And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.
Parallel translations
- WEB When the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.
- BSB From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land.
- NKJV Now when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.
- NASB When the sixth hour came, darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour.
- NLT At noon, darkness fell across the whole land until three o’clock.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
From noon to three, supernatural darkness covers the land. Creation itself testifies to the gravity of this hour.
Overview
Darkness over the whole land during midday signals divine judgment and mourning, recalling prophetic warnings like Amos 8:9. The three hours of darkness frame the climax of the crucifixion as Jesus bears the wrath against sin. The darkening sun marks the weight of what is being accomplished at the cross.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Matt 27:45Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour.
- Amos 8:9–10And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord GOD, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day:
- Luke 23:44–45And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour.
- Mark 15:25And it was the third hour, and they crucified him.
- Isa 50:3–4I clothe the heavens with blackness, and I make sackcloth their covering.
- Ps 105:28He sent darkness, and made it dark; and they rebelled not against his word.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'
How Mark 15:33 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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