Mk 16:2: "And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they [the women] came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun." - This is the text of the KIng James Bible (KJV), but the basic Greek text speaks of a Sabbath. There are several variants in the Greek text families, which even make the translation easier for us:

The Alexandrian text type (Codex Sinaiticus, NA28) mentions the long version:

και (and) λιαν (very) πρωι (early) τη (on the) μια (one) των (of the) σαββατων (Sabbath/s) ερχονται (they come) επι (to) το (the) μνημειον (tomb) ανατειλαντος (rising) του (the) ηλιου (sun).

The Byzantine text type (Textus Receptus, Majority Text) mentions the short version without "των":

και (and) λιαν (very) πρωι (early) τη (on the) μια (one) σαββατων (Sabbath/s) ερχονται (they come)...

The Codex Bezae 400 (Link) even has the Sabbath in the singular:

και (and) ερχονται (they come) πρωι (early) μιας (one) σαββατου (Sabbath) επι (to) το (the) μνημειον (grave)...

The translation into today's English is really very easy, if nothing is distorted:

"And very early in the morning, they come to the tomb on a Sabbath" or:

"And very early in the morning, they come to the tomb on a Sabbath day" or:

"And very early in the morning, they come to the tomb on one of the Sabbaths" or:

"And very early in the morning, they come to the tomb on one of the Sabbaths days" or:

"And very early in the morning, they come to the tomb on a day of the Sabbaths".

The comparison of the Greek basic text with the King James Biible proves that to support the pagan theory of the Sunday resurrection of Jesus in one sentence 6 translation errors were made: 

1. one (μια = mia) has been removed from the Bible (mia is a cardinal number)

2. first (πρωτη = protos) was added to the Bible (first an ordinal number)

3. Sabbath/s (σαββατων, σαββατου) has been removed from the Bible (Sabbath/s in plural and singular)

4. day (ημερα = hemera) was added to the Bible; a new day instead of the Sabbath day 

5. week (εβδομαδα, ebdomada) was added to the Bible

6. Sunday (ημερα του ηλιου or ηλίου ημερα = heliou hemera) was added in some Bibles

However, there are many Catholic and Protestant Bibles that have been translated correctly (see below).

All existing Greek manuscripts, i.e. the so-called "original texts", clearly speak of what happened "on a Sabbath day". The phrases "τη μια των σαββατων" and "της μιας σαββατων" are very easy to translate. It means "on a Sabbath" or "on one of the Sabbaths", because during Passover there are always three Sabbaths, namely the two annual High Sabbaths with the weekly Sabbath in between. God has emphasized seven times that the day of resurrection was a Sabbath (Mt 28:1a, Mt 28:1b; Mk 16:2,9; Lk 24:1; Jn 20:1,19). God made no mistake, He clearly named this day by the name "Sabbath." If God had meant another day, he would have said it, he knows how to express Himself, much better than any human being, and He has not put "Sunday" or "week" in the New Testament of the Bible. Only human translators have done this, who are in reality interpreters and substitutes. To them the tradition of ancient philosophers and the ancient Babylonian tradition of the Sun God was more important than the Word of God itself.

The free Bible program ISA3 (Scripture4All, Link) shows the literal translation and grammar, including the corresponding Concordant Literal Version (CLV 1926):

The colored scriptures show the meaning of Mk 16:2 in several languages:

Google translates "τη μια των σαββατων" (on one of the Sabbaths) as "on one of the Saturdays", but not as "on one of the Sundays" (τη μια των ηλίου ημερων) until Pentecost. There are seven Saturdays between Passover (15th Nisan) and Pentecost. And there are three Sabbaths at the 7-day Passover festival. So the evangelists spoke of what happened "on one of the Sabbaths." Any child can understand when the women came to the tomb:

The Alexandrian text type shows the resurrection of Jesus on a Saturday morning:

The Byzantine text type shows the resurrection of Jesus on a Saturday morning:

The Codex Bezae shows the resurrection of Jesus on a Saturday morning:

As can be clearly seen, the Google translation does not support the theological idea that Jesus rose from the dead on a Sunday, but it calls this day: Saturday, the current Greek term for the Sabbath. The worst translation mistake in the history of mankind is the replacement of the three clearly defined Greek words "μια των σαββατων" (one of the Sabbaths) by others, such as "on the first day of the week" (την πρώτη ημέρα της εβδομάδας). If God meant that, He would have said it (examples).

