The Crucifixion Not Friday

[prodromos]

Your apparent denial of this clear fact of the language is very puzzling, as well as the fact you keep going off on unrelated tangents in your replies to me.

You've gotta love the armchair linguists..

 

[Revelation Lad]

But... the plural can be used for the singular. That's literally a feature of Greek. There's clear instances of this happening, both in the Bible (Septuagint and New Testament) and out of it. Again, the first usage of the word Sabbath in the Septuagint occurs in Exodus 16:23 when it says tomorrow is a Sabbath, and it uses the plural. How in the world is "tomorrow" not a single day? But it's still in the plural, because one can use the plural to refer to a single Sabbath or multiple Sabbaths. The Septuagint is filled with plenty of other cases of Sabbath being in the plural form despite a single Sabbath being in mind. Again, this is a fact of the language. It's not circular logic to say what's blatantly the case. One might as well insist that saying English word "read" can be in the present tense is circular logic; it's a simple fact of the language it can be read in the present tense, no circular logic here (of course, it can also be past tense).

Your apparent denial of this clear fact of the language is very puzzling, as well as the fact you keep going off on unrelated tangents in your replies to me.

Let me clarify. I am speaking specifically of those passages which describe Nisan 15, a day of rest in the Mosaic Law which is within the 7-days of Unleavened Bread (the question Saber Truth asked to discuss on this site). So when I speak of the plural-singular Sabbath-Sabbaths. If the

But... the plural can be used for the singular. That's literally a feature of Greek. There's clear instances of this happening, both in the Bible (Septuagint and New Testament) and out of it. Again, the first usage of the word Sabbath in the Septuagint occurs in Exodus 16:23 when it says tomorrow is a Sabbath, and it uses the plural. How in the world is "tomorrow" not a single day? But it's still in the plural, because one can use the plural to refer to a single Sabbath or multiple Sabbaths. The Septuagint is filled with plenty of other cases of Sabbath being in the plural form despite a single Sabbath being in mind. Again, this is a fact of the language. It's not circular logic to say what's blatantly the case. One might as well insist that saying English word "read" can be in the present tense is circular logic; it's a simple fact of the language it can be read in the present tense, no circular logic here (of course, it can also be past tense).

Your apparent denial of this clear fact of the language is very puzzling, as well as the fact you keep going off on unrelated tangents in your replies to me.

Let me be more specific. I was invited to this site to discuss the question of calling Nisan 15 the Sabbath. My responses are based on that question.

If what you say is true, that the plural can mean either singular or plural, then with respect to Nisan 15, which meaning fits the context? With respect to Nisan 15, which meaning fits how the Pharisees applied it? If the meaning can be plural or singular, how is it correct to understand it as singular, when the context of the LXX is plural and the application the Pharisees had and still follow to this day is plural?

If the meaning is "either or" the choice of singular is contrary to both the context and how it was understood by the Pharisees, applied by the Pharisees, described by Josephus, and still practiced by most Jews today. We have an unbroken history beginning 50 AD continuing to this day that the word was understood as plural, with respect to Nisan 15, and observing the Feast of Firstfruits. That is the question I am speaking about.

The question of Nisan 15 is one aspect of various traditions such as Friday and 3-days in the tomb. I have no interest in conflating these into one issue. I am focusing solely on the question of Nisan 15. Here is a link to my answer on the BHSE site.

I am not denying anything. I am taking what Saber Truth claims is true and applying his beliefs to Nisan 15, and I see nothing that justifies translating a plural word used in a context which clearly is plural and has been understood as plural (by the Pharisees) for 2,000 years to mean a singular.

If the plural can mean either. When the context is plural, why is rendering it in the singular appropriate? Similarly, if those responsible for instructing the people how to observe Firstfruits understood it and continue instruction on the basis of a plural meaning, why is rendering the singular appropriate?

 

[Saber Truth Tiger]

I threw in the towel to the question of Nisan 15 being a Sabbath, the reason you invited me here.

I have joined the real question you have which is the Friday crucifixion.

I am reading your posts with great interest and attention.

 

[Revelation Lad]

The "three nights" is an emendation to the text. It was added later. The entirety of "three days and three nights" may also be an emendation.

But by the way, it's only called "Easter" in the Western, primarily English-speaking, world. The majority of Christians refer to it as Pasca, meaning Passover.

What do you have to support the statement "three nights" is an emendation?

First, it makes no sense that someone would add something which serves to work against the tradition of Friday crucifixion and Sunday resurrection. Second, all of the Greek texts, Textus Receptus, Majority Text, mGNT, and Nestle Aland all have see it as original. Third, Bruce Metzger's Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament makes no mention of a variant.

 

[Revelation Lad]

I am reading your posts with great interest and attention.

Perhaps you can cite Scripture explaining how we know Saturday is the Sabbath.

 

[Revelation Lad]

The Jews used inclusive reckoning, so then "any part" of the included would then be accounted as all of it. So three days and nights would be different than 56 hours.

Proof of this can be seen in Luke 24. That chapter says this is Sunday - the first day of the week - it also says it is "the third day".

And they said to Him, “Those about Jesus the Nazarene, who proved to be a prophet mighty in deed and word in the sight of God and all the people, 20 and how the chief priests and our rulers handed Him over to be sentenced to death, and crucified Him. 21 But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened.

Saturday afternoon would be the first day "since" that Friday afternoon event without inclusive reckoning, but with inclusive reckoning then Friday is day 1 and Saturday is day 2. That makes Sunday (the first day of the week according to Luke 24) -- the 3rd day.

1 Cor 15:4 says He was raised "on the third day" which agrees with what we find in Luke 24.



And it is near/at evening on the first day of the week when they said that.

IF the Jews used inclusive reckoning how did they manage to correctly observe the Sabbath? The resurrection occurred during the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which was to last 7-days. How did they manage to correctly observe 7-days of Unleavened Bread if they counted some of the days inclusively? Luke 24 says on the first of the Sabbaths (plural), not the first day of the week. In fact all four accounts place the resurrection after the Sabbaths, plural. If there was just one Sabbath, why write it as plural risking confusion instead of stating explicitly τῇ ἐπαύριον "the next day" (Matthew 27:62, Mark 11:12, John 1:29, 35, 43, 6:22, 12:12, Acts 10:23, 24, 14:20, 20:7, 21:8, 22:30,23:32, 25:6, 25:23)?

 

[Revelation Lad]

While the opening post was mostly about the date of the Resurrection (I hold to the Friday date but don't care too much if people think it's on a Wednesday or Friday), I wish to respond to this.

While I have no quarrel with the argument Passover should have been used in Acts 12:4, this claim Easter has nothing to do with Passover is nonsense. They're the same word in some languages, like Greek (both are pascha). This is not even limited to Greek; some other languages have them be the same word, and others at least have them be similar. English is actually the odd one. Regrettably, this obscures their relationship less obvious in English. I wish English used "Pascha" for Easter to make the relationship more obvious as it is in so may other languages, but that's the way the language worked out.

Easter's timing is also based on that of Passover. To explain it quickly without getting into too many convoluted details, the time of Passover is supposed to be the first full moon after the spring equinox. Easter is meant to be the Sunday after that (Sunday chosen because it was the day of the Resurrection), so it's set to be the first Sunday after the first full moon after the spring equinox.

