Did Jesus die willingly? and how many days was Jesus buried?

[Flores]

Did Jesus die willingly?

Well, not really, according to the bible.

Peter and the two sons of Zebedee were with Jesus Christ before the elders of the people and the chief priests came to take him to crucify him. Jesus at this point talked to Peter and the two sons of Zebedee as in Matthew 26:38 "Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me." Then Jesus went a little further way from them and prayed to God as in Matthew 26:39 "And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt."

Now, let's guess what the christians will say:

This hesitation comes from the flesh side of him (in other words he was tempted), and that his soul which is godly does not have this hesitation at all.

But, if we look at Matthew 26:38 we see that Jesus is contradicting this idea by saying, "My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death." (Matthew 26:38). He himself says that it really his soul that is hesitating and not his body. These are Jesus' own words.
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Did god answer the prayers of jesus? perhaps
Hebrews 5:7 "Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared."

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But they say he was killed, so how many days exactly did he die?

The bible prophesize three days:
" For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." (Matthew 12:40).

What actually happened is:
1.Good Friday night Jesus was buried. This is night number 1.
2.Saturday day Jesus was still in the grave. This is day number 1.
3.Saturday night Jesus was still in the grave. This is night number 2.

Mary Magdalene, very early in the morning before sun rise and after the Sabbath (Saturday), went to the see Jesus, and he was not there. The following verses relate this event:

Mark 16:1 And when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him.
Mark 16:2 And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun.
Mark 16:3 And they said among themselves, Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulchre?
Mark 16:4 And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away: for it was very great.
Mark 16:5 And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted.
Mark 16:6 And he saith unto them, Be not affrighted: Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him.


So which one is it? three days and three nights or one day and two nights?

 

[Medicine*Woman]

Did Jesus die willingly?
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M*W: Interesting post, Flores. The way I see it is that if Jesus was willing, why did they submit him to all that unnecessary torture? There were some behind the scene deals going on. What about Barabbas (Bar Abbas)? What role did he play? I think he took the crucifixion for Jesus. That's why Pilate made a handy sign saying INRI and hung it on the cross that Barabbas was nailed to. Interestingly, the name Barabbas means Bar=Son Abbas-Father or Son of the Father. Tricky isn't it? How convenient Barabbas was nearby. Actually, I don't believe Barabbas was his real name, but I do believe that is the title Pilate or the people gave him so he could stand in for Jesus. The little INRI sign was a mockery since Barabbas was called Son of the Father. In any event, whatever happened that day, Jesus lived.

Speaking of the duration of the crucifixion and resurrection, allegedly whoever was on the cross was put there about 3:00 PM that Friday. Friday being the beginning of the Sabbath, Jewish law didn't allow for crucifixions to take place on the Sabbath, so they had to get him down well before 6:00 PM. He was on the cross less than three hours. Joseph of Arimathea was a wealthy man. I believe he bribed Pilate to let Jesus go. Joseph of Arimathea probably found a physician to tend his wounds. It's no surprise that he wasn't in the tomb. The question is, where was he all day and night Saturday? On Sunday, he was seen very much alive and walking around in the garden. The time I count is approximately 39 hours: 9 hours on Friday, 24 hours on Saturday when we don't know where he was, and about 6 hours on Sunday before sunrise. That adds up to be just a little over 1 1/2 days. But remember! Paul commissioned the gospels to be written, and he told them what to say. Nothing in the OT refers to Jesus. Paul simply did some creative writing that the OT prophecies were fulfilled in the NT. Jesus did not die willingly. Remember when he said "Eloi, eloi lama sabacthani?" "My god, my god, why have you forsaken me?"

 

[okinrus]

First, Jesus was in the grave for three days with the reservation that the days were counted in the Jewish time system which counts days as being night-day instead of day-night along with way the count is actually done, which is counting a partial day as day. The Talmud says that partial day is counted as a fullday and so does the Jewish Encylopedia giving the example of circumcision.

The three nights are bit more difficult, and I've heard many opions. One Catholic professor said that three days and three nights is an Aramaic idiom that can refer to three days and two nights, but I haven't check on this. The quote from Jonah is only quoted by Jesus in one gospel despite the comparision being made in other gospels.

