Bible
The Tearing of the Temple Curtain Rediscovering Its Cultural, Historical, and Theological Contexts Adam W. Jones and J. Daniel Hays STUDIES IN SCRIPTURE AND BIBLICAL THEOLOGY
Many believe that the tearing of the temple curtain means that Jesus’s death gave us direct access to God. But this idea is not obvious in the Gospels themselves. What if there is a better expla- nation? In this book, Adam W. Jones and J. Daniel Hays argue that God the Father tore the curtain of the temple as an act of mourning over his Son’s death. This interpretation has been neglected, though it has ancient precedent. In Jewish and Greco-Roman cultures, tearing clothes was a common expression of grief. And early Christian interpreters often linked this custom to the tearing of the temple curtain. This book provides insights on ancient culture, God, grief, and how we approach Good Friday. “A compelling and carefully argued case that the tearing of the temple curtain at Jesus’s death is best understood as God grieving and mourning the loss of his Son. Drawing on wide-ranging evi- dence from Jewish and Greco-Roman literature, Jones and Hays demonstrate convincingly that first-century audiences would have recognized this immediately, even if modern Western readers have lost that cultural instinct. This will (and should) change the way you read the crucifixion narratives.” —Joseph R. Dodson, Denver Seminary “Cogent and convincing. Future exegetes will need to take into account this important study and its implications for the doctrine of the impassibility of God.” —Mark L. Strauss, Bethel Seminary of Bethel University (emeritus) “Jones and Hays dive into the Gospel texts, the history of inter- pretation, the cultural context of the ancient world, and biblical theology to show us something deep—the grief of a loving father, revealed in the tearing of the temple curtain. Their careful exege- sis and their accessible use of detailed historical evidence serve the curious reader well.” —Ruth Anne Reese, Asbury Theological Seminary “Some interpretations take on a popular life of their own and need thoughtful pushback from solid biblical studies research. Such is the idea that the tearing of the temple veil at the death of Jesus connotes entrance to the presence of God, a case of right theology being argued from the wrong text. This compelling counter- interpretation is both thoroughly researched and cogently argued.” —George H. Guthrie, Regent College
SEPTEMBER 2026 • 160 pp. $29.99p • 9781540971401
Adam W. Jones (PhD, London School of Theology/Middlesex Uni- versity) is assistant professor of biblical studies at Ouachita Baptist University. J. Daniel Hays (PhD, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary) is professor emeritus of biblical studies at Ouachita Baptist Univer - sity and teaches at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.
ALSO BY THE AUTHOR GOD’S RELATIONAL PRESENCE 416 pp. • $37.00p • 9780801049590
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