Luke 23:45 · Bible study
Luke 23:45 Commentary: The Torn Veil and Darkened Sun
Greek · 6 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Explore the cosmic and covenantal significance of the sun's darkening and the temple veil tearing at Jesus' death in Luke 23:45.
Research Summary
- Meaning: The darkness and torn veil are supernatural signs that Jesus’ death ends the old covenant system and opens direct access to God.
- Key words: ἐκλιπόντος (eklipontos), failing/darkened; καταπέτασμα (katapetasma), inner veil of the temple; ἐσχίσθη (eschisthē), was torn (passive, indicating divine action).
- Main debate: Whether the tearing primarily signifies judgment on Israel or the opening of access to God for all peoples; most see both.
- Theological theme: The atonement accomplishes both cosmic renewal and covenantal change: a new and living way into God’s presence.
- Best use: Teaching on the meaning of the cross, the fulfillment of the Old Testament sacrificial system, and confident access to God.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
The sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was torn down the middle.
WEB World English Bible 2000
The sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was torn in two.
KJV King James Version 1769
And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
the sun’s light failing: and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
and the sun was darkened, and the vail of the sanctuary was rent in the midst,
Darby Darby Bible 1890
And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple rent in the midst.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Y el sol se obscureció: y el velo del templo se rompió por medio.
E o sol se escureceu, e o véu do templo se rasgou ao meio.
Le soleil s’obscurcit, et le voile du temple se déchira par le milieu.
und die Sonne verlor ihren Schein, und der Vorhang des Tempels zerriß mitten entzwei.
En de zon werd verduisterd, en het voorhangsel des tempels scheurde midden door.
La cortina del tempio si squarciò pel mezzo.
I zaćmiło się słońce, a zasłona kościelna rozerwała się w pół.
и померкло солнце, и завеса в храме раздралась по средине.
日頭 變黑了； 殿 裡的幔子 從當中 裂為兩半。
The light of the sun went out, and the curtain in the Temple was parted in two.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Koine Greek)
New Testament · Koine Greek · Luke 23:45
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators across traditions agree that the darkness and the torn veil are miraculous signs interpreting Jesus’ death. The darkness, lasting from the sixth to the ninth hour, could not have been a natural eclipse, the moon was full for Passover. Gill calls it “preternatural”; Cambridge notes the attempt by some early scribes to describe it as an eclipse only shows their failure to account for the timing. Luke’s wording, “the sun was darkened” (ἐκλιπόντος, “failing”), leaves the cause unspecified but deliberately parallels Amos 8:9. On the veil, the Cambridge Bible and Matthew Henry identify it as the inner veil (καταπέτασμα), the heavy curtain separating the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies. Matthew and Mark add that it tore from top to bottom, confirming divine action. Matthew Henry sees the tear as removing the ceremonial law and the “wall of partition” between Jews and Gentiles, granting open access to God. The Cambridge Bible reads it as the departure of the Shekinah from an abandoned temple. Poole’s earlier comment combines both: God’s wrath against the Jews and the end of the temple service. All point to the same conclusion: at the cross, the old order ended and a new way into God’s presence began.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Judgment on Israel: The tearing signifies God’s departure from the temple and coming judgment; supported by the parallel with omens forty years before the temple’s destruction (Cambridge, Poole) and the darkness echoing Amos 8:9.
- Open access to God: The torn veil symbolizes the removal of the barrier between God and humanity, fulfilled in Christ’s flesh; supported by Hebrews 10:19-20 and the emphasis on the tear from top to bottom as God’s initiative (Matthew Henry).
- Cosmic mourning: The darkening of the sun shows all creation groaning at its Creator’s death; a longstanding tradition from the early church to modern times that sees both signs as nature joining in the drama.
