Posts
Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" that is, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" Some of those who stood there, when they heard that, said, "This Man is calling for Elijah!" Immediately one of them ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink. The rest said, "Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to save Him."And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many. So when the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things that had happened, they feared greatly, saying, "Truly this was the Son of God!"- Matthew 27:45-54
Yesterday we read that as Jesus and the soldiers of the garrison came out, they found a man
of Cyrene, Simon by name. Him they compelled to bear His cross. And
when they had come to a place called Golgotha, that is to say, Place of
the Skull, they gave Him sour wine mingled with gall to drink. But when
He had tasted it, He would not drink. Then they crucified Him, and
divided His garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was
spoken by the prophet: "They divided My garments among them, / And for My clothing they cast lots." Sitting down, they kept watch over Him there. And they put up over His head the accusation written against Him: THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS. Then
two robbers were crucified with Him, one of the right and another on
the left. And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads,
and saying, "You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save
Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross."
Likewise the chief priests also, mocking with the scribes and elders,
said, "He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He is the King of
Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him.
He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He
said, 'I am the Son of God.'" Even the robbers who were crucified with
Him reviled Him with the same thing.
Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land. See the prophecies of Zechariah 14:5-7 and Amos 8:9.
And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying,
"Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" that is, "My God, My God, why have You
forsaken Me?" Some of those who stood there, when they heard that,
said, "This Man is calling for Elijah!" Immediately one of them ran and
took a sponge, filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and
offered it to Him to drink. The rest said, "Let Him alone; let us see
if Elijah will come to save Him." It's important to know that Jesus is praying on the Cross. These are the words that begin Psalm 22, a psalm which gives even the details of the Crucifixion. As my study Bible notes, if this beginning of the psalm is taken alone without the rest of it, this cry of "Why have You forsaken Me?" could be misinterpreted as a cry of despair. Because Jesus took on our nature, my study Bible explains, He experiences our alienation from God in His humanity, knowing our suffering and distress, yet He does not despair. He speaks these words in the name of humanity, completely identifying with us in our condition, for in His divinity, He is never forsaken by the Father.
And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. My study Bible comments that Christ's death was voluntary until the very end, for even on the Cross, His life could not be taken from Him against His will. Christ accepts death on the Cross neither to receive the Father's punishment on our behalf, nor to satisfy the Father's need for blood-justice (as if God would demand such things), but in order to enter death as the divine Son of God, thus enabling Him to destroy this last enemy, which is death itself (1 Corinthians 15:20-28).
Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, . . . The veil that separated the Most Holy Place from the rest of the temple was a symbol of the separation between God and humanity. Christ's death opens the way into the presence of God for all people, giving people access to that which is most holy of all, which is God Himself, my study Bible says. In many Orthodox churches, there is a curtain between the altar and the nave which is drawn open during liturgical services in order to emphasize this communion with God, which was at one time sealed off from humanity, but is now available to all who approach in faith. Additionally, Fr. Stephen De Young has said (in accordance with St. Chrysostom) that this tearing of the veil was in fact symbolic of judgment, revealing the Most Holy Place (where only the high priest could go and only on the Day of Atonement) to be empty. In this Second Temple, it is now devoid of the presence of God and the Ark of the Covenant, no longer containing the glory of God under the high priest who in fact has condemned Jesus and agitated for His Crucifixion.
. . . and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many. My study Bible comments that the completeness of the salvation won by Christ is signified in the resurrection of the saints from the Old Testament. This guarantees the promise which was given to Ezekiel that God can and will one day open the graves of all humankind (Ezekiel 37:1-14). The saints entering the holy city is an icon of resurrected humanity entering the heavenly Jerusalem (Hebrews 11:10, 12:22-23; Revelation 21:2-22:5).
So when the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw
the earthquake and the things that had happened, they feared greatly,
saying, "Truly this was the Son of God!" The centurion is a Gentile; according to my study Bible, he realizes that Jesus has dominion over nature, and therefore acknowledges Him as the Son of God. In Church Tradition, he is known as St. Longinus.
In today's reading, we read of the "powers of heaven" being "shaken." When Jesus gives His prophecy concerning "end times" (Matthew 24), He says, "Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken" (Matthew 24:29). In addition to the prophecies of Zechariah and Amos cited above, we can look at these events reported at the time of Jesus' death and understand that there is a tremendous "shaking up" indeed happening here. There is darkness at noon until approximately 3:00 in the afternoon (the sixth hour until the ninth hour). When Jesus cried out with a loud voice and yielded up His spirit, "the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth
quaked, and the rocks were split, and the graves were opened; and many
bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out
of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and
appeared to many." All of these actions echo the apocalyptic nature of the end times prophecy given by Jesus; they make it clear that there are layers to the reality that we know, and Christ Himself is somehow active and evident in all of them. So much so, that all is shaken up (quite literally in terms of the earthquake). This can be understood in various ways, all of which we must take into account, as all may be true at once. That the veil in the temple was torn in two is the subject of discussion among many Church Fathers, but again, all may be understood as possible at once. That Christ opened up mysteries in faith to His followers is something He Himself has testified to (Matthew 13:31). St. Ephraim the Syrian, in addition to agreement with other opinions noted above, also gives an additional poetic understanding of the tearing of the veil, in that it is similar to a person tearing their clothes, and in that sense an expression of grief. Clearly we might see it as the temple itself expressing grief that its glory had gone, its joy in the form of Christ the Lord, and indicating a change from the old covenant to the new. That the graves were opened; and many
bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised" seems to tell us about Christ's entering into the place of the dead and bringing life. Most interestingly St. Matthew writes of their coming out
of the graves after His resurrection, and entering the holy city (Jerusalem) and appearing to many, thus giving us a picture of the resurrection as manifest to many in the city. We see many layers of reality being manifest at once here: that Christ is both Lord and Judge (including of the temple), that He is the resurrection and the life (John 11:25), even that His body is the true temple (John 2:19). What we should understand is that in all of these dimensions, Christ spans the reality of existence. That is, as human He is within time, but as divine He is not limited by time; the same is true of space. The reality of the Kingdom of heaven, as He has said spans all of these varied dimensions of existence, of reality, and yet it, too, is within us (Luke 17:21). What that boils down to is simply that each of these things can be true at once, because we are speaking of Jesus Christ, and all of these things can be taken together, even as signs of "end times," yet belonging to things to come, and manifest as echoes and repetitions of one another at that time, and even in our own time, if we look carefully. For, since His death, we are living in the time of the end as we await His return. He remains for us the way, the truth, and the life -- and the way to the Father (John 14:6). We must understand the salvific power of His Person and His identity as both fully God and fully human, bringing divinity to all things He experienced as a human being, even death, and transfiguring and healing all for us, so that we may follow Him.
