33 And when the sixth hour had come, it was dark over all the land till the ninth hour. 34 And at the ninth hour, Jesus said in a loud voice, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, My God, my God, why are you turned away from me? 35 And some of those who were near, hearing it, said, See, he is crying to Elijah. 36 And one of them went quickly and, getting a sponge full of bitter wine, put it on a rod, and gave it to him for drink, saying, Let be; let us see if Elijah will come to take him down. 37 And Jesus gave a loud cry, and gave up his spirit. 38 And the curtain of the Temple was parted in two from end to end. 39 And when the captain, who was near, saw how he gave up his spirit, he said, Truly this man was a son of God.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Mark 15:33-39
Commentary on Mark 15:33-41
(Read Mark 15:33-41)
There was a thick darkness over the land, from noon until three in the afternoon. The Jews were doing their utmost to extinguish the Sun of Righteousness. The darkness signified the cloud which the human soul of Christ was under, when he was making it an offering for sin. He did not complain that his disciples forsook him, but that his Father forsook him. In this especially he was made sin for us. When Paul was to be offered as a sacrifice for the service saints, he could joy and rejoice, Philippians 2:17; but it is another thing to be offered as a sacrifice for the sin of sinners. At the same instant that Jesus died, the veil of the temple was rent from the top to the bottom. This spake terror to the unbelieving Jews, and was a sign of the destruction of their church and nation. It speaks comfort to all believing Christians, for it signified the laying open a new and living way into the holiest by the blood of Jesus. The confidence with which Christ had openly addressed God as his Father, and committed his soul into his hands, seems greatly to have affected the centurion. Right views of Christ crucified will reconcile the believer to the thought of death; he longs to behold, love, and praise, as he ought, that Saviour who was wounded and pierced to save him from the wrath to come.