All these considerations show conclusively that in the Old Testament conception of the Almighty there is no room for such a being as the arch-fiend of the New.
(e) The supernatural appearances at the crucifixion (Matt, xxvii. 51-53; Mark xv. 38; Luke xxiii. 44, 45).
(1.) The veil of the temple rent in twain from the top to the bottom.
(2.) The earthquake and rending of the rocks.
(3.) Darkness from the sixth to the ninth hour. (4.) The opening of the graves and the rising of the bodies of the saints after his resurrection, who went into the holy city, and appeared to many.
John makes no mention of these marvels, but (xix. 25-27)states that he himself was present at the crucifixion of Jesus, along with Mary, Jesus' mother, and three other women, close to the cross (not afar off, as Matthew, Mark, and Luke assert of the women), and yet he fails to confirm the other Gospels as to the earthquake and darkening of the sun. The rending of the veil of the temple, the opening of the graves, and the appearance of the risen saints would all have been known to him also, if they had occurred.
Such prodigies as these are not confined to the Gospels,—"In the most high and palmy state of Rome, A little ere the mightiest Julius fell, The graves stood tenantless, and the sheeted dead Did squeak and gibber in the Roman streets," &c.