When does a day begin and end? Some have said that society decides when a day begins and ends, so for the U.S. that would be midnight. Others like the Jews hold the Talmud’s position that a day begins and ends at sunset. Some have said that it really does not matter.
When considering the day that God raised Christ, many have wondered on what day the Romans crucified Christ, what day did God raise Him, and at what time of the day was Jesus resurrected. The day of assembly is the day of Christ’s resurrection. However. some infer that Saturday night is the beginning of the first day of the week reasoning that a day begins and ends at sunset. This infers that those assembling and partaking of the Lord’s Supper on Sunday evening are actually meeting on the second day of the week. Luke reported, “And upon the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul discoursed with them, intending to depart on the morrow; and prolonged his speech until midnight” (Acts 20:7 ASV). Which evening is the first day of the week? This study will examine these inferences made upon Scripture.
The following Scriptures present that a day begins at sunrise:
- Matthew 28:1 reveals, “Now late on the sabbath day, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre” (ASV 1901, emp. added).
- Mark 16:1–2 depicts, “And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, bought spices, that they might come and anoint him. And very early on the first day of the week, they come to the tomb when the sun was risen.”
- How could it be “very early” if the day started at sunset or midnight?
Genesis 1 shows that the day consisting of day and night is one that starts at sunrise.
- Genesis 1:5 reports, “And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day” (cf. Gen 1:8, 13, 19, 23, 31).
- The Hebrew word for morning is boqer, which means “sunrise,” “end of night,” “coming of daylight,” and “beginning of day.” Therefore, the order of the day consists of sunset and sunrise as the scripture says, “And there was evening (sunset) and there was morning (sunrise), one day.” Sunrise started a new day. Each day consisted of an evening and then a morning. The complete day does not end at sunset or midnight, but the day started at dawn in the beginning. That is the biblical day from Genesis.
These passages confirm the day starts before sunset when a day goes on through sunset into the evening:
- Matthew 26:17 notes, “Now on the first day of unleavened bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying, ‘Where will you that we make ready for you to eat the Passover?’” (cf. Mark 14:12).
- This is the first day of unleavened bread when Jesus sent Peter and John to prepare for the Passover although Israel roasted the Passover lamb at twilight and ate it in the night. As in the Old Testament, the first day of the Passover Feast included the day and the preceding evening as the disciples came to the guest room on the first day of Passover before twilight — that is before sunset.
- Mark 4:35 depicts, “And on that day, when evening was come, he said unto them, ‘Let us go over unto the other side.'”
- Again, the evening followed daylight of that day.
- John 20:19 tells, “When therefore it was evening [nightfall, Greek: opsios], on that day, the first day of the week, and when thedoorswere shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said unto them, ‘Peace be unto you.'”
- “On that day” is referring to the day when Christ rose on the morning of the first day of the week and now it is the same day called “evening.” According to this passage, the first day of the week was the day and then the night.
Did not Mary Magdalene come unto Jesus’s tomb on the first day of the week when it was dark according to John 20:1?
- John 20:1 states, “Now on the first day of the week comes Mary Magdalene early, while it was yet dark, unto the tomb, and sees the stone taken away from the tomb.”
- If it was dark without the sun raised, then John 20:1 would disprove or present another understanding that a day starts on another time other than sunrise in contradiction to the scriptures above. However, John 20:19 states, “When therefore it was evening, on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said unto them, ‘Peace be unto you.'” How could it be evening on the first day of the week, the very day that Jesus rose, if a day started at sunset and the day would have changed? Furthermore, Luke 24:1 depicted that the women came at early dawn, so though it was dark though it was not night. In mountainous areas, the sun can dawn and there is still darkness in the vales where the elevations block the sun’s light in some places. This is especially true where people have carved a tomb from rock. Darkness after dawn is evidently possible, and reasonable to those of who go out early.
Did not all Jews at this time believe that day was from sunset to sunset?
