Posted by Bibleman [Bibleman] on November 12, 1999 at 18:03:49 {CkRQXOxAaIMRXA6xmpscslyACFuF8c}:
In Reply to: *Jesus' Resurrection posted by Lobo on November 12, 1999 at 12:21:11:
Hi Lobo,
The problem is not with apologists or the gospels but with those who don't understand the ancient language and culture. In fact, there is no contradiction at all.
But you bring up a very good scripture to illustrate this. Mark says that Jesus was crucified at the "third hour" which is 9 o'clock but he didn't say day or night. The fact that he didn't though, proves that it would have been redundant to give that additional information. Thus it must have been well-known custom and the standard time to execute the impalements either at night or in the morning. Based upon historical references in Josephus where two rabbis were executed at night during which there was an eclipse, we thus understand that this is a reference to 9 o'clock p.m. at night.
John 19:14's reference to the "sixth hour" for Jesus' trial, however, is a specific reference to Wednesday, Nisan 19th at Noon.
But because interpreters don't understand enough about specific idiomatic references for timekeeping, they has misunderstood the reference to "de-preparation for passover."
When "de" is used in front of a division of the day, such as "preparation" it refers to just before that time. "preparation" begins at nightfall so the sixth hour would just refer to Noontime prior to when the new Jewish day of preparation would begin that night. You need only compare other references to "preparation" where it is clearly that day, basically near the end of that day when Jesus is being laid in the tomb to see that "de" is not used when the actual day is being referred to. This is easily established by other comparison texts. "Just look up "preparation" and see for yourself.
Additionally, "passover" is being presumed by you to mean the actual passover Seder meal that is held on the first day of unfermented cakes. But in fact, "passover" by this time was a general term used by the Jews to refer to anything related to that entire weeks' celebration.
Thus John 19:14's reference to "de-preparation for passover" is a reference to Noontime, Nisan 19th, before "preparation for passover" began that nightfall. Preparation was the day before a sabbath, which is their Saturday. But "sabbath" was also a rest day for other special days. These special sabbaths were called "high sabbaths" and distinguished them from the usual sabbaths. So all John was saying was that this was not the usual "preparation" for Saturday, but preparation for the "high sabbath" of passover, Nisan 21st.
Bottom line therefore, after we thoroughly consider the language and the culture, is that in the 1st century, "preparation for passover" equally referred to either Nisan 14th or Nisan 20th, since each was a preparation day before one of the two high-sabbaths of Passover Week.
But "de-preparation for passover" at the sixth hour was a reference to the afternoon before preparation even began. So ultimately, this is a reference to either Noontime of Nisan 13th, or Noontime of Nisan 19th. Since it certainly was not Noontime of Nisan 13th, the afternoon before "preparation for passover of the 14th" the only alternative is Wednesday, Nisan 19th at Noon just before "preparation for passover" of the 20th.
And once you know this and understand this, then there is no conflict. The trial was at Noon and the impalement was 9 hours later at 9:00 p.m. that night. So there is no conflict.
But it is interesting that outsiders think that the apologists have to jump through any hoops or stoop to manipulations of the text in order to make the scriptures work for some obvious contradictions they see. When in fact, it's the stpudity of people who don't understand the complexities of language and culture who think everybody is as dumb as they are so what is complex looks like an error to them.
Anyway, the contradiction you mention between Mark 15:25 and John 19:14 is based upon an incompetent interpretation of the text and cultural bias and not to any textual inconsistency.
Now you know.
Anybody can superimpose their own biases onto a text and scream "Contradition! Contradiction!" when there is none. And that is the case 99% of the time. Once these issues have been studied though, the contradictions totally disappear.
The incompetence rests with the translators, not the text.
Cheers,
Bibleman