Halachic or Relative Hour

We have fixed hours with sixty minutes in each hour. The Hebrews used relative hour (aka Halachic), meaning they assigned twelve hours to daytime and nighttime throughout the year, regardless of the seasons with longer or shorter sunlight. On a winter solstice day in Israel, for example, the daylight is 4 hours and 9 minutes shorter than a summer solstice day. As such, an “hour” in winter will be only 40 minutes. Further, the Hebrews started counting the hours with the sunrise. The first hour in winter will be the first 40 minutes; the second hour will be the next 40 minutes, etc. Scholars date Jesus’s crucifixion to April, the beginning of the spring, with roughly 50 minutes to an hour. Combining these, the third hour would have been between 8:30–9:30 am, depending on when the sun arose in Israel on that day and how many minutes the rabbis assigned to an hour.

Jesus was captured at nighttime, went through a trial at Caiaphas’s house before a cock crowed, was tried by Pilate, beaten, and was crucified by 9:30 am (Mark 15:25). What a night! As he hung on the cross, an epitaph of charge (aitia) was written and posted above him:

“The king of the Hebrews” (15:26)

Over every crucified person was an epitaph of charge (aitia) declaring why s/he was crucified. Jesus’s crime: being the king of the Hebrews. When Caiaphas asked him, “Are you the Christ, the son of the Blessed?” (14:61), Jesus answered that he was, and he would judge Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin. That declaration, a blasphemy in Caiaphas’s mind, was his crime, deserving death (14:64).

Was Jesus lying, claiming to be the king of the Hebrews? The high priest Caiaphas, Sanhedrin, scribes, Pharisees, Sadducees, and the people thought he was. They thought he was blaspheming God and crucified him in between two insurrectionists – one on the right and one on the left (15:27). Further, they mocked him, saying,

“Deliver (sozo) yourself by coming down from the cross.” (15:30)

“He delivered (sozo) others, but he can’t deliver (sozo) himself.” (15:31)

“Christ, the king of Israel, come down now from the cross (stauros), so we may see and believe (pisteuo).” (15:32)

Even the insurrectionists on the cross joined in on this mockery.

Ironically, by staying on that cross, Jesus delivered (sozo) those who believed (pisteuo), not by coming down from the cross. The final deliverance he offered humanity was the resurrection, and he couldn’t have provided that until he had died and resurrected. Only then could he be the author of resurrection, a victor over death that the first Adam brought to humanity.

The first Adam ate the forbidden fruit from a living tree (xulos), bringing humanity death. The second Adam died on a dead tree (stauros) to bring life to humanity. Paul summarized this exchange: “As in one man’s trespass, condemnation [death] came to all people, one man’s justice [resurrection] brings life unto righteousness for all people” (Rom 5:18).

Now that he resurrected, we must thank the Lord for staying on that cross and not coming down because he brought resurrection and life to us through his death. Sure, we’ll die, but we’ll live again.