Matthew 27:62: "the day that followed the day of the preparation" - Why not call Sabbath a Sabbath?
In Matthew's chronology Jesus was crucified the day before the first day of unleavened Bread The first day of Unleavened Bread was not the weekly Sabbath in Matthew's account unlike the other three gospels that place Jesus' death on the day before the weekly Sabbath. Matthew's chronology places the day of Jesus' burial on a Wednesday or Thursday and his resurrection on the first day of the week which followed the weekly Sabbath. Matthew did not call the day after Jesus' death a Sabbath because in his account Jesus' death was not the day before the Sabbath.
The spurious gospel of Peter indicates a time period of least a day and a night between the death of Jesus and the Sabbath. See verse 27. earlychristianwritings.com/text/gospelpeter-brown.html
• Matthew's account indicates Jesus would be "three days and three nights" in the heart of the earth. Matthew 12:40. The other three gospels did not refer to three days and three nights. They repeatedly use "the third day" and "after three days". Mark did not refer to the sign of Jonah at all. In fact, Jesus is quoted as saying there would be no sign given that generation. Luke mentions Jesus gave the Jews the sign of the prophet of Jonah but did not mention three days and three nights. Only Matthew mentions the three nights and so he would place the crucifixion on a Wednesday or a Thursday.
The day of the crucifixion was not only the preparation of the weekly Sabbath but was the preparation of the first day of Unleavened Bread as well. The Preparation of the Passover in John 19:14,31 indicated the writer associated the Preparation with the one before the first day of Unleavened Bread as well as the weekly Sabbath.
The first day of Unleavened Bread had to be prepared for because it required a thorough cleaning of one's home for leaven. This required some work and inspection. It probably took only a couple hours for most homes. But it was still considered preparation.
The most common use of "preparation" in the time period during the second temple was Friday. Here are some of the translations of the greek word for preparation in that time period.
The preparation for the weekly Sabbath, however, fell on Friday and it was translated in various ways in the literature of the time. For example, the capitalized words below:
The Didache 8:1 reads: “But as for your fasts, let them not be with the hypocrites, for they fast on the second and fifth days of the week, but do ye fast on the fourth and SIXTH days…” Kirsopp Lake’s translates the second and fifth days as Mondays and Thursdays and the fourth and sixth days as Wednesdays and Fridays.
Judith 8:6 reads: “and she fasted all the days of her widowhood, save the EVES OF THE SABBATHS, and the sabbaths, and the eves of the new moons, and the new moons, and the feasts and solemn days of the house of Israel.
Polycarp 7:1 reads: “So taking the lad with them, on the FRIDAY about the supper hour, the gendarmes and horsemen went forth with their accustomed arms, hastening as against a robber.”
II Maccabees 8:25-26 reads: “And they took their money that came to buy them, and pursued them far but lacking time they returned: For it was the DAY BEFORE THE SABBATH, and therefore they would no longer pursue them.
Antiquities of the Jews 16.6.2 reads: “and they be not obliged to go before any judge on the Sabbath day, nor on the day of the PREPARATION to it, after the ninth hour.”
These show that Preparation was mostly used for the day before the weekly Sabbath.