Mark 15: 34,35 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? And some of them that stood by, when they heard [it], said, Behold, he calleth Elias.
The 3 languages used in the Bible have their purpose and place. Most of the OT is written in Hebrew, the NT in Greek. We find some verses in the OT and half of Daniel written in Aramaic; in the NT, some words are Aramaic. Today’s scripture is one of those where Jesus cried out in agony in Aramaic to the Father.
The Israelites spoke Hebrew, but after their exile to Babylon, they also began speaking Aramaic, which is a descendant of Hebrew. In the NT, in the Temple or amongst Jews, they spoke Hebrew, but in public places it was Aramaic. Some of the books of the NT were initially written in Aramaic but later translated in Greek by the Apostles (Paul and his team). This was because the richness of the languages prevents misunderstanding, and moreover, those of the world then spoke Greek, thus the best medium to spread the Gospel.
With regards to understanding the Bible, Hebrew is the language of the Temple, Greek is the language of authority, and Aramaic is the language of the masses.
Jesus spoke His last words in Aramaic from the cross (cut tree), on which He was crucified. The Jews thought He spoke in Hebrew since the first words ‘Eloi, Eloi’ sounded like ‘Eliyahuw, Eliyahuw’ (Hebrew for Elijah) thus assuming He was calling Elijah. God was substituted by a Man of God. The religious Jews have very high devotion to Elijah like they have to Moses. But we see a Roman centurion who was not blinded by a religious spirit acknowledged Jesus as Son of God even when He died crucified.
I have mentioned before, I have been asked by the Lord to confront a group of Church leaders who are works-centric and thus become religious/worldly righteous and the core reason is that they have unknowingly put man in place that is due for God/His Word. When I confront their understanding, they say do not go so deep it confuses others. They do not fully want the Word of God/God but only its/His blessings.
If we do not know the language (Bible/Word of God) through which God speaks to us then we will mistakenly assume something else and land up worshipping man over God. This so called Holy Week is a perfect example of people put man/words of man in the place of God/Word of God.
[Prayer Starter]
Lord, You are Almighty God. You, Lord, are God and Yu alone are Holy. You, are Jealous of Your Name, thus none can share Your Glory. Lord we pray let us not let our foolishness and hardened hearts lead us to worship man over You, making them gods…
This prayer we make in Jesus’ Name, Amen.
[Reference Scriptures]
Mark 15:36-39
36 And one ran and filled a spunge full of vinegar, and put [it] on a reed, and gave him to drink, saying, Let alone; let us see whether Elias will come to take him down.
37 And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost.
38 And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom.
39 And when the centurion, which stood over against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up the spirit, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God.
Dated 30 March 2026
Bro Rollwyn