Jesus was constantly praying the Psalms, even here in his last breath, he cries out to echo Psalm 22, a Psalm of despair that ends in praise, for it anticipates the rescue of the Psalmist by God. The coming rescue doesn't change the current despair of the Psalmist, and yet one can see the sliver of sunrise on the horizon even in the darkness of the night.
Towards the end of this passage, in the heartbreaking moment of Christ's death, we see the purpose of the death revealed. The curtain in the temple had always been present to separate the Holy of Holies, the place where God resided, from the rest of the Temple, to protect people from being overwhelmed by the presence of God. At the moment of Christ's death, when his sacrifice was complete to atone for human sin, the curtain is gone -- no longer is there a barrier between humanity and God, for Christ's sacrifice removes that, and we can approach God with confidence, trusting that we are received with the righteousness that Christ deserved, for our sin is cast away and we are made new through the sacrifice of Christ. We are renewed and our hope is restored.
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