Luke 24:7, Why three days in the grave?

The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.

//If you’ve ever wondered at the significance of “three days,” you may find meaning in The Midrash on Psalm 22 to Esther. You may remember her words as she prepared to meet the king: “Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maids will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish.”

Says the Midrash, the reason for three days is for the sake of Israel. “Why three days? Because the Holy One—blessed be he!—never leaves Israel in anguish for more than three days.” A number of other Bible passages agree:

Genesis 22:4, On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. Abraham had set out on a three-day journey, the end of which would end in the sacrifice of his son.

Genesis 42:17, And he put them all in custody for three days. Joseph, in Egypt, has accused his brothers of being spies, and imprisoned them.

Exodus 15:22, Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they went into the Desert of Shur. For three days they traveled in the desert without finding water.

2 Kings 20:5, “Go back and tell Hezekiah, the leader of my people, ‘This is what the LORD, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you. On the third day from now you will go up to the temple of the LORD. Hezekiah was ill, at the point of death, and was told he must wait three days before God would heal him.

Joshua 2:16, Now she had said to them, “Go to the hills so the pursuers will not find you. Hide yourselves there three days until they return, and then go on your way.” Said by Rahab, to the men she helped escape.

Jonah 2:1, From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the LORD his God. I needn’t remind you that Jonah spent three days there.

Hosea 6:2, After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in his presence.