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51 Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, 52 and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; 53 and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many. 54 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 27:51-54
Today, we return to our study of Matthew 27 where we find ourselves observing the events that took place while the Lord Jesus hung on His cross. It was 9:00am on the Friday of Passover week. For the first three hours, the scene was dominated by the lesser characters in the story. At noon the focus changed. The most significant event in the history of this world took place when God entered into time and space and paid the penalty for our sin. It was during those three hours of darkness that the Son of God, the light of the world was made sin for all who believe that His death paid the debt that our sin created. The darkness surrounding His cross was reminiscent of that dark night in Egypt when the angel of death killed the firstborn of those who had not applied the blood of the sacrificial lamb to the doorposts of their homes.
In v.51-53 of today's passage we read, "51 Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, 52 and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; 53 and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many."
Once the Lord Jesus breathed His last breath, the veil of the temple was torn in two from the top to the bottom. In that moment sinful man was given an option to change the trajectory of his eternity. The tearing of the veil was God's vertical declaration that we could enjoy a personal relationship with Him through the forgiveness earned for us by His Son. And now, there is no longer any need for earthly temples, altars, sacrifices, or priests, because God has fulfilled all righteousness through the finished work of the Lord Jesus on the cross.
When the Lord Jesus died, not only did the veil experience ripping, there was also a massive earthquake and graves were opened. Since it was 3:00 in the afternoon there were undoubtedly many people in the temple that day engaged in their worship of God. With the earthquake God interrupted worship at the temple with the message found in Jeremiah 31 which reads, "31 Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah 32 not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the Lord. 33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people."
When the Lord Jesus died believers in the God of the Bible who had died before were raised from the dead on that Sunday. There is a reason why Matthew is the only one of the gospel writers who accentuated this resurrection. He wrote his gospel account to a Jewish audience who on the basis of Daniel 12:2 expected their Messiah to be resurrected soon after His arrival to this earth. Matthew wrote to underscore the fact that with Christ's sacrifice came the end of the Jewish Law.
In v.54 of today's passage we read, "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!'"
A Roman centurion was the commander of a hundred men which was called a century. When the earth quaked this centurion saw it and everything associated with it and he concluded along with his men the Lord Jesus to be the Son of God. This particular officer was in charge of the soldiers who were guarding the crucified body of the Lord Jesus. It was these soldiers who mocked the Lord Jesus and gambled for His clothing. Most importantly, they were the ones who witnessed His entire crucifixion from beginning to end. They had seen crucifixions before, yet they had never seen someone respond as the Lord did that day. These were hardened men, yet, they heard the Lord Jesus pray for His murderers. They heard His cries to His Father. They heard Him promise paradise to the repentant thief who had been cursing Him just moments before.
And then, they experienced the impossible: darkness in the middle of the day. The skies for three hours were dark. It was then that an earthquake violently shook the earth. They could no longer ignore what was happening. The darkness, the earthquake, and then the final breath of the Lord Jesus spoke a different story from all of the other crucifixions they had witnessed. And, it had an impact on this centurion. It was at that moment he said, "Truly this was the Son of God!"
