Luke 23:44 And it was now about the sixth hour, and darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour. Isa. 53:10 But Jehovah was pleased to crush Him, to afflict him with grief. When He makes Himself an offering for sin, He will see a seed, He will extend His days. 1 Pet. 3:18 For Christ also has suffered once for sins, the Righteous on behalf of the unrighteous.
[Part 1 of 2]The sixth hour mentioned in verse 44 was, according to our way of reckoning time, twelve o'clock noon. According to Matthew 27:45, darkness was over all the land from the sixth hour until the ninth hour, that is, from twelve o'clock noon until three o'clock in the afternoon. Who caused darkness to come over the land? Of course, the high priest, Pilate, and the Roman soldiers were not able to do this. The only one who could cause darkness to come at noon was God. This darkness was an indication that the righteous God had come in to judge the Lord Jesus as our Substitute and Redeemer. He was the unique, universal Substitute for mankind. From nine o'clock until noon, He was persecuted by the Jews and Romans as a martyr. But from noon until three o'clock He was dying not as a martyr, but as the Substitute for sinners. Because God recognized Him as our Redeemer, God came in to judge Him. This means that during the last three hours the Lord was on the cross, He was judged by God for the accomplishment of our redemption. It was during this time that God counted Him as our suffering Substitute for sin (Isa. 53:10). Darkness came over all the land because our sin and sins and all negative things were being dealt with. God even forsook Him (Matt. 27:46) because of our sin. Actually the Lord's persecutors did not kill Him. While He was under their persecution, He was still alive. After the Lord suffered this persecution for three hours, God came in to put Him to death. The darkness that came over the land was a sign of God's coming in. Luke tells us that the darkness came over the whole land, not merely over Jerusalem or Mount Zion. God caused the sun's light to fail.
Bible verses are taken from the Recovery Version of the Bible and Words of Ministry from Witness Lee, Life-study of Luke, p. 453. Both are published by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, CA. Please visit us at www.emanna.com. Send comments to: [email protected].
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