The Sign of Jonah and Jesus

During 1976 Ahmed Deedat of the Islamic Propagation Centre in Durban published a booklet entitled “What was the Sign of Jonah?” which talks about two things in specific:

1-      If Jonah had been alive throughout his sojourn in the fish, then Jesus must have been alive in the tomb after being taken down from the cross.

2-      If Jesus was crucified on a Friday and rose on the following Sunday morning, then he could not have been three days and three nights in the tomb. 

We shall consider these two objections in order and will thereafter proceed to analyze the whole subject to see what the Sign of Jonah really was. Let's see what three days and three nights mean. In Esther, chapter 4, in the Old Testament of the Christian Jewish Bible, it says there was a fast for three days and three nights. But, then it went on, and it says they completed the fast on the third day. You see in Jewish language, "after three days and three nights," meant "to the third day" or "on the third day." Jesus said in Matthew 12:40, “He would be buried for three days and three nights.” 

In Matthew 20, Jesus said, “He would be raised up on the third day” - not after the third day. The Jews came to Jesus, and they said in Matthew 27:63, "and said, “Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise." So, they asked for a Roman guard. Now watch the language here. "Therefore, give orders for the grave to be made secure until the third day," not after the third day. They knew what Jesus said, three days and three nights, meant until the third day, "Lest, His disciples come and steal Him away." 

On Friday, before six o'clock they had three hours to bury Him. It took less than an hour. The Jewish reckoning of time in the Jewish Talmud and the Babylonian Jerusalem Talmud (which are the commentaries of the Jews), said any part, an "Onan" - any part of the day is considered a full day. On Friday before six o'clock by Jewish reckoning, any minute was one day and one night. From Friday night at six o'clock to Saturday at six o’clock was, another day and another night. 

Men and women, from Jewish reckoning, not ours, any moment after six o'clock was Saturday night, is another day, another night. According to one of the debate of Dr. Josh McDowell in South Africa, he gave an example stating, “We do the same thing in my country. If my son was born one minute before midnight on December the 31st, on my income taxes to my government, I could treat my son with the same time principle as having been born at any time during that one full year, 365 days and 365 nights. For the 1st objection above, please read the November 2012 article "WAS JESUS ALIVE OR DEAD IN THE TOMB?"

Sources Used: Dr. Josh McDowell, John Gilchrist.