Journal: Bibliotheca Sacra
Volume: BSAC 96:381 (Jan 1939)
Article: A Week in the Life of Christ
Author: Graham Gilmer

BSac 96:381 (Jan 39) p. 42

A Week in the Life of Christ

Graham Gilmer

When the Apostle John first introduces us to the earthly sojourn of Christ he has a very striking way of marking off the time. Beginning with John 1:19 we have the testimony which John the Baptist made to a delegation from Jerusalem. We are not told which day of the week this was. We will name it “day one.” In the 29th verse of the same chapter we are introduced to what happened on the next day, that is “day two.” The 35th verse tells us what happened on the following day, “day three.” The 43rd verse introduces us to the happenings of “day four.” Then in 2:1 he brings us to the marriage in Cana of Galilee on the third day, evidently the third from the last day mentioned. That is, two days are omitted. We last saw our Savior in Bethany on the eastern side of the Jordan. Nothing is said about what happened on “day five” and “day six.” We have now come to “day seven” and find Him rejoicing with a wedding party in Cana of Galilee. That is, we find here a week marked off very carefully at the beginning of the ministry of our Savior.

Now by a process of elimination let us seek to find when this week began and ended. Let us remember that the Jewish law was still in force. He had not yet offered Himself to the nation and been rejected. He would not take Saturday, which was the Sabbath, as a day of journeying. Let us remember that it would take more than two days, perhaps three, to go from Bethany, which is supposed to have been across the Jordan from Jericho, to Cana. Neither would the Jerusalem delegation spoken of in 1:19 take that as a day of interviewing or journeying. Neither would a marriage feast be held in Cana of Galilee on that day. Now with these facts

BSac 96:381 (Jan 39) p. 43

in mind let us make every possible chart of this week and seek to locate its beginning.