Before the rooster crows

Peter had just said he would never let Jesus down, even if all the others did. Jesus answered calmly and precisely: this very night, before the rooster crows, three times.

Mark tells it even more precisely: before the rooster crows twice. In that Gospel, cockcrow is also the name of a part of the night, between midnight and three. Before it got light, Peter would deny that he even knew Jesus. His most outspoken disciple would fall short. But Jesus stayed faithful, even when Peter didn't.