Preparation
The Day of Preparation in the Gospels
The most important biblical use of "Preparation" is as a technical term for the day before the Sabbath, the day when Jewish families prepared food, completed work, and made all necessary arrangements before the Sabbath rest began at sunset on Friday. All four Gospels mention the Preparation in connection with the crucifixion of Jesus.
Mark 15:42 explicitly defines the term: "It was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath)." Matthew 27:62 refers to "the next day, the one after Preparation Day," when the chief priests and Pharisees went to Pilate to request a guard for the tomb. Luke 23:54 notes that it was Preparation Day and the Sabbath was about to begin. The urgency to remove Jesus' body from the cross and place it in a tomb before sunset was directly related to the approaching Sabbath rest.
The Preparation and the Passover
John's Gospel adds a layer of complexity by referring to "the day of Preparation of the Passover" (John 19:14). This has generated significant scholarly discussion about whether Jesus was crucified on the day the Passover lambs were slain or the day after the Passover meal.
The Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) present the Last Supper as a Passover meal, placing the crucifixion on the day after Passover began. John's Gospel, however, appears to place the crucifixion on the day of Preparation for the Passover itself, meaning Jesus died at the same time the Passover lambs were being sacrificed in the temple.
John 19:31 notes that "the day of that Sabbath was a high day," suggesting the regular weekly Sabbath coincided with the Passover festival Sabbath that year. One common resolution is that John 19:14 means "the Friday of Passover week" rather than "the day of preparation for the Passover feast," though this remains debated.
Preparation in the Old Testament
Outside the Gospel narratives, the word "preparation" appears in more general senses in the Old Testament. In 1 Chronicles 22:5, David made extensive preparations for the temple his son Solomon would build, gathering materials in abundance because Solomon was "young and inexperienced." Nahum 2:3 uses the term in connection with military readiness.
The concept of preparation, even when the specific word is not used, runs throughout the Old Testament. Noah prepared the ark (Genesis 6:14-22), Moses prepared the people at Sinai (Exodus 19:10-15), and the Israelites prepared to cross the Jordan (Joshua 1:10-11).
Spiritual Preparation in the New Testament
Paul uses preparation language in Ephesians 6:15, where he describes the Christian's spiritual armor as including feet "fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace." The word translated "readiness" or "preparation" suggests the alertness and willingness that the gospel produces in believers.
Jesus Himself spoke of preparation in the parable of the wise and foolish virgins (Matthew 25:1-13), where readiness for the bridegroom's arrival was the distinguishing mark between the two groups. The broader New Testament theme of watchfulness and readiness for Christ's return (1 Thessalonians 5:1-6) extends the concept of preparation into an eschatological framework.
Biblical Context
The term 'Preparation' appears most prominently in the four Gospel accounts of the crucifixion (Matthew 27:62; Mark 15:42; Luke 23:54; John 19:14, 31, 42), where it denotes the day before the Sabbath. It also appears in 1 Chronicles 22:5 for David's temple preparations and in Ephesians 6:15 for spiritual readiness. The concept of preparation permeates Scripture from Noah's ark-building to the parables of Jesus about readiness for the Kingdom.
Theological Significance
The Preparation Day of the crucifixion carries profound theological weight. If John's chronology places Jesus' death at the hour the Passover lambs were slain, this powerfully reinforces His identity as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). The urgency of burial before the Sabbath also underscores the reality of Jesus' death and the significance of the third-day resurrection. More broadly, the biblical theme of preparation teaches that God's saving acts unfold according to His deliberate plan and timing.
Historical Background
The Jewish Preparation Day was a well-established institution by the first century AD. The Jewish historian Josephus mentions it, and it appears in early Christian writings such as the Didache and the Martyrdom of Polycarp, where it eventually became a regular name for Friday in each week. Archaeological evidence from first-century Jerusalem confirms the elaborate preparations required for Sabbath observance, including ritual bathing and food preparation. The practice reflects the deep seriousness with which Jewish communities observed the Sabbath command.