Why, then, do we sometimes see Passover celebrated noticeably later than Easter, if Easter's supposed to be the Sunday after? After all, this year Easter is on March 31 (in most churches, some Orthodox churches have it on May 5 due to calculating it based on the Julian calendar), but Passover is on April 22. The reason for this divergence is that there's a current defect with the Jewish calendar which is causing it to drift forward very gradually. For our purposes this means that, due to sometimes putting in an extra month needlessly (the Gregorian/Julian calendar adds an extra day in a leap year, the Jewish calendar adds in a full month), Passover is pushed a month later than it should be. If left unchecked, given enough time, Passover will drift forward more until it becomes celebrated in summer, though it'll take thousands of years before it gets that bad. Anyway, the date of Passover nowadays is off, not the date of Easter.

So it's pretty ridiculous to claim that Easter has "nothing to do with Passover."

First, the term in Greek is πάσχα, pascha and it should be translated as Passover, the day of the crucifixion, not the day of resurrection. The King James Version renders πάσχα as Easter because the translators did not believe Peter would be executed on the day after the Passover, Nisan 15 which was a day of no work. To avoid the misunderstanding they rendered μετὰ πάσχα as "after Easter." This would have been understood as Sunday and would have been "after Passover" without leaving the impression it happened immediately after Passover.

Second, you explanation of when Easter is observed is 100% correct, according to the Christian tradition. However, according to the calendar used by the Jews, Passover occurred on Nisan 14, which rarely coincides with the Christian tradition and, like Christmas falls on a different day of the week each year. The day when Christians observe Easter is at odds with the Jewish observance of Passover; rarely do they agree, and it is impossible to use the Jewish calendar and have an annual Feast day like Passover, always be on the same day of the week each year. The weekly Sabbath will always be on the same day of the week, but like Christmas, the annual observances will fall on a different day of the week from one year to the next.

 

[Revelation Lad]

​

The following comes from Midwestern baptist seminary, and is pretty much the conclusions reached by some Messianics.​

Jesus Was Crucified on the Day of Preparation for the Passover​

John also mentions that Jesus was crucified on “the day of Preparation” (John 19:31), that is, the Friday before the Sabbath of Passover week (Mark 15:42). The night before, on Thursday evening, Jesus ate a Passover meal with the Twelve (Mark 14:12), his “Last Supper.”

In the Pharisaic-rabbinic calendar commonly used in Jesus’s day, Passover always falls on the fifteenth day of Nisan (Exodus 12:6), which begins Thursday after sundown and ends Friday at sundown. In the year a.d. 33, the most likely year of Jesus’s crucifixion, Nisan 15 fell on April 3, yielding April 3, a.d. 33, as the most likely date for the crucifixion. In The Final Days of Jesus, we therefore constructed the following chart to show the dates for Jesus’s final week in a.d. 33:

April 2	Nissan 14	Thursday (Wednesday nightfall to Thursday nightfall)	Day of Passover preparation	Last Supper
April 3	Nissan 15	Friday (Thursday nightfall to Friday nightfall)	Passover; Feast of Unleavened Bread, begins	Crucifixion
April 4	Nissan 16	Saturday (Friday nightfall to Saturday nightfall)	Sabbath
April 5	Nissan 17	Sunday (Saturday nightfall to Sunday nightfall)	First day of the week	Resurrection

Conclusion​

The above calculations may appear complicated, but in a nutshell the argument runs like this:

HISTORICAL INFORMATION	YEAR
Beginning of Tiberius’s reign	AD 14
Fifteenth year of Tiberius’s reign: Beginning of John the Baptist’s ministry	AD 28
A few months later: Beginning of Jesus’s ministry	AD 29
Minimum three-year duration of Jesus’ ministry: Most likely date of Jesus’s crucifixion	AD 33 (April 3)

While this is in our judgment the most likely scenario, it should be acknowledged that many believe Jesus was crucified in the year AD 30, not 33. However, if the beginning of Tiberius’s reign is placed in the year AD 14, it is virtually impossible to accommodate fifteen years of Tiberius’s reign and three years of Jesus’ ministry between AD 14 and 30. For this reason, some have postulated a co-regency (joint rule) of Tiberius and Augustus during the last few years of Augustus’s reign. However, there is no reliable ancient historical evidence for such co-regency.

We conclude that Jesus was most likely crucified on April 3, AD 33. While other dates are possible, believers can take great assurance from the fact that the most important historical events in Jesus’s life, such as the crucifixion, are firmly anchored in human history. As we celebrate Easter, and as we walk with Jesus every day of the year, we can therefore be confident that our faith is based not only on subjective personal assurance but on reliable historical data, which makes ours an eminently reasonable faith.

April 3, AD 33: Why We Believe We Can Know the Exact Date Jesus Died - The Center for Biblical Studies

In our book, The Final Days of Jesus: The Most Important Week of the Most Important Person Who Ever Lived, Justin Taylor and I assume but do not argue for a precise date of Jesus’s crucifixion. Virtually all scholars believe, for various reasons, that Jesus was crucified in the spring of either...

cbs.mbts.edu

Passover is observed according to the annual calendar. Therefore, it will not be on the same day of the week every year. Similar to how we observe Christmas, it will be on a different day of the week the next year.

 

[Revelation Lad]

Can you show us any early sources that attest to it being referred to as a High Sabbath or Sabbath? Because those who reject the Friday crucifixion always claim that there's an extra Sabbath in the middle due to the Passover counting as such (a "High Sabbath"), but never point to any evidence that that Sabbath was used to refer to the Passover back then.

In an intervening message between the one I'm replying to and this reply you're reading, you appealed to the Wikipedia page for "High Sabbaths" as evidence. But the article never claims that itself, it opens up with saying "High Sabbaths, in most Christian and Messianic Jewish usage, are seven annual biblical festivals and rest days, recorded in the books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy. This is an extension of the term "high day" found in the King James Version at John 19:31." Notice it doesn't say this was any kind of Jewish term for the Passover, nor that it went back to the NT period. Interestingly, it even notes "The King James Version may thus be the origin of naming the annual rest days "High Sabbaths" in English" which would indicate that the term is only from the 17th century.

Do the sources on the page back up the idea that the Passover was referred to as a Sabbath in the NT period? Do they offer evidence that Passover was called a Sabbath back then? Having looked at them, while some make that claim, I see no evidence offered whatsoever. They simply proclaim it counted as a "High Sabbath" as their way of explaining how the Crucifixion wasn't on a Friday despite the Bible saying the next day was the Sabbath. But no evidence is offered that anyone applied the word Sabbath to the Passover back then. And that's been my constant experience: People claim that the Passover was counted as a Sabbath or High Sabbath, but no evidence is ever offered that this term was used to refer to it as such.



The Easter Bunny first shows up in recorded history in the 17th century, as is even admitted by your linked article. It comes far too late for claims of pagan connection to things over a thousand years ago to make any sense.

