Now it was about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. Then the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was torn in two (Luke 23:44-45 NKJV).

There were two veils inside the temple, one at the entrance to the Holy Place and a second at the entrance to the Holy of Holies. Only the high priest was allowed to pass through the second veil once a year during the Day of Atonement. That second veil was 60 feet high, 30 feet wide, and an entire handbreadth in thickness. One early Jewish writing states that the veil was so heavy, it took 300 priests to move or manipulate it. Humanly speaking, it would have been impossible to tear such a veil.

You see, when Jesus was lifted up on the Cross, that Cross became the eternal mercy seat on which the blood of the final Sacrifice was sprinkled. Once that Sacrifice was made, it was no longer necessary for a high priest to continually make sacrifices year after year, for Jesus’ blood had now settled the issue forever.

For this cause, God Himself ripped the veil of the temple in half, declaring that the way to the Holy of Holies was now available to everyone who came to Him through the blood of Jesus! This is why the apostle Paul wrote that Jesus “…hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us” (Ephesians 2:14).