 

[Circe]

Jesus did not die willingly. Remember when he said "Eloi, eloi lama sabacthani?" "My god, my god, why have you forsaken me?"

But in John, he's saying "It is finished".

Many people, as history has shown, died for what they believed in. If Jesus was strong in his convictions and believed he had an important message for all who wanted to listen, It's not impossible that he was also willing to sacrifice his life to achieve that.

 

[okinrus]

I think if Jesus was willing to die of his own accord, then the crucifixion would be seen as suicide. Jesus was willing to give up his life that he enjoyed.

 

[bitterchick]

Following the story as set out in the King James Bible: Jesus knew what His job was, and lived that life all the way up to accepting his own death sentence. When the reality of the "death" part of it finally hit His moral brain, the willingness fled. "Why has thou forsaken me?" He went to His death willingly, but did not die that way.

Now, after the resurrection, everything was swell. But for that instant when death was actually at hand, even knowing His Dad was God and His retirement plan was vested, He still fought against it.

 

[Proud_Muslim]

Even the Bible itself tells us Jesus did not die willingly ( HE NEVER DIED ANYWAY ) but we are here discussing the bible and its account regarding the CRUCI-FICTION !

 

[Medicine*Woman]

Even the Bible itself tells us Jesus did not die willingly ( HE NEVER DIED ANYWAY ) but we are here discussing the bible and its account regarding the CRUCI-FICTION !
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M*W: Ameen!

 

[John Connellan]

Anyone seen the "Passion of the Christ" yet??? Whats it like? Did it surprise anyone? Its not out here yet but I can't wait for it!

 

[Flores]

I think if Jesus was willing to die of his own accord, then the crucifixion would be seen as suicide. Jesus was willing to give up his life that he enjoyed.

How can he enjoy a life when he knew full well that enjoyment, treasures, and kingdoms are not of this world "That he is unwilling to leave" but are in heaven. Does the bible depict Jesus as a hypocrite?

The bible doesn't do Jesus justice...but again, where's the justice in people using Jesus as a scape goat for their sins...If everyone started facing his/her own sins, we would have a just responsible world...we would also have a mercifull compassionate god who can forgive all sin even if they were as big as this universe without shedding a drop of blood.

 

[Flores]

Now, after the resurrection, everything was swell. But for that instant when death was actually at hand, even knowing His Dad was God and His retirement plan was vested, He still fought against it.

Tell that to the baptists, cause he doesn't sound like a god to me. A rightous man, an apostle of god, that's all Jesus was.

 

[Jenyar]

A rightous man, an apostle of god, that's all Jesus was.

That's all Abraham was as well. Yet God made him a father of nations and three religions. Isn't it up to God to decide who someone is?

 

[X-Ide]

Jesus did not die willingly. Remember when he said "Eloi, eloi lama sabacthani?" "My god, my god, why have you forsaken me?"

Jesus stated this because God could not look upon pure sin. When Jesus took on all the sin of the world, God could no longer look upon Him. Jesus realized this, and then questioned why God did this to Him.

To all others: I am a Christian, and I do think that Jesus died willingly, but that he wanted it to be done another way other than the torture followed by crucifixion. However, I believe it had to be done this way because of the spillage of blood. Without the blood spill, Jesus could not feel how we hurt and how much we suffer. God knew this and told Jesus in Gethsemane, and Jesus prayed aloud for it to be some other way. God said "No." and that was that.

X-Ide

 

[Jenyar]

But, if we look at Matthew 26:38 we see that Jesus is contradicting this idea by saying, "My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death." (Matthew 26:38). He himself says that it really his soul that is hesitating and not his body. These are Jesus' own words.

Matt.36
38Then he said to them, "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me."
39Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.

Flores, can't you appreciate that Jesus submitted to God's will rather than his own? Wasn't that what Abraham did? Jesus knew what needed to be done, and he was willing to do it:

Matthew 16:21
From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.

