seems to be no place for Synecdoche; nor are there wanting instances of men who, in the course of dreadful and lingering punishment, have at first blasphemed, and afterwards been con verted.
45. Haaav, all) The whole of our planet is meant ; for the sun itself was darkened.1 — 'tu* upag indrqs, until the ninth hour) A three hours full of mystery. Psalm viii., in the third verse of which the omission of mention of the sun agrees with the dark ness here spoken of, may be aptly compared with this period of dereliction and darkness.
46. Tlfpl ds, JC.F.?.., but about, etc.) From this connection, it may be inferred that the darkening of the sun (at the full moon2) represented, not so much the malice of the Jews, as the derelic tion of Jesus ; which lasted, as it may be supposed, the whole of that three hours, at the conclusion of which He uttered this exclamation. St Luke (xxiii. 45) joins the darkening of the sun with the rending of the veil without mentioning the derelic tion. As soon as the dereliction was ended, the Holy of Holies became immediately open to the Mediator.3 — avef36rtgzv, cried out) Both this cry (repeated in ver. 50), and the silence which preceded it, are of the utmost importance. — ffajSa^avl, salachthani) i.e. \)np2t?, hast Thou forsaken Me ? The p is rendered in Greek by •fa ch, when 3, th, follows. — Qii Mou, My God) On other occasions Pie was accustomed to say, " Father" : now He says, " My God"
1 There are some who think that this was the same Eclipse as that which was noted by Phlegon [Trallianus] and others of the ancients, or even as that one, the traces of which are now found among the [traditions of the] Chinese. Whatever degree of plausibility there may be in this, they are convicted of error by far stronger arguments, since, in fact, they must thus thrust forward the passion of Christ beyond the thirtieth year of the Dionys. era. — Harm., p. 571.
2 This could not have been an eclipse of the sun, for the passover was celebrated at the time of full moon, when the moon is opposite to the sun. Luke xxiii. 45 says, " The sun was darkened." — ED.
3 fvva.TYiv uoa.v, the ninth hour) Some one has thrown out the surmise that it was at mid day the definitive sentence was pronounced by Pilate, and that His being led forth was delayed up to that point of time, so that the crucifixion would thus take place on the third hour from mid-day (3 o'clock), at the time of the evening sacrifice. Nay, rather His death occurred at that time, after that the gracio\is Saviour had hung for six whole hours on the cross. — Harm., p. 571.