Biblical Patterns: the Third Day
GodWords Newsletter #79
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The Bible is full of patterns. Some are meaningful, while others are nothing more than coincidental repetition. Examples:
Jesus referred to Jonah being in the fish for three days and nights as the pattern for His own death and resurrection
A lot of guys were named Simon.
See? Some patterns have no special meaning, but others may give us great insights into who God is and how He works. I love finding the patterns in the Bible.
The Third Day
With all due respect to Mac Powell and the boys, this pattern is not about 90’s Christian rock bands. I won’t list all 47 times “the third day” appears in the Bible… only those that might have some level of symbolic meaning. If one catches your eye, read all about it.
Abraham traveled to the land of Moriah to sacrifice his son Isaac to God. On the third day, he saw the place. - Genesis 22
Shechem had a crush on Jacob’s daughter Dinah, and he abducted her and raped her. Jacob and his sons were angry, but Shechem wanted to make peace and marry Dinah. Her family agreed, but it was a trick. They wouldn’t agree unless all the men of Shechem were circumcised. On the third day after their circumcisions, Dinah’s brothers Simeon and Levi took their swords and killed every last one of them. - Genesis 34
Pharaoh’s baker and cupbearer offended him, and were put in jail with Joseph. They both had dreams, which Joseph interpreted: the cupbearer would be restored and the baker would be killed. This happened just as Joseph said, on Pharaoh’s birthday… the third day. - Genesis 40
There was a famine in the land, as Joseph had foretold. His brothers - who had sold him into slavery - traveled to Egypt to get food. Joseph put them in prison. On the third day, he released them to bring food to their families. - Genesis 42
Three months after God brought them out of Egypt, the Israelites agreed to make a covenant with Yahweh. Moses told the people to spend two days preparing, as God would come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people on the third day. - Exodus 19
Touching a dead body, something that happened whenever someone died, made an Israelite ritually unclean. They were to purify themselves with water - literally a baptism - on the third day and on the seventh day… or be cut off from the people of Israel. - Numbers 19
David returned home after defeating the Amalekites, and on the third day back he learned that Saul had been killed and that he would finally be the king. - 2 Samuel 1
King Hezekiah was very sick, and Isaiah gave the word of the Lord: put your house in order, for you will not live. Hezekiah wept and prayed, telling God that he had been obedient. Again God spoke to Isaiah, who told the king to go to the house of Yahweh on the third day… and God gave him 15 more years of life. - 2 Kings 20
Mordecai warned Esther: being in the king’s court would not protect her if Haman succeeded in killing all of the Jews. They all fasted… and on the third day, Esther risked her life by entering the king’s court with a plan to save her people. - Esther 5
God withdrew from Israel because of their disobedience and idolatry. Hosea chastised them with these words: “Come, let us return to Yahweh. For He has torn us, but He will heal us; He has struck us, but He will bandage us. He will make us alive after two days; He will raise us up on the third day, That we may live before Him.” - Hosea 6
Some Pharisees warned Jesus that Herod wanted to kill Him. He replied, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish.’” - Luke 13
Jesus explained His future to His disciples: that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day. - Matthew 16
The apostle Paul, reminding the church in Corinth about the gospel, wrote these words:
Now I make known to you, brothers, the gospel which I proclaimed as good news to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I proclaimed to you as good news, unless you believed for nothing. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep. After that, He appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also. - 1 Corinthians 15:1-8
I love you all.
❤️
Little Bugs That Bite the Flock
One of the primary features of mature, obedient Christians is that we are able to tell the difference between things that should divide us - primary - and things that should not - secondary. Let’s make sure we unite on the primary things!
A Christian Critique of Communism
I don’t often link to political things, but Michael Bird points to why Christians should be skeptical of the political aims of communism.
The Central Issue In How We Treat Others
My Substack friend Vance Gatlin expresses very well the clear, obvious New Testament call for believers.
Old Testament Sacrifices
While Christians don’t live by the old covenant - the law given to Moses for the ancient Israelites - there’s a lot we can learn from studying it. The first in a series.
What is the Word of Faith Movement?
The Word of Faith movement is a pseudo-Christian cult. While there is no central authority in the Word of Faith movement, and no official set of beliefs, adherents share a set of basic unbiblical beliefs about God, the nature of the universe, the nature of humanity, and more. At the bottom of this article is a list of Word of Faith teachers. Based on their stated beliefs, each should be considered a false teacher.
Preach the gospel to yourself every day.
– Jerry Bridges
You want to be forgiven
Without taking the blame
You want to eat forbidden fruit
Without leaving a stain
You want the glory
But you don't want the shame
Nobody Wants to Die: John Fischer
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All due respect to Mac Powell lol. Great thoughts here .