Five miracles will be seen that happened at the crucifixion of Jesus until his resurrection.
1. The first miracle was the darkness on the whole earth.
Matthew 27:45 Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour.
Mark 15:33 And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.
(Luke 23:44 And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour.
Luke 23:45a And the sun was darkened,)
Many people try to say this was an eclipse of the sun to deny this miracle and that it was confined only to area around Jerusalem and Judea. They are wrong on both accounts. Passover always occurred during a full moon. A solar eclipse can only occur during a new moon. No astronomical records of the time mention a solar eclipse. Scripture also says the darkness lasted for three hours from the sixth hour to the ninth hour which is from noon to 3 pm. The longest ever recorded total solar eclipse is only about seven minutes, nowhere near three hours as occurred here and it did not darken the whole earth, nor do any solar eclipses.
Luke 23:44 clearly tells us this supernatural darkness covered the whole earth.
Two Greek historians from that time wrote of the worldwide darkness. Both of these men were pagans, so were not recording it to try and defend scripture. The first was Thallus who was alive at the time of the crucifixion, wrote in his book Third History around A.D. 52, “that darkness totally covered the land at the time of the passover”. In another place he says “On the whole world there pressed a most fearful darkness”. The second Greek was Phlegon who lived near Ephesus. He wrote in his Collection of Olympiads and Chronicles, “At the sixth hour the day was turned into dark night, so that the stars in the heavens were seen”. Notice he not only mentions the darkness, but even starting the same sixth hour as recorded in scripture. The Romans also recorded this as they were known for recorded events in their empire. One Roman historian wrote “At the same time at noonday there was a great darkness.” Roman archives could be studied by the public.
Amos prophesied of this darkness in about 750 B.C.
Amos 8:9-10 9 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord GOD, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day:
10 And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; and I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning of an only son, and the end thereof as a bitter day.
It can be clearly seen that there was a supernatural darkness over the whole earth from the sixth hour to the ninth hour. This was no ordinary darkness, but as one historian said a great and fearful darkness. The reason as stated could not be from an eclipse. Jesus is the light of the world. (John 8:12, John 9:5, Revelation 21:23 et cetera) Jesus was on the cross from the third to the ninth hours (9 am to 3 pm). For the final three hours, God the Father could not look upon his Son Jesus as Jesus bore the sins of the whole world for all who will ever live. Jesus was dying and he is the light of the world. There was darkness for the last three hours of Jesus’ crucifixion since it was at this point he took on the sins of the whole world. Sin always brings in darkness. No light in sin. This was the first time Jesus cried out as the pain of carrying sin far outweighed his physical pain from the crucifixion. Also at this time God the Father and God the Holy Ghost had to forsake Jesus as he took on the sins of the world. This hurt Jesus more than anything else. All of creation mourned for his death, except man who prefers darkness. (John 3:19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.). Mankind got the darkness they wanted.
2. Jesus gave up the ghost
Matthew 27:50 ¶ Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.
Mark 15:34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
Mark 15:37 And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost.
Luke 23:46 ¶ And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.
John 19:30 When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.
Jesus gave up the ghost and died. He himself gave his life for you and me and the world. No man took it. No person can will themselves to death at a precise moment, even when one commits suicide. He died precisely at the ninth hour (3 pm) to obey the law, for this was the time of the sacrifice of the passover lambs. (I Corinthians 5:7 Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:) Jesus chose the time of his death. He cried out with a loud voice just before he died, something no ordinary person would have been able to due under his condition. This shows he should have been able to live awhile longer, but he chose this specific time for his death. God, not man was in control.
The Roman centurion recognized the miracle in how Jesus determined the time of his death, not them.
Mark 15:39 ¶ And when the centurion, which stood over against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God.
The Christian historian Tertullian who lived from 160-220 wrote “At his own free-will, he with a word dismissed from his spirit, anticipating the executioner’s work.”
3. Veil of the temple torn.
Matthew 27:51 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;
Mark 15:38 And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom.
Luke 23:45 And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst.
