Editing Language of Jesus (section)

==Aramaic phrases in the Greek New Testament==
{{main|Language of the New Testament}}

The Greek [[New Testament]] [[transliterates]] a few [[Semitic language|Semitic]] words.<ref>For a complete list of all transliterated words in the Synoptic Gospels, see Joshua N. Tilton and David N. Bivin, "Greek Transliterations of Hebrew, Aramaic and Hebrew/Aramaic Words in the Synoptic Gospels" at [http://www.jerusalemperspective.com/12404/ jerusalemperspective.com]</ref> When the text refers to the language of such Semitic glosses, it uses words meaning "Hebrew"/"Jewish" (Acts 21:40; 22:2; 26:14: {{transliteration|grc|têi hebraḯdi dialéktōi}}, {{lit|in the Hebrew dialect/language}}){{sfn|Buth|Pierce|2014|p=64-109}} but this term is often applied to unmistakably Aramaic words and phrases;<ref>Fitzmyer, Joseph A. A Wandering Armenian: Collected Aramaic Essays. P.43: "The adverb Ἑβραïστί (and its related expressions) seems to mean 'in Hebrew', and it has often been argued that it means this and nothing more. As is well known, it is used at times with words and expressions that are clearly Aramaic. Thus in John 19:13, Ἑβραιστὶ δὲ Γαββαθᾶ is given as an explanation of the Lithostrotos, and Γαββαθᾶ is a Grecized form of the Aramaic word gabbětā, 'raised place.'"</ref><ref>The Cambridge History of Judaism: The late Roman-Rabbinic period. 2006. P.460: "Thus in certain sources Aramaic words are termed "Hebrew,"{{nbsp}}[...] For example: η επιλεγομενη εβραιστι βηθεσδα "which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda" (John 5.2). This is not a Hebrew name but rather an Aramaic one: בית חסדא, "the house of Hisda".</ref> for this reason, it is often interpreted as meaning "the (Aramaic) vernacular of the Jews" in recent translations.<ref>E.g. Geoffrey W.Bromley (ed.)''The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia'', W.B.Eeerdmans, Grand Rapids, Michigan 1979, 4 vols. vol.1 sub.'Aramaic' p.233: 'in the Aramaic vernacular of Palestine'</ref>

A small minority of scholars believe that most or all of the [[New Testament]] was originally written in Aramaic.<ref>Matthew Black. An Aramaic Approach to the Gospels and Acts. Hendrickson Publishers Marketing, LLC, 1998. {{ISBN|1565630866}}.</ref><ref>Glenn David Bauscher. 2007. The Original Aramaic New Testament in Plain English. {{ISBN|978-1-4357-1289-8}}.</ref> This theory is known as [[Aramaic primacy]].

==={{transliteration|grc|Talitha kum}} ({{lang|grc|Ταλιθὰ κούμ}})===
{{see also|Raising of Jairus' daughter}}
In the [[Gospel of Mark]], 5:41:

{{blockquote|And taking the hand of the child, he said to her, "Talitha kum", which translates as, "Little girl, I say to you, get up."|Mark 5:41<ref>{{Bibleverse|Mark|5:41}}</ref>}}

This verse gives an Aramaic phrase, attributed to Jesus bringing the girl back to life, with a [[transliteration]] into Greek, as {{lang|grc|ταλιθὰ κούμ}}.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Casey |first1=Maurice |author1-link=Maurice Casey |title=Jesus of Nazareth: An independent historian's account of his life and teaching |date=2010 |publisher=[[Bloomsbury Publishing]] |page=277 |isbn=9780567079084 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nOiRBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA277 |access-date=26 December 2020}}</ref> A few Greek [[Manuscripts of the Bible|manuscript]]s ([[Codex Sinaiticus]], [[Codex Vaticanus Graecus 1209|Vaticanus]]) of [[Gospel of Mark|Mark's Gospel]] have this form of the text, but others ([[Codex Alexandrinus]], the text-type known as the [[Majority Text]], and also the [[Latin]] [[Vulgate]]) write {{lang|grc|κοῦμι}} (''koumi'', cumi) instead. The latter is in the [[Textus Receptus]] and is the version which appears in the [[KJV]].{{cn|date=August 2023}}

