Scripture Daily

Context No. 870 of 4322 · Matthew

Context · Reflection

Matthew 27:50-54: in context

50Jesus cried again with a loud voice, and yielded up his spirit. 51Behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from the top to the bottom. The earth quaked and the rocks were split. 52The tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; 53and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection, they entered into the holy city and appeared to many. 54Now the centurion and those who were with him watching Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and the things that were done, were terrified, saying, “Truly this was the Son of God!”

Jesus cries out with a loud voice and gives up his spirit. At that moment the veil of the temple is torn in two from top to bottom, the earth quakes, rocks split, tombs open, and the centurion who was keeping watch, seeing the earthquake, says, Truly this was the Son of God.

Every sign here points one direction. The veil that separated the holy of holies from everyone else is torn from top to bottom, not bottom to top, as if the tearing hand came from God's side, opening what human hands had kept closed. The earth itself convulses, the rocks that outlast generations split, and the tombs that hold the dead are forced open. And the first human being to confess the crucified Jesus as Son of God is not a disciple, not a priest, but a Roman centurion, an executioner, a Gentile standing at the foot of the cross. The people who should have known him have scattered or mocked, and the soldier who ran the execution is the one who names him rightly. The death that looked like defeat tears open every barrier at once: the temple, the earth, the grave, and the hard heart of a pagan officer.

Do I need a private, comfortable faith, or can I confess him plainly where I stand, the way this soldier did in the last place anyone expected?

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