Matthew 27:45-66 Lesson 61

Read both the "King James Bible" and the "New Living Translation."

In this lesson:

First, King Herod tried to kill the infant Jesus (Matthew 2:13). Then, an angry mob wanted to throw Him off a cliff (Luke 4:16-30). Later, the high priest conspired to murder Him (Mark 14:1; John 5:18) and twice Jesus was almost stoned to death (John 8:59; 10:31).

They all failed to stop Jesus.

But in this passage, the Messiah is killed.

Study Tip:

Whenever you encounter a difficult passage, scroll back and forth between the "New Living Translation" and "The King James Bible."

Who was...

Elias -
Elias is the Greek name for Elijah, perhaps the most famous of Israel's prophets for no other is mentioned as often in the New Testament. Elijah came from Tishbeh in Gilead, was devoutly religious, and prepared Israel to accept God. After the breakup of King David's Israel in 931 B.C. Elijah preached against the growing paganism and idol worship under King Ahab and his gentile wife Jezebel. As Jews turned away from God, Elijah called on Israel to repent of its sins and was given the power to perform miracles (1 Kings 17:1). He caused the rain to stop for three and a half years (James 5:17) and ascended into heaven without dying (2 Kings 2:11). During the Transfiguration he appeared with Moses at Jesus' side (Matthew 17:1-13). The Old Testament prophesized that Elijah would return just before "the day of the Lord" (Malachi 4:5-6).  To learn more about Elijah see 1 Kings 17:1-20, 1 Kings 18:1-46 and 2 Kings 1-2.

Mary Magdalene -
From the village of Magdala, she is one of seven Mary's mentioned in the New Testament. After Jesus freed her from seven demons (Mark 16:9; Luke 8:2), Mary became His devoted follower and traveled with Jesus and His group right up to and including the final trip to Jerusalem and crucifixion (Matthew 27:55; Mark 15:40; John 19:25). When others fled, Mary lovingly stood vigil beside the cross until Jesus died (Luke 23:46-49).  Mary was still on Calvary when Jesus was taken off the cross and buried (Matthew 27:61; Mark 15:47; Luke 23:55).  Three days later with Salome and Mary (the mother of James), she went to anoint Jesus' body and found the grave empty.  Mary Magdalene was among the first to hear that Jesus had been resurrected from the dead (Matthew 28:1-8; Mark 16:1-8) and the first to see Him after He had arisen (Mark 16:9; John 20:10-16).

Joseph of Arimathaea -
A wealthy (Matthew 27:57) member of the powerful Jewish high council, called the Sanhedrin (Mark 15:43) and a secret follower of Jesus Christ (John 19:38).  Joseph kept his faith secret out of fear of the Pharisees' (John 12:42) and was absent the night the Sanhedrin falsely convicted the Messiah of blasphemy (Luke 23:50-51).  It was Joseph who "begged" Pilate for Jesus' crucified body, took Him down from the cross, prepared Him for burial, and supplied the tomb for Jesus to be buried in (Matthew 27:57-60; Mark 15:43-46; Luke 23:50-53; John 19:38-42).  Joseph appears in all four Gospels.

Jesus being placed in His tomb.

The Gospel According to St. Matthew

The King James Bible

Matthew 27:45-66
Jesus dies and is buried

45 Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour.

46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?

47 Some of them that stood there, when they heard that, said, This man calleth for Elias.

48 And straightway one of them ran, and took a spunge, and filled it with vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink.

49 The rest said, Let be, let us see whether Elias will come to save him.

50 Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.

51 And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;

52 And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,

53 And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.

54 Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God.

55 And many women were there beholding afar off, which followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering unto him:

56 Among which was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedees children.

57 When the even was come, there came a rich man of Arimathaea, named Joseph, who also himself was Jesus' disciple:

58 He went to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be delivered.

59 And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth,

60 And laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock: and he rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre, and departed.

61 And there was Mary Magdalene, and the other Mary, sitting over against the sepulchre.

62 Now the next day, that followed the day of the preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees came together unto Pilate,

63 Saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again.

64 Command therefore that the sepulchre be made sure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night, and steal him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first.

65 Pilate said unto them, Ye have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can.

66 So they went, and made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch.

Margin notes:

"Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour." (27:45) - Jim Bishop, author of The Day Christ Died, (Harper & Brothers, New Your, New York; page 299) reports this darkness was experienced world-wide. "The darkness, which was like looking through extra-strong sun glasses, seems to have pervaded the world at this hour. Phlegon (Greek historian) wrote that in the fourth year of the two hundred and second Olympiad, there was a great darkness over Europe, surpassing anything that had ever been seen. At mid-day, he said, the stars could be seen. At the same time an earthquake caused much damage in Nicaea (present-day Iznik, Turkey). Tertullian (author and early Christian) found in the records of Rome a notation of world-wide darkness which the statesmen of the Empire couldn't explain."

"My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" (27:46) - These words were first spoken by King David (Psalm 22:1). Carrying the weight of all mankind's sins, Jesus was feeling the full wrath of God.

"Straightway one of them ran, and took a spunge, and filled it with vinegar, and put it on a reed." (27:48) - Means, "Immediately one of the soldiers ran and got a sponge, soaked it in cheap wine and held it up to Jesus on a stick." Just as prophesied in Psalm 69:21 centuries earlier.

"The rest said, Let be." (27:49) - "The rest said, leave him be."

"The veil of the temple was rent in twain." (27:51) - "The veil in the temple was torn in two." See today's question below.

"The rocks rent." (27:51) - "The rocks broke apart."

"Truly this was the Son of God." (27:54) - These words were spoken by the same men who mocked Jesus, gambled for His clothes, and nailed Him to the cross.

"Beholding afar off." (27:55) - "Watching from afar."

