among the ancients, signified the whole natural day, or day and night consisting of 24 hours, or 24 equal parts. This way of considering the day was particularly adopted by the Jews, and seems to owe its origin to that expression of Moses, in the first chapter of Genesis, "the evening and the morning were the first day."—Before the Jews had introduced the Greek language into their discourse, they used to signify this space of time by the simple expression of a night and a day.

It is proper here to observe, that all the eastern countries reckoned any part of a day of 24 hours for a whole day; and say a thing that was done on the third or seventh day, &c. from that last mentioned, was done after three or seven days. And the Hebrews, Nykthemon, having no word which exactly answers to the Greek meron νυκτόν, signifying "a natural day of 24 hours," say a thing happened after three days and three nights, was, with them, the same as to say it happened after three days, or on the third day. This, being remembered, will explain what is meant by "the Son of Man's being three days and three nights in the heart of the earth."