Personally I'm not fond of the Easter Bunny myself, as I think it distracts from the actual purpose of Easter--but the "pagan origin" idea just doesn't make sense due to the timing. Further, the Easter Bunny isn't even universally a major association with Easter. Many (most?) countries actually have little association with rabbits from Easter. The Easter Bunny was originally a creation of German Protestants in the 17th century, and from what I can tell it spread to countries like the UK or United States in the 19th century due a lot of German immigrants heading to those countries. It then spread to some other countries even later due to the influence of those countries. But in countries that haven't been affected by that kind of influence, the Easter Bunny isn't really a thing at all, like in Italy ("If you're lucky enough to be in Italy for Easter, you won't see the famous bunny or go for an Easter egg hunt") or Spain ("There are no Easter egg hunts or giant bunnies – and not much chocolate either.")

The bottom line is that trying to find some pagan origin for Easter with the Easter Bunny doesn't work. Even if there was (despite the timing not working), it'd mean nothing against Easter, just against that specific practice of it (and I'd be fine with getting rid of the practice anyway, so no problems there).



I discussed this in my prior post, but I'll do it in more detail. Easter is set up to be the Sunday after when the Jewish Passover should fall. It's quite explicitly based on it. Passover is--or is supposed to be--the full moon that occurs on or after the spring equinox, and Easter takes that and makes it the Sunday after (the day of the Resurrection). So again, yes it's totally based on Passover, or rather, when Passover should be. The problem is that Passover isn't always when it should be.

Passover falls on the 15th of the Hebrew Month of Abib/Nisan. The Hebrew calendar months are lunar, meaning they're the length of the time it takes the moon to change from a new moon to a full moon and back again. This takes roughly 29.5 days, so their months are 29 or 30 days. This means the full moon falls in the middle of each month, and a new moon at the start. Thus, Passover (in the middle of the month) falls under a full moon, or at least adjacent to one.

However, when you have 12 months of 29-30 days, you come up short for the solar year. In order to keep the calendar matched up with the solar year, they have leap years. Unlike the Julian/Gregorian calendar, where you add an extra day in some years, the Hebrew calendar adds an extra month. Now, Passover is supposed to be a spring festival, and thus falling on or after the spring equinox. In the past, on a year-by-year basis they'd see if Passover would be before the spring equinox, and if yes, they'd add in the extra month. This page from a Jewish site explains it.

So while the calculations were done through the Hebrew calendar, functionally Passover was set to be the full moon after the spring equinox. Easter is the Sunday after the first full moon after the spring equinox, clearly basing itself on that.

So, why do their dates occasionally differ markedly nowadays? Well, originally, Christians just took the date the Jews celebrated and then had Easter the Sunday afterwards. But opposition to this grew based on two factors. The first is that there was dislike of, when setting the date for such a major Christian celebration, basing it off the calculations of people who explicitly rejected Jesus. The second were accusations that the Jews were doing their calculations wrong and actually putting their Passover before the spring equinox, and that Christians should do their own calculations so they'd be correct. And so Easter was set to be the Sunday after the first full moon after the spring equinox, which (as noted) works out to be the Sunday after when Passover is supposed to be.

Earlier I noted how the Jews chose whether to do the leap year on a year-by-year basis. This worked when they had a strong central authority in the Sanhedrin, but when that waned, to keep consistency across the world it was replaced by a 19-year cycle, in which years 3, 6, 8, 11, 14, 17, and 19 had the extra month added. This persists to today. However, the problem is that this calculation is slightly off, and the Hebrew year on average moves forward about several minutes each year. This is a slow process, but starts adding up over centuries. An extremely in-depth article here discusses it; for those who want a shorter one, see here. It means that Passover will, under the current calculations, actually be celebrated in the summer eventually if this doesn't get fixed (admittedly, it'll take thousands of years for it to get that extreme). But in terms of things that are affecting us now, it means in some years, an extra month gets added in needlessly. Much like this year. There was no need to have the extra month this year, because Passover would've fallen after the spring equinox without it! But because of the calendar drift, an extra month got added in anyway, needlessly pushing Passover to being after Easter.

So it's incorrect to claim that the dates are unrelated. They're very related, and while some years they're not particularly close to each other, that's because the current Jewish calendar is off and sometimes puts it a month later than it needs to be.

There are two inaccuracies.

1. Passover is observed on Nisan 14. The Jewish calendar is luni-solar. The months are based on the cycle of the moon so 12-months will come up short of a solar year. To keep the annual calendar in alignment with the solar, they would add a 13th month as needed. In antiquity this was done "manually" in that they did not determine the months in advance like we do. Months were set based on a visual sighting of the new moon. A 13th month was added to keep barley harvest in the month of Nisan. The lunar component set the monthly calendar; the solar component to keep the first harvest in the month of Nisan.

2. The word "Easter" comes from the name of the pagan goddess of spring and fertility, Eostre, Ostara, or Eastre. The festival of Eostre was celebrated on the vernal equinox, when day and night are equal.

 

[Revelation Lad]

Jesus was not in the tomb for three days and three nights. The text was emended to match the wording of Jonah and it only led to a lot of confusion. If you study emendations to the new testament you'll find things like that. Someone at some time thought that "three days and three nights" more closely matched the wording of Jonah so it was changed to reflect Jonah. Only they didn't do the math. Another example of an emendation is also found in Matthew:

Mat 23:35 That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.

Notice that it says Zacharias son of Barachias. But Zacharias son of Barachias was not killed between the altar and the temple. Zacharias son of Iddo was. Now look at Luke:

Luk 11:51 From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation.

You see that son of Barachias is not there. Matthew's account is an early emendation that has been known since the days of Origen. Origen called it "a mistake of the scribes". These things are nothing new.

If son of Barachias was known to be a mistake, that is someone mistakenly added it and correct manuscripts circulated, why didn't someone fix it? Why was it allowed to remain so that it is in every manuscript we have? It is difficult to understand how one scribe could make a mistake copying Matthew by adding something which was easily spotted as wrong and yet every scribe after would preserve the mistake so that all the copies of Matthew came to have the mistake.

 

[Revelation Lad]

It doesn't create a problem at all; I think you may have misunderstood me. What you offer is what I described as the standard interpretation of it, that it was regarded as a high day (or in less literal translations, a particularly important Sabbath) because the important first day of Unleavened Bread fell on the Sabbath.

The claim some make, however, is that when it says "high day" it refers not to that the first day of Unleavened Bread falling upon a Sabbath (thereby making it a particularly important Sabbath), but that the first day of Unleavened Bread counts as a Sabbath even if it doesn't fall on Saturday. This claim is necessary for the idea that the Crucifixion took place on Thursday or Wednesday to work, because the Bible is very explicit the next day was a Sabbath. And the claim is therefore that the Sabbath it refers to in the Gospels (and specifically as a high day in John) is not the weekly Sabbath on Saturday, but rather the first day of Unleavened Bread which was on Thursday or Friday.

The issue is that I've never seen anyone offer evidence that the first day of Unleavened Bread was considered or referred to as a Sabbath irrespective of the day of the week it's on at the time the New Testament was written. Leviticus 23:7 commands people to do no servile work, which is similar to the Sabbath, but never refers to it as a Sabbath, even though multiple other holidays are explicitly referred to as Sabbaths in that very chapter (see Leviticus 23:24, Leviticus 23:32, and Leviticus 23:39).

It is of course possible that, even if the Bible doesn't refer to the first day of Unleavened Bread as a Sabbath, people took to calling it such due to the command of not doing servile work. The problem is that despite people confidently claiming that it was called a Sabbath, no evidence is ever offered of anyone referring to it as such outside of the speculative claim that's what John 19:31 refers to. So I've been asking if anyone can point to definite examples of it being referred to as such back then.

