 All this happened on the day before the Jewish peoples rest day. And it was going to be a really special rest day, because it was the time of the Passover ceremony. The Jewish leaders didnt want the bodies to be on those crosses on their rest day, and in their culture a new day started when the sun went down. It was already afternoon, so they asked Pilate to get the soldiers to break the legs of the men on the crosses, so those men can die more quickly, and then they can take their bodies down before the sun went down. 