MATTHEW 27: [50] 51-56
WITNESSED SIGNS
After Jesus dies the oppressive darkness over the earth is lifted. Everyone knew something significant had happened. The substitutionary death of Jesus brings light (salvation) to a world lost in sin and darkness, that is, to all those who accept Him by means of faith. There are other signs that occur also. At the moment of the Messiah’s death, God provided three miraculous signs. Matthew alone records all the supernatural events that accompany Jesus’ death. The three signs are found in verses 51-53. Verses 54-56 tell us some of the people who witnessed the event and how some of them were affected.
I. THE SIGNS OF THE CROSS, 51-53.
II. THE WITNESSES OF THE CROSS, 54-56.
Verse 51 begins with “behold” or at that moment indicating at the Messiah's death, God provided miraculous signs. Behold or at that moment draws the reader's attention to the three signs, testifying to their reality. The first sign that occurs at the moment of Jesus’ death is The Torn Curtain. “And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom,”
In the temple, behind the veil was the Holy of Holies, the innermost sanctuary, the place where the ark of the covenant rested. Covering the Ark was the mercy seat, and filling the Holy of Holies was the Shekinah glory of God—the visible, tangible presence of the Lord.
This place was so sacred that only once a year (on the Day of Atonement) only one man (the high priest) was allowed to enter. On Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, the Good Friday of the Old Covenant, the high priest would take the blood of the bulls, goats, and lambs that had been sacrificed on the altar in the courtyard and would walk into the Holy Place, the area of the temple where all priests were allowed. He, and he alone then entered beyond the veil separating the Holy place from the Most Holy Place and offered the blood of the substitutionary sacrifice on the Mercy Seat. This sacrificial blood was to atone for the sins of all Israel. For without the shedding of blood there is no redemption or atonement or forgiveness of sin (Heb. 9:22).
This veil that separated man from the Presence of God in the Holy of Holies was massive. It was sixty feet high, thirty feet wide, and ten inches thick. The veil was so heavy that it took three hundred priests to hang it.
So the room outside the Holy of Holies was called the Holy Place. Between the two rooms hung a thick curtain, separating all of humanity from the presence of the thrice holy God-except the high priest one day, each and every year and never without blood.
[If, however, the high priest was not properly cleansed—if he was not right with God—he would die in the Holy of Holies. In Exodus we read that hanging from the hem of the high priest’s robes were hung bells and pomegranates, signifying the gifts and the fruit of the Spirit. As long as the priests in the Holy Place could hear the bells on the high priest’s robes ringing behind the veil, they knew everything was all right. But if the bells stopped ringing, they knew there was trouble. In later years, a rope was tied around the ankle of the high priest so that if he dropped dead, he could be pulled out of the Holy of Holies without placing anyone else’s life in jeopardy. Courson, Jon: Jon Courson's Application Commentary. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2003, S. 210]
At the moment of Jesus’ death, this curtain was torn in two from top to bottom. That massive veil was ripped from top to bottom as if it were a piece of paper. Matthew recorded the direction, from top to bottom, to show that it was torn at God's initiative. The tearing of the temple veil to the Holy of Holies is a sign that the way is now opened for any and everyone to enter into the presence of God, through the substitutionary sacrifice of the Messiah [Hebrews 10:10, 17–22].
During the centuries of Israel's existence, it was unheard of for common people to consider approaching God. The penalty for such arrogance was death. But now God has invited anyone to approach Him. In the death and shed blood sacrifice of Jesus there is access into God’s holy presence. He has paid in full the price of sin and now thrown open access to His holy presence for all who will come in Jesus’ name covered by His blood. For the first time, provision had been made for God to accept sinful humans as forgiven, having been made as righteous through the sacrifice of his Son. Therefore, to you who have been cleansed by the blood Hebrews says, come boldly into the presence of God.
Through the death of Jesus, symbolized by the tearing of the curtain, the way into the Holy of Holies, that is, heaven, is open to all those who take refuge in Him (Heb. 10:19, 20). Every person who simply believes Jesus Christ died for his or her sin can come boldly into the presence of God. That’s revolutionary!
God the Father stated this to the countless priest and worshipers who were celebrating Passover in the Temple when He dramatically tore the veil for them to witness His invitation to come unto Him. The Son opened the way for them, and for you. The old Covenant is torn asunder and a New Covenant has been inaugurated in Jesus’ blood.
Listen, precious people, the work is done. The price is paid. The way into God’s presence is open to everyone who believes. It is open to any person at any time at any place. Thus, any time and any place, every time and every place because of Jesus’ shed blood you can be holy. It’s not where your body is that matters. It’s where your heart is that counts.
