Questions & Answers

Questions & Answers
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Sent: 10/13/2001 11:38:32 AM
Subject: Passion week article

Hi, Peace to you and yours.

In reference to the writing about Passion week, first of all, thank you for your dedication and willingness to share your insights and views.  The Greek language insights you gave have been very helpful.

On the other hand, I have a few questions/comments I need answers/replies to that I cannot get from the article nor from scriptures except by accepting some of your statements you made.

Hi, Ethienne.
Grace and peace to you and yours in the name of Yahushua.

Let me see if I can address your very good and well-defined questions.

Question:
 
Yes, the first day of the Feast, which you identified as Friday,  was to be a sabbath, but you said it was a "high day".  High days are when annual sabbath and weekly sabbath  fall on the same day.  So Friday could not be a "high day".

Answer:
Friday can be a high day.  Please consider this:  in the Hebrew mind, 'High Days" are Hebrew calendar days with high purpose and intent.  For example, an article in the "Jewish Press" speaks of the "High Holy Days" of the year 5682 as being all the days from Tishri 1 (Feast of Trumpets) to Tishri 10 (Day of Atonement).  A recent article in my local newspaper was captioned: "Jews hail a New Year: Families Observe High Holy Days with Traditions".  This same article boxed in a list of the "High Holy Days" which were to include "Rosh Hashanah" and "Yom Kippur".  These days are separated by 10 days.  Both can not occur on a 7th-day Sabbath in the same year.  Yet both are referred to as "High Days".  With such common references as this, is it unreasonable to assume the annual Feast Day which occurs on the 1st day of Unleavened Bread was by itself spoken of as a "High Day" since high days don't necessarily involve a weekly Sabbath?

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Question:
 
John 12:1 says "six day before the Passover"(8th of Abib?).  Verse 12 refers to "the next day".  Would not the next day be "five days before the Passover" the 9th of Abib?  If so,  would not his proclamation as "the king of Israel" be 5 days before Passover and not 4 days as you put forth in your writing?  If so, that would not square with your teachings in the article.

Answer:
The reference John makes here to the Passover should be understood to be the Feast of Unleavened Bread as in the context of John 19:14. 
 
        John 19:14 -  And it was the preparation of the Passover, and about the 6th hour, and he (Pilate) saith unto the Jews, 'Behold your king'.

John identifies what he means by Passover.  Yahushua appeared before Pilate the morning of the crucifixion.  The following day was the Passover (Feast of Unleavened Bread).  This was the preparation day (for the Feast of Unleavened Bread).  Luke further clearifies it by defining what Passover means:

      Lk 22:1 - Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread drew nigh, which is called the Passover.

So, translated, "6 days before the Passover" becomes "6 days before the Feast of Unleavened Bread".  According to Leviticus 23:6 - "On the 15th day of the same month is the Feast of Unleavened Bread . . ."  6 days before the 15th is then the 9th.  The following day would be the 10th which is the day of lamb-picking; the day Yahushua rode into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey.  It was on this day he was pronounced "King of the Jews".  When the Pharisees asked Yahushua to silence his disciples, he responded: "I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out "(Lk 19:40).  Why?  It was necessary that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning Yahushua (Lk 24:44).  This was lamb-picking day.  On this day the lamb must be identified which was to be sacrificed for the Passover.  The identity "King of the Jews" separated him from all other Jews.  It was this separation that caused him to be tried for treason "We have no king but Caesar".  It was this conviction that caused Pilate to have placed a placard above him on the tree: "Yahushua of Nazareth the King of the Jews", and it was written in Hebrew, in Greek, and Latin (Jn 19:19,20).  All this that the Scripture might be fulfilled.

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Question:
 
The verses in John identified him, Yahushua, as "the king of Israel" and not as the Passover lamb nor goat (Ex.12:5).   Why and how do you conclude the term "the king of Israel" is the identification and one and the same as the "Passover lamb"?

Answer:
The Apostle Paul identifies Yahushua as our Passover lamb:

    I Corinthians 5:7 - ". . . even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us".

Thus the passover lamb was given as a representation of the "lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world".  No bone of it was to be broken:

    Ex 12:43,46 - "And the LORD said unto Moses and Aaron. This is the ordinance of the passover: there shall no stranger eat thereof . . . neither shall ye break a bone thereof". (cf. Num 9:12)

    Jn 19:36 - "For these things were done that the Scripture should be fulfilled.  A bone of him shall not be broken".

The Scripture must needs be fulfilled in meeting the requirement that as the passover lamb was to be identified on a specific day (the 10th of ABIB), so too must Christ fulfill the Scriptures.  He is our passover lamb.  He too was selected on the 10th of ABIB.  Thus "Passion Week" opened with the Triumphal Entry.  It was Israel who identified him to separate him from his countrymen.  No longer was he just another Jew.  He was now "King of the Jews".  This lamb was no longer just another lamb.  It was the "Passover Lamb without blemish".  As Pilate said: "I can find no fault in him".

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Question:
 
How and from where did you determine the day of the week and the day of the month Yahushua rode the donkey as being Sunday the 10th of Abib other than from the doctrine he was the Passover lamb and the tradition of Palm Sunday when nothing in the text tell us what day of the week it was?

Answer:
I count backwards.

His resurrection occurred on the 7th-day Sabbath (lit. 'one of the Sabbaths'), that being the 3rd day of Matt. 12:40  ( Lk 24:21)
    (Saturday - the 16th of ABIB)

They rested the sabbath day (Feast of Unleavened Bread) according to the commandment (cf. Lev 23:7), that being the 2nd day of Matt 12:40  (cf. - Lk 23:56, Lev: 23:7), 
    (Friday - the 15th of ABIB = Lev 23:6)

He suffered, died, and was buried, that being the preparation for the Feast of Unleavened Bread, that being the 1st day of Matt 12:40 (cf. - Lk 24:20)
    (Thursday crucifixion - the 14th of ABIB = Ex 12:6)

2 days before the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Mk 14:1)
    (Wednesday - the 13th of ABIB)

3 days before the Feast of Unleavened Bread 
    (Tuesday - the 12th of ABIB)

4 days before the Feast of Unleavened Bread
    (Monday - the 11th of ABIB)

On the next day (Jn 12:12)(5 days before the Feast of Unleavened Bread) (The Triumphal Entry) (fulfillment of Ex 12:3) 
    (Palm Sunday - the 10th of ABIB)

6 days before the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Sabbath at Mary & Martha's home in Bethany) (Jn 12:1) (Lk22:1)
    (Saturday - the 9th of ABIB)

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Question:
 
Lastly, how do you harmonize, if it be possible, John's verses and your teaching and /or Paul's of Yahushua being the Passover lamb with these other references that show that Yahushua ate the Passover lamb himself therefore he had not died yet:

Answer:
The Torah required that the passover lamb be killed 'between the two evenings' on the 14th of ABIB.  The 14th began at 'even' or sunset and ended at 'even' or sunset.  In other words 'between the two evenings' defines the 14th (cf. Num 9:2,3 see KJV marginal note on the word 'even').  Therefore, anytime during the 14th of ABIB the passover lamb could be killed to satisfy the Torah's requirement.  Yahushua was able to tell his disciples to prepare (kill) the passover at sunset that began the 14th for themselves and eat it the night of the 14th, while dying as the passover that same day before sunset that ended the 14th.  (also see Genesis chapter 1 that defines a day -  "the evening and the morning were the first day")

Thank-you for your questions.  I hope I have answered them to your satisfaction.  If not, don't hesitate to respond further.  Every good and honest question deserves a good and honest answer.  I love your sincerity.

YHVH saves,

John