COUNTING THE PASSOVERS

It is absolutely amazing to me that there are so many details about the life of Christ which are either debated, or simply unknown. For instance, what did Jesus experience between the ages of twelve and thirty? In what year was Jesus born? What happened to Joseph? In what year did they crucify Him? On which day of the week was He crucified? Yes, there are those who dogmatically state the answers to some or, God forbid, to all of these questions. But the longer I study His Word, the less dogmatic I am. The Word is simple enough to save a child, and complex enough to humble the greatest of theological minds!

When figuring the dates of His birth, His baptism, and His death/resurrection, the experts count the number of Passovers mentioned in the Gospels, like a botanist counts the number of rings in a tree to tell its age. Unfortunately, counting the Passovers does not work.

The Synoptic Gospel writers used the word "Passover" fifteen times: four in Matthew, four in Mark, and seven in Luke. With the exception of Luke 2:41, where the family went to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover when Jesus was twelve, all refer to the Feast of Passover at which Jesus was crucified (Matt. 26; Mk. 14; Lk. 22; cp. 1 Cor. 5:7).

In contrast, John's Gospel uses the word "Passover" nine times, and it is commonly believed that they refer to the three Passover Feasts which occurred during the ministry of Jesus, beginning with His "temptation in the wilderness," at about thirty years of age (Lk. 3:23; 4:14). The first is mentioned in John 2:13 and 23. It was on that occasion that He, for the first time, rebuked the money-changers in the Temple (cp. Matt. 21:12). His second visit is mentioned in John 6:4, which was about the time of the "Feeding of the Five Thousand." The third visit mentioned, is the same event as is described in the Synoptic Gospels. But in John's Gospel, he details it through nine chapters, with the word "Passover" appearing in John 11:55; 12:1; 13:1; 18:28, 39; and 19:14.

However, it is quite possible that the Lord's ministry lasted more than three years. Based upon the date of Herod's death, circa 4 B.C., which occurred after Jesus was born, and the date of the Crucifixion, which is said to have occurred circa A.D. 30-33, Jesus must have lived between thirty-five to thirty-eight years. If He began at thirty, then He was crucified between thirty-five and thirty-eight years of age; His ministry could have been close to nine years in length. And while John's Gospel gives us the events of three Passovers, he concludes his Gospel by saying, " And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen" (Jn. 21:25). That certainly suggests the possibility that John was aware of Jesus celebrating the Passover more that three times during His ministry. Since the Synoptic Gospel writers only focused upon one Passover during the ministry of Jesus, it is not unreasonable to believe that John might not have written concerning all of the Passovers.

One of the main objections non-believers have concerning Christians, in addition to their viewing us as hypocrites based upon a misconception that Christians are supposed to be perfect, is that our "Bible facts" do not match historical data. That is because the "Bible experts" take dogmatic positions on issues which are not supported by the Bible. Perhaps it would be wise to present only those things which are clearly detailed in the Scriptures, and leave the "Bible theories" for Jesus to explain upon His return!