Concerning the proper place of worship Jesus said, “The Father is seeking those who will worship Him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24). He has torn the veil from top to bottom. And we can enter into His presence—anyone, any place, any time. Glory be to God! The price was paid. The veil was rent. The way is open. God invitation to you is -Come on in! [Courson, S. 210]
The next signs that occurred at the moment of Jesus death were the Earth Quaking, Rocks Splitting and Tombs Opened. Look at the ending of verse 51 and the beginning of verse 52. “and the earth shook; and the rocks were split, (52) and the tombs were opened;”
The second sign accompanying Jesus’ death was a supernatural earthquake and the splitting of rocks. God was making another statement about His Son to the world and His chosen people in the earthquake that devastated Jerusalem and the surrounding area. [See 24:7; 28:2; Isa 24:19; 29:6; Jer 10:10; Amos 8:8; Nah 1:5–6; Zech 14:4.] Perhaps it reflected the immensity of the "earth-shaking" revelation that had just taken place with the splitting of the curtain. Through the death of the Son of God, the way had been cleared for sinful man to enter the company of the holy God.
When God gave the Law to Moses on Mount Sinai, the earth shook (Exodus 19:18) because the Law was meant to shake people up. “You think you’re righteous?” the law asked. “You think you’re okay? Measure yourself according to My Law and see how you match up.” Paul wrote in Galatians that the law was given as a schoolmaster to make us see that we’re sinners in need of a Savior (Gal. 3:24). Here, the earth is shaking again—this time not to shake man up, but to shake him loose. To get him to wake up from his sin and sleep of apathy. We can be free! The sin that enslaves us has be paid for and forgiven. The veil is rent. Redemption’s price has been paid.
With the earthquake and even because of the earthquake the tombs were opened and deep fissures were created. The death of the Savior had and is still having a splitting open of tombs impact on mankind. Those dead in their trespasses and sin can now escape their living death.
The splitting of the rocks and the resulting opening of tombs was evidently a preview of the final resurrection, guaranteed by the imminent resurrection of Jesus from the dead (1 Cor 15:20, 23; Rev 1:5). Man cannot be hidden from Divine Judgment, for God has access to every and any tomb of man (Heb. 12:26-27).
The next sign is that Saints Were Raised in verses 52 & 53. “and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; (53) and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection they entered the holy city and appeared to many.
The third sign served as a testimony to many people in Jerusalem concerning what had just happened. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. These were holy people, those set apart who served a special purpose. The earthquake happened at the time of Jesus' death. But 27:53 uses the time reference, after Jesus' resurrection. The dead saints were not raised until after the Lord’s resurrection.
Although the stones shook loose, exposing the bodies at the time of the crucifixion, they could not come out of the graves until after Jesus’ Resurrection. Why? Because Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15 that Jesus is the Firstfruit. Jesus rose first.
[Matthew intended for the reader to understand that the resurrected saints wait three days until Sunday, and then enter Jerusalem.] These saints appeared to many as confirming witnesses to the reality of Jesus' resurrection. It is assumed that after their appearing they were translated to heaven possible with Jesus when He first ascended to the Father or 40 days later with Jesus’ final ascension. Their appearance in bodily form testified to Christ resurrection and to God’s promise to raise al those who put their trust in Christ (1 Cor. 15:22, 51-53).
These chosen saints who were resurrected after Jesus arose on Easter Sunday began to walk around the Holy City. What a trip it would have been to see people who were dead for years cruising around Jerusalem! [Courson, S. 210]
II. THE WITNESSES AT THE CROSS, 54-56.
Despite the rejection of Jesus by the leaders of Israel, and the temporary abandonment by His own disciples, there were harmonizing witnesses to His death. These next verses present two responses to the death of Christ. The first is by the Centurion and his soldiers who stood at the foot of the cross. The second is by women standing some distance away. [Luke records another -the unbelieving crowd. The gospels imply the fearful disciples weren’t there.]
Let’s look at the reaction of the Centurion in verse 54. “Now the centurion, and those who were with him keeping guard over Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and the things that were happening, became very frightened and said, ‘Truly this was the Son of God!’”
A centurion (from the Latin word for 100) was a military officer in charge of 100 men and was therefore of significant rank. This particular officer had been given the responsibility of supervising the three crucifixions. It is likely that he and the other soldiers “who were with him keeping guard over Jesus” had been in the Praetorium when Jesus was first brought there by the Jewish leaders. They may have been with the cohort of Roman soldiers who accompanied the chief priests and elders to the Garden of Gethsemane to arrest Jesus. They doubtlessly had heard the charges brought against Him by those leaders and had also heard Pilate's repeated declaration of Jesus' innocence of any crime against Rome. They may even have overheard the conversation between Pilate and Jesus about His being King of the Jews (John 18:33-37). They had heard the screams of "Crucify, crucify," but could hardly have had any idea what was behind the intense bitterness. His supposed claim to be the Son of God seemed just as ludicrous and harmless as His claim to be a king.
