The Final Days of Jesus: The Most Important Week of the Most Important Person Who Ever Lived

I have been deeply interested in the topic of the final days of Jesus for several years now and have collected a large number of books and journal articles on this topic.The Final Days of Jesus offers a detailed reconstruction of events in the last week of Jesus and provides specific dates for those events. However, there is a serious problem that is not noted in this book. Unfortunately, there is weighty evidence that clearly contradicts the chronological reconstruction of events that is found in this book. As a result, we can conclude that the chronological reconstruction of events in this book is almost certainly incorrect.Note: There is another book that contains a reconstruction that actually works. I will provide information about this book later in this review.Note: The reconstruction that is provided in this book is similar in many ways to the one that is found in the chapter on the date of the Last Supper in Brant Pitre’s book Jesus and the Last Supper. The main difference is that Brant Pitre does not provide specific dates for the various events in the last week of Jesus, whereas Köstenberger and Taylor do connect specific dates with these events.On page 53 in The Final Days of Jesus, there is a table that summarizes the key dates that are given throughout this book about the last week of Jesus. In this table, Nisan 15 is listed as occurring between the nightfall on Thursday, April 2, AD 33 (Julian) and the nightfall on Friday, April 3, AD 33 (Julian). In other words, this book argues that Jesus died on Friday, April 3, AD 33 and that this date fell on Nisan 15 in the official Jewish calendar.In the official Jewish calendar, days were reckoned from evening to evening and the beginning of the month was based on the first observational sighting of the thin sliver of the new crescent of the moon.It is possible to use astronomical calculations to reconstruct the likely timings of observational sightings of new moon crescents for times in the past.Note: An introduction to some of the most important background assumptions that are used in the astronomical calculations related to events that have occurred in the past can be found at astrobase.ru/lib/dt_steph01.pdf. This article can also be found by performing a google search for an article by F. Richard Stephenson that is entitled “Historical Eclipses and Earth’s Rotation”. We can be confident about these calculations for events in the past because they can be used to reconstruct events in the past, such as the solar eclipse that occurred on April 15, 136 BC. This eclipse was described in quite a bit of detail by Babylonian astronomers.It turns out that it is possible for non-specialists to visually review the calculations of astrophysicists using computer software programs such as Starry Night Pro 7. This is important because it opens up this type of argument to inspection by a much wider audience.In order for Nisan 15 to have fallen on the dates that are given in the table on page 53 in The Final Days of Jesus, it would have been necessary for the thin sliver of the new crescent moon to have been observed from Jerusalem during the evening of March 19, AD 33.The following table shows how this works.Nisan 1 19-Mar ThursdayNisan 2 20-Mar FridayNisan 3 21-Mar SaturdayNisan 4 22-Mar SundayNisan 5 23-Mar MondayNisan 6 24-Mar TuesdayNisan 7 25-Mar WednesdayNisan 8 26-Mar ThursdayNisan 9 27-Mar FridayNisan 10 28-Mar SaturdayNisan 11 29-Mar SundayNisan 12 30-Mar MondayNisan 13 31-Mar TuesdayNisan 14 01-Apr WednesdayNisan 15 02-Apr ThursdayIf Nisan 15 started at nightfall on Thursday, April 2, AD 33, then it would still have been Nisan 15th during the morning and afternoon of Friday, April 3, AD 33 as specified in the table on page 53.Unfortunately, the moon was within an hour or so of being new when it set in Jerusalem on March 19, AD 33 and was located in the sky right next to the sun. Because it was so close to the sun, it would have been washed out by light from the sun and would have been difficult to see even with sophisticated, modern equipment. With unaided eyes, it would have been impossible to see. This can be verified in the Starry Night Pro 7 program. Unfortunately, this means that one of the most important background requirements for the reconstruction in The Final Days of Jesus cannot be met. The result is that quite a few of the details of their reconstruction fall apart and cannot be put back together.Fortunately, there is a reconstruction of the last days of Jesus that does work. It is found in the following book:Humphreys, Colin J. The Mystery of the Last Supper: Reconstructing the Final Days of Jesus. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011.It can be found on Amazon at: The Mystery of the Last Supper: Reconstructing the Final Days of Jesus Humphreys’ reconstruction is similar in several important ways to the reconstruction in The Final Days by Köstenberger and Taylor.• Humphreys also dates the crucifixion to Friday, April 3, AD 33, but has this occurring on Nisan 14 in the official Jewish calendar, rather than on Nisan 15 as Köstenberger and Taylor do.• Humphreys agrees that the Last Supper was an authentic Passover meal.• Humphreys believes that the four Gospel accounts of the Last Supper and crucifixion can be reconciled with each other. He writes, “In this book I have carefully investigated the last days of Jesus afresh. I have forensically examined the gospels, comparing them with each other and with historical sources. I have found that the major apparent discrepancies in the gospel descriptions of the final days of Jesus, including the last supper, do not exist. They arise because we have wrongly interpreted the gospel texts. When correctly understood, all four gospels agree with each other to a remarkable extent.”There is a lot more that could be said about the similarities and differences between the approaches of Humphreys, on the one hand, and Köstenberger and Taylor, on the other, but to do so would require us to go far beyond the scope of this review.I find the arguments in Dr. Humphreys’ book quite convincing and highly recommend reading it in conjunction with The Final Days of Jesus by Köstenberger and Taylor.