At the time that Jesus gave up the ghost (died), the veil of the temple was torn into two pieces in the middle of it from top to bottom. The veil separated the holy of holies from the rest of the temple and was to be accessed only by the high priest once a year on the day of atonement. (Exodus 30:10 And Aaron shall make an atonement upon the horns of it once in a year with the blood of the sin offering of atonements: once in the year shall he make atonement upon it throughout your generations: it is most holy unto the LORD.) (Hebrews 9:7 But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people:) At the time it was torn (ninth hour or 3 pm), this was the exact hour that the Jews would sacrifice their passover lambs. The veil was torn from top to bottom as it was done by God and showed access to him was now not just for the high priest once a year, but for all believers at any time day or night any day of the year through his Son Jesus. All true Christians are priests. This also was an indication that animal sacrifices were no longer needed as the ultimate sacrifice in Jesus as our passover lamb was complete. The veil was a reminder that we as sinners were to remain separate from God, but now we as sinners through the blood of Jesus could have direct access to God.
The veil was according to Jewish tradition four inches thick and was at least 30 feet tall. Supposedly it was so strong and heavy, that even a team of horses could not rip it. It was nothing for God to tear it in half.
4. Earthquake at the time of the death of Jesus.
When Jesus died on the cross for you and me and all mankind, there was a great earthquake. It should be noted that Jesus gave up his life and died for us and that no one took it from him.
Matthew 27: 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;
The whole earth shook at the fact that the Creator of the universe was dead and it was its way of showing mourning. If only all of man felt the same way. Some Romans did get saved that day by the events on the cross as seen in Matthew 27:54.
Matthew 27:54 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.
The earthquake at the crucifixion is also mentioned by the Greek Thallus when he said “the rocks were rent by an earthquake, and many places in Judea and other distrcts were thrown down.” The Greek Phlegon also mentons the earthquake. He said “there was an earthquake in Bithynia which overthrew many houses in the city of Nice (Nicea).” I believe even as was recorded by these men that this was a worldwide quake and not just a local event, just as the darkness was worldwide. Jesus and his death effected all people of the earth and not just the Jews in Judea or Jerusalem. The earthquake was to show the power of God and how they had crucified God the Creator himself, but that he stills lives and is in power and control.
When the earth shook, it opened up graves and rent rocks. The amateur archeologist Ron Wyatt, a humble Christian who had asked God to allow him to find things from scripture that would help him win souls for Jesus and not just find things for himself to get glory, said he found the ark of the covenant buried in a tunnel under the cross of Jesus. It was most likely put there by Jeremiah. According to Ron Wyatt, he found evidence of the earthquake at the crucifixion site as mentioned in scripture. He said the rocks below the cross of Jesus were rent in pieces. There was also a crack in the ground under the cross where blood had seeped in the ground. He found that the blood of Jesus had gone through this crack in the ground and dripped into the mercy seat of the ark of the covenant showing Jesus again fulfilled the law. As our passover lamb, and the ultimate sin offering to cover all the sins of man, not his, his blood was placed on the mercy seat just as the high priest would place the blood of the sin offering on the mercy seat on the day of atonement. Just like our Saviour to do this and again show he is who he says he is and is God. Jesus would later place his blood on the heavenly mercy seat as the final sacrifice was made once and for all.
5. The graves were opened up.
Matthew 27:52 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.
Notice that God opened the graves of certain saints. He did not open all graves, but some of his children in Jerusalem as another witness against the Jews. Notice that only saved people were brought back to life. God never returns unsaved people from hell. Hell is a final solution for all who reject Jesus as their Saviour except when they get cast into the lake of fire. These saints graves were opened on the day of the crucifixion, but the bodies did not come out of the graves until after the resurrection of Jesus on Sunday morning. Even here again Jesus obeyed the law and did not present the saints to their families before Sunday or the Jews would have been unclean for the passover and sabbath. Jesus is the first fruits of resurrection. Jesus had to rise first before anyone else could including those whose graves were opened. (I Corinthians 15:20 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.) (I Corinthians 15:23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.)
All of these miracles were done to show Jesus is God and as final signs to the Jews that Jesus was their Messiah. The Jews would be given 50 days after the resurrection of Jesus to think about what they had seen on the cross and repent and call upon Jesus when Peter spoke on Pentecost.
Many miracles were done by Jesus just before his crucifixion, during the crucifixion and in the days after until his resurrection and even after that. Some examples are Jesus healed the ear of Malchus cut off by Peter at the time of the arrest of Jesus. Another is how the grave clothes were left in the tomb just as they had been on Jesus and the napkin had been folded. The ultimate miracle of course was the resurrection of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ on that third day, which allows us eternal life with Jesus for those who will repent and call upon his name. His resurrection was the defeat of Satan and shows he is God. Only God could raise himself from the dead. Let us not be like most of the Jews of that day, but let us receive Jesus as the Roman centurion did, the penitent thief on the cross, and some Jews.