The Aramaic is ''ṭlīthā qūm''. The word ''ṭlīthā'' is the feminine form of the word ''ṭlē'', meaning "young". ''Qūm'' is the Aramaic verb 'to rise, stand, get up'. In the feminine singular [[Imperative mood|imperative]], it was originally ''qūmī''. However, there is evidence{{what|date=May 2022}} that in speech, the final ''-ī'' was dropped so the imperative did not distinguish between [[masculine gender|masculine]] and [[feminine gender]]s. The older manuscripts, therefore, used a Greek spelling that reflected pronunciation, whereas the addition of an 'ι' was perhaps due to a bookish [[copyist]].{{cn|date=August 2023}}

In square script Aramaic, it could be טליתא קומי or טליתא קום.{{cn|date=August 2023}}

===<span id="Ephphatha">Ephphatha (Ἐφφαθά)</span>===
{{see also|Healing the deaf mute of Decapolis}}
[[Gospel of Mark|Mark]] {{bibleverse-nb||Mark|7:34|KJV}}
: ''And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, "Ephphatha," which is 'be opened'.''

Once again, the Aramaic word is given with the transliteration, only this time, the word to be transliterated is more complicated. In Greek, the Aramaic is written ἐφφαθά. This could be from the Aramaic ''ethpthaḥ'', the passive imperative of the verb ''pthaḥ'', 'to open', since the ''th'' could assimilate in western Aramaic. The pharyngeal ''[[heth|ḥ]]'' was often omitted in Greek transcriptions in the [[Septuagint]] (Greek Old Testament) and was also softened in Galilean speech.<ref>Kutscher, E.Y.. (1976). Studies in Galilean Aramaic.</ref>

In Aramaic, it could be אתפתח or אפתח. This word was adopted as the official motto of [[Gallaudet University]], the [[United States]]' most prominent school for the [[hearing loss|deaf]].

===Abba (Ἀββά[ς])===
{{see also|Agony in the Garden}}
[[Gospel of Mark|Mark]] 14:36
:''"Abba, Father," he said, "everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will."''

[[Epistle to the Galatians|Galatians]] 4:6
:''Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, "Abba, Father."''

[[Epistle to the Romans|Romans]] 8:15
:''The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father."''

[[Ab (Semitic)|Abba]], an originally Aramaic form borrowed into the Greek Old Testament as a name (2Chr 29:1) [standing for the Hebrew ''Abijah'' ({{Script/Hebrew|אביה}})], common in [[Mishnaic Hebrew]] and still used in [[Modern Hebrew]]<ref name="Greenspahn, Frederick E 2003. P.25">Greenspahn, Frederick E. 2003. An introduction to Aramaic. P.25</ref> (written Αββά[ς] in Greek, and ''’abbā'' in Aramaic), is immediately followed by the Greek equivalent (Πατήρ) with no explicit mention of it being a translation. In Aramaic, it would be אבא.

Note, the name [[Barabbas]] is a [[Hellenization]] of the Aramaic ''Bar Abba'' (בר אבא), literally "Son of the Father".

===Raca (Ρακά)===
{{see also|Matthew 5:22}}

[[Gospel of Matthew|Matthew]] 5:22
:''But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother [without a cause] shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.''

(The bracketed text does not appear in all [[recension]]s and is absent in the Latin [[Vulgate]].)

Raca, or ''Raka'', in the Aramaic and Hebrew of the [[Talmud]], means empty one, fool, empty head.

In Aramaic, it could be ריקא or ריקה.

===Mammon (Μαμωνάς)===
{{Main|Mammon}}
{{see also|Matthew 6:24}}
[[Gospel of Matthew]] 6:24
:''No one can serve two masters: for either they will hate the one, and love the other; or else they will hold to the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and [[mammon]].''

[[Gospel of Luke|Luke]] 16:9–13
:''And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations. He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own? No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.''

[[2 Clement]] 6
:''Now the Lord declares, "No servant can serve two masters." If we desire, then, to serve both God and mammon, it will be unprofitable for us. "For what will it profit if a man gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?" This world and the next are two enemies. The one urges to adultery and corruption, avarice and deceit; the other bids farewell to these things. We cannot, therefore, be the friends of both; and it behoves us, by renouncing the one, to make sure of the other. Let us reckon that it is better to hate the things present, since they are trifling, and transient, and corruptible; and to love those [who are to come,] as being good and incorruptible. For if we do the will of Christ, we shall find rest; otherwise, nothing shall deliver us from eternal punishment, if we disobey His commandments.'' (Roberts-Donaldson)

