45 At noon darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. 46 About three o’clock Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” 47 When some of the people standing there heard him say that, they said, “He’s calling Elijah.” 48 One of the men ran at once, took a sponge, and soaked it in some vinegar. Then he put it on a stick and offered Jesus a drink. 49 The others said, “Leave him alone! Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.”
50 Then Jesus loudly cried out once again and gave up his life.
51 Suddenly, the curtain in the temple was split in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, and the rocks were split open. 52 The tombs were opened, and the bodies of many holy people who had died came back to life. 53 They came out of the tombs after he had come back to life, and they went into the holy city where they appeared to many people.
54 An army officer and those watching Jesus with him saw the earthquake and the other things happening. They were terrified and said, “Certainly, this was the Son of God!”
55 Many women were there watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee and had always supported him. 56 Among them were Mary from Magdala, Mary (the mother of James and Joseph), and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.
Read Matthew 27:45-56 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!
Of all the gospels to go into detail about the moment of Jesus’ death, Matthew is the most detailed of the group. Other gospels include the detail that the curtain in the temple was ripped into two – from top to bottom – but only Matthew shares two other perplexing details about the moment Jesus died.
The first detail is that there was an earthquake. Perhaps this earthquake resulted in the temple curtain being torn in two, but according to Matthew’s order of telling us the details, the curtain tore first.
The next detail is the results of the earthquake. “The earth shook, and the rocks were split open. The tombs were opened, and the bodies of many holy people who had died came back to life. They came out of the tombs after he had come back to life, and they went into the holy city where they appeared to many people.” (v. 51b-53)
It is as if an angel shoots down from heaven, rips the curtain in two and impacts the ground causing a ripple that shakes the earth at the exact moment that Jesus takes His last breath. The impact is so strong that the rocks covering graves were split open, and a shockwave of life shoots out from the impact site causing “the bodies of many holy people who had died” to come back to life. I am guessing that these holy people were either prophets from the Old Testament, or other significant figures from Israel’s past. Part of me also wonders if John the Baptist were among those who were gifted with new life (and a restored body) at this first resurrection.
However, what does this odd event that only Matthew includes really mean for us today?
Jesus’ death gives Him power over death and the grave. Jesus’ resurrection, and the resurrection of these holy historical figures, is a promise that when Jesus returns for each of us, He has the power to restore our lives and give each of us new bodies for our new lives with Him. This first resurrection foreshadows the future resurrection when Jesus returns.
This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus “Reflective Bible Study” package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!
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