- No. The idea that a day was sunset to sunset came from man’s tradition and thinking based upon Leviticus 23:32 where the Day of Atonement was held on the tenth day of the seventh month, but the Sabbath began on the ninth because the Sabbath was kept on this occasion from evening unto evening. Even in this passage from Leviticus, one can easily notice the reference to two different days, the ninth day and the tenth day of the month. Leviticus 23:32 speaks of the sunset of the ninth day being the time to start the Sabbath for the tenth day. Evidently, a day did not start at sunset and this was a special occasion of simply keeping the high sabbath for the Day of Atonement. The regular Mosaic day began with the rise of day through the setting of the evening (Gen 1: Exod 12:18; 18:13: Lev 6:20).
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The Breath of God 
Scott, I wish you would seriously consider your own twisted lies as follows:
May 29, 2012 at 2:37 pm, you yourself stated, “I find a difference between “breaking bread” and “the breaking of bread”. The breaking of bread is the Lord’s Supper in 1 Corinthians 10:16 and 11:17-34, which is mentioned in Acts 2:42 and 20:7 while common meals of “breaking bread” are found in Acts 2:47 and 20:11.”
Now, you either just told a bold-face twisted lie, or need to get your studies straight because Acts 20:7 is a common meal according your words. May 30, 2012 at 9:47 am, you answered Minister Joseph with Acts 20:7 as a day that disciples met for worship, so now what do you have to say?
Where’s the contradiction? I said on one occasion that Acts 20:7 is the Lord’s Supper and on another occasion I said that Acts 20:7 presents the Lord’s Supper. I never said that Acts 20:7 is common meal. That is what you just said. I find that the Lord’s Supper is an act of worship to God (1 Cor. 11:26, cf. Heb. 13:16).
You are confused and seriously mistaken, but that is okay.
I cannot make you add it up, but I’ll try. According to you, “breaking bread” = common meal, & “the breaking of bread” = The Lord’s Supper. So, Acts 20:7 cannot be the Lord’s Supper because it does not say “the ——- of —–“.
Also, Scott. The Master’s supper that is referred to in 1 Corin. 11:20 is the supper that always takes place the night before Passover once every year and not on the first day of the week every week. This is how it took place during the days of the Messiah’s death, burial, and resurrection. So, once again, we must be careful of using certain Scriptures to “fit” a particular teaching without carefully examining those Scriptures. And in reference to the Messiah rising from the tomb on the seventh day and not the first, here’s proof:
Mar 16:2,3 And very early on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb AT THE RISING OF THE SUN. And they said among themselves, “Who shall roll away the stone from the entrance of the tomb for us?”
Joh 20:1 And on the first day of the week Miryam from Maḡdala came early to the tomb, WHILE IT WAS STILL DARK, and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb.
So, you see Scott, He was gone before the first day of the week began…
My article above answers the darkness being that Christ clearly rose on the first day of the week. I don’t see how you can reject Luke 24.
The Lord’s Supper was partaken in the Assembly in 1 Cor. 11. You see this? How does one forsake the Assembly if the meal and meeting is once a year? Yet, these Christians met regularly for teaching in the Assembly, singing, prayer, and collection on the first day of the week just as 1 Cor. 4:17, 7:17, 14:9, 14:15, and 16:1-2 show.
Please, prayerfully reconsider your position.
Well, for one, I don’t believe in denominationalism or any religious sect that was started by a man/men, nor do I feel as though I need to “repent in private”, Scott. Repentance is for those who willingly trangress the law and will of The Father. And in regards to your Scriptural quotes, none of these talk about a changing of the fourth commandment which you have to show. They may be what your denomination uses to justify the changes, but it is not pointing to an abrogance to the Words which were spoken and written by The Father. And also, for the record, The Messiah did not “add to the commandments”. He may have exposed and taught the spiritual INTENT of the principles of The Creator but He did not add to them. This is common misconception among those who study the Word. To say that is to go against the very words of The Messiah Himself. We are strictly commanded not to add to or take away from the Word and yet SOOO MANY man-made religions are doing just that… Now, back to the subject at hand – the Sabbath law. What are your thoughts about The Messiah keeping the Sabbath all of His life?