"The issue is that I've never seen anyone offer evidence that the first day of Unleavened Bread was considered or referred to as a Sabbath irrespective of the day of the week it's on at the time the New Testament was written." The Septuagint translation of Leviticus states the waving of the omar, the Feast of Firstfruits took place the day after the Sabbaths, The Pharisees understood Nisan 15 was the Sabbath and they observed Firstfruits every Nisan 16. This practice went into effect in the Temple around 50 AD and remains to this day.

 

[Saber Truth Tiger]

Leviticus 23:15 Is it a singular Sabbath or not?

There are some Hebrew manuscripts that use the plural Sabbath in Leviticus 23:15 but apparently not all of them.

All English translations on Bible Gateway translate Sabbath in Leviticus 23:15 in the singular. tinyurl.com/ycxpx9a4

So, Leviticus 23:15 Sabbath should be a singular word and not a plural.

And, a reminder, LXX is a mistranslation. You want to have your cake and eat it too. Above you say the death of Jesus could have been killed Nisan 14 and raised from the dead on Nisan 17, That would place his death on a Thursday since Sunday would be the fourth day. The Sadducees did not consider Nisan 15 as a Sabbath unless it fell on the weekly Sabbath. They used the Torah and only the Torah and they interpreted the Torah literally. They rejected the oral teachings of the Pharisees. They were in charge of the holy days when Jesus was on earth.

The plural Sabbaths in the gospels have been explained before, The plural Sabbaths could be used to refer to a single day. That's according to well informed New Testament Greek scholars. They know more about the Greek than both of us combined so you can ridicule them if you wish. (see Sabbath in BDAG).

Either way, I am not interested in the LXX, a translation that is wrong on its translation of Leviticus 23:11 no matter how many Greek Christians used it. The KJV is a translation and has given Christians hope for over four centuries but it has translation errors in it to but we still use it. At least I do.

So I am not enthusiastic about Leviticus 23:11 in the LXX as you are, and as far as the plural Sabbaths in the Gospels are concerned, there is some good stuff here, pro and con on the issue. hermeneutics.stackexchange.co…

1985 JPS TANACH translates Sabbath in the singular in Leviticus 23:15 nocr.net/hbm/english/engtnk/…

1917 JPS Tanach also uses the singular Sabbath when translating Sabbath into English in that verse Leviticus 23 JPS Tanakh 1917

Here is more on the plural Sabbaths from one of the most renowned NT Greek scholars in the world. billmounce.com/…

Here is the Hebrew text for Leviticus 23:15 טווּסְפַרְתֶּ֤ם לָכֶם֙ מִמָּֽחֳרַ֣ת הַשַּׁבָּ֔ת מִיּוֹם֙ הֲבִ֣יאֲכֶ֔ם אֶת־עֹ֖מֶר הַתְּנוּפָ֑ה שֶׁ֥בַע שַׁבָּת֖וֹת תְּמִימֹ֥ת תִּֽהְיֶֽינָה: where the Hebrew word Sabbath appears in the singular.

There have been scholars that know Hebrew who claim that Sabbath is in the singular in the verse above.

Martin Luther also translated Leviticus 23:15 with the singular Sabbath but he translated the seven Sabbaths as seven weeks: 23:15 Darnach sollt ihr Zählen vom Tage nach dem SABBAT, da ihr die Webegarbe brachtet, sieben ganze Wochen; {~}

The Latin Vulgate also uses the singular Sabbath in Leviticus 23:15. It seems to be the consensus of translators that in Leviticus 23:15 the first Sabbath mentioned is singular.

The Falashas in Ethiopia in the Syriac Version believed the “day after the Sabbath” in Leviticus 23:15 was the day after Nisan 21 and they translated Sabbath with the singular.

In the NASB 1995 edition the expression "the sabbath" is mentioned 51 times in the Old Testament. Forty-eight of those times it is in the singular and once in the plural (Leviticus 23:15). This is according to the manuscript that Bible Hub uses for its interlinear feature. Two times the NASB uses as "the sabbath" it is not found in the interlinear. But all their translations use the singular.

Also, on the Bible Hun website, they mention three literal translations of the Bible that translate "the sabbath" in Leviticus 23:15 in the singular. They are 1) Literal Standard Version. 2) Young's Literal Version, 3) Smith's Literal Version.

Before you start asking me why? why? why? about why a translator would translate a plural as a singular please note I am not a Greek scholar so I can't answer your why? questions. Greek scholars, who know more Greek than you and I combined say it can be done. So, if you want an answer to your why? contact a Greek scholar (like Bill Mounce) online and ask them. And don't settle for confirmation bias, contact those on both sides of the issue. Some Greek scholars believe like you do, but other's don't. Therefore, if you want to really know why, ask some of them. Bill Mounce is a good place to start. Sabbath(s) and Sunday (σάββατον)

I don't agree with everything the Greek scholars say, but I admit I do not know WHY a plural can be a singular meaning. I just know MANY of them believe it can.

Plural Sabbaths Explained

Matthew 28:1 plural and singular?

http://www.historicism.org/Documents/Sabbath_Matt28.pdf

Ray Butterworth on Biblical Hermeneutics Stack Exchange found this on the internet that shows here, at least, Bible Hub translates Lev. 23:15 correctly.

Leviticus 23:15 Interlinear: 'And ye have numbered to you from the morrow of the sabbath, from the day of your bringing in the sheaf of the wave-offering: they are seven perfect sabbaths;

Thanks Ray!

Here is the other link to Bible Hub that claims the Sabbath in Leviticus 23:15 was in the plural:

Leviticus 23:15 - The Feast of Pentecost

From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, you are to count off seven full weeks.

biblehub.com

 

[Saber Truth Tiger]

“THE SABBATH” in the NASB Old Testament (51 times) appears 48 times in the singular, once in the plural, twice not found in the text in the interlinear on Bible Hub website. The only plural is in Leviticus 23:15.

1. Exodus 16:26

Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, the sabbath, there will be none.”

1. Exodus 16:29

See, the Lord has given you the sabbath; therefore He gives you bread for two days on the sixth day. Remain every man in his place; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.”

1. Exodus 20:8

“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.

1. Exodus 20:11

For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day and made it holy.

1. Exodus 31:14

Therefore you are to observe the sabbath, for it is holy to you. Everyone who profanes it shall surely be put to death; for whoever does any work on it, that person shall be cut off from among his people.

1. Exodus 31:15

For six days work may be done, but on the seventh day there is a sabbath of complete rest, holy to the Lord; whoever does any work on the sabbath day shall surely be put to death.

1. Exodus 31:16

So the sons of Israel shall observe the sabbath, to celebrate the sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant.’

1. Exodus 35:3

You shall not kindle a fire in any of your dwellings on the sabbath day.”

1. Leviticus 23:11

He shall wave the sheaf before the Lord for you to be accepted; on the day after the sabbath the priest shall wave it.

1. Leviticus 23:15

‘You shall also count for yourselves from the day after the sabbath, from the day when you brought in the sheaf of the wave offering; there shall be seven complete sabbaths.

1. Leviticus 25:6

All of you shall have the sabbath products of the land for food; yourself, and your male and female slaves, and your hired man and your foreign resident, those who live as aliens with you.