Great Lenten devotional reading

This book gives a thorough and Scripture-filled account of the last week of Jesus. Highly recommended! It was a great benefit to read this.

This is a very educational book to read with commentary for each time or scenes frame from all 4 gospels!Thankful for this book!

Kostenberger does an excellent job at providing a cohesive account of Jesus’s final days. He provides parallel accounts of specific incidents in Jesus’s final days from the four gospels as an introduction before going into a detailed analysis of the theological, cultural, and religious significance of these accounts. Their footnotes provide extra, and useful, commentary.I would recommend this book for anybody who wants to learn more about the purpose of Christ’s ministry on earth.

The content is excellent and obviously well researched. Koestenberger was able to successfully situate the events in their historical context and illustrate the profound significance they had in the first century (sometimes with surprisingly articulate prose). For instance, one cannot fully appreciate the political volatility of the Triumphal Entry apart from social-political context in which it occured.I didn't give a five out of five because some chapters aren't organized very well. As my family and I worked through the days of Passion Week last year, we had some difficulty finding specific events in the kindle edition. The only other negative is that Kostenberger can be really wordy sometimes, which some readers will find taxing. Besides those two drawbacks however, this was a VERY helpful and edifying resource! If you are looking for a book to help you sink more deeply into the historical events of the final days of our Lord, this is a great place to start.

The author draws parallels between Jewish customs in Biblical times to some of the places and things that took place during that last week. Very interesting to hear from the Jewish perspective. The book is laid out chronologically, with the events each day by day. It pretty much walks you right through the week with interesting extra insights along the way. Good read.

Justin Taylor and Andreas Stenberger do a thorough and excellent job detailing the different gospel accounts of Jesus' final days on earth. They point us to the appropriate scriptures (and have us read them) before we read their commentary. I highly recommend this book because it puts Jesus Christ and the gospel at the center of every page...and it helps us be better informed about the history and details surrounding these last days of Jesus' time on earth. In their epilogue, the authors ask: "will you and I believe? Will we place our faith once and for all in the one who came and died and rose again so we can be forgiven and have eternal life? If so, our Easter has dawned, and God's morning star has arisen in our hearts. For true believers, every day is Easter." Amen and amen! Read this book and may the joy of the Gospel fill your hearts and lead you to share the good news of Jesus Christ with all peoples.

Kind of expected a bit more, to be honest. Didn’t really say a whole lot more than is obvious.

Very helpfully put together, balance between between Scripture and commentary was great. Would certainly recommend this to others especially as devotional for Easter.

I like the approach and the insights in this book. Helpful for the occasional preacher and teacher.

Brilliant

A very useful read, especially with daily devotions, to help you hear something new in the Gospel Accounts of the last days of Jesus