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himself indirectly confirms this view when he writes in Romans 1:4 that Jesus was "designated
Son of God in power...BY HIS RESURRECTION FROM THE DEAD."

As a result of all the above considerations we have to conclude that the sign of Jonah given
by Christ as a proof of His Messiahship consisted PRIMARILY in the event of His future resurrec-
tion -- NOT an exact 72-hour entombment. "Christ's Resurrection was the unmistakable vindication
of His Messiahship, of which the emergence of Jonah from what was a temporary living burial
was in some sense a foreshadowing" (ibid.).

The Road to Emmaus

William F. Dankenbring, in his article How Long Was Jesus Christ in the Grave, goes to
great lengths to show that the verses in Luke 24, pertaining to the two disciples walking to Em-
maus, are in error and should not be taken at face value.

Writes Dankenbring --

One verse in Luke's gospel seems to be a stumbling block for many people. It is verse 21
of chapter 24, where two disciples are journeying to Emmaus on the first day of the week
-- Sunday -- a distance of about ten miles from Jerusalem. During their journey, Jesus
joins them, but they do not recognize Him. He inquires of them what they are talking
about between themselves, and they answer Him:

"Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word before
God, and all the people: And how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be con-
demned to death, and have crucified him. But we trusted that it had been he which should
have redeemed Israel: AND BESIDES ALL THIS, TODAY IS THE THIRD DAY
SINCE THESE THINGS WERE DONE" (Luke 24:19-21)."

Some point out that this was Sunday -- probably the afternoon. They ask, would this not
have been "the third" since Friday? That is, would this Scripture not place the crucifixion
on Friday, after all? Sunday is indeed "three days" from Friday, counting inclusively --
that is, Friday as day "one," Saturday as day "two," and Sunday as day "three."

Now first of all -- let's get this concept of weekly days, as we know them today, out of our
minds. The Bible DOES NOT say the two disciples were walking the road to Emmaus on a Sun-
day -- it plainly says "that same day" (Luke 24:13). What "same day"? The day that the disciples
found the empty tomb. Luke 24:1 clearly says it was the "first day of the week." We must remem-
ber that the Jews of Christ's day NEVER used the pagan Greco/Roman names for the days of the
week that we do. The Jews NUMBERED THEIR DAYS -- "first day of the week," "second day of
the week," etc. Commentators have ASSUMED that "the first day of the week" was the same as
Sunday in our time, but this simply is not true.

Records Hutton Webster in his erudite work Rest Days: A Study in Early Law and Mo-
rality, "An old and still common theory derives the Sabbath institution from the worship of Saturn,
after which planet the first day of the astrological week received its designation. The theory in

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