Shem Tob's Hebrew Gospel of Matthew Matthew 27:46
יֵשׁוּ (Yeshu) – J esus צָעַק (tsa'ak) - cried out בְּקוֹל (be'kol) - with a loud voice גָּדוֹל (gadol) - great אוֹמֵר (omer) - saying בִּלְשׁוֹן (bilshon) - in the language הַקּוֹדֶשׁ (ha'kodesh) - the holy אֵלִי (Eli) - My God אֵלִי (Eli) - My God לָמָה (lama) - why עֲזַבְתָּנִי (azavtani) - have you forsaken me
WTT Psalm 22:2
אֵלִ֣י (Eli) - My God אֵ֭לִי (Eli) - My God לָמָ֣ה (Lama) - why עֲזַבְתָּ֑נִי (Azavtani) - have you forsaken me רָח֥וֹק (Rachok) - far מִֽ֜ישׁוּעָתִ֗י (Mishu'ati) - from my salvation דִּבְרֵ֥י (Dibrei) - the words שַׁאֲגָתִֽי (Sha'agati) - of my groaning
Matthew. 27:46
Mark. 15:34
Psalm 21:1 LXX
Beza M-05A Matthew 27:46
Beza M-05A Mark 15:34
Pe.shi.tta
We can read in our Bible: "eli eli lema sabachtani," as well as "eloi eloi lama sabaktani." But there is also the reading from the Pe.shi.tta: "eil eil lmana shvaqtan," and even a Hebrew reading (D 05 Codex): "Elei Elei lama zaphtanei" (both in Matthew and Mark).
- "Eli" is Hebrew, Aramaic, but also appears in the Aramaic text from Qumran called Genesis Apocryphon.
- "Lama" is Hebrew, but as the vocalic reduction had not been completed in the first century, this distinction with the Aramaic "lema" did not yet exist (= it was pronounced lama in Aramaic, as we can see a parallel in Greek, the transcription of which "for whom" is written as "laman" instead of the well-known Leman).
- "Sabaktani" is Aramaic; the "s" transcribes the sound "sh," and "b" the bilabial "v" sound, there is no problem with that.
Jesus said on the cross:
ELI ELI LAMA SHAVAQTANI
But why do we have "eloi" in some Gospels? The Pe.shi.tta gives us the answer: this phrase was "translated" into another dialect: eil eil lmana shvaqtan (meaning) alah alah lmana shvaqtan. There was confusion between Jesus' words and their brilliance in the Greek text. "Eloi" is the transliteration of Elohi, which is a Hebraized form of elahi. On the other hand, the Pe.shi.tta retained the record of this brilliance (unlike the ancient Syrians who followed the Greek texts), despite being written in an eastern dialect (which explains the difference in pronunciation).
The variation between "ἱνατί" (Matthew 27:46) and "εἰς τί" (Mark 15:34) may have occurred due to the possibility of a third translation, such as "Eli, eli, la-ma shavaqtani: 'My God, my God, for what purpose (with this intention, namely, the crucifixion) have you forsaken me.'" Instead of "lama" (why?), we can read "la ma" (l + ma) for this, and there is no longer a question about why God did something, but rather Jesus' final testimony about his mission.