The Rough Wood and the Sealed Stone: The Crucifixion and Burial in Matthew 27

I have a piece of rough lumber in my shop that I saved from a scrap pile. It is not good for much. Splintered on one end, warped in the middle, too short for most projects. But I keep it anyway because it reminds me that the most important things are sometimes made from wood that nobody wanted.

The cross was made from wood like that. Rough and cruel and not intended for a beautiful finish. But through the act of the crucifixion, that crude piece of lumber became the most important instrument in history.

Matthew 27 is the chapter where everything goes dark. Jesus stands before Pilate. The crowd chooses Barabbas. The soldiers mock and beat him. He carries the cross to Golgotha and is crucified. He dies. He is buried. The stone is sealed.

What Happened to Judas After He Betrayed Jesus

The chapter opens with Judas. When he sees that Jesus is condemned he is filled with remorse and tries to return the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests. They refuse. He throws the money into the temple and goes and hangs himself.

The difference between remorse and repentance is on display here. Judas is sorry for what he did but he does not turn back to God. He tries to fix it himself and fails. The priests take the blood money and buy a potter's field to bury strangers.

And when the morning was come, all the chief priests and elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death. And when they had bound him, they led him away, and delivered him to Pontius Pilate the governor.

Matthew 27:1-2

Meaning of the Veil of the Temple Being Rent in Two

Jesus stands before Pilate and says almost nothing. Pilate is amazed. He offers to release a prisoner for the feast and the crowd chooses Barabbas, a known insurrectionist. Pilate washes his hands and says he is innocent of the blood of this just person. But washing his hands does not make him innocent. He had the authority to stop it and did not use it.

The soldiers take Jesus and strip him and put a scarlet robe on him. They twist a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They put a reed in his right hand and kneel before him in mockery. They spit on him and strike him on the head with the reed. The irony is that he is a king. The robe and the crown and the reed are a parody, but they are also true.

This connects to The Hidden Crack: Betrayal, Submission, and Failure in Matthew 26, where the trial before Caiaphas and Peter's denial set the stage for this moment.

Why Did Jesus Say My God Why Hast Thou Forsaken Me

They force Simon of Cyrene to carry the cross and reach Golgotha. Jesus is offered vinegar mixed with gall and refuses it. They crucify him and cast lots for his garments. The superscription above his head reads: THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

Two thieves are crucified with him. The passersby taunt him. The chief priests mock him. Even the thieves cast the same in his teeth.

Then darkness falls over the land from the sixth hour to the ninth hour. And Jesus cries out with a loud voice. Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?

This is the hardest verse in the chapter. Jesus felt forsaken. He was bearing the weight of every sin that separates us from God. He experienced the full reality of that separation so that we would not have to.

The veil of the temple is rent in two from top to bottom. The earth quakes and the rocks are split. The graves are opened. The centurion and those with him fear greatly and say: Truly this was the Son of God.

Significance of Joseph of Arimathaea in the Bible

Joseph of Arimathaea is a rich man and a disciple of Jesus. He goes to Pilate and asks for the body. He wraps it in clean linen and lays it in his own new tomb, then rolls a great stone to the door and departs. The women who had followed Jesus from Galilee watch from a distance.

The next day the chief priests and Pharisees go to Pilate. They remember that Jesus said he would rise after three days and ask for the tomb to be sealed until the third day so the disciples cannot steal the body and claim he rose. Pilate gives them permission. They seal the stone and set a watch.

They thought they were sealing a grave, but they were sealing the promise of a new beginning. The stone could not hold him. The seal could not contain him. The watch could not stop what was coming.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did Jesus not save himself if he had all power?

The purpose of his mission was not to avoid suffering but to experience it fully on our behalf. If he had saved himself the Atonement would not have been complete and the way back to the Father would have remained closed.

What is the significance of the darkness that fell over the land?

The darkness from the sixth to the ninth hour represents the world's spiritual state and the weight of the sins Jesus was bearing. The physical world mirrored the spiritual agony of the Savior.

Why was the tearing of the temple veil so important?

The veil separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place where only the High Priest could enter once a year. The tearing of the veil signified that because of Christ's sacrifice, the barrier between man and God was removed.

Why did the priests seal the tomb with a stone and a watch?

They remembered Jesus' prediction that he would rise after three days. The sealing was a desperate attempt to prevent the disciples from stealing the body and claiming he rose from the dead.

Closing

The rough wood of the cross was not the end of the story. The sealed stone was not the final word. Matthew 27 is the darkest chapter in the gospel, but it is followed by the chapter where everything changes. The darkness is real. It is not permanent.

— D.