The free internet translation programme from DeepL is even more accurate. It proves how easy the Greek text is to understand. Only the "one Sabbath", the "one of the Sabbaths" or the "one Saturday" is meant. The complete Greek sentence can simply be entered into the programme and all people can already recognise that Jesus did not rise from the dead "on the first day of the week" and also not "after the Sabbath" and also not "on a Sunday", but "on a Sabbath" or "on Saturday morning". Even children understand this, only for the theologians it is too complicated because they cannot find the desired Sunday in the Bible. The bottom illustration on the right shows how it should read in Greek if the "first day of the week" was meant. It becomes clear that for this to happen, there would have to be completely different words in the NT, which never existed, because God speaks of a Sabbath 7 times in the resurrection chapter:

And this is not written in Mark 16:2:

Some scholars think that behind the feminine mia (μια, one) could stand the also feminine day (ημερα, hemera), which was often not mentioned in the NT, but meant. But that is not a problem either, for then we get nothing more than the well-known phrase "day of the Sabbaths", which according to special rules in the ancient Greek language has always served to describe a single Sabbath day. This is proved by extra-Biblical sources and even other passages in the New Testament and the Septuagint (see Interlinear). "On one of the Sabbath days" of course never meant "the day after the Sabbath". Anyone who would rather translate "on the first Sabbath" or "on the first of the Sabbaths" instead of "on a Sabbath", as it should be correctly called, is welcome to do so. This would not be a literal translation, but in terms of content it is correct, since this one Sabbath is actually the "first Sabbath" of the seven Sabbaths up to Pentecost. Mark confirms this only a few verses further on in Mark 16:9 ("early on the first Sabbath").

Despite the very clear words in the basic Greek text, Mk 16,2 has nevertheless caused great problems for many translators, because the preceding verse in Mk 16,1 (KJV) reads as follows:

Mk 16:1-2: "And when the sabbath was past [και (and) διαγενομενου (= as had passed) του (the) σαββατου (Sabbath)], Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him. 2 And very early in the morning the first day of the week [literally: on one of the Sabbaths], they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun" (KJV)

Someone who does not know the biblical calendar cannot possibly understand how it could be that on one side the Sabbath "was passed" (verse 1) and on the other side the women came to the tomb "on a Sabbath" (verse 2). This seems illogically to be a clear contradiction, for it would mean that the women would not have to go to the tomb for a whole week. Many translators added the word "after" to the Bible in Mark 16:2 because they thought Mark made a mistake, because if the women went shopping after the Sabbath, they could not possibly have come to the tomb "on a Sabbath". But Mark did not make a mistake, because he knew the calendar of God, unlike the theologians of today. There are not only two, but even three Sabbaths during the Passover feast. Therefore, after the annual High Sabbath (15th Nisan), the women prepared the ointments and came to the tomb on an ordinary weekly Sabbath (17th Nisan). The explanation is very simple. Even the Romans knew this at the time of the apostles, and all Christians who seriously study the Bible knew and still know this: 

Mark made it clear: When the (High) Sabbath was over, the women prepared the ointments and then went to the tomb on the following (weekly) Sabbath. Verses 1 and 2 are a clear proof that in the year Jesus was crucified, there must have been at least one working day between the feast Sabbath and the weekly Sabbath (more Info). And this is not a peculiarity, but according to God's calendar it is the case even in most years. And the same sequence of days as in the year of Jesus' crucifixion (30, 31 or 34 A.D.) exists statistically every third year until today. So every Christian who reads these lines now has unconsciously experienced several times in his life that the 14th Nisan fell on a Wednesday and the weekly Sabbath on a 17th Nisan. Also in the years 2000 or 2020 the 14th Nisan falls on a Wednesday and the 17th Nisan on a weekly Sabbath:

In the year 2020 there was again exactly the same sequence of days at the Passover as in the year in which Israel went out of Egypt and in the year in which Jesus was crucified:

The first worldwide printed Bible in a popular language ever proclaims the resurrection of Jesus "on a Saturday morning"! Mentelin (1466) had no problem here to reproduce the true wording of both verses in Mk 16,1 and 2 correctly, he spoke twice about Saturday: 

"And when Saturday had passed, Mary Magdalene and Mary Jacobi and Salome bought the ointments to anoint Jesus. 2 And on one of the Saturdays very early, they came to the tomb..." 

