50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit.
51 And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split. 52 The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, 53 and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many. 54 When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”
55 There were also many women there, looking on from a distance, who had followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering to him, 56 among whom were Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Joseph and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.
When Jesus died, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom. The veil referred to was the curtain that separated the Holy Place from the Holiest of all. In the Old Testament economy, the holy of holies, where the presence of God dwelt, was sacred and unapproachable. No one was allowed to enter save the high priest, and that only once a year, on the Day of Atonement, to make atonement for the sins of the people. The veil was the 'sign' that there was not a way into the divine presence. It was therefore equivalent to the shut gates of the Garden of Eden. The way to God was barred by sin. But when Jesus died on the cross, that barred gate was breached and opened, and the way to Cod made accessible to all. This is the meaning of the rent veil. Christ has broken every barrier down and opened up the way into the divine presence.