The Saturday before Easter, commonly known as “Holy Saturday,” is the day that falls between Good Friday and Easter Sunday. For many Christians, it is a day of reflection and solemn contemplation, marking the time that Jesus Christ lay in the tomb. While it is not as widely observed in liturgical celebrations as Good Friday or Easter Sunday, the Saturday before Easter is still a significant day in the Christian liturgical calendar. It is the final moment of the Passion of Christ, the culmination of His suffering and death, and the silent transition before the victorious resurrection. The day is steeped in mystery, as believers reflect on the finality of Christ’s death and the anticipation of His triumphant return to life.
The Scriptures for Holy Saturday carry a deep significance, as they serve to prepare the faithful for the joyful celebration of Christ’s resurrection. They reveal themes of waiting, hope, and divine silence, as well as the fulfillment of prophecy. The Bible passages commonly read on Holy Saturday often invite Christians to consider Christ’s burial and the fulfillment of God’s promises, while also acknowledging the weight of grief and sorrow experienced by those who had witnessed His death.
In this article, we will explore 12 significant Scriptures that are often associated with the Saturday before Easter. Each of these passages offers profound insights into the meaning of Christ’s death, His descent into the realm of the dead, and the victorious hope of resurrection that would follow. These Scriptures also underscore the themes of grief, mourning, and waiting, which are essential components of the Christian experience during this sacred period.
12 Saturday Before Easter Scripture
1. Matthew 27:57-61
“As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus. Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him. Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb.”
This passage captures the moment when Jesus’ body was laid to rest in the tomb. It tells of the bravery of Joseph of Arimathea, who requested Jesus’ body and gave it a proper burial. The women, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, were present, watching from a distance, mourning the loss of their Lord. The passage highlights the reality of Christ’s death and the sorrow that enveloped His followers. As we reflect on Holy Saturday, this Scripture reminds us that the silence and waiting of the day was marked by grief, the grief of those who loved Jesus deeply. The quiet of the tomb was a moment of mourning, but also a space for anticipation of the future resurrection.
2. Luke 23:50-56
“Now there was a man named Joseph, a member of the Council, a good and upright man, who had not consented to their decision and action. He came from the Judean town of Arimathea, and he himself was waiting for the kingdom of God. Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body. Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen cloth, and placed it in a tomb cut in the rock, one in which no one had yet been laid. It was Preparation Day, and the Sabbath was about to begin. The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee followed Joseph and saw the tomb and how his body was laid in it. Then they went home and prepared spices and perfumes. But they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment.”
This passage expands on the burial of Jesus, offering a bit more detail regarding the actions of Joseph and the women who followed. It also emphasizes the proximity to the Sabbath, showing how the faithful obeyed the commandment to rest on this holy day. The moment was filled with a bittersweet combination of sorrow and obedience. Jesus’ followers could do nothing more at this point but wait and rest, just as God had rested on the seventh day of creation. The Sabbath rest on Holy Saturday echoes this deep theological meaning, offering a reminder that after work, there must be rest, and after sorrow, there is hope for renewal.
3. Mark 15:40-47
“Some women were watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joseph, and Salome. In Galilee these women had followed him and cared for his needs. Many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem were also there. It was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath). So as evening approached, Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died. When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph. So Joseph bought some linen cloth, took down the body, wrapped it in the linen, and placed it in a tomb cut out of rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance to the tomb. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joseph saw where he was laid.”
Mark’s account provides further details of the events surrounding the burial. It highlights the women who had faithfully followed Jesus throughout His ministry and were now witnesses to His death and burial. Their presence shows their unwavering devotion, even as they experienced the deepest grief. Like the other Gospels, Mark emphasizes Joseph’s courage in asking for Jesus’ body, as well as the finality of Jesus’ death. The action of rolling the stone to seal the tomb marks the end of this chapter, but it is also a pause before the miraculous reversal that will come on the third day. Holy Saturday, then, is not a day without meaning—rather, it is a day of expectant waiting, a space in time before the resurrection.
4. 1 Peter 3:18-20
“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit. After being made alive, he went and made proclamation to the imprisoned spirits— to those who were disobedient long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water.”