Original German: „Und als der Samstag vergangen war, kauften Maria Magdalena und Maria Jacobi und Salome die Salben, um Jesus einzusalben. 2 Und an einem der Samstage sehr früh, kamen sie zum dem Grabe...“ 

Especially the old German Bibles were very accurate. Most of them were Catholic. Every child can understand this and does not equate Saturday with Sunday. Only the theologians do not know the difference between the days. It is not about the 7 Sundays to Pentecost, but about the 7 Saturdays to Pentecost. Therefore Mentelin writes that the women came to the tomb "on one of the Saturdays". It should not be forgotten that Mentelin translated from the Latin Vulgate, as the basic Greek text was not available to him. He grew up with the Latin language and knew that "sabbati" and "sabbatorum" can only mean Saturday and Sabbath, and never the day after, Sunday.

Martin Luther also translated correctly and wrote in 1522 and 1545 (last edition):

"And when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene and Mary of James and Salome bought spices, that they might come and anoint him. 2 And they came to the tomb on a Sabbath very early, when the sun was rising.

Original German: „Und da der Sabbat vergangen war, kauften Maria Magdalena und Maria des Jakobus und Salome Spezerei, auf dass sie kämen und salbeten ihn. 2 Und sie kamen zum Grabe an einem Sabbater sehr frühe, da die Sonne aufging.“

He couldn't have said it clearer. Every child understands that. This was exactly the message for all Americans in the first Bible in a national language printed on US soil (Saur Bible 1743, Link, Facsimiles). However, the revised Luther Bible of 1912 and 1984 completely twists Luther's words and writes: "And they came to the tomb the first day of the week, very early..." („Und sie kamen zum Grab am ersten Tag der Woche, sehr früh...“). This is very sad, because for several centuries only the Sabbath resurrection of Jesus was written in the Luther Bible (see original Bibles Faksimiles).

The Catholic Vulgate could not have been clearer, it does not raise questions: "Et (and) valde (very) mane (early in the morning) una (a, one) sabbatorum (Sabbath). This means concretely: For all pastors and churches worldwide who have read the Vulgate in over 1,500 years (since they had no other Bible), the resurrection of Jesus was clearly on the Sabbath and not on Sunday. The Latin language uses a completely different word (hebdomas) for the week, which is derived from the Latin number seven, or "sevenness" (a period of seven, see week) and sounds completely different from "sabbati".

The combination of verse 1 and 2 in Mk 16 and the lack of basic knowledge about the festival order of the Passover is one of the most important reasons why many translations in different languages wanted to abolish the Sabbath as the day of resurrection. John Wycliffe preferred to avoid this conflict and generally spoke of "one day of the week" without writing which day it was. The later Pre-Lutheran Bibles also use this general expression. But most of today's Bible translations speak of the "day after the Sabbath" or the "first day of the week" and what is even worse, even of the unbiblical Sunday.

The Coverdale Bible 1535 and 1553 makes clear: "upon a day of the Sabbathes very early...". Many old English Bibles also speak of the "first of the Sabbaths," which is not literal, but in content it is true, because it is actually the first of the 7 Sabbaths until Pentecost. However, the Geneva Bible 1557 and the King James Bible 1611 all wanted to eliminate the hated "Jewish Sabbath" from the Bible and replace it with Sunday. For this purpose they used 4 new words which are not found in any basic Greek text: "first day of the week" (πρώτη ημέρα της εβδομάδας). This means concretely: The Catholics, Protestants and the Anglicans all do not want to have the Sabbath. If God had meant Sunday or the first day of the week, He would have said it, He had more than 20 possible options in the ancient Greek language (examples).

A Christian should always pay attention in his Bible study not only to what is in the Bible but also to what is NOT in it. In Mk 16:2 it does NOT say: "εν (on the) πρωτη (first) ημερα (day) της (of the) εβδομαδας (week)". But Mark himself (!) used this expression in Mk 14:12 when he spoke of "τη (on, the) πρωτη (the first) ημερα (day) των (the) αζυμων (unleavened bread)". So if he had meant the "first day of the week", then he could have used this (namely his own) formulation, and he would only have to replace the word "unleavened bread" with the word "week" (εβδομαδα), which is well known and even mentioned several times in the LXX and in the books of Flavius Josephus. But the apostle Mark knew exactly what he wanted to say in Mk 16:2 and what he just did NOT want to say. He is not speaking here of what happened on the "first day of the week", but clearly of what happened "on a Sabbath" or "on one of the Sabbath days". Mark 16:2 is a verse that is very easy to translate. There are many bibles worldwide that have been translated correctly.

The abbreviations of the cited Bible translations are defined in the directory. The original copies of most Bibles can be downloaded as facsimiles from the Internet free of charge (see Historical Bibles). Some Bibles do not speak of the "one Sabbath" but of the "first Sabbath" or the "first of the Sabbaths". This is not literal, but in terms of content it is nevertheless completely correct, for this Sabbath is in fact the "first of the [seven] Sabbaths" until Pentecost (see Mk 16:9). 

For several centuries, Germany was the land of Bibles. Bible printing was invented in Germany, but even before that there were many good Bible translations that told of the coming of women to the tomb on „a Sabbath morning“ or „a Saturday morning“. The Germans were particularly accurate, and since the German language (unlike English) also knows the genitive case, which was often used in ancient Greek, they were able to translate the content of the NT perfectly. Question: Why can we find the Resurrection Sabbath in catholic Bibles throughout the centuries and not Easter Sunday? The answer is very simple, because both the basic Greek text and the official Latin translation, the Vulgate, have only ever reported „a Sabbath morning“, which the Catholics also translated as „Saturday morning“. Since every German knows that Saturday is not Sunday, theologians came up with the crazy doctrine that the Bible supposedly meant the so called "Christian Saturday" and that this was Sunday. Thus, although the Resurrection Sabbath/Saturday was recorded in writing in Catholic Bibles, Easter Sunday was taught orally in church services instead. In the Middle Ages there was no standardized spelling and there were many regional dialects, which explains the many names for Saturday: Samstag, samztag, samtztag, sampstag, sampztag, sunabinde, sunnabent, Sambstag...

Some Bibles speak generally of "a day of the week" without specifying which day is meant. This is not correct, because first of all God never used the corresponding Greek word for "week" in the NT. And secondly, God clearly defined the day of Jesus' resurrection seven times with the name "Sabbath". 

As can be clearly seen, a chaos of translations has developed over the centuries. It is absolutely impossible that the one basic Greek text offers two different resurrection days of Jesus, of which every Christian can choose one that he would like to have. This variety of the most diverse and contradictory translations makes it clear that we can speak of a deliberate falsification of the Word of God. The closer we get to the coming of Jesus Christ and the Rapture, the more Bibles dare to erase the Sabbath from the Bible and replace it with the unbiblical word "Sunday". Up to now no human being has succeeded for 2,000 years in finding the corresponding Greek words for "after", "week", "Lord's day" or "Sunday" in the basic text of Mk 16:2. 

And the reality is even worse, because some Bible programs even translate old correct German, Spanish, Italian, Swedish or Czech Bibles incorrectly (see old Bibles), because they now always turn „on a/first Sabbath/Saturday“ or „on the one/first of the Sabbaths/Saturdays“ into „on the first day of the week“ or „on a Sunday“. In concrete terms, this means that not only the statements of the ancient languages Greek and Latin are being falsified, but also those of the modern languages, where Bibles that have already been correctly translated into national languages are being falsified again. Apparently, you cannot speak of a Sabbath or Saturday in any language in the world because it supposedly always means „on the first day of the week“ or „on a Sunday“. This shows how demonic the whole thinking of some people is. They cannot be convinced by arguments, but want to see Sunday in the Bible with all their might and by force. They come up with the craziest arguments just to seduce the Bride of Christ and take her away from God's biblical calendar with its feast days to ancient pagan feast days that are not mentioned once in the entire Bible.

For the list of abbreviations of the Bibles see link. The original copies of most Bibles can be downloaded as facsimiles from the Internet free of charge (see Historical Bibles).

 "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearance of evil"

(1Thess 5:21-22)

"Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them"

(Epheser 5:11)