What is clear: Both signs are miraculous and directly tied to Jesus’ death, signalling that his death is no ordinary event but the turning point of redemption history.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Nature of the darkness | The darkness was a real, supernatural event lasting three hours at the time of the crucifixion. | Some ancient sources (e.g., the Gospel of Nicodemus) tried to explain it as a natural eclipse; commentators agree that is impossible at full moon. The question is whether it was a local phenomenon or cosmic in scope. |
| Which veil was torn | The torn veil is the inner curtain (καταπέτασμα) separating the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies, not the outer entrance curtain. | A minority of older interpreters (e.g., some in the Syriac tradition) referred to a gate or the outer veil, but the lexical and contextual evidence points to the inner veil. |
| Theological meaning of the tearing | The tearing signifies that the old system of separation between God and humanity has ended. | Some emphasize judgment (God abandoning the temple to judgment; Cambridge, Poole), while others emphasize open access (the barrier removed so all may approach; Matthew Henry, Hebrews 10:19-20). Both are usually combined. |
| Timing in relation to Jesus' death | The tearing happened at or very near the moment of Jesus' death. | Luke places the tearing before Jesus' final cry (v. 46), while Matthew and Mark place it after. Some see a contradiction; others note the rapid sequence makes the distinction insignificant. |
Historical & Cultural Context
Luke’s account of the cross includes two public signs: darkness over the land and the temple veil ripped in half. Matthew and Mark also report the torn veil (Matt 27:51, Mark 15:38), but Luke adds the detail “in the midst” (μέσον), emphasizing a complete and decisive split. The darkness covered “all the land” (Luke 23:44) from noon to mid-afternoon, an event no natural phenomenon explains, Passover always occurred at full moon when a solar eclipse is impossible. Gill, Cambridge, and Lange all insist this was a direct act of God.
The veil in question was the inner curtain, called the Parocheth, described in Exodus 26:31, 33. Woven of blue, purple, and scarlet with cherubim, it was massive, heavy, and splendid. Only the high priest passed beyond it, once a year on the Day of Atonement, carrying blood to make atonement for the people (Leviticus 16). The tearing of this barrier from top to bottom (as Matthew and Mark specify) signified that the way into God’s presence was now open. Luke’s audience, many of them Gentiles, would have grasped the dramatic shift: the temple’s most guarded space was now exposed.
The timing of the tearing in Luke’s narrative differs slightly. Matthew and Mark place it after Jesus’ death; Luke records it immediately before (or simultaneously with) the final cry. Lange notes that the sequence of events is too rapid to insist on a strict order. The effect is the same: these signs frame Jesus’ death as the hinge of history. Jewish tradition later reported omens at the temple forty years before its destruction (Cambridge cites these), but the Gospels present this moment as the decisive sign that God was doing something new beyond the temple system.
Textual Notes
The consulted sources note one significant variant. Instead of “the sun was darkened” (ἐκλιπόντος, a participle of ἐκλείπω), several early manuscripts (including Sinaiticus, Vaticanus, and Codex Bezae) read “the sun eclipsing” or “the sun’s light failing” (τοῦ ἡλίου ἐκλιπόντος). The Cambridge Bible calls this an “unsuccessful attempt” to explain the darkness as a natural eclipse. The textual difference does not change the basic fact of the darkness; it only shows how early scribes struggled to describe it. All major translations (WEB, KJV, ASV, BSB, YLT) render the sense as “darkened.” No other variants are noted in the supplied excerpts.
Reception History
The torn veil has been read across church history as a decisive break between the old covenant and the new. Early Christian writers saw it as God’s judgment on the temple and the end of the Levitical priesthood. Chrysostom and Augustine both drew attention to the veil as a type of Christ’s flesh (following Hebrews 10:20), emphasizing that through the cross all believers now have direct access to God. Medieval theologians incorporated the tearing into their reflections on the cross as a cosmic event. The Reformation gave new emphasis to the tearing as the removal of human barriers to grace; Luther and Calvin saw it as abolishing any need for a priestly mediator. In modern hymnody, the torn veil appears in songs celebrating access to God through Christ’s blood. Across traditions, the verse is always connected to the themes of atonement, covenant renewal, and the opening of heaven to all who come through Christ.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- Nature mourns. The sun’s darkening shows all creation responds to the death of its Creator. The three hours of darkness echo the judgment of Egypt (Exodus 10:22) and the prophecy of Amos 8:9.
- The barrier falls. The inner veil tears from top to bottom, God’s action, not human hands. The way into the Holy of Holies is now open to all through Christ’s flesh (Hebrews 10:19, 22).
- A new covenant begins. The old system of animal sacrifices and a separating veil is finished. Access to God no longer depends on a priestly caste or a temple building.
Five-point outline
- Darkness at noon: judgment and mourning mingled.
- The veil torn: judgment on the temple system.
- The way opened: full access to God’s presence.
- God acting from above: the tear starts at the top.
- A call to response: the centurion and the crowds react.
Illustration hooks
- Think of the moment a heavy stage curtain tears mid-performance, everything behind is suddenly exposed to everyone. That is what happened to the temple’s most hidden space.
- Imagine a child who has always been told a certain room in the house is off-limits. Then one day the door is taken off its hinges. That is the shock the veil’s tearing would have caused.
- A massive natural event, a prolonged, unexplained midday darkness, would stop any city in its tracks. Three hours of it forced Jerusalem to pay attention.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Why does the darkness matter? Is it just drama, or does it mean something?
- What difference does a torn curtain make in my daily walk with God, really?
- If the temple system ended, what does that mean for how we worship today?
Leading a Discussion
The two signs in this verse, darkened sun and torn veil, frame Jesus’ death as something far bigger than a human tragedy. They invite us to ask what kind of event could shake both creation and the most sacred building in the world.
Discussion questions
- Start with observation: what exactly does Luke say happened to the sun and the veil? List every detail you notice in the verse and its immediate context (vv. 44, 46).
- Why does the timing matter, the sixth to the ninth hour, in the middle of Passover? How does that rule out a natural eclipse?
- The veil separated the Holy of Holies from the rest of the temple. What did it represent for the people of Israel? (You might look at Exodus 26:33 and Leviticus 16:12, 16.)
- Matthew 27:51 adds that the veil tore from top to bottom. Why is that detail significant for understanding who caused the tear?
- In Hebrews 10:19, 20, the torn veil is connected to Christ’s flesh. How does that shape what you think the tearing means?
- How do the two signs, one in the sky, one in the temple, work together in this passage?
- What difference does the torn veil make for how you approach God today? Does it change your confidence in prayer, your understanding of forgiveness, or something else?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Exodus 26:31 | “You shall make a veil of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, with cherubim. It shall be the work of a skillful workman. |
| Exodus 26:33 | You shall hang up the veil under the clasps, and shall bring the ark of the covenant in there within the veil. The veil shall separate the holy place from the most holy for you. |
| Leviticus 16:12 | He shall take a censer full of coals of fire from off the altar before Yahweh, and two handfuls of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the veil. |
| Leviticus 16:16 | He shall make atonement for the Holy Place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions, even all their sins; and so he shall do for the Tent of Meeting that dwells with them in the middle of their uncleanness. |
| II Chronicles 3:14 | He made the veil of blue, purple, crimson, and fine linen, and ornamented it with cherubim. |
| Matthew 27:51 | Behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from the top to the bottom. The earth quaked and the rocks were split. |
| Mark 15:38 | The veil of the temple was torn in two from the top to the bottom. |
| Ephesians 2:14 | For he is our peace, who made both one, and broke down the middle wall of separation, |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
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What the Commentators Say
5 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke directs readers to the parallel historical records of Phlegon, Thallus, and Dionysius as corroboration for the darkness that accompanied the crucifixion. He treats these pagan sources as independent evidence supporting the Gospel accounts, rather than offering his own explanation of the event.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The commentator notes that the darkness at the crucifixion could not have been a solar eclipse because the Passover moon was full. He interprets the torn inner veil of the Temple as a clear sign that God's presence had left the now-deserted sanctuary.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
And the Sunne was darkened, and the vaile of the Temple rent through the middes.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill stresses that the sun's darkness was a supernatural eclipse, occurring at full moon when a natural eclipse is impossible, and lasting three hours. He sees this as the literal fulfillment of the prophecy in Amos. The temple veil tearing is also noted as a miraculous sign.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry draws attention to two distinct prodigies that magnified Christ's death: the three-hour darkness at noon, which he notes was not three days like Egypt's plague, and the temple veil tearing open. For Henry, the torn veil signified that the ceremonial law and all barriers to God were taken away, so believers may now approach with boldness.