Day: The Jews reckoned the day from sunset to sunset
(Leviticus 23:32) It was
originally divided into three parts
(Psalms 55:17) "The heat of the day"
(1 Samuel 11:11; Nehemiah 7:3) was at our nine o'clock, and "the cool of the day"
just before sunset
(Genesis 3:8) Before the Captivity the Jews divided the
night into three watches,1. from sunset to midnight
(Lamentations 2:19)
2. from midnight till the cock-crowing
(Judges 7:19)
3. from the cock-crowing till sunrise
(Exodus 14:24) In the New
Testament the division of the Greeks and Romans into four
watches was adopted
(Mark 13:35)
(See WATCHES)
The division of the day by hours is first mentioned in
(Daniel 3:6,15; 4:19)
(Daniel 5:5) This mode of reckoning was borrowed from the Chaldeans. The
reckoning of twelve hours was from sunrise to sunset, and accordingly
the hours were of variable length
(John 11:9) The word "day"
sometimes signifies an indefinite time
(Genesis 2:4; Isaiah 22:5; Hebrews 3:8)
etc. In
(Job 3:1) it denotes a birthday, and in
(Isaiah 2:12; Acts 17:31)
(2 Timothy 1:18) the great day of final judgment.