1. Numbers 15:32

Now while the sons of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering wood on the sabbath day.

1. Numbers 28:9

‘Then on the sabbath day two male lambs one year old without defect, and two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering, and its drink offering:

1. Deuteronomy 5:12

‘Observe the sabbath day to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you.

1. Deuteronomy 5:15

You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out of there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm; therefore the Lord your God commanded you to observe the sabbath day.

1. 2 Kings 11:5

He commanded them, saying, “This is the thing that you shall do: one third of you, who come in on the sabbath and keep watch over the king’s house

1. 2 Kings 11:7

Two parts of you, even all who go out on the sabbath, shall also keep watch over the house of the Lord for the king.

1. 2 Kings 11:9

So the captains of hundreds did according to all that Jehoiada the priest commanded. And each one of them took his men who were to come in on the sabbath, with those who were to go out on the sabbath, and came to Jehoiada the priest.

1. 2 Kings 16:18

The covered way for the sabbath which they had built in the house, and the outer entry of the king, he removed from the house of the Lord because of the king of Assyria.

1. 2 Chronicles 23:4

This is the thing which you shall do: one third of you, of the priests and Levites who come in on the sabbath, shall be gatekeepers,

1. 2 Chronicles 23:8

So the Levites and all Judah did according to all that Jehoiada the priest commanded. And each one of them took his men who were to come in on the sabbath, with those who were to go out on the sabbath, for Jehoiada the priest did not dismiss any of the divisions.https://www.biblegateway.com/quicksearch/?qs_version=NASB1995&quicksearch="the+sabbath"&startnumber=26&begin=1&end=46&resultspp=25

Nehemiah 10:31

As for the peoples of the land who bring wares or any grain on the sabbath day to sell, we will not buy from them on the sabbath or a holy day; and we will forego the crops the seventh year and the exaction of every debt.

1. Nehemiah 13:15

In those days I saw in Judah some who were treading wine presses on the sabbath, and bringing in sacks of grain and loading them on donkeys, as well as wine, grapes, figs and all kinds of loads, and they brought them into Jerusalem on the sabbath day. So I admonished them on the day they sold food.

1. Nehemiah 13:16

Also men of Tyre were living there who imported fish and all kinds of merchandise, and sold them to the sons of Judah on the sabbath, even in Jerusalem.

1. Nehemiah 13:17

Then I reprimanded the nobles of Judah and said to them, “What is this evil thing you are doing, by profaning the sabbath day?

1. Nehemiah 13:18

Did not your fathers do the same, so that our God brought on us and on this city all this trouble? Yet you are adding to the wrath on Israel by profaning the sabbath.”

1. Nehemiah 13:19

It came about that just as it grew dark at the gates of Jerusalem before the sabbath, I commanded that the doors should be shut and that they should not open them until after the sabbath. Then I stationed some of my servants at the gates so that no load would enter on the sabbath day.

1. Nehemiah 13:21

Then I warned them and said to them, “Why do you spend the night in front of the wall? If you do so again, I will use force against you.” From that time on they did not come on the sabbath.

1. Nehemiah 13:22

And I commanded the Levites that they should purify themselves and come as gatekeepers to sanctify the sabbath day. For this also remember me, O my God, and have compassion on me according to the greatness of Your lovingkindness.

1. Psalm 92:1

A Psalm, a Song for the Sabbath day.

It is good to give thanks to the Lord And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High;

1. Isaiah 56:2

“How blessed is the man who does this, And the son of man who takes hold of it; Who keeps from profaning the sabbath, And keeps his hand from doing any evil.”

1. Isaiah 56:6

“Also the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord, To minister to Him, and to love the name of the Lord, To be His servants, every one who keeps from profaning the sabbath And holds fast My covenant;

1. Isaiah 58:13

“If because of the sabbath, you turn your foot From doing your own pleasure on My holy day, And call the sabbath a delight, the holy day of the Lord honorable, And honor it, desisting from your own ways, From seeking your own pleasure And speaking your own word,

1. Jeremiah 17:21

Thus says the Lord, “Take heed for yourselves, and do not carry any load on the sabbath day or bring anything in through the gates of Jerusalem.

1. Jeremiah 17:22

You shall not bring a load out of your houses on the sabbath day nor do any work, but keep the sabbath day holy, as I commanded your forefathers.

1. Jeremiah 17:24

“But it will come about, if you listen attentively to Me,” declares the Lord, “to bring no load in through the gates of this city on the sabbath day, but to keep the sabbath day holy by doing no work on it,

1. Jeremiah 17:27

But if you do not listen to Me to keep the sabbath day holy by not carrying a load and coming in through the gates of Jerusalem on the sabbath day, then I will kindle a fire in its gates and it will devour the palaces of Jerusalem and not be quenched.”’”

1. Ezekiel 46:1

‘Thus says the Lord God, “The gate of the inner court facing east shall be shut the six working days; but it shall be opened on the sabbath day and opened on the day of the new moon.

1. Ezekiel 46:4

The burnt offering which the prince shall offer to the Lord on the sabbath day shall be six lambs without blemish and a ram without blemish;

1. Ezekiel 46:12

When the prince provides a freewill offering, a burnt offering, or peace offerings as a freewill offering to the Lord, the gate facing east shall be opened for him. And he shall provide his burnt offering and his peace offerings as he does on the sabbath day. Then he shall go out, and the gate shall be shut after he goes out.

1. Amos 8:5

saying, “When will the new moon be over, So that we may sell grain, And the sabbath, that we may open the wheat market, To make the bushel smaller and the shekel bigger, And to cheat with dishonest scales,

 

[Saber Truth Tiger]

Your approach is quite misleading. I have stated repeatedly the Hebrew in Leviticus 23:15 has the Sabbath in question as singular. So why clutter the issue by speaking of other places none of which have anything to do with Nisan 15 or the Day of Firstfruits?

Sorry dude, my bad. I thought you claimed that the Hebrew word "sabbath" in Leviticus 23:15 was a plural, just like the LXX uses the plural.

As you can see in this answer, I show the Hebrew, which is הַשַּׁבָּ֔ת. Not only is the word singular; it is prefixed with the article: "the" Sabbath. The Hebrew is quite plainly singular. Despite the obvious, it was translated as τῆς ἐπαύριον τῶν σαββάτων, which is "the next day of the Sabbaths." The practice of calling Nisan 15 "Sabbath" (which you acknowledge Rabbi Yohanan ben Zakkai would impose in 50 AD) was already known 200 years before Christ.

I have said that Rabbi Yohanan ben Zakkai became Nasi of the Sanhedrin in 50 CE, and it was either then or later that he successfully prevailed over the Sadducee reckoning. I believe it MAY be 50 CE (that's what HWA claimed) but it could have been a little later.

See
Nevertheless, as you point out, that practice did not result in the Sadducees fixing the date of Firstfruits on Nisan 16. They observed it the day after the weekly Sabbath as it is written in the Hebrew. The Greek translation, if followed, would also result in observing it after the weekly Sabbath. The day after the Sabbaths is Nisan 15 and the weekly which comes after but before Nisan 21. You can argue it is a mistranslation, but according the historical record you give, it correctly refutes the Pharisees interpretation by unmistakably placing Firstfruits on the day after the weekly Sabbath. This means in the year of the crucifixion Firstfruits was observed the day after the weekly Sabbath, Sunday.

