11Apr
We, who are committed to the Bible as the Word of God, confidently accept the Gospel accounts of the death and resurrection of Jesus. So, when we read Matthew’s account of the strange phenomenon at the crucifixion of Jesus, we just accept it, pardon the expression, as Gospel truth. Space will not allow me to enumerate the many reasons supporting my confidence in the Scriptures’ accuracy.
In Matthew 27:51-52, we read about the curtain in the Temple splitting in two and about the Tombs breaking open, and the “holy people who had died were raised to life” (NIV). I find these two incidents fascinating. The question is, “Is there any evidence outside of the Bible of these or similar strange occurrences happening?”
Briefly, I mentioned the curtain splitting and tombs opening, and I think many of you are familiar with that text. What of the “candles” and “gates” mentioned in the title? The Babylonian and Jerusalem Talmud’s (Talmud is a running biblical commentary on Jewish beliefs) recount several phenomena during the approximate time of the crucifixion of Jesus. The two just mentioned both refer to supernatural, if you please, events associated with the Temple at about the time of Jesus’ death.
“Candle” refers to the oil-fed lampstand in the Holy Place (the first sacred room of the Temple), and “gates” refers to the gates to the Temple. On special occasions, the lamps burned unexplainably longer than usual. There are also accounts of the gates to the Temple opening unassisted in the middle of the night. The Talmud offers interpretations of these events.
These and a few other similar and bazaar incidents point to the fact that people of the time, based on their experiences, were much more open to the supernatural intersecting the natural world. Many from our time dismiss these phenomena as products of superstitions. But could they not as equally be the product of observation? The ancients and the moderns would both accuse each other of conclusions based upon presuppositions.
The Talmud does not specifically support the curtain and tomb events. Remember, “Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.” And neither is it proof. If you would like to read a scholarly article on this subject, google “JETS 48/2 (June 2005) 301–16.” The Lord willing, I will offer more on this subject tomorrow.
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