Day 299

The Death of Jesus Christ

Matthew 27:45–54; John 19:30

Darkness fell as Jesus hung on the cross. Darkness continued from noon to three that afternoon. Then Jesus loudly cried, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” People watching thought he called Elijah. Then he said, “It is finished” and stopped breathing. At that moment, the curtain in the temple was torn. It ripped from top to bottom. This opened the holy of holies. An earthquake rumbled across the land, and the rocks were split.

The captain of the Roman guards saw these things and was terrified. “Absolutely, this man was God’s Son,” he declared.

Questions: What happened when Jesus stopped breathing? What did the Roman captain say about Jesus?