Scott, the Law of God contained 10 Commandments, but the Law of God did not contain the Law of Moses. Jesus was very specific in Luke 24:27, 44-46 in narrowing the exact “shadows” He fulfilled.
Also, Acts 20:7 does not matter what day they broke bread, or took communion, because when Jesus ate the last supper, it was not the first day of the week. Taking Communion, breaking bread, the breaking of bread, have nothing to do with which day is the Lord’s Day. (Link to my blog is at the bottom.) Paul continued a speech from the 7th day Sabbath, & only did so because he was leaving.
Also, your Heb 7 comment about the priesthood & law being changed actually agrees with my point about the Law of Sin & Death. Salvation is more about who than what. It is not about changing what is written, but reflecting the faith “of “Jesus….& by the Spirit’s power.
For research on Sabbaths – http://goozbump.blogspot.com/2010/02/sabbath_09.html
For Law vs Grace – http://goozbump.blogspot.com/2012/04/under-grace-vs-law.html
Alden, what denominational hierarchy teaches your beliefs?
Why would Jesus establish the Lord’s Supper on the day of His resurrection when He had not yet been resurrected yet? Or are you rejecting the Apostles?
Yet in all of this, I have yet to find a sabbath-keeper who partakes of the Lord’s Supper at every time they meet in the Assembly (1 Cor. 20, 33). This is one of the primary purposes for the Assembly, and yet it is neglected.
What is “the first day of the week”? It is “when the disciples assembled to break bread” (Acts 20:7). When was Jesus in the midst of the congregations? “[O]n the Lord’s Day… and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man… and the seven lampstands which you saw are the seven congregations” (Rev. 1:10, 13, 20).
That is all. Thank you for the discussion. I wish you gave me something to seriously consider.
It appears that the logic you use to interpret “The Lord’s Day” hinges on two things: the fact that they merely ate together on the first day of the week and that The Messiah rose from the tomb on this day. However, as stated in previous posts, Scripture actually shows that The Messiah DID NOT rise from the tomb on the first day of the week. Scriptures teaches that He rose on the night of the Sabbath and not on “early one Sunday morning”. So, when all of the smoke clears, you’re basically basing Sunday observance on only one fact, that the believers ate together. But yet when one does a little research, they will find that this wasn’t anything special being that they met and ate together quite often and not just on the first day of the week. I understand very well the Scriptures you use to justify Sabbath annulment, but at some point, we as ministers should “prove all things” as The Scriptures command us to. We should not read and post ambiguous Scripture which could be interpreted in so many ways. But we should look at the EVIDENCE the book presents and make a decision, whether to serve The Master and His truth, or hold on to man-made traditions (and we know where that can take us…). I apologize if I offend, but the fact are these:
1. The Messiah kept the seventh-day Sabbath (need I say more?…)
2. Paul and the other apostles kept the Sabbath AFTER the resurrection of The Messiah
3. NO WHERE in Scripture can we find anyone explicitly teaching some sort of a change of the Sabbath commandment in anyway.
4. The ONLY clear, explicit reference to the first day of the week is when they came together to eat and when Paul asks the assembly in Corinth to place their monies aside before he comes.
So the question is this, Scott, would not The Father in His infinite wisdom show us a little more evidence in the renewed writings if He was planning on altering one of His Ten Commandments that He wrote in stone Himself? I’ve read the Scriptures back and forth, over and over, and yet I don’t see ANY evidence of an altering of one of the Ten Words which, might I add, came DIRECTLY from The Father’s mouth… And are we to try and alter that?? C’mon brother minister, lets reason together and think about this…
Among the number of passages for the Assembly on the 1st day of the week, which you purposefully, presumptuously, and intentionally overlook. Let God judge. Yet, you cannot show one time when Christians gathered into the Assembly to partake of the Lord’s Supper.
“[T]oday is the third day since these things happened. Yes, and certain women of our company, who arrived at the tomb early, astonished us. When they did not find His body, they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said He was alive” (Luke 24:21-23).
“Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they, and certain other women with them, came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared” (Luke 24:1).
“Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, ‘Peace be with you.'”, (John 20:19).
“Now when He rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons” (Mark 16:9).
“[A]t Troas, where we stayed seven days. Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread”, (Acts 20:6b-7a).
“The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?“, (1 Cor. 10:16).
“Therefore, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another” (1 Cor. 11:33).
“Therefore when you come together in one place, it is not to eat the Lord’s Supper” (1 Cor. 11:20).
When? “On the first day of the week,…” (1 Cor. 16:2).
The Law is fulfilled in Christ (Matt. 5). Why did Jesus add to the commandments? Why is the ceremonial law symbolic (i.e. Hebrews)? Circumcision is no more (Gal. 5:1-4).
What denominational hierarchy teaches what you propose?
Listen you can repent in private. Just repent. May God bless you in this. The angels will rejoice.
May God bless those who read to see what they have not seen before.
“For the priesthood being changed, of necessity there is also a change of the law. […] For on the one hand there is an annulling of the former commandment because of its weakness and unprofitableness, for the law made nothing perfect; on the other hand, there is the bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God” (Heb. 7:12).
“In that He says, ‘A new covenant,’ He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away. Then indeed, even the first covenant had ordinances of divine service and the earthly sanctuary. For a tabernacle was prepared: the first part, in which was the lampstand, the table, and the showbread, which is called the sanctuary; and behind the second veil, the part of the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of All, which had the golden censer and the ark of the covenant overlaid on all sides with gold, in which were the golden pot that had the manna, Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tablets of the covenant; and above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat. Of these things we cannot now speak in detail. […] It was symbolic for the present time in which both gifts and sacrifices are offered which cannot make him who performed the service perfect in regard to the conscience — concerned only with foods and drinks, various washings, and fleshly ordinances imposed until the time of reformation” (Heb. 8:12-9:5, 9-10).
“And for this reason He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance” (Heb. 9:15).
“Therefore it was necessary that the copies of the things in the heavens should be purified with these, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us; not that He should offer Himself often, as the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood of another” (Heb. 9:23-25).
“For He has spoken in a certain place of the seventh day in this way: ‘And God rested on the seventh day from all His works’; […] There remains therefore a sabbath for the people of God” (Heb. 4:4, 9).
Could you also provide Scripture that shows they met on the first day of the week for worship?
1 Cor. 16:1-2 (ch. 11, 14), Acts 2, 20:7
Do you have Scriptural evidence to support the first day of the week being “The Lord’s Day”? The Lord’s Day could very well be The Sabbath Day being that this is the ONLY day in the Scriptures that he speaks of with ownership:
Isaiah 58:13
“If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on MY holy day…”
Exodus 31:13
“…Verily MY sabbaths you shall keep…”
No other day does He speak about in terms of a special ownership but the seventh day Sabbath. And actually, the Scriptures point to the fact that The Messiah resurrected on the Sabbath, i.e., the seventh day of the week and not on the first day of the week. Other than meeting and eating on the first day, there is really nothing else in Scripture that really speaks of this day as a fulfillment of the seventh-day Sabbath. And it is logical to conclude that the silence of the New Testament in regards to a so called “new sabbath” speaks volumes. If The Messiah’s work meant a change in the Sabbath command that is part of the Ten Commandments, you would probably see teaching after teaching, epistle after epistle, and chapter after chapter of doctrine explaining this change simply because it is a very important teaching. But the facts are that you dont see it. The Messiah, Paul, and the other apostles are completely silent on the idea that there is “new” or “fulfilled” Sabbath. In fact, according to Isaiah 66:23, we will observe the Sabbath in the new kingdom so again, I find it difficult to think that the Sabbath is fulfilled (annulled) when Scripture clearly teaches that it will be celebrated in heaven…
My scriptures are here: “When is the Lord’s Day?”
Sabbath also refers to week as in Isaiah 66:23 and, or you can understand that as you said celebrated in heaven as Hebrews 4:1-10 teaches.
