Sunday. This is THREE DAYS in the vernacular of the day.
 
"And after SIX days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, And was transfigured before them: (Matt 17:1)

"And after SIX days Jesus taketh with him Peter, and James, and John, and leadeth them up into an high mountain apart by themselves: and he was transfigured before them". (Mark 9:2)

"And it came to pass about an EIGHT days after these sayings, he took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray. (Luke 9: 28)
The three accounts are using a different construct from Matthew 12:40. Nothing in those three say anything with regard to a specific number of daytimes or a specific number of night times. The Messiah was very exact about what he said, i.e., specifically that He would be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
 
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The three accounts are using a different construct from Matthew 12:40. Nothing in those three say anything with regard to a specific number of daytimes or a specific number of night times. The Messiah was very exact about what he said, i.e., specifically that He would be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
But, that's already been addressed: https://christianforums.net/threads/common-figure-of-speech-colloquial-language.108340/post-1936528 and subsequent posts.
 
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