In Aramaic, it could be ממון (or, in the typical Aramaic "emphatic" state suggested by the Greek ending, ממונא). This is usually considered to be an originally Aramaic word borrowed into [[Rabbinic Hebrew]],<ref name=fern>Fernández, Miguel Pérez and John Elwolde. 1999. An Introductory Grammar of Rabbinic Hebrew. P.5</ref> but its occurrence in late Biblical Hebrew and, reportedly, in 4th century [[Punic]] may indicate that it had a more general "common Semitic background".<ref>Fitzmyer, Joseph A. 1979. A Wandering Aramean: Collected Aramaic Essays. P.12</ref>

In the New Testament,  the word {{lang|grc|Μαμωνᾶς}} ''Mamōnâs'' is [[declension|declined]] like a Greek word, whereas many of the other Aramaic and Hebrew words are treated as indeclinable foreign words.

===Rabbuni (Ραββουνί)===
{{see also|Noli me tangere}}
{{bibleverse||John|20:16}}
:''Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master.'' (KJV)

Also in Mark 10:51. Hebrew form [[rabbi]] used as title of Jesus in Matthew 26:25,49; Mark 9:5, 11:21, 14:45; John 1:38, 1:49, 4:31, 6:25, 9:2, 11:8.

In Aramaic, it would have been רבוני.

===Maranatha (Μαραναθά)===
{{Main|Maranatha}}
[[Didache]] 10:6 (Prayer after Communion)
:''Let grace come, and let this world pass away. [[Hosanna]] to the God (Son) of David! If any one is holy, let him come; if any one is not so, let him repent. Maran-Atha. Amen.'' (Roberts-Donaldson)

[[1 Corinthians 16:22]]
:''If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema [[Maranatha]].''

Depending on how one selects to split the single Greek expression of the early manuscripts into Aramaic, it could be either מרנא תא (''marana tha'', "Lord, come!") or מרן אתא (''maran atha'', "Our Lord has come").

==={{anchor|EliEli}}Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani (Ἠλί, Ἠλί, λεμὰ σαβαχθανί)===
{{Main|Eli Eli Lama Sabachthani?}}

This phrase, one of the [[Sayings of Jesus on the cross|seven sayings of Jesus on the cross]], is given in two versions: in the [[Gospel of Matthew]], it is transliterated in Greek as Ἠλί, Ἠλί, λεμὰ σαβαχθανί;  in the [[Gospel of Mark]], it is given as Ἐλωΐ, Ἐλωΐ, λαμὰ σαβαχθανί. The differences between the two are the use, in Mark, of ''elōi'' rather than ''ēli'', and of ''lama'' rather than ''lema''.

Overall, both versions can be said to be in [[Aramaic]], rather than in [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]], because of the verb {{Script/Hebrew|שבק}} (''šbq'') "abandon", which exists only in Aramaic.<ref name="Greenspahn, Frederick E 2003. P.252">Greenspahn, Frederick E. 2003. An introduction to Aramaic. P.25</ref><ref name="critexeg2">Davies, William D. and Dale C. Allison. 1997. Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Gospel According to Saint Matthew. Volume III. P.624</ref> The Biblical Hebrew counterpart to this word, {{Script/Hebrew|עזב}} (''‘zb'') is seen in the second verse of the [[Old Testament]]'s [[Psalm 22]], which the saying appears to quote. Thus, Jesus is not quoting the canonical Hebrew version (''ēlī ēlī lāmā ‘azabtānī''), which the psalm claims was of [[David|King David]], but rather the version in an Aramaic [[Targum]] (translation of the Bible). Surviving Aramaic Targums do use the verb ''šbq'' in their translations of the Psalm 22.<ref>[http://cal1.cn.huc.edu/index.htm The Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100419164259/http://cal1.cn.huc.edu/index.htm|date=2010-04-19}}
* [http://cal1.cn.huc.edu/get_a_chapter?file=81002&sub=022&cset=H Targum Psalms 22] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140413144121/http://cal1.cn.huc.edu/get_a_chapter?file=81002&sub=022&cset=H|date=2014-04-13}} Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion</ref>

The word used in the Gospel of Mark for "my god", Ἐλωΐ, corresponds to the Aramaic form אלהי, ''[[Elahi|elāhī]]''. The one used in Matthew, Ἠλί, fits in better with the אלי of the original Hebrew Psalm, as has been pointed out in the literature; however, it may also be Aramaic because this form is attested abundantly in