Nougat 2

There’s nothing like an ‘and suddenly’ … in a story to make one refocus our pay attention. For it says, one minute all is well, then with no warning something happened. In Today’s Holy Nougat, even the trigger cannot fully help explain what happened with the Temple Curtain.

“By this time it was about noon, and darkness fell across the whole land until three o’clock. The light from the sun was gone. And suddenly, the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn down the middle.” ‭‭

Luke 23:44-45 NLT

All by Itself, Without Warning

Yesterday we noted that there’s likely to have been symbolism attached to the Torn Temple Curtain. For us to fully grasp the reality of that, we need to remind ourselves of a few facts (see Hebrews 9:2-8; and 1 Kings 6:19-20):

A. The Temple Curtain (i.e., the veil) was located in the Holy of Holies – the most sacred room in the Temple – and only the Israelites High Priest was permitted within and (even then, only once per year at Yom Kippur). This room was the location of the Ark of the Covenant, the oil of anointing, the blooming staff of Aaron,and the Two Tablets of the Law.

B. To separate the Holy of Holies from the rest of the Temple, special curtains were crafted by ’82 myriad of damsels’. The four curtains were each 15’ by 15’, making the entire dimensions 60 feet by 30 feet, and they were 4” thick.

C. According to midrash and legends, only two were made each year, and required 300 men to hang it in place.

Another school of thought suggests that it was the outer curtain that was torn, as the curtain separating the Holy of Holies would not be visible to the public. That curtain was allegedly 80 feet high, also comprising blue and fine linen, of scarlet and purple. This curtain would also have been impossible to be accidentally torn.

Thus, whether these dimensions are hyperbolic or not, the Curtains were exceedingly large and heavy. And, if located in the inner sanctum, it is absolutely unlikely that this curtain would have readily been torn by human hands. And definitely not in a sudden move. It is proposed by Matthew that this happened only in response to Jesus’ cry, ‘It is finished’. That was the trigger behind the ‘and suddenly’.

Again, it is worth noting that Matthew wrote for a Jewish audience. Their life would have revolved around worship in/at the Temple. Some theologians have speculated that this tearing represented the end of the separation between God and humanity. For the Highest High Priest – Who was also the Sacrificial Lamb, God’s only begotten Son, Y’shua – just made the Ultimate and Final sacrifice. It was finished!

Should we hold to that argument, which is corroborated by the Pauline assertion in Hebrews, we realize that each of us now has access to YHWH for ourselves by virtue of Y’shua. The work of Salvation, effected by the Messiah, Y’shua, was done. In that moment, Heaven’s doors were opened to those who needed to be adopted into the family of God. Death lost its sting, for we gained access to ‘Eternal Life in Christ Jesus.’

But

We have to make that choice to accept Y’shua as Lord, as The Way.

What is our answer? Will we share the News with others?

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May all we seek be found in Christ