Matthew 27:45-55, The Death of Jesus

45 Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. 46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” 47 And some of the bystanders, hearing it, said, “This man is calling Elijah.” 48 And one of them at once ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine, and put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink.49 But the others said, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.” 50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit.

51 And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split. 52 The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, 53 and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many. 54 When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”

55 There were also many women there, looking on from a distance, who had followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering to him,56 among whom were Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Joseph and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.

Comments

The darkness at the cross marked God’s displeasure as Jesus, totally alienated, quoted Psalm 22. (This is the only time in the Synoptic Gospels that Jesus does not address God without calling him “Father.”) Jesus experienced the cup of judgment that he had willingly accepted from the Father’s hand.

As an act of his own will, Jesus gave up his “human” spirit. In the holy of holies, the ripping of the curtain symbolized the opening of access to God through the death of Jesus. Another way of looking at this was that God was desecrating his temple, foreshadowing the judgment events of AD 70.

The Gentile soldiers balanced the Jewish mockers Their unbelievable confession expressed the power of the cross and Jesus’ willing death. They unknowingly restored the title “Son of God” to its rightful place.

Matthew closed the crucifixion scene recording the women who will be the first to bear witness to Jesus’ resurrection.

Prayer

O God, as on this solemn day we bow at the foot of the cross, may the love that was manifested there stream into our hearts, challenging and subduing them and winning from us that response which is thy will for us. Through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Leslie D. Weatherhead, 1883-1975