3rd or 6th hour?

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CHRIS

>   I have a question regarding the discreprancy between Mark 15:25 and 

>John 19:14.  The former verse says Jesus was crucified at the third hour 

>(9am) and the other says he was delivered to be crucified at the sixth 

>hour (noon?).  The general explanation I have heard is that the former is 

>in Jewish time (12 hours from sunrise to sunset)


NANCY
I thought the Jewish day ran from sunset to sunset. Yoel, we need you!

CHRIS
 and Roman time (24 hours 

>from midnight to midnight).


NANCY
This is incorrect. The Romans divided daylight into twelve equal divisions,
called horae (hours). Darkness was divided into four equal divisions, called
vigiliae (watches). 

CHRIS
  By that explanation, Jesus was delivered to 

>be crucified at 6am, and then 3 hours later, he was tacked up.  This view 

>has support with John 1:39, which says that Andrew and Peter spent the 

>day with Jesus after meeting at the 10th hour.  If this refers to 4pm, 

>Jewish time, it is too late to spend the day, but if it refers to 10am, 

>there would be no problem.


NANCY
The 10th hour (decima hora) would be 4 pm using the Roman method. The Greek
in Jn 1:39 says "hora . . . dekate," the tenth hour, which would be 4 pm. It
doesn't say that the John the B's disciples spent the day with Jesus but
that they stayed with him that day. 



>CHRIS

>   My question is this: was there a distinction between Roman and Jewish 

>time in the 1st century?  How do we know?  How did each culture measure 

>their time? Does anyone know where I can go further to find out about this?

>

>Thanks,

>   Chris

>

>--

>Visit the Other Side, http://www.u.arizona.edu/~cashton/atheism/

>

>

NANCY
Hi, Chris. I am a high school Latin teacher and the following is taken from
a Latin textbook, _Our Latin Heritage_ (Book II, 3rd ed., Harcourt, Brace,
Jovanovich, c1983, pp 397-98):

@"Hours: The day between sunrise (solis ortus) and sunset (solis occasus)
was divided into twelve portions called horae. The length of each hora
varied with the season of the year and the latitude. It was always
one-twelfth of the time from sunrise to sunset (ab orto usque ad occidentem
solem). 

Vigiliae: The night was divided equally into four vigilae, watches, the
length of which varied with the season of the year and the latitude."@


Assuming that daylight is from 6 am to 6 pm, the following would be true:

prima luce (first light or dawn) = 6 am
prima hora (the first hour) = 6 am - 7 am
secunda hora (the second hour) = 7 am - 8am
tertia hora (the third hour) = 8 am - 9 am
quarta hora (the fourth hour) = 9 am - 10 am
quinta hora (the fifth hour) = 10 am - 11 am
sexta hora (the sixth hour) = 11 am - 12 noon
meridie (midday = 12 noon
septima hora (the seventh hour) = 12 noon - 1 pm
octava hora the eighth hour) = 1 pm - 2 pm
nona hora the ninth hour) = 2 pm - 3 pm
decima hora (the tenth hour) = 3 pm - 4 pm
undecima hora (the eleventh hour) = 4 pm - 5 pm
duodecima hora (the twelfth hour) = 5 pm - 6 pm
prima nocte (first night) = 6 pm
prima vigilia (the first watch) = from 6 pm to 9 pm
secunda vigilia (the second watch) = from 9 pm to midnight
media nocte (midnight) = 12 midnight
tertia vigilia (the third watch) = from midnight to 3 am
quarta vigilia (the fourth watch) = from 3 am to 6 am

When the time is given as an hour (hora), add 6 and you will have the
approximate time by our method of telling time. E.g., the eight hour = 8 +
6, or 14:00, or 2:00 pm.

Mk 15:25 says Jesus was crucified at the 3rd hour (9 am). Jn 19:14 says it
was about the 6th hour (noon) on the day of the preparation for the passover
when Pilate handed Jesus over to be crucified.

Nancy Todd
todds@pa.net

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