In the previous post, I noted what happened during Holy Week from Sunday through Wednesday, a time that begins with Jesus’s Triumphant Entry and features much teaching by Jesus in Jerusalem. I’ll continue this overview of the events of Holy Week in this post by looking at what happened on Thursday through the next Sunday. Once again, I’ll use Mark’s “day-by-day” account as the outline and draw in additional details from the other gospels.
Maundy Thursday
Mark 14:12-72 – also see Matthew 26:17-75; Luke 22:7-71; John 13:1-18:27
On Thursday, Jesus celebrates the Jewish festival of Passover with his disciples for his last meal with them. He first makes preparations on how to do so by telling the disciples how they will find where the room is that they will have this meal in (Matthew 26:17-20; Mark 14:12-17; Luke 22:7-14). It seems most likely that Jesus washed the disciples’ feet before having this meal (see John 13:1-20), with this table also the setting for Jesus’s words about his betrayal (Matthew 26:21-25; Mark 14:18-21; John 13:21-30; Luke places the teaching about Jesus’s betrayal after this meal in Luke 22:21-23, which may reflect another common practice in ancient history of grouping teachings together). The Passover meal is where Jesus uses the bread and cup of wine to teach his disciples that his body would be given for them and his blood spilled for them – establishing the practice of communion (Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:15-20). There is other teaching at this table (see Luke 22:24-50; John 13:31-16:31), including Peter’s denial predicted (Matthew 26:30-35; Mark 14:26-31; Luke 22:31-34; John 13:36-38), and Jesus may offer an extended prayer here (John 17) before they go to the Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus prays (and the disciples sleep – see Matthew 26:40-45; Mark 14:37-41; Luke 22:45-46) and is then arrested (see Matthew 26:36-46; Mark 14:32-42; Luke 22:39-46; John 18:1-12). All four gospels recount that one of the disciples took out a sword and cut off the ear of one slave of the high priest (Matthew 26:51; Mark 14:47; Luke 22;50; John 18:10, John names names here and tells us it was Peter!); all except Mark note that Jesus rebukes this disciple and Luke tells us that he healed this man (Luke 22:51).
Jesus then goes before Jewish officials for an unjust (and maybe illegal!) night trial at the high priest’s house in which they seek to find charges against him (Matthew 26:57-68; Mark 14:53-65; Luke 22:54-71; John 18:3-24); all four gospels highlight in some way that these charges are false. John highlights that this trial may have two components, first at Annas the former high priest’s house and then before Caiaphas the current high priest (see John 18:24). While Jesus stands firm in the face of taunting from high-standing Jewish officials, Peter crumbles and all four gospels note that he denies knowing Jesus when asked by a servant girl (Mathew 26:69-75; Mark 14:66-72; Luke 22:56-62; John 18:13-27).
Good Friday
Mark 15:1-47; also see Matthew 27:1-61; Luke 23:1-55; John 18:28-19:42
Friday marks a shift as Jesus is handed over to the Roman governor Pontius Pilate (Mark 15:1; Matthew 27:1-2; Luke 23:1; John 18:28). It would seem that during this trial with Pilate, Judas had remorse, which led to his death at his own hand (Matthew 27:3-10). All the gospels note that Pilate tries to release Jesus but is forced by the crowd to have Jesus crucified and instead releases Barrabas (see Matthew 27:11-31, Mark 15:3-20; Luke 22:3-25; John 18:28-19:16); Luke also notes a trial before Herod Antipas who also finds Jesus not guilty (Luke 23:6-12). Before he is led to crucifixion, Jesus is scourged (Matthew 27:26; Mark 15:17; John 19:1) and mocked in a number of ways, including a crown of thorns being placed on his head (Matthew 27:28-31; Mark 15:17-20; John 19:1-3); Luke does not include some of those details but notes what Jesus says as he goes to the cross (Luke 23:26-32). The beating is so bad that someone has to carry the cross for Jesus (Matthew 27:31-32; Mark 15:20-21; Luke 23:26). The mockery continues as Jesus is on the cross (Matthew 27:33-37; Mark 15:22-32; Luke 23:33-38), though Luke notes one of those crucified puts his faith in Christ instead of mocking him (Luke 23:39-43).