The LXX instructs us to observe the wave sheaf on the day following the first day of Unleavened Bread. See Leviticus 23:11. If they got that wrong, then the plural Sabbaths in Leviticus 23:15 may be wrong too. HWA used this reasoning to keep the Nisan 15 as an annual Sabbath and yet still celebrate the seven Sunday countdown. I maintain that Nisan 15 was reckoned as a Sabbath by a faction of the Jews and there was a huge controversy between the Pharisees and the Sadducees over which day was the correct day to wave the Omer. The Sadducees successfully controlled the religious calendar from some time from the first or second century BCE and even though the common man liked the Pharisees better, the Jews did not celebrate the Omer on Nisan 16. The priests in the Sanhedrin were a Sadducee majority and their view prevailed while Jesus was alive. Then, from about 50 CE or later, the Pharisees regained control of the holy days and the Pharisees, and their descendants have controlled it ever since for most Jews. There are still some Jews who believe the correct way to wave the sheaf was to do it on the first Sunday after the Passover seder. In any case, Leviticus in the LXX plainly says to offer the Omer on the morrow of the first day of Unleavened Bread. That means the plural Sabbaths in Leviticus 23:15 cannot be referring to the same day in verse 11. There is a contradiction in the LXX.

The LXX shows what was already a question if not a point of contention before ben Zakkai's time, and it does so in a way which says Firstfruits is to be observed after the weekly Sabbath, not after Nisan 15.

I have always admitted that the LXX shows there was a great controversy over which day should be the waving of the Omer and which day was a Sabbath, and which was not. Again, you did nor read what I have written earlier. The controversy may even go back before that. Like during the Babylonian Captivity for example. The controversy raged and it was finally put to rest thanks to ben Zakkai after he became Nasi of the Sanhhedrin.

When Greek speaking Jews, read τῆς ἐπαύριον τῶν σαββάτων, the next day of the Sabbaths, what Sabbaths would they understand?

They wouldn't understand Sunday because verse 11 says on the morrow of the first day of Unleavened Bread. That's the day modern Jews keep. They celebrate it on Nisan 16.

When Gentiles who became Christians read τῆς ἐπαύριον τῶν σαββάτων, the next day of the Sabbaths, what Sabsbaths would they understand?

When Christians went to Jerusalem after 50 AD to observe the Passover, wouldn't they see the day after the Passover was observed as a Sabbath? Wouldn't they see the Feast of Firstfruits observed on Nisan 16, regardless of the day of the week? Wouldn't their experience agree with what they read, τῆς ἐπαύριον τῶν σαββάτων, the next day of the Sabbaths?

Yes, the change may have caused some confusion at first and there may have been divisions among the Jews over which day was right, but the Pharisees were in charge now and they have maintained it ever since. There would be some Greek speaking Jews who no doubt liked the change. But before ben Zakkai took control of the Sanhedrin the Sadducees were in control and they had no choice but to allow the Sadducees to wave the Omer on Sunday.

As I have pointed out many times, you are arguing against history. You say the practice changed when ben Zakkai assumed control of the Sanhedrin in 50 AD, but you maintain there was no evidence the issue upon which the practice is based existed before 50 AD; as if ben Zakkai first came up with the idea in 50 AD. Yet when we read the LXX we see the issue there and we see it stated in a way which leads to a practice following the Hebrew text.

This is simply untrue. I have never claimed that. I have always admitted there was a big controversy between the Pharisees and the Sadducees from the time of the LXX over which day the Omer should be observed. It may even go back further to the time of the Babylon Captivity. Of course, they couldn't literally wave the Omer during the captivity, but they probably devised a way to observe Nisan 16 and the weekly Sabbath as well. You absolutely do not read very well.

You ignore the legitimate questions the Pharisees had about the Sadducees practice in years when the weekly Sabbaths are Nisan 14 and Nisan 21 meaning it is impossible to follow the Hebrew text and observe Firstfruits during the 7-days on Unleavened Bread. And the question of different instructions in Deuteronomy 16. And the question of the unnecessary addition of "complete" Sabbaths and counting 50-days in Leviticus.

Every single objection the Pharisees had is answered when Nisan 15 is understood to be one of the Sabbaths which occur during the 7-days of Unleavened Bread. Especially the most important one, how do you follow the Hebrew instructions when Niasn 14 is a weekly Sabbath...a question that comes up once every 7 years.

I don't believe Nisan 15 was a Sabbath when Jesus walked the earth. But, if it were, I would suggest you ask a rabbinical Jew to answer that question for you. That's if you really want an answer. I have no problem with the instructions in Leviticus 23.

 

[Saber Truth Tiger]

It is circular reasoning in that it begins with the premise the plural can be used for the singular. Why would a writer, especially one who is inspired by the Holy Spirit use the plural to mean the singualr especially when the same inspired writer uses the singular? Moreover, when the plural is used it is it often is at the time of the year when an annual “Sabbath” is possible.

The LXX uses the plural Sabbath to describe the Feast of Fruits which is to be observed after the weekly Sabbath. The Pharisees clearly understood the plural to be plural. If you wade tbrought Saber Truth’s material


It is circular reasoning because the only justification for claiming the plural means is the singular is the claim the plural means the singular. This despite places where the plural clearly means plural. For example in the LXX, Leviticus 23:15 and 32 clearly mean plural Sabbaths. Saber Truth claims Leviticus 23:15 in the LXX is a mistranslation because it translates the Hebrew singular to the Greek plural. But the accuracy of the translation does mean the Greek plural means the Greek singular; especially when throughout the chapter the LXX uses both the singular and the plural and the fact the Pharisees interpreted the passage to mean Nisan 15 was a Sabbath. The LXX use of the plural is to place the waving of the omar after the Sabbath of Nisan 15 and the weekly Sabbath. The accuracy of the translation into Greek, right or wrong, clearly shows the plural means plural. And it is in agreement when the omar was waved in the year Jesus died: after the weekly Sabbath. But that says nothing about what the Pharisees believed at the time.

The LXX is at least 300 years before the Pharisees took control of the Sanhedrin in 50AD and instituted their tradition which fixed the waving the omar on Nisan 16, after what they claim is the Sabbath of Nisan 15. Again right or wrong how can you claim the plural means the singular when the tradition the Pharisees installed in 50 AD continues to this day agrees with and demands the plural written 300 years earlier?

When Rabbi Yohanan asserted his authority to begin the tradition of waving the omar on Nisan 16 after what he claimed was the Sabbath of Nisan 15, he was not introducing the idea of plural Sabbaths during the 7-days of Unleavened Bread. He was wrongly applying something which was documented at least 300 years earlier. The fact his application was wrong does not mean the plural was used to mean the singular. Just the opposite. His wrong application is dependent on the plural meaning plural.

Yohanan did not come up with the idea in 50AD; it is something he held before 50 AD. What Saber Truth fails to consider is Yohanan was a Galilean and was about 50-years old when Jesus was crucified: he was contemporary with Jesus. So when Jesus and the Pharisees clashed, Yohanan and/or his disciples may have been involved. [Wikipedia has a write up of Yohanan and his importance to contemporary Judaism. Rabbi Yohanan ben Zakkai.]

