and the sun was darkened. [This was prophesied in Amos 8:9.] The curtain in the temple was torn (split) in two. The veil separated the most holy part of the temple, see Heb. 9:3. Matthew notes that it was torn from top to bottom (Matt. 27:51), emphasizing that it was God who opened the way for man to have fellowship with him. The veil was woven in one piece and embroidered with blue and purple colors, see Ex. 26:30–33. The Jewish historian Josephus describes the fabric as magnificent and how the pattern and colors became like an image of the universe. The exact dimensions of the veil are not known, but it should have had the same dimensions as Solomon's temple, whose outer width was 10 meters, see 1 Kings 6:2. Herod the Great increased the height, so the curtain may have been about 9 x 15 meters in size. According to early Jewish tradition, it was one decimeter thick. Although that measurement is probably an exaggeration, the curtain was enormous and could not possibly have been torn apart by human hands. The tearing of the veil must have made a deep impression on the priests in the temple. It is interesting to note that the Jewish scripture Talmud mentions several inexplicable events in the temple 40 years before its destruction in 70 AD.

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