Jesus dies at 3 PM (Matthew 27:45-54; Mark 15:33-39; Luke 23:44-48; also see John 19:28-30 that does not note the time but does note the confirmation of it in John 19:31-37), and it is dark when it should be light. Matthew and Mark both note that the curtain in the temple was split from top to bottom (Matthew 27:51; Mark 15:38), with Matthew noting some additional signs of an earthquake and resurrection of some of the “saints” (Matthew 27:51-53). Jesus’s death leads to a proclamation of his identity and innocence by a Roman soldier that Jesus is the Son of God (Matthew 27:54; Mark 15:39; Luke 23:47). All the gospels note that people observed his death (Matthew 27:55-56; Mark 15:40-41; Luke 23:49; John 19:25-27), showing that his death was never in doubt. All note that Joseph of Arimaeatha found a tomb for him, prepared the body, and placed it in the tomb (Matthew 27:57-61; Mark 15:42-47; Luke 23:50-56; John 19:38-42), with John further adding that Nicodemus (from John 3) was there too. The women saw where he was laid (Matthew 27:61; Mark 15:47; Luke 23:55), so there is no doubt that they knew which tomb to go to if they were planning a visit. M
Holy Saturday
No reference in Mark; see Matthew 27:62-66
This is a day of rest so we don’t read of Jesus’s disciples doing anything on this day. However, we read in Matthew 27:62-66 about the chief priests and the Pharisees doing something, which is pretty surprising in light of all the rules they had around what could and could not be done on the Sabbath Day. They go to Pilate to make sure that the tomb was sealed so the disciples could not steal Jesus’s body. Pilate provides them with a guard of soldiers who secure and seal the tomb. In addition to further revealing the hypocrisy of these religious figures, this activity further sets up the amazing event that happens on the next day.
Resurrection Sunday
Matthew 28; Mark 16; Luke 24; John 21
We read in all four gospels that women came to the tomb early in the morning, with Mark initially offering the most complete list of the women present (Mark 16:1: Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome) while the other gospels only highlight some of them (Matthew 28:1: Mary Magdalene and the other Mary; John 20:1: Mary Magdalene) or just mentioning that women came to the tomb (Luke 20:1; later clarified to be Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, along with other women). Their purpose in going was to anoint Jesus’s body with spices (Mark 16:1; Luke 24:1), and it doesn’t seem that they had a particular plan on how to remove the stone to get into the tomb (see Mark 16:3) and may have been unaware of the guards at the tomb and the seal on it that happened the day before (as they left the tomb to observe the Sabbath Day of rest).
All four gospels note that God takes care of this issue, as the stone is rolled away (Mark 16:4; Matthew 28:2; Luke 24:2; John 20:1). Matthew’s account indicates that it happened through the hand of an angel when the women arrived (Matthew 28:2), which reveals that the tomb was not moved so that Jesus could come out but so that they could come in. While Matthew makes it clear that this was an angel and focuses on the one who moved the tomb, Mark describes this figure as a young man (Mark 16:5) and Luke notes that there were two of them (Luke 20:4); the attire that the figure(s) wear (Matthew 28:3; Mark 16:5; Luke 24:5) and the response of fear and amazement provoked among the humans present (Matthew 20:4; Mark 16:5; Luke 24:5) confirms the angelic identity of the messengers. While the exact wording differs a bit in each account, the message given to the women is the same (Mark 16:6-7; Matthew 28:5-7; Luke 24:4-9): Jesus has risen, just as he predicted, and they were to go and tell the disciples. Mark seems to end on a note that highlights how the women were afraid to tell others (Mark 16:8), but Luke clarifies that they did, though to mixed reviews (Luke 24:10-11).
Matthew highlights an appearance of the resurrected Jesus to the women (Matthew 28:9-10), with John focusing on Jesus’s appearance to Mary Magdalen in particular, in light of his emphasis on her at the tomb that was already noted (John 20:11-18). John indicates that the sequence of telling the disciples started with Peter and John, who came to see the tomb themselves (John 20:6-10), and then the other disciples were told later (John 20:18). Luke notes that Jesus appeared to individuals journeying to a village named Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35) and then later to the disciples (Luke 24:36-43), which John also records (John 20:19-23), later noting that Thomas was not present (John 20:24-29). Other resurrection appearances of Jesus are described in the gospels (Matthew 28:16-20; Luke 24:44-53; John 20:24-29; John 21:1-14) as well as other parts of the Bible (Acts 1:1-11; 1 Corinthians 15:6-7), but this would seem to occur within the forty day window between Jesus’s resurrection and ascension and thus beyond this climactic day in this amazing week.
An Amazing Week
It’s my hope that this journey through this week in which so much happened not only causes us to remember what happened then but also the significance of these events during this week that changed the course of the world and our lives.
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