Verse 54. And the Sabbath drew on.] Or, The Sabbath was lighting up, , i.e. with the candles which the Jews light just before six in the evening, when the Sabbath commences. The same word is used for the dawning of the day, Mt 28:1. Wakefield. The Jews always lighted up candles on the Sabbath; and it was a solemn precept that, “if a man had not bread to eat, he must beg from door to door to get a little oil to set up his Sabbath light.” The night of the Sabbath drew on, which the Jews were accustomed to call the light. See Lightfoot.

Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible

Greek, , the sabbath shined. What preparation was here intended, whether to the weekly sabbath of the Jews, (that it was most certainly), or to the passover also, which some will have to have been this year put off to that day, because of the concurrence of the weekly and the annual feast, I shall not determine, though the most judicious interpreters skilled in the Hebrew writings, think the passover this year was kept in its season, the night before.

And the sabbath, that is, the seventh day, drew on. The Greek word signifies shined, the propriety of which term hath cost critics some pains to make out, for it rather began to be dark than lightsome, their sabbath beginning after the setting of the sun. Some think the word referred to the evening star, which began to shine. Others, that it referred to a lamp or candle, which they were wont to set up, they call it luminare discriminationis, the light of discrimination, which being set up in their several families, the sabbath was accounted to be begun. Others think it referred to the following day. But there need not much labour in the case, for by the same reason that it is said, the evening and the morning made the sabbath day, the sabbath might be said (that is, to begin) when it began to be dark, not taking the word in a proper, but in a metaphorical sense.

Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole

And that day was the preparation,…. Both for the sabbath, and for the “Chagigah”, or grand festival, which they kept on the fifteenth day of the month, in a very pompous manner; so that the day following was an high day;

and the sabbath drew on, or “shone out”; which is so said, though it was evening, on account of the lights, which were every where, in every house, lighted up at this time, and which they were, by their traditions, obliged to: for so run their canons c;

“three things a man is obliged to say in the midst of his house on the evening of the sabbath, when it is near dark, have ye tithed? have ye mixed? (i.e. the borders of the sabbath, the courts and food) , “light the lamp”.”

This was what could by no means be dispensed with; for so they say d,

“the lighting of the lamp on the sabbath is not in a man’s power, (or at his liberty,) if he pleases he may light, and if not, he may not light.—-But it is what he is obliged to, and every man and woman are bound to have in their houses a lamp lighted up on the sabbath; and though he has nothing to eat, he must beg, and get oil, and light a lamp; for this is included in the delight of the sabbath.—-And he that lights, ought to light within the day, before the setting of the sun.”

So that when these lamps were every where lighting, before the sun was set, and the sabbath properly come, it might be said to draw on, or to be shining forth. Besides, it was usual to call the evening of any day by the name of “light”: thus it is said e,

“rve ebral rwa, on the light (i.e. the night) of the fourteenth (of the month “Nisan”), they search for leaven, &c.”

So that the evangelist might, very agreeably to the way of speaking with the Jews, say, that the sabbath was enlightening, or growing light, though the evening was coming on.

c Misn. Sabbat, c. 2. sect. 7. d Maimon. Hilch. Sabbat, c. 5. sect. 1, 3. e Misn. Pesachim, c. 1. sect. 1.

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

The day of the Preparation ( ). The technical Jewish phrase for the day before the sabbath for which see discussion on Mt 27:62.

Drew on (). Imperfect active, began to dawn or give light. However, it was sundown, not sunrise when the Jewish sabbath (twenty-four-hour day) began. The confusion is to us, not to the Jews or the readers of the Greek New Testament. Luke is not speaking of the twelve-hour day which began with sunrise, but the twenty-four-hour day which began with sunset.

Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament

1) “And that day was the preparation, (kai hemera en paraskeues) “And it was a day of preparation,” for the killing of the Passover lamb, Mar 15:42; Mat 27:62.

2) “And the sabbath drew on.” (kai sabbaton epephosken) “And a sabbath was coming on,” was near at hand, Mar 15:42. It began at sunset.

Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary

(54) That day was the preparation.See Note on Mat. 27:52.

The sabbath drew on.Literally, the Sabbath was dawning. It is a question whether the word is used here of the actual beginning of the Sabbathwhich was, of course, at sunset after the Crucifixionor, as St. Matthew appears to use it (28:1), for the actual dawn. The later Rabbis appear to have spoken of the day dawning in the sense of its beginning at sunset, and so far support the former interpretation. It was possible, however, under the emergencies of the case, that the entombment began before the sunset, and may have been finished during the night, or that, in common speech and usage, the Sabbath, though theoretically beginning on Friday evening at sunset, was not practically recognised till Saturday at sunrise.