"The mother of Zebedees children." (27:56) - This is Salome, Zebedee's wife, the Virgin Mary's sister (Jesus' aunt), and the mother of the disciples James and John (Mark 10:35). Salome was a devoted follower of Christ. While most of the disciples fled when Jesus was crucified Salome not only went to Calvary to witness the crucifixion, she stayed until the agonizing end (Matthew 27:54-56; Mark 15:40; John 19:25). Three days later she went to Jesus' tomb to anoint His body with spices but found it empty (Mark 16:1-8).

"When the even was come." (27:57) - "When evening had come."

"Rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre." (27:60) - "Rolled a large stone in front of the door to the tomb."

"Mary, sitting over against the sepulchre." (27:61) - "Mary, sitting across from the tomb."

"The sepulchre be made sure." (27:64) - Means, "The tomb is made secure."

"Ye have a watch." (27:65) - "You have a guard."

You can read more about the death and burial of Christ in Mark 15:33-49, Luke 23:44-55, and John 19:28-42.

New Living Translation

Matthew 27:45-66
The Death of Jesus

45 At noon, darkness fell across the whole land until three o'clock. 46 At about three o'clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice, "Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?" which means "My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?"

47 Some of the bystanders misunderstood and thought he was calling for the prophet Elijah. 48 One of them ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, holding it up to him on a reed stick so he could drink. 49 But the rest said, "Wait! Let's see whether Elijah comes to save him."

50 Then Jesus shouted out again, and he released his spirit. 51 At that moment the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, rocks split apart, 52 and tombs opened. The bodies of many godly men and women who had died were raised from the dead. 53 They left the cemetery after Jesus' resurrection, went into the holy city of Jerusalem, and appeared to many people.

54 The Roman officer and the other soldiers at the crucifixion were terrified by the earthquake and all that had happened. They said, "This man truly was the Son of God!"

55 And many women who had come from Galilee with Jesus to care for him were watching from a distance. 56 Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary (the mother of James and Joseph), and the mother of James and John, the sons of Zebedee.

The Burial of Jesus

57 As evening approached, Joseph, a rich man from Arimathea who had become a follower of Jesus, 58 went to Pilate and asked for Jesus' body. And Pilate issued an order to release it to him. 59 Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a long sheet of clean linen cloth. 60 He placed it in his own new tomb, which had been carved out of the rock. Then he rolled a great stone across the entrance and left. 61 Both Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting across from the tomb and watching.

The Guard at the Tomb

62 The next day, on the Sabbath, the leading priests and Pharisees went to see Pilate. 63 They told him, "Sir, we remember what that deceiver once said while he was still alive: 'After three days I will rise from the dead.' 64 So we request that you seal the tomb until the third day. This will prevent his disciples from coming and stealing his body and then telling everyone he was raised from the dead! If that happens, we'll be worse off than we were at first."

65 Pilate replied, "Take guards and secure it the best you can." 66 So they sealed the tomb and posted guards to protect it.

This second Bible text from the "New Living Translation" (Tyndale House, Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois) is a paraphrase and not an accurate word for word translation of the Bible. However, it is a helpful tool when read with the "King James Version."

Today's Question:

1. Why did the Temple's curtain tear? (27:51)

The more time you spend with your Bible, the more it opens up to you.

Answer: (Do you agree?)

1. According to the Quest Study Bible (published by Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan; Pg. 1432), "The large blue, purple and scarlet curtain separated the Holy Place (of the temple) from the Most Holy Place, an inner room which symbolized God's presence (Exodus 26:31-33). Only the High Priest could enter the Most Holy Place once a year. The curtain was in effect, the barrier that separated people from God." Tearing the sixty by thirty-foot curtain in two was God's announcement that mankind now had direct access to Him (Hebrews 9:1-15 and 10:19-22). Thanks to Jesus' sacrifice on the cross the barrier between God and man, created by Adam and Eve's sin, is gone forever.

Application thought for the day:

Joseph of Arimathaea, a Jewish leader and member of the Sanhedrin, believed Jesus was the Messiah. To avoid reprisals from the high priests, he kept his faith a secret (John 19:38). Now with the Messiah dead and the disciples in hiding,
Joseph went public and took the risk of "begging" Pilate for Jesus' body (27:58).

It's never to late to make your faith known.

Thanks to the writings and commentary of John Wesley and Adam Clarke. Also, "The Layman's Bible Study Notebook" by Irving Jensen published by Harvest House Publishing, Irvine, California; the "Life Change Series" published by NavPress Books, Colorado Springs, Colorado; the "Life Application Study Bible" published by Tyndale House Publishing, Carol Stream, Illinois; "The Quest Study Bible" published by The Zondervan Corporation, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "Robertson's New Testament Word Studies"; "The MacArthur Bible Commentary" by John MacArthur published by Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee; "Wisdom of the Bible" CD by Topics Entertainment, Inc., Renton, Washington for their inspiring pictures; "My utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers published by Barbour publishing, Inc., Uhrichsville, Ohio; The "Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge" by Reuben Archer Torrey; "Hope For Each Day" by Billy Graham published by J. Countryman, a division of Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee; "Easton's Bible Dictionary" by Matthew George Easton; "Unger's Bible Dictionary" by Merrill F. Unger, published by Moody Press, Chicago, Illinois; "Halley's Bible Handbook" by Henry H. Halley, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "The Living New Testament" published by Tyndale house; "The New Living Translation" published by Tyndale House; BibleGateway.com for all their wonderful links; and of course the "King James Bible". All were critical in putting these lessons together.
© 2020 evolke

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Read both the "King James Bible" and the "New Living Translation."

The Gospel According to St. Matthew

The King James Bible ​

The more time you spend with your Bible, the more it opens up to you.

The King James Bible