He was scared as any man would be. That doesn't mean he did it against his will. It was a sacrifice, but a willing sacrifice. Abraham's son did not resist the will of his father, even if it wasn't his own will. He submitted to his father as his father submitted to God. As Abraham showed his love to God, God showed his love to us.

 

[Flores]

Matt.36
38Then he said to them, "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me."
39Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.

Flores, can't you appreciate that Jesus submitted to God's will rather than his own? Wasn't that what Abraham did? Jesus knew what needed to be done, and he was willing to do it:

Jenyar, that's exactly what I have been saying all along. Jesus indeed submitted to god as the slave of god, Jesus never claimed to be god but attested that he's the slave and messanger of god. Jesus much like Abraham were loyal servants and sumbitters. They were muslims..i.e. Sumitters to the will of god.

"I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master,
nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him." (John 13:16)

Jesus knew nothing of the will of god nor was he willing to submit to the pagan, jews, and romans. Submitting to the cross is submittion to the will of the romans and jews and that's why Jesus asked god to help him againest his opressors. Jesus cearly used the word "if" to express his doubt in the face of the calamity.

“Saying, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done."” (Luke 22:42)

Crossing Jesus was not doing the will of god, it was doing the will of the evil Jews and pagan romans, and god made another way to Jesus and condemned and confused till eternity all those that are willing to fish in such waters. Are you one of those jenyar that love to dwell on misconceptions and corruptions. Are you one of those jenyar that is living your life for one sole reason, which is to continue to live the lie of those that hated Jesus the most by rationalizing and justifying.

 

[Flores]

Matt.36
Abraham's son did not resist the will of his father, even if it wasn't his own will. He submitted to his father as his father submitted to God. As Abraham showed his love to God, God showed his love to us.

You are wrong...Abraham's son didn't do the will of Abraham, he did the will of god. God was testing the loyality of the father and the son.

 

[Jenyar]

Hebrews 5
During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.

Jesus was heard. But if Jesus had escaped death on the cross, He would not have been doing the will of his father! God saved Him after His death on the cross, which He suffered in submission to God.

You are right in saying that Abraham and his son both submitted to God's will. There was no difference between the will of the father and the will of the son - both were prepared to go through with the sacrifice. But why did God still provide a substitute if the sacrifice wasn't necessary? Because it fulfilled God's will.

 

[Jenyar]

In case the original question has not been aswered to satisfaction:

John 12: 27
"Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? 'Father, save me from this hour'? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!"

 

[Flores]

Hebrews 5
But why did God still provide a substitute if the sacrifice wasn't necessary? Because it fulfilled God's will.

Because our god is not a blood thirsty god. God tests our belive in him, not shift our believe to scape goats and sacrifical lambs. That's the same reason why god saved Jesus from the cross....to strenghten and purify Jesus further by answering his prayer.

The test of Abraham was a test for both Abraham and his son and their believe in god. The role of the sacrifice was not primarily to save the life of Abraham's son, but to strenghten the believe of Abraham and his son in the one god. If Abraham's son ended up dying, he wouldn't have taken the sins of Abraham and Abraham wouldn't have believed in his son instead of god. If Ismail/Isaac died, Abraham would have thought that god is testing his Abraham's faith through calamity. Why didn't the christian behave like Abraham and took Jesus death/lack of as a test from god for their OWN faith in god, instead of shifting their faith to satisfy their confused state. Abraham was confused as well, why would an all loving god order him to kill his son, but he didn't allow his confusion to stray his believe. Learn something from Abraham about how to make your faith corner stone instead of the shifting limbo christianity trinity.

 

[Jenyar]

The difference is that Isaac/Ismail wasn't without sin - they weren't a suitable sacrifice, so you're right: God was testing their faith. And Christianity exists exactly because of that: people who chose to have faith in God even if His will didn't seem to make sense. A goat was a suitable sacrifice during Israel's time, but it was just a placeholder for the real sacrifice that would bring atonement forever.

If the sacrifice of animals were always necessary, why aren't we still doing it? The answer is faith.

Please just take note that we haven't replaced God with Jesus - as I said, that was what Jesus was trying to avoid at all costs. He made clear He wasn't the Father, but He also made it clear that we could call God "Father" just as He did.