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

‘And it was the day of the Preparation, and the sabbath drew on (or ‘shone forth’).’

‘The day of the Preparation.’ This would normally be seen as indicating the Friday of Passover week (or more strictly Thursday sunset to Friday sunset), which was always called ‘preparation day’ (in modern Greek paraskeue refers to Friday). (An alternative would be for it to refer to the day of preparation (paraskeue) for the special sabbath which opened the week of Unleavened Bread). However, what the women wanted to do would not be seen as the ‘necessary’ tasks that had to be done in order to bury the dead, for the dead was already buried, and thus the sabbath had to be fully observed.

‘And the sabbath shone forth.’ Some see this ‘shining forth’ as referring to the lighting of the lamps after sunset, or the shining forth of the evening star. Others relate it to sunrise on the following morning. Either way it had to be observed by no activity other than that required for the feast, as seen in Exo 20:10. And the women probably did not feel like feasting.

Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett

A Day Of Waiting (23:54-56).

The approaching Sabbath, commencing at sunset on the day of the crucifixion, necessarily prevented any further activity, so that the women followers of Jesus, who had watched and had seen where His body was laid, had to wait for the Sabbath to be over. Meanwhile they began to prepare spices and ointments so that they too could pay their last respects to their beloved Master. It was as though the whole of creation was waiting for what would happen next.

This dedicated activity, first of Joseph, and then of the women, draws attention to the fact that all were now agreed that the wonderful time was over. From now on Jesus would be a glorious memory. But that He was dead was unquestionable. All that remained was for them to pay their last respects before they returned home. They had believed that it would be He Who was to redeem Israel. But events had proved them wrong. He had died bravely, even mysteriously, certainly unfairly. But that only laid all the more emphasis on the fact that He was dead, and that they knew where His body lay. And in the lives of most men that would be all that needed to be said, with possibly a postscript to say how His life had resulted in certain after effects. But as we shall see in this last chapter and the book of Acts, for Jesus it was only the beginning. And His story is still going on.

Analysis.

a And it was the day of the Preparation, and the sabbath drew on (Luk 23:54).

b And the women, who had come with him out of Galilee, followed after, and beheld the tomb, and how his body was laid, and they returned, and prepared spices and ointments (Luk 23:55-56 a).

a And on the sabbath they rested according to the commandment (Luk 23:56 b).

Note that in ‘a’ the Sabbath draws near, and in the parallel they rest according to custom. And centrally in ‘b’ they prepare to anoint the body of Jesus.

Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett

54 And that day was the preparation, and the sabbath drew on.

Ver. 54. See Mat 27:61 .

Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

54. ] ‘the day before the sabbath,’ which now , drew on; a natural word, used of the conventional (Jewish) day beginning at sunset. There is no reference to the lighting of candles in the evening or on the sabbath. Lightfoot (in loc.) has shewn that such use of the word was common among the Jews, who called the evening (the beginning) of a day , ‘light.’

Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament

Luk 23:54 . , was about to dawn, illucescebat , Vulgate. The evening is meant, and the word seems inappropriate. Lk. may have used it as if he had been speaking of a natural day (as in Mat 28:1 ) by a kind of inadvertence, or it may have been used with reference to the candles lit in honour of the day, or following the Jewish custom of calling the night light justified by the text, Psa 148:3 , “Praise Him, all ye stars of light ” ( vide Lightfoot, Hor. Heb. ). Or it may be a touch of poetry, likening the rising of the moon to a dawn. So Casaubon, Exercit. anti-Baronianae , p. 416.

Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson

the preparation. See App-156.

the sabbath. The high sabbath. See App-156.

Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics

54.] -the day before the sabbath,-which now , drew on;-a natural word, used of the conventional (Jewish) day beginning at sunset. There is no reference to the lighting of candles in the evening or on the sabbath. Lightfoot (in loc.) has shewn that such use of the word was common among the Jews, who called the evening (the beginning) of a day , light.

Fuente: The Greek Testament

Luk 23:54. , the day was the preparation) The term , is put as an epithet (It was the preparation-day).-, was drawing on [lit. was dawning]) The beginning of the Sabbath was in the evening: and yet the expression used is, was beginning to dawn; for even the night has its own light, especially at the full moon, which was shining at the time.[267]

[267] Rather is naturally used, though by catachresis, where day is the subject, even though counted artificially from evening. So the Jews called the evening , light, denominating even the beginning of the twenty-four hours day, a potiori parte, viz. the light.-E. and T.

Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament

Mat 27:62, Joh 19:14, Joh 19:31, Joh 19:42

Reciprocal: Mar 16:1 – when

Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

4

The preparation is ex. plained at Mat 27:62.

Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary

And that day was the preparation, and the sabbath drew on.

[And the sabbath drew on.] The vulgar reads, the sabbath began to dawn; not ill rendered. Beza reads, and the sabbath succeeded; not properly. One would have thought it would have been more congruously said, it began to be dark towards the sabbath; for the night before the sabbath was coming on: but,

I. The sabbatical candles that were lighted in honour of the sabbath were now set up. “There are three things which it is necessary a man should warn those of his own house of on the evening of the sabbath, when night is coming on: Have you paid your tenths? Have you begun your Erubhick society? Light up your candle.” “Men and women are bound to light up a candle in their houses upon the sabbath day. If a man hath not bread to eat, yet he must beg from door to door to get a little oil to set up his light.” These things being noted, the evangelist may not be improperly understood thus, “The sabbath began to shine with the lights set up”; respect being had to these sabbath candles. But I do not acquiesce here.

II. The evening of the sabbath was called amongst the Jews light. By the light of the fourteenth day they make a search for leaven by the light of a candle. By the light of the fourteenth day; that is, on the evening, or in the night that immediately precedes that day. So Rambam upon the place, “the search for leaven is in the night of the fourteenth day, although the eating of leavened bread is not forbidden before the noon of the fourteenth day. But they instituted this because it is most convenient searching in the night time by candlelight; and at that time also all persons are at home.”

“The woman that miscarries on the light [i.e. The evening] of the eighty-first day, the Shammean school absolves her from any offering: but the school of Hillel doth not.” The Gloss hath it, on the light of the eighty-fist day; i.e. in the night of the eighty-first day. The question disputed there is: “The woman that had been brought to bed of a girl was bound to the purification of eighty days”; when those days were at an end, then she was bound to offer, Lev 12:5-6. Now therefore seeing the oblation was to be brought on the eighty-first day, the question is, What if the woman should happen to miscarry within the very night that begins the eighty-first day, must she the next day offer one or two sacrifices? One for the girl, and one for that of which she hath miscarried? The Shammean school will have but one, but the school of Hillel saith two.

Pesikta speaking concerning a vowed sacrifice, from Lev 7:17; hath this passage: “Perhaps it may be eaten on the light [i.e. The evening] of the third day. The text saith upon the third day; it is eaten until the third day. It is not eaten on the light [i.e. The evening, or the night] of the third day “: for then the third day was actually begun. But now in this phrase they restrain the word especially to the beginning of the night, though sometimes it is taken for the whole night, as in that tradition newly quoted concerning the woman that miscarried: and so the Gloss upon Pesachin. Maimonides discoursing about putting away the leaven which ought to be on the light of the fourteenth day; i.e. On the night that begins the fourteenth day, hath this passage; “By prescription of the scribes they search for, and cast out their leaven in the night; namely, the beginning of that night that ushers in the fourteenth day.” Much to the same sense the Gemarist concerning the light; “How comes twilight to be called light? From thence, because it is written, In the twilight, in the evening, of the day,” Pro 7:9. Rambam thinks it so called by a rule of contraries; for so he in Pesachin; “The night is called light; by the same rule that they call many other things by their contraries.”

But the Gemarists upon the place affirm that the evening is not improperly called light; and prove it from that expression, Psa 148:3; Praise him all ye stars of light. However unsuitably therefore it might sound in the ears of Greeks or Latins, when they hear the evening or the beginning of the night expressed by the light of the sabbath; yet with the Jews it was a way of expression very usual: and they could readily understand the evangelist speaking in their own vulgar way, when he would tell us the night of the sabbath drew on; but expresseth it by the light of the sabbath began to shine.

Fuente: Lightfoot Commentary Gospels

Luk 23:54. And it was the day of the Preparation, i.e., the day before the Sabbath (Mar 15:42)

And the Sabbath drew on. The word used of the natural day, is applied here to the legal day, which began at sunset. The time was probably between five and six in the evening.

Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament

Verse 54

The preparation; that is, for the Sabbath.

Fuente: Abbott’s Illustrated New Testament

23:54 And that day was the preparation, and the sabbath {k} drew on.

(k) Literally, “dawning”, and now beginning, for the light of the former day drew toward the going down of the sun, and that was the day of preparation for the feast, that is, the feast which was to be kept the following day.

Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes