![]() It is the climactic day of God’s plan for new life and covenant faithfulness. ![]() On the third day, Jesus’ resurrection is made all the more paramount. The imagery in Genesis 1-2 of new life rising up from the ground on the third day, along with the connection to the divine covenant throughout the Hebrew Scriptures, provides a poignant picture of the theological significance of Jesus’ resurrection. And finally, Jesus’ act of atonement occurs on a hill (mountain). God acts to bring about the new covenant through Jesus’ atoning death and resurrection for all who believe. God resurrects new life up from the ground (the tomb)-in this case, Jesus. Look at how the resurrection of Jesus maps onto our third-day design pattern. Jesus was adamant about the third day because it represents God’s pattern of creating new life and establishing a covenant with humanity. ![]() In fact, he mentions “three days” 21 times in the Gospel accounts! By now you can probably tell this emphasis was not random. When we arrive at the Gospels, we find Jesus speaking of a third-day resurrection when he talks about his death with his disciples. This brings us to those passages in the prophets that mention the third day, found in the books of Hosea and Jonah. Sadly, the rest of Israel’s story in the Hebrew Scriptures is marked by rebellion, unbelief, and inability to hold up their end of the covenant. 19:4-6), and God accomplishes all of this on a mountain (Exod. ![]() God enters into a covenant with his people, Israel (Exod. And we do! God brings about new life for his people-a new identity for Israel-just like he did in the creation narrative and with Abraham and Isaac. The narrative mentions the phrase “third day” four times to ensure we don’t miss the fact that this momentous event will take place on this significant day.īased on what we have seen already with “third day,” we should come to expect a certain pattern. They are to prepare themselves to enter into a covenant with God and be ready on the third day (Exod. Like Abraham, this moment is a test for Israel. Here, God makes clear that on the third day, he will come down to Mount Sinai to be with the people. Having just rescued his people from centuries-long oppression in Egypt, Yahweh is on the cusp of entering into a covenant with Israel, again on a mountain (Exod. 22:2, 14).Īt a key juncture in the Bible’s story, we find yet another event happening on the third day. And in echoing the creation narrative, this event also takes place on a mountain (Gen. God also reaffirms his covenant with Abraham, using language and themes consistent with Genesis 1:28 (Gen. God acts to bring new life to Isaac by sparing his life and to Abraham in receiving back his son (Gen. Here again, on the third day, we see a familiar pattern. We come to find out this act is wrapped up within his larger covenant project to multiply Abraham’s family and bless the nations through them (Gen. The connection to the third-day theme here resides in a powerfully vivid act of atonement by God, in which he substitutes a ram in the place of Isaac (Gen. Ultimately, it is God who provides the sacrifice and brings about the purposes of his covenant. In this scene, God wants Abraham to learn to trust him with the covenant and blessing of children. When God calls Abraham to offer his only son Isaac as a burnt offering on a mountain, the text says that on the third day, Abraham saw the place from afar and proceeded to go through with the test (Gen. Where else does this pattern appear? Later in Genesis, Abraham is tested by God in one of the most intriguing narratives in all of Scripture (Gen. Humans are made in God’s image, and God enters into a covenant with human beings, blessing them and giving them instructions. 1:11, 28 3:15), and both are created in this way on a third day. Notice as well the connection between humans and trees: both are newly created from the ground (Gen. Again, here we see new life created out of the ground. Later we read that God formed humans from the dust of the ground (Gen. Reminiscent of the first “third day,” the passage says that the earth will bring forth living creatures (Gen. The second “third day” event happens on the sixth day when God creates animals and human beings (Gen. The picture here is of new life sprouting or rising up from the ground-a place of non-existence or death. On the first “third day,” God makes dry land appear and causes vegetation to come up out of the earth-plants yielding seeds and trees bearing fruit (Gen. ![]() Within the rhythm of these repetitions, two events in the creation narrative stand out as significant, each happening at three-day intervals. The creation account in Genesis 1 is written like a poem with repetitive statements and parallels. Where do we find the first glimpse into the three-day significance? Page one of the Bible. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |