Mark’s description of the death of Jesus is told with his normal directness and economy of words.
33 At noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. 34 And at three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).[b]
35 When some of those standing near heard this, they said, “Listen, he’s calling Elijah.”
36 Someone ran, filled a sponge with wine vinegar, put it on a staff, and offered it to Jesus to drink. “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to take him down,” he said.
37 With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last.
38 The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. 39 And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, saw how he died,[c] he said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!”
40 Some women were watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joseph,[d] and Salome. 41 In Galilee these women had followed him and cared for his needs. Many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem were also there.
Horsham:12th January 2026
From our perspective, the speed of events is extraordinary. Jesus was arrested in the early hours of the morning. By 6am he had been tried by a kangaroo court of the High Priests. Between 6am and 9am he was passed between the Sanhedrin, Pilate and Herod, repeatedly interrogated and physically abused. He wasn’t just ‘beaten up’, he was cruelly beaten. He was tortured.
Some of his wounds were visible. Deep flesh wounds on his back. Bruises on his head and body. Blood running down his face where thorns had been forced on his head in mock coronation.
Some of his wounds were invisible. Internal injuries caused by the force of the whip, punches from soldiers and beating with sticks. Shock. Dehydration.
His injuries were traumatic. They were unsurvivable.
They stripped him of his clothes. By the time they were ready to drive nails through his hands and feet He was already dying. ‘Forgive them Father, they know not what they do.’ (Luke 23: 34)
Nailed to a cross, the weight of the body makes it very difficult to breathe. To breathe effectively, they need to push up on their legs. If the feet are nailed to the cross, every breath, every movement, adds to the agony. If they wanted to finish the prisoner off, they would break his legs (John 29:31).
It was 9am when Jesus and two robbers were nailed to crosses at Golgotha. There are records of people lasting several days on the cross before their death. In his critically damaged state, Jesus could survive for long.
As midday approaches the sky grows dark. Very dark. This is no eclipse – it lasts for hours, People are uneasy. Frightened. It is as if God has turned his back on His Son. Turned his back on the world.
‘Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachtani.’ Someone thinks that he is calling for Elijah.
He is thirsty. Someone rushes to get a sponge soaked in cheap wine. They fix it to a pole and offer it to Jesus. An act of mercy?
Three hours of darkness. Three more hours of excruciating agony. Most of the people have nervously drifted away. The women who loved Jesus are still there. Standing with Jesus in this darkest hour.
It is 3pm. The hour of prayer. There is a sudden shout. An extraordinary noise from the dying man. ‘It is finished.’ It was his last breath. Jesus of Nazareth is dead.
The Centurion is there. Watching. Listening. He has seen many deaths like this. This one was different. He knows that he has just witnessed something extraordinary. Did he say it out loud? Did he think it and talk about it later? ‘Surely, this man was the Son of God.’
At the heart of the Temple is the Holy of Holies. A thickly woven heavy curtain hangs, floor to ceiling. It has hung there for generations. It keeps the world separate from the Presence of God.
Prayers take place in the Temple at 3pm. There is no doubt about the time. At the moment of the death of Jesus of Nazareth, the curtain which separated the Holy of Holies from the rest of the world was torn in two. From floor to ceiling. At the moment of his death, the presence of God, the power of God, burst forth into the world.
The darkness which had covered the world begins to lift.
End Piece
There were so many points along this journey when Jesus could have stepped away from the path to the cross. But he didn’t.
‘Jesus was not murdered; he willingly laid down his life for us (John 10:11, 15, 17-18). He was not a martyr; He was a willing sacrifice for the sins of the world. (Wiersbe p181)
‘Let us remember that for our sakes, Jesus voluntarily endured the most painful, horrible and disgraceful death. Surely the thought of this love should constrain us daily to live not unto ourselves but unto Christ. It should make us ready and willing to present our bodies as a living sacrifice to Him who lived and died for us.’( Ryle, p249)
Jesus was abused. Jesus was tortured. Jesus was executed. Jesus is dead.
Breaking news… This is not the end.