Matthew 27:46
“About the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lima sabachthani?” That is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?””
What does Matthew 27:46 mean?
Jesus is quoting the opening words of Psalm 22 in his native Aramaic language as he hangs dying on the cross. This cry expresses the deepest kind of abandonment, the feeling of being utterly alone at the moment when he needed God most. Rather than a loss of faith, this is Jesus actually praying a psalm that his Jewish listeners would have known, one that moves from despair toward trust in God's goodness. What makes this moment so powerful is that Jesus enters fully into human suffering, including the spiritual loneliness that can accompany it. He doesn't bypass the pain or pretend it isn't real. For many people going through dark seasons, this verse offers something precious: the assurance that even our deepest cry of "Why have you left me?" is something Jesus himself experienced and voiced.