But as the fourth hour of His crucifixion began, several things happened to change the soldiers' attitude, and when they saw the earthquake and the things that were happening, the soldiers became very frightened.
One of the things that unnerve them would have been when they had been suddenly plunge into darkness three hours before Jesus’ death. They would not have been aware of the tearing of the Temple veil and probably not the opening of the graves. But they were shaken by the earthquake with its violent splitting of rocks, which was a terrifying experience even for hardened legionnaires. The Greek word for frightened here is phobeo. Phobeo (very frightened) is the term from which we get phobia and refers to sheer terror, the absolute panic that causes rapid heartbeat, profuse sweating, and extreme anxiety. [It is the verb form of the word used by Matthew to describe the disciples' response to seeing Jesus walk on the water, thinking He was a ghost (14:26). It is also the word used to describe the reaction of Peter, James, and John when they glimpsed Jesus' divine glory and heard the Father speak directly to them on the Mount of Transfiguration (17:6).]
The context and circumstances of the passage clearly indicate, however, that the centurion and his men were frightened of much more than the supernatural darkness and earthquake. They sensed that those awesome natural phenomena had a supernatural origin, and their primary fear was not of those events themselves but of the divine power behind them. Their emotional fright soon turned to spiritual, reverential awe, as testified by the fact that they did not run for their lives or try to find a place of safety but rather declared, "Truly this was the Son of God!” The Roman soldiers who crucified Jesus were transformed into believers of a sort when they witnessed the manner of Jesus’ death and its results [Comfort, Philip. Cornerstone Biblical Commentary, Vol 11. Carol Stream, Ill. Tyndale House Publishers, 2005, S. 366].
These soldiers acknowledged what all the others refused to see, and their words to echo a theme in the first Gospel, that Jesus is the Son of God. They had heard Jesus’ seven words on the Cross. They watched Him slowly die and experienced the phenomena that accompanied Jesus’ death and came to the conclusion that Jesus was supernatural, that He was who He had claim to be, the Son of God.
All of them came to the realization that Jesus was not deluded or deranged but was indeed who the Jews had accused Him of claiming to be. The Roman guards were the first to acknowledge that Jesus was no mere man paying with His life for His religious convictions. They now knew they stood in the presence of deity.
In verses 55 and 56 we see the Women who Ministered to Jesus. “And many women were there looking on from a distance, who had followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering to Him, (56) among whom was Mary Magdalene, along with Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.”
The reaction of the second group Matthew mentions was especially tender. These women were given the honor of being mentioned among those who stood by Jesus through the ordeal His crucifixion. Their response to the crucifixion could be described as sympathetic loyalty. From John's account we know that some of the women, as well as John, had earlier been at the foot of the cross (John 19:25-27). But perhaps because they could not bear to observe the suffering of their Lord so closely, those women were now looking on from a distance. They were not afraid of the soldiers or the Jewish leaders and had no concern for their own safety or welfare. They were not ashamed of being identified with Jesus. They withdrew because they were devastated at the suffering and death of the One they had loved so dearly. During this dark event these women were hopeless, disappointed, bereaved, heartbroken; but the love He had created in their hearts for Himself could not be quenched, even by His dying; could not be overcome, even though they were disappointed; could not be extinguished, even though the light of hope had gone out, and over the sea of their sorrow there was no light of the new dawn in sight. Their grief was deep and their hopes seemed shattered, but their courage was undaunted.
Sympathetic loyalty is one of most beautiful and distinguishing characteristics of godly women, generally being more evident in them than in godly men. A spiritual woman has the capacity for incredible loyalty in the face of ridicule and danger. Except for John, the rest of the disciples had fled in fear.
We do not know the number of women who were there, but Matthew's speaking of them as many perhaps would suggest up to a dozen. However many they were, these women were among those who had followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering to Him.
The many women looking on from a distance mourning His death were the logistical support for Jesus’ entourage, as they had traveled south from Galilee to Jerusalem. Among them were Mary Magdalene, [was the woman from whom Jesus cast seven demons (Luke 8:2] along with Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee. These women were given the honor of being mentioned among those who stood by Jesus through his crucifixion. These unsung heroines serve as models of quiet, humble servanthood. We should learn from their examples.
The ministry of Godly women has always been of great significance in the church. Often men are conspicuously absent from the scene, just as the twelve, except for John were this day during their Lord’s great need. Is the depth of your devotion such that you are willing to be identified with a crucified Messiah also?
CONCLUSION
Everyone in that region knew something immensely significant, something earth-shaking had taken place. Through these miracles the Father was bearing witness that the cross of His Son is the only hope for sinful man, the only way to receive eternal life. As the soldiers declared, "Truly this was the Son of God!”
For those who place their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, access to God is open wide and those who enter the open door by covering themselves with the blood of Christ are assured of living in His eternal and indestructible kingdom in eternal and indestructible bodies. Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in the time of need (Heb. 4:16).