Well, as we read verse 6 in Acts 20, we find that Paul and his company “sailed from Philippi after the Days of Unleavened Bread”. This would stand to reason that the kept this feast or else he wouldn’t have even mentioned it. In addition, if they kept the feast, that would mean that they kept the Sabbaths of the feast which occured on the first and seventh days of the feast. I find it difficult to think that they kept the Sabbaths of the feasts and ignored or changed the weekly Sabbath. Moving along in verse 7, we read that they came together to break bread. With a little reading throughout the Scriptures, we can find that this only means that they came together to eat a meal. This was a common practice among the Israelites during The Messiah’s day. They would often assemble as one large family and eat and enjoy each other’s company. This is verified in Luke 24:29-35 where The Messiah is compelled to come into the house of one of His taught ones and they sat down to begin to eat a meal together but The Messiah left before that could happen. Also, in Acts 2:42 & 46 we read again where they came together to “break break”. So, to use Acts 20:6 & 7 to justify the annulment of one of the Ten Commandments is very, very questionable.
It is also interesting to point out that as we continue to read in Acts 20, we find in verse 16 that Paul also kept the feast following The Feast of Unleavened Bread which is The Festival of Weeks (or Pentecost). Therefore, if we can find evidence that they kept The Feast of Unleavened Bread and The Festival of Weeks, then that would stand to reason that they kept The Feast of Trumpets, The Day of Atonement, and The Feast of Tabernacles. All of which are Sabbaths. Also, Scott, we find in Acts 18:4 that both Israelites and non-Israelites kept the weekly Sabbath after the death, burial, and resurrection of The Messiah. So again, I find it hard to think that they kept the feast of the Torah and yet change the weekly Sabbath commandment. By the way, could you guys provide any Scriptural evidence which suggests the change in solemnity from the seventh day of the week to the first day of the week? Is there any Scripture that states the Sabbath has been changed from one day (the seventh day of the week) to another day (Sunday)?
Lionel,
Thank you very much for your reply. I still differ in interpretation. No, I do not believe in the change of solemnity of the 7th to the 1st. I recognize that Saturday is the sabbath of the Law of Moses, and I recognize that our eternal rest is the sabbath of the fulfillment of the Law of Christ. I often see bumper-stickers that say something like, “The Sabbath is the 7th Day” to which I and my brethren reply, “We agree.” Yet, we find the Christian sabbath to be our eternal rest (Heb. 4:1-10). We see the 1st day of the week as the Lord’s Day when Jesus was resurrected, when His Church was started, when Jesus met with His disciples, when Christians met in the Assembly for the Lord’s Supper and worship, and when churches collected their money.
Thank you again for your kind reply.
First – Phil, willful sin eventually becomes blasphemy of the Holy Spirit, eventually, because blasphemy of the Spirit is continuous refusal to accept what the fact that God want you (us) to have the faith OF Jesus.
Scott, ceremonial laws, particularly those sabbaths foreshadowed the sacrifice of Jesus. Careful research of Leviticus 23 or my blog titled “Sabbath” will clarify about the difference between the 7th day Sabbath & other sabbath days. The 7th day is not a ceremonial sabbath, it is just as much a commandment as Honoring Your Parents.
Breaking bread was done daily according to Acts 2:46. Meaning, it is un-Biblical to connect breaking bread with only the 1st day of the week, when it was done everyday.
Alden,
Thank you for your reply. I find a difference between “breaking bread” and “the breaking of bread”. The breaking of bread is the Lord’s Supper in 1 Corinthians 10:16 and 11:17-34, which is mentioned in Acts 2:42 and 20:7 while common meals of “breaking bread” are found in Acts 2:47 and 20:11.
Alden, I agree that keeping the Sabbath is just as much a commandment as honoring father and mother, but I do find the sabbath being ceremonial of the eternal rest in Heb. 4. By noting these following passages you can see why I differ, Hebrews 4:4 says, “For He has spoken in a certain place of the seventh day in this way: ‘And God rested on the seventh day from all His works’;” and 4:9-10, “Therefore, there remains the Sabbath for the people of God. For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His.”
I will diligently read your article with all honesty if you will post a link here. Thank you.