Matthew 27:45-54

New Testament for Everyone

The death of God’s son

⁴⁵ From noon until mid-afternoon there was darkness over the whole land. ⁴⁶ About the middle of the afternoon Jesus shouted out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani!”—which means, “My God, my God, why did you abandon me?”

⁴⁷ Some of the people who were standing there heard it and said, “This fellow’s calling Elijah!”

⁴⁸ One of them ran at once and got a sponge. He filled it with vinegar, put it on a reed, and gave him a drink.

⁴⁹ The others said, “Wait a bit. Let’s see if Elijah is going to come and rescue him!”

⁵⁰ But Jesus shouted out loudly one more time, and then breathed his last gasp.

⁵¹ At that instant the Temple curtain was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks were split, ⁵² and the tombs burst open. Many bodies of the sleeping holy ones were raised. ⁵³ They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection, and went into the holy city, where they appeared to many people.

⁵⁴ When the centurion and the others with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things that happened, they were scared out of their wits.

“He really was God’s son!” they said.