In 23:44–49 Jesus expires, prompting the centurion to proclaim his innocence. The darkness that covers the land from “about noon . . . until three in the afternoon” could not have been caused by an eclipse, for during Passover there was a full moon. Some have speculated that the darkness was due to a sirocco stirring up the dust, but there is no clear scientific explanation for the phenomenon. The darkness suggests an ominous future for Jerusalem, while the splitting of the veil between the Most Holy Place and the H…