Regardless of whether Jesus and Yohanan met, we must read the Gospels with the understanding the Pharisees were aware of and held to the position Nisan 15 was a Sabbath. The fact Yohanan had yet to gain control of the Sanhedrin does not mean he did not hold to this belief before gaining control. With that in mind consider Luke 6:2 - But some of the Pharisees said, “Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the σάββασιν Sabbaths?”

Since the Pharisees referred to Nisan 15 as the Sabbath, how can anyone claim when the Pharisees use the plural they mean the singular? Only by circular reasoning and believing 50 AD was the first time they began to make this claim.

Yohanan held to his belief that Nisan 15 was a Sabbath probably long before he became NASI as he was a Pharisee. It may be because the plural Sabbaths was used for one day. I can't say that with certainty, but I know Greek scholars claim the plural can be used to refer to the singular as well. So, unless you can show the Pharisees were talking to Jesus on a weekly Sabbath that contained a annual holy convocation you have no case.

In Jesus day there were seven annual holy days of which one was a Sabbath. The Pharisees believed Nisan 15 was a Sabbath because it was a long tradition that the Pharisees believed, dating back to before the LXX was written. However, the Jews did not call Nisan 21, Shavuot, and three of the four holy convocations Sabbath until sometime during the second century CE. The reason the Pharisees viewed Nisan 15 was a Sabbath was because some Jews observed a Nisan 15 Sabbath while in Babylon captivity. Seventy years celebrating the Nisan 15 Sabbath. However, they did not call the other six holy convocations as Sabbath with the exception of Yom Kippur. When they began to put into writings the traditions of the Pharisees they started calling the other holy convocations as Sabbaths. There is absolutely no contemporary evidence that Nisan 15 and 21 were Sabbaths before the second century CE.

I admit the tradition of calling Nisan 15 predated the LXX because I don't think the 72 translators made this up out of nothing. Some scholars believe it began when Judah served the 70 years in Babylon because the Babylonians observed a Nisan 15 Sabbath. The Jews entered the captivity with an Abib 15 holy convocation and after the 70 years they exited with a Nisan 15 Sabbath. Not all Jews agreed though, hence the controversy between factions until ben Zakkai made Nisan 15 an official Sabbath in the first century CE. This controversy was heated at times and the Sadducees clung steadfastly to the weekly Sabbath occurring the day before the Omer and Shavuot occurring on Sunday.

According to one source, the days of Nisan 15 and Shavuot were both celebrated as semi-holidays before ben Zakkai became NASI. They were not celebrated as Sabbaths. See my first post, # 81, on page 5 of this thread, near the bottom.

 

[Saber Truth Tiger]

That is exactly right. In the year Jesus was crucified Firstfruits was observed on Sunday, after the Sabbaths of Nisan 15 and Saturday, the Sabbath of the 7th day.

It was observed according to the correct interpretation of the Law, despite what the Pharisees would have liked. Despite their position that Nisan 15 was the day to use to set the waving of the omer, the priestly class prevailed and that was not done on Nisan 16, which was the 7th day Sabbath, it was done the next day, Sunday, Nisan 17 in the year Jesus died.

The correct observance continued for approximately 20 more years until ben Zakkai assumed authority in the Sanhedrin. At that point it was changed and fixed on Nisan 16 after the Sabbath of Nisan 15 according to the interpretation of the Pharisees. That change continues to this day.

IOW, despite the accepted practice of referring to Nisan 15 as the Sabbath, the people in charge still waited until after the 7th day Sabbath to wave the omer.

Nisan 15 was not a Sabbath when Jesus walked the earth. There was no doubt many Pharisees alive then who believed Nisan 15 should be the Sabbath, but they were not in power, the Sadducees were. Before ben Zakkai, Nisan 15 and Shavuot were considered semi-holidays. Ben Zakkai helped the Jews "restore" Nisan 15 and Shavuot to their "original" days. This means there was a time when the Pharisees had the "right" date and Nisan 15 was celebrated as a Sabbath. But when the Sadducees took over sometime between the second century or first century BCE Nisan 15 was not considered a Sabbath anymore. But it was a day that forbade servile work, so it was celebrated as a semi-holiday. The LXX says the waving of the Omer was to occur on the morrow of the first day of Unleavened Bread. The plural Sabbaths is probably an emendation or a gloss. I noticed on Bible Hub their interlinear uses plural Sabbaths in Leviticus 23:15 but no English translation I know translates it that way.

Leviticus 23:15 - The Feast of Pentecost

From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, you are to count off seven full weeks.

biblehub.com

This from Ray Butterworth on BHSE, where Bible Hub parses Lev. 23:15 correctly:

Leviticus 23:15 Interlinear: 'And ye have numbered to you from the morrow of the sabbath, from the day of your bringing in the sheaf of the wave-offering: they are seven perfect sabbaths;

 

[Saber Truth Tiger]

THE SABBATH IN THE NEW TESTAMENT, SINGULAR OR PLURAL?

Here is where the expression "the Sabbath" appears in the New Testament.

It always falls on the weekly Sabbath.

Grammatical notes follow the verse. The first letter indicates case, second letter indicates gender, and the third letter denotes whether it is single or plural. Hence, DNP is Dative, Neuter, Plural and ANS is Accusative, Neuter, and Singular and so forth.

* 1. Matthew 12:1 At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath, and His disciples became hungry and began to pick the heads of grain and eat. DNP PLURAL