This passage provides theological insight into what Jesus may have been doing during the time between His death and resurrection. It suggests that after His death, Jesus descended to the realm of the dead (often referred to as “Hades” or “Sheol”) to proclaim victory over sin and death to those who had died before His coming. The text also draws parallels with the time of Noah, where salvation was brought through water. On Holy Saturday, Christians reflect on the reality of Jesus’ triumph over death, even in the grave. This descent to the dead is an essential part of the salvation story, for it demonstrates the totality of Christ’s victory and His power over all things, including death itself.
5. Romans 6:3-4
“Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.”
On Holy Saturday, Christians also reflect on the theological significance of baptism. This passage from Romans reminds believers that baptism symbolizes both death and resurrection. Just as Christ was buried and raised again, so too, through baptism, believers experience a spiritual death to sin and a rebirth to new life. The timing of Holy Saturday, as a day between death and resurrection, reinforces this connection, offering a reminder that the resurrection is not just a historical event but a present reality for all who are in Christ.
6. Psalm 16:9-11
“Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure, because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, nor will you let your faithful one see decay. You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.”
This Psalm is traditionally interpreted as a messianic prophecy pointing to Jesus’ resurrection. It expresses the confidence of the righteous that God will not allow them to remain in death. It anticipates the joy of resurrection, where the faithful will be raised and restored to eternal life. As Christians reflect on the silence of Holy Saturday, this Psalm speaks a word of hope and assurance—that death is not the final word and that the faithful will be brought into the joy of God’s presence.
7. Isaiah 53:3-5
“He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces, he was despised, and we held him in low esteem. Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.”
Isaiah 53 is one of the most important prophetic passages in the Old Testament, foretelling the suffering and death of the Messiah. The passage speaks of the intense suffering that Jesus would endure, but also emphasizes the ultimate purpose of His suffering: to bring healing and reconciliation for humanity. On Holy Saturday, this prophecy stands as a reminder that the crucifixion, though a time of immense sorrow, was also a moment of profound love and sacrifice for the salvation of the world.
8. Matthew 12:40
“For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.”
This verse speaks of Jesus’ time in the tomb, likening it to the three days Jonah spent in the belly of the fish. It connects the Old Testament story with Jesus’ own death and burial, illustrating that Christ’s time in the grave was part of a larger redemptive narrative. Holy Saturday, then, is a day when Christians contemplate the significance of Christ’s burial, knowing that it is necessary for the resurrection to occur.
9. John 19:38-42
“Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds. Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs. At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.”
This passage details the final acts of love and care for Jesus’ body. Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea showed great reverence for the Lord by preparing His body for burial. Their actions reflect their quiet faith and the deep sorrow they must have felt at this moment. Holy Saturday invites believers to pause and reflect on this profound moment of grief, acknowledging the finality of Jesus’ death while looking forward to the resurrection.
10. Luke 23:46
“Jesus called out with a loud voice, ‘Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.’ When he had said this, he breathed his last.”
Though this verse is from Good Friday, it carries profound significance for Holy Saturday. Jesus’ final words before He died mark His surrender to the will of the Father, entrusting His spirit to God. Holy Saturday is a time to reflect on this act of total surrender, trusting that God is in control even in the face of death. It is a day that helps Christians wrestle with the mystery of suffering, death, and the unshakeable hope that God’s purposes are always at work.
11. John 20:1-10
“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. So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, ‘They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!’”
This passage foreshadows the events that will unfold on Easter Sunday. While this account takes place after Holy Saturday, it is the fulfillment of the hope that began on this silent day. The empty tomb marks the beginning of the resurrection story, and it is on this day of waiting and silence that Christians prepare their hearts for the joy that will come.
12. Revelation 1:18
“I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.”
In Revelation, the risen Christ declares His victory over death and the grave. This verse encapsulates the message of hope and triumph that will unfold on Easter Sunday. While Holy Saturday is a day of reflection, grief, and waiting, this Scripture points to the ultimate victory of Christ over all that opposes Him, including death itself. Holy Saturday is the day before the resurrection, but it is also the day that reminds believers of the promise that death will not have the final word.
Conclusion
The Saturday before Easter is a day rich with spiritual meaning. It is a time to pause, reflect, and anticipate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Through these 12 Scriptures, we gain a deeper understanding of the significance of this day. Holy Saturday serves as a space between sorrow and joy, between death and resurrection. As we meditate on these passages, we are reminded of the hope that Jesus offers, the victory He has secured, and the new life that awaits all who believe in Him.
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