Why Should We Pray on Holy Saturday?
For practically all Christians, Holy Saturday is somberly observed as the day Jesus was laid in the tomb after His crucifixion. Holy Saturday is a time for us to come into the presence of the Lord, and acknowledge His glorious love for us that He willingly died on the cross. Let us truly give thanks to the Lord, revitalizing our devotion to Him continuously, and especially on Holy Saturday.
We pray on Holy Saturday to give thanks for Christ's sacrifice on the cross, redeeming the world from the fall of Adam, and saving the world from death and sin. We pray for God's grace and mercy to cleanse our hearts and minds in genuine communion with Him. May these prayers help you to praise the atonement given by Jesus and celebrate the glory of His resurrection!
Read more about the traditions and meaning of Holy Saturday.
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” ~ John 11:25-26
We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. ~ Romans 6:4
Use our free Easter Prayer and Scripture Guide to reflect on the meaning and importance of Christ's resurrection.
Prayers for Holy Saturday
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A Holy Saturday Prayer
O Lord Jesus Christ, for our sins you endured the cross and the grave, and on the third day you rose again from the tomb.
Just as you have cleansed us from our sins by your blood, and as we are buried with you in baptism, so by your grace, let us share in your resurrection; through your mercy,
O our God, you are blessed and live and govern all things, now and forever. Amen.
A Prayer for Easter Eve
O God, you enlightened this most holy night with the glory of the Lord’s resurrection. Preserve the spirit of adoption which you have given to all your people, so that renewed in body and soul, we may serve you in all purity; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Restored by Christ
O God of unchangeable power and eternal light, look favorably on your whole Church, which is a wonderful and sacred mystery. In your eternal foreknowledge, you peacefully do your saving work for humanity.
Let the whole world know that things that were cast down are being raised up, and things that had grown old are being made new, and all things are being restored by him in whom they have their beginning; Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. ~ Holy Saturday, from Ancient Collects, ed. William Bright,
Holy Saturday - Holy Week Prayer
Lord God,
On the Sabbath,
Jesus rested.
He was in the grave.
He had finished his work.
To most people’s eyes,
It looked as if it were all over.
He was dead and buried.
But only as a seed dies when it is planted in the earth,
Not to decay, but to spring to new life.
Teach us to take refuge in you when we are afraid
Teach us that death is not our end
Teach us to hope always in you
And in the resurrection, the making of all things new.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen. ~ Holy Week Prayers
Use our prayers for Easter Sunday to continue praying on the day of His resurrection.
Bible Reading for Holy Saturday
Read scriptures addressing the events and meaning of Jesus' burial and resurrection.
Jesus Is Buried - John 19:38-42
After these things Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus, and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took away his body. Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight. So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen cloths with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews. Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. So because of the Jewish day of Preparation, since the tomb was close at hand, they laid Jesus there.
Now there was a man named Joseph, from the Jewish town of Arimathea. He was a member of the council, a good and righteous man, who had not consented to their decision and action; and he was looking for the kingdom of God. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then he took it down and wrapped it in a linen shroud and laid him in a tomb cut in stone, where no one had ever yet been laid. It was the day of Preparation, and the Sabbath was beginning. The women who had come with him from Galilee followed and saw the tomb and how his body was laid. Then they returned and prepared spices and ointments. On the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment.
For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God's will, than for doing evil. For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, because they formerly did not obey, when God's patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him.
Read the full account of the Easter Bible story.
Further Reading:
Day 46 Video Devotional: "Holy Saturday"
Holy Week in the Bible - Significance of Events and Meaning Explained
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