1. Matthew 12:5 Or have you not read in the Law, that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple break the Sabbath and are innocent? DNP, ANS
2. Matthew 12:8 For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.” GNS
3. Matthew 12:10 And a man was there whose hand was withered. And they questioned Jesus, asking, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”—so that they might accuse Him. DNP PLURAL
4. Matthew 12:11 And He said to them, “What man is there among you who has a sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will he not take hold of it and lift it out? DNP PLURAL
5. Matthew 12:12 How much more valuable then is a man than a sheep! So then, it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.” DNP PLURAL
6. Matthew 28:1 Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave. GNP PLURAL
7. Mark 1:21 They *went into Capernaum; and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and began to teach. DNP PLURAL
8. Mark 2:23* And it happened that He was passing through the grainfields on the Sabbath, and His disciples began to make their way along while picking the heads of grain. (-the) DNP PLURAL
9. Mark 2:24 The Pharisees were saying to Him, “Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” DNP PLURAL
10. Mark 2:27 Jesus said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. NNS ANS
11. Mark 2:28 So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.” GNS
12. Mark 3:1 He entered again into a synagogue; and a man was there whose hand was withered.
13. Mark 3:2 They were watching Him to see if He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him. DNP PLURAL
14. Mark 3:4 And He *said to them, “Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to kill?” But they kept silent. DNP PLURAL
15. Mark 6:2* When the Sabbath came, He began to teach in the synagogue; and the many listeners were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things, and what is this wisdom given to Him, and such miracles as these performed by His hands? (-the) GNS
16. Mark 15:42 When evening had already come, because it was the preparation day, that is, the day before the Sabbath, *prosabbaton*
17. Mark 16:1 When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, bought spices, so that they might come and anoint Him. GNS
18. Luke 4:16 And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read. GNP PLURAL
19. Luke 4:31 And He came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and He was teaching them on the Sabbath; DNP PLURAL
20. Luke 6:1* Now it happened that He was passing through some grainfields on a Sabbath; and His disciples were picking the heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands, and eating the grain. (- the) DNS
21. Luke 6:2 But some of the Pharisees said, “Why do you do what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” DNP PLURAL
22. Luke 6:5 And He was saying to them, “The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.” GNS
23. Luke 6:7 The scribes and the Pharisees were watching Him closely to see if He healed on the Sabbath, so that they might find reason to accuse Him. DNS
24. Luke 6:9 And Jesus said to them, “I ask you, is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to destroy it?” DNS
25. Luke 13:10* And He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. (-the) DNS
26. Luke 13:14 But the synagogue official, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, began saying to the crowd in response, “There are six days in which work should be done; so come during them and get healed, and not on the Sabbath day.” DNS GNS
27. Luke 13:15 But the Lord answered him and said, “You hypocrites, does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the stall and lead him away to water him? DNS
28. Luke 13:16 And this woman, a daughter of Abraham as she is, whom Satan has bound for eighteen long years, should she not have been released from this bond on the Sabbath day?” GNS
29. Luke 14:1 It happened that when He went into the house of one of the leaders of the Pharisees on the Sabbath to eat bread, they were watching Him closely. DNS
30. Luke 14:3 And Jesus answered and spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?” DNS
31. Luke 23:54* It was the preparation day, and the Sabbath was about to begin. (-the) NNS
32. Luke 23:56 Then they returned and prepared spices and perfumes. And on the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment. ANS
33. John 5:9 Immediately the man became well, and picked up his pallet and began to walk. Now it was the Sabbath on that day. NNS
34. John 5:10* So the Jews were saying to the man who was cured, “It is the Sabbath, and it is not permissible for you to carry your pallet.” (-the) NNS
35. John 5:16 For this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on the Sabbath. DNS
36. John 5:18 For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God. ANS
37. John 7:22 For this reason Moses has given you circumcision (not because it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and on the Sabbath you circumcise a man. DNS
38. John 7:23 If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath so that the Law of Moses will not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made an entire man well on the Sabbath? DNS DNS
39. John 9:16 Therefore some of the Pharisees were saying, “This man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath.” But others were saying, “How can a man who is a sinner perform such signs?” And there was a division among them. ANS
40. John 19:31* Then the Jews, because it was the day of preparation, so that the bodies would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. (-that) GNS DNS
41. Acts 13:14 But going on from Perga, they arrived at Pisidian Antioch, and on the Sabbath day they went into the synagogue and sat down. GNP PLURAL
42. Acts 16:13 And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to a riverside, where we were supposing that there would be a place of prayer; and we sat down and began speaking to the women who had assembled. GNP PLURAL
43. NOTE: I have looked at the Greek word for Sabbath in the LXX and have covered the Torah so far and in every case the word is plural, even when a single day is in view, like in Numbers 15:32.
44. Here is a link to a website that discusses the fact that plural Sabbath is sometimes used for the singular Sabbath. 6.2 The Plural σαββατων (Sabbaths) was reinterpreted.

 

[Saber Truth Tiger]

Matthew 12:1 is σάββασιν which is plural. How do you know the event did not take place during the week which included the Day of Atonement, a week which always has two Sabbaths, the weekly and the Day of Atonement?

I don't think there is a way to determine that. If the Day of Atonement fell on a Tuesday and Jesus went into the grainfields on the Sabbath I don't see why the writer would refer to it in the plural unless it was a feature of the Greek language. If the Day of Atonement fell on the same weekly Sabbath Jesus and his disciples would be fasting and therefore that wouldn't make any sense. If the Day of Atonement fell on a Friday there would be back-to-back Sabbaths, but it doesn't mean that the weekly Sabbath would be called sabbaths (plural) simply because the day before it was also a Sabbath too. I think things would be more productive if you could find evidence that the plural Sabbaths could not be used for a singular day since there are so many Greek scholars who believe it is. I am not a Greek scholar so I am not the one you should ask.

 

[Saber Truth Tiger]

You are missing the point. Calling Nisan 15 a Sabbath has two consequences, one for the individual and one for the community. The one for the individual affects every individual every year. They attend a holy convocation and the avoid work. It is possible the work they avoid is not as strict as a weekly Sabbath, but it is not possible they treat this day as a normal day of work. Because all law abiding individuals observe the day, there are community consequences. For instance, all markets and money changing activities would be ceased. Arguably, from the community point of view, the day would be exactly like the weekly Sabbath (despite the fact some individual may be doing something the Sabbath prohibits).

The basis for referring to Nisan 15 as the Sabbath is how the term Sabbath is applied. Even if one wants to make a legal distinction between Nisan 15 and the Sabbath, for practical purposes using Sabbath to refer to Nisan 15 is 80-90% correct for individual actions and 100% correct (or perhaps 99%) for the community actions. These factors do not change whether Firstfruits is observed the next day of later in the week.

When Firstfruits is observed has no effect on when or how Nisan 15 is observed, regardless of who is in charge. The decision over which day the Omer is waved has no impact on how law abiding individuals and their communities observe Nisan 15. The only reason an authority can argue for the practice of waving the Omer on Nisan 16 is the what community and individuals do on Nisan 15.

The decision over waving the Omer has no bearing on what the community and individuals do on Nisan 15. Once you come to terms with this fact, you must admit the terminology to describe Nisan 15 is unchanged regardless of who is in charge and regardless of their decision on waving the Omer. If you recognize the practice before and after the time Jesus was on earth, you have proven the practice of using the term was continuous beginning from the time it first began until the present. That is, regardless of how the Law is interpreted for waving the Omer, Nisan 15 is referred to as the Sabbath.

Whether you use history or exegesis waving the Omer has no bearing on Nisan 15.

For the Jews today, Nisan 15 is a Sabbath that precedes the waving of the Omer. They are in error of course, and I agree that Nisan 15 has no bearing on the waving of the Omer as scripturally speaking, the Omer fell on the day AFTER the weekly Sabbath.

 

[Saber Truth Tiger]

1. Here is the LXX which is parsed so you know which Sabbaths is plural and which are not. It is Exodus 16 in the LXX. Exodus 16 απηραν δε εξ αιλιμ και ηλθοσαν πασα συναγωγη υιων ισραηλ εις την ερημον σιν ο εστιν ανα μεσον αιλιμ και ανα μεσον σινα τη δε πεντεκαιδεκατη ημερα τω μηνι τω δευτερω εξεληλυθοτων αυτων εκ γης αιγυπτου
2. The quickest way to find the Greek word for Sabbath is to go to a page, press the CTRL and F button on the keyboard and when the little window pops up type G4521 into the window and if there is a Greek sabbath in the text it will be highlighted, and you can check the gender and case of the noun.
3. Here is something from Google AI:
4. Key points to remember:
   • Aramaic influence:
     The Hebrew word for Sabbath ("shabbat") is translated in the LXX as "σάββατον" (sábbaton) in the singular form, but the Aramaic equivalent "šabbatā" is often used in the plural "σάββατα" (sábbata) due to how it was adopted into Greek.
     
     
     
   • Grammatical interpretation:
     While "σάββατα" is technically a plural form in Greek, in the context of the LXX, it usually refers to a single Sabbath day.
     
     
     
   • Not a strict rule:
     While "σάββατα" is prevalent, there are instances where "σάββατον" is used in the Septuagint to refer to the Sabbath.