Why is there a 3 hour difference in the time of the crucifixion between Mark's Gospel and John's Gospel?

Answer 1

There are some things written in Scriptures, which even serious Bible-believing theologians have a bit of difficulty understanding. Such is the case with the so-called discrepancy in determining the time of Christ's Crucifixion. If we look at Mark's account, He says the Crucifixion started in the third hour, or 9 AM in our understanding. However Matthew and Luke do not mention the time of the beginning, yet agree with the Mark 15:33 statement, "when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour." So, time-wise and in other details, there is much similarity in the first three Gospel accounts. But in John's Gospel, there is a lack of similarity in many issues.

In the Crucifixion account, John does not mention the time of the event, but relates the activity of Pilate in the Judgement Seat in John 19:13,14, as he tried to release Jesus. More naturally the Roman time of the sixth hour is given, which actually fits well into the time frame of Mark's report of the Crucifixion starting afterward at 9 AM, or the third hour in Jewish time. So, the Question is inaccurate in identifying John's record about Pilate's efforts to free Christ, as being equal with Mark's account of the Crucifixion.

Answer 2

There are two quite significant timing discrepancies in the story of the crucifixion, between the synoptic gospels and John's Gospel. The synoptic gospels say that Jesus was crucified on the day after the Passover feast, at 9 o'clock in the morning, while John says that he was crucified on the sixth hour (12 noon) on the day of preparation for the Passover feast.

Ordinarily, Mark's Gospel should be accepted as the most reliable, since it was the earliest gospel, with Luke's Gospel based on Mark, then John inspired by Luke. However, an examination of Mark's account shows it to be a literary creation, too well-structured to be a record of facts as they happened. Mark organised the first narrative account of the death of Jesus in a twenty-four hour cycle, neatly divided into eight three-hour segments:

• "When it was evening" (14:17), or approximately 6 pm, Jesus and the disciples began the Last Supper.
• The duration of the Passover meal was three hours and it concluded with the singing of a hymn. So at the end of his segment Mark noted, "And when they had sung a hymn they went out to the Mount of Olives". It was about 9 p.m.
• Jesus and the disciples went to the Garden of Gethsemane, where his closest disciples, Peter, James and John, were not able to remain awake. "Could you not watch one hour?" Jesus asked. The process was repeated two more times. The disciples could not watch one, two or three hours. It was now midnight.
• The act of betrayal, the darkest deed in human history, came next, occurring at the stroke of midnight.
• Jesus was led away for a trial before the Sanhedrin. This governing body then judged him, on the basis of his messianic claim, to be worthy of death. It was 3:00 a.m.
• The watch of the night between 3 am and 6 am was called cockcrow. Mark now inserted his account of Peter's threefold denial of Jesus, once each hour until the cock crowed, marking the end of that phase of the night. That makes it 6 a.m.
• "As soon as it was morning", which would be 6 o'clock, Jesus was led by the chief priests, scribes and elders to Pontius Pilate for judgement.
• "It was the third hour", or 9 o'clock "when they crucified him".
• When "the sixth hour had come" (12 noon), as if on cue, darkness covered the whole earth for three hours, a counterpoint to the midnight betrayal.
• At the end of the three hours, at 3 p.m., Jesus said "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"
• Jesus was buried in the final period from 3 to 6 p.m., before the sun went down and the holy sabbath arrived.

The author of John's Gospel altered the day and time for theological reasons, not because he had better information as to exactly what happened at the crucifixion. Neither account can be regarded as exactly factual.

Answer 3

The questioner must keep in mind that days began and ended at sunset. So Jesus ate the Passover meal on our Tuesday evening. During the dark hours, Jesus was arrested and shuffled off for 'trial.' He was brought before Pilate as John 19:14 notes in the sixth hour - Greek and Roman time - which is 6 AM Wednesday morning. The Synoptic Gospels, using a common Jewish system of marking the day states Jesus is crucified at 9 AM and dies at 3 PM Wednesday. He is taken down on the 'Preparation Day' or Passover daylight portion and entombed just before sunset and the beginning of the High Sabbath of the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. So He fulfilled the only outward sign of His Messiahship - the sign of Jonah in the great fish - 3 full nights (Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday) and 3 full days (Thursday, Friday, Saturday) being resurrected exactly 72 hours after being entombed just before sunset Saturday and the beginning of the 1st day of the Week - our Sunday. There are no discrepancies in the Synoptic and John's Gospel accounts.