Mark 15:34 Meaning and Explanation
“And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →At the ninth hour Jesus cries out in Aramaic the opening line of Psalm 22: My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
What Does Mark 15:34 Mean?
Out of three hours of darkness comes a loud cry, preserved in Jesus' own Aramaic and translated by Mark. It is the first verse of Psalm 22, the psalm of the righteous sufferer that has been echoing through this chapter, in the divided garments, the mockers, the wagging heads.
The cry is real anguish, not recitation: bearing the sin of the world, he tastes its deepest desolation, and no one will ever descend to a depth he has not sounded first. Yet even this cry is prayer, my God, my God, faith gripping God from inside the dark. And Psalm 22 does not end where it begins; it climbs to deliverance, to praise, to all the ends of the world remembering and turning to the Lord. He entered the psalm at its darkest verse to bring us out at its last.
Mark 15:34 in the Original Language
sabachthani (σαβαχθανί), 'hast forsaken' -- the Aramaic of Psalm 22:1 on Jesus' lips.
Frequently Asked Questions About Mark 15:34
What does Mark 15:34 mean?
At the ninth hour Jesus cries out in Aramaic the opening line of Psalm 22: My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?