4315. prosabbaton

Lexical Summary

prosabbaton: The day before the Sabbath

Original Word: προσάββατον
Part of Speech: Noun, Neuter
Transliteration: prosabbaton
Pronunciation: pros-AB-ba-ton
Phonetic Spelling: (pros-ab'-bat-on)
KJV: day before the sabbath
NASB: day before, day before the Sabbath
Word Origin: [from G4253 (πρό - before) and G4521 (σάββατον - Sabbath)]

1. a fore-sabbath, i.e. the Sabbath-eve

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

day before the Sabbath.

From pro and sabbaton; a fore-sabbath, i.e. The Sabbath-eve -- day before the sabbath. Compare paraskeue.

see GREEK pro

see GREEK sabbaton

see GREEK paraskeue

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
from pro and sabbaton
Definition
the day before the Sabbath
NASB Translation
day before (1), day before the Sabbath (1).

Thayer's Greek Lexicon

STRONGS NT 4315: προσάββατον

προσάββατον, προσαββάτου, τό, the day before the sabbath: Mark 15:42, R G T WH (L Tr text πρός σάββατον (cf. πρός, I. 1 b.)). (Judith 8:6; (Psalm 92:1 () heading; Nonnus, paraph. Ioan. 19, 66; Eusebius, de mart. Pal. 6, 1).)

Topical Lexicon

Definition and Scope

Strong’s Greek 4315 (προσάββατον) designates “the day before the Sabbath,” that is, the sixth day of the week in Jewish reckoning. Within the canonical record it functions not merely as a calendar reference but as a theological marker that frames the final hours of Jesus’ earthly suffering and the commencement of the promised rest.

Biblical Occurrence

Mark 15:42: “Now it was already evening. Since it was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath) …”. The evangelist explains to his largely Gentile readership when Joseph of Arimathea sought permission to bury Jesus, underscoring the urgency demanded by the fast-approaching Sabbath sunset.

Historical Background

1. Jewish timekeeping counted days from sunset to sunset (Genesis 1:5). Hence the “day before the Sabbath” began at Thursday sunset and ended at Friday sunset.
2. Rabbinic sources speak of a heightened sense of piety on this day, when travel ceased and domestic activity centered on cooking, cleaning, and ritual bathing so that no labor would violate the Sabbath command (Exodus 20:8–11; Mishnah Shabbat 2:1).
3. Burial customs required interment before nightfall, especially before a Sabbath or feast (Deuteronomy 21:22–23; Josephus, Antiquities 4.265). Mark’s note therefore authenticates the haste of Joseph’s actions and the women’s postponed anointing (Mark 16:1).

Theological Significance

1. Chronological Certainty. The single use of προσάββατον anchors the crucifixion on the day we now call Friday, affirming the historicity of the Passion narrative and harmonizing with “Paraskeué” (Preparation Day, John 19:14, 31).
2. Completion of Redemptive Work. Jesus cried, “It is finished” (John 19:30) immediately before the Sabbath commenced, paralleling God’s completion of creation on the sixth day (Genesis 2:1–3). His body rested in the tomb during the Sabbath, prefiguring the new-creation rest secured by His atonement (Hebrews 4:9–10).
3. Covenant Fulfillment. The Sabbath principle pointed ahead to the Messiah’s restorative work (Colossians 2:16–17). Prosabbaton marks the threshold where shadow gives way to substance.

Connections to Sabbath Typology

• Creation: Six days of labor culminated in divine rest; the cross brings human striving for righteousness to an end.
• Exodus: Israel left Egypt the night before the first Sabbath in the wilderness; Jesus inaugurates the greater Exodus on the eve of a Sabbath.
• Jubilee: Sabbath years and jubilees foreshadow liberation; the cross, set against προσάββατον, proclaims ultimate release from sin’s debt.

Implications for Christian Worship and Ministry

• Good Friday observance derives scriptural warrant from this term, inviting believers to meditate on the cost of redemption and enter God’s rest through faith (Hebrews 4:3).
• Pastoral care surrounding death may echo Joseph’s reverence—prompt, dignified burial that honors both the body’s created goodness and the resurrection hope.
• The accuracy of Gospel chronology bolsters confidence in Scripture’s reliability, a vital apologetic in proclaiming Christ crucified and risen “according to the Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:3–4).

Further Study Links

Compare G3904 (παρασκευή, “Preparation”), Septuagint uses of “prosabbaton” in late manuscripts, and early Christian liturgical writings (Didache 8:1) that speak of fasting on “the day before the Sabbath,” testifying to the term’s ongoing resonance in the life of the Church.

Forms and Transliterations

προσαββατον προσάββατον προσαββάτου prosabbaton prosábbaton

Englishman's Concordance

Mark 15:42 N-NNS
GRK: ὅ ἐστιν προσάββατον
NAS: it was the preparation day, that is, the day before the Sabbath,
KJV: that is, the day before the sabbath,
INT: that is [the day] before Sabbath

Strong's Greek 4315
1 Occurrence

προσάββατον — 1 Occ.