The Truth about Easter and when Jesus really rose... Jesus rose from the dead on the Sabbath around 3pm, not on Sunday. His tomb was found empty early on Sunday before the sun even rose, while it was still dark (John 20:1) which would be Saturday night in modern terms as near sunrise would not be early, it would be half way through Sunday. Scripture tells us that He died around 3pm (Mark 15:34), and given that He was dead three full 24 hour days (Matthew 12:40) that means He had to have risen around the same time or he would have been dead longer than three days and three nights, it would have been three days and four nights which is not what Scripture says. Scripture also states that He rose on the third day (1 Corinthians 15:4), so it had to have been Saturday as Sunday would have been the forth day. So then, if His tomb was empty already while it was still dark on Sunday, long before sunrise, but early and thus, just after sunset Saturday, that means He rose on Saturday, the real Sabbath shortly after 3pm. That also means He didn't die on Friday, but that He died on Wednesday, which was the preparation day before the high-day Sabbath (John 19:31) not the weekly Sabbath. The high-day Sabbath came up on a Thursday that year in 30AD (30AD was the only year that the feast of unleavened bread started on a Thursday, so that had to be the year He died on). Easter is the name of a Roman goddess of sex and fertility, that's where the symbols like rabbits come from and has nothing at all to do with Jesus. It is a pagan celebration which God says that He hates with all His being (Isaiah 1:14-15, Amos 5:21 & 23). ---- A more detailed analysis of when Jesus died and was raised according to scriptures. I wanted to show the full scriptures to really nail this down as He did not die on a Friday and He was not risen on a Sunday. Easter itself is the name of a Roman goddess of sex and fertility which is where all the symbols come from. But that's another topic... Let me take this one verse at a time... His tomb was found empty WHILE IT WAS STILL DARK... he didn't rise then, he was ALREADY out of it BEFORE the sun even rose. Also note that it was EARLY on the first day, WHILE IT WAS STILL DARK. The days, according to the Bible, start at sunset, so Sunday starts at sunset Saturday. So Early Sunday, while it was still dark would have to be what we would call Saturday night, as Sunday morning wouldn't be early, it would be half way through Sunday. This makes sense as Jesus died sometime around 3pm and was dead for three full days, so he had to have risen after that same time, or betweem 3pm and sunset, so his tomb was empty by sunset and Mary found it that way after dark. She no doubt waited until the Sabbath ended as she wouldn't want to do work (moving the stone) on the Sabbath... John 20:1 (NIV) Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. Jesus died around 3pm (9th hour of the day, and the daylight hours start around 6am)... Mark 15:34 (NIV) And at three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”). Jesus remained dead for three days and three nights (not three days and four nights) which means He HAD to have risen around the same hour... Matthew 12:40 (NIV) For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. Scripture also states that He rose on the third day, so it had to have been on Saturday as Sunday would have been the forth day... 1 Corinthians 15:4 (NIV) that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures So given the fact that His tomb was empty before sunrise on Sunday, means He had to have risen around 3pm on Saturday before sunset to still be on the third day. And given the fact that he was dead for exactly 3 full days, means He had to have died around 3pm on a Wednesday before a holy day Sabbath, also called a "special Sabbath" or a "high day Sabbath". Not the weekly Sabbath. John 19:31 (NKJV) Therefore, because it was the Preparation Day, that the bodies should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. As an interesting side note, this all helps us determine which year Jesus died as only one year had the Passover on a Wednesday, which would have been 30AD.