Bible Verse of the Day Wednesday October 19th, 2022

Luke 23:56 Then they went home and prepared spices and perfumes. But they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment.

The Gospels dedicate the occurrences that led up to the sacrifice of Christ Jesus on the Cross of Calvary on Thursday and Friday during Passover week. A considerable amount of text speaks of the Resurrection of Our Lord and Savior. However, there is little writing based around Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath. There is no information recorded in the Gospels surrounding the activities on Saturday except one this one verse in the Gospel of Luke, the Verses of the Day for today (Luke 23:56).

This passing mention in Dr. Luke's writing concerning the Sabbath rest of the Apostles could be a shroud covering the unrest and confusion they were most likely going through. The Apostles of Jesus were probably doing on that Sabbath Day the same thing they were doing when Jesus appeared to them in His resurrected body on Sunday. They were most likely concerned that the same thing that happened to Jesus might happen to them.

Everything they believed in and followed for the past three and a half years had come to a violent and cruel ending. The one they had given their alliance to, by giving up their crafts and occupations, the one they thought was the true promised Messiah, had been crucified like a common criminal. None of them could comprehend or fathom what Jesus had told them before He went to the Cross (Matthew 16:21-23; 17:22-23 and 20:17-19). It was only on the following day, when Jesus appeared to them in His resurrected body, that they would realize the truth that Jesus was the true promised Messiah.

The writings of Matthew, and no other, record any occurrences that happen outside the realm of the Apostles. On that Saturday, the Jewish leaders went to Pilate and requested that he post a guard on the tomb so that the followers of Jesus would not be able to steal His body and tell the world that He had been resurrected (Matthew 27:62-66). Of course, not only were the disciples of Jesus fearful and anxious, but the Jewish leaders were trembling themselves. It might have been the curious occurrences and incidents when Jesus died on the Cross. There was strange darkness that covered the land along with an earthquake. However, the tearing down of the curtain covering the Holy Place in the temple that concerned them the most (Mark 15:33, 38; Matthew 27:50-51). When this happened, some Jewish leaders finally realized that this must have been the Son of God. All that occurred on Friday and Saturday that led us to the most significant moment in the history of humankind on this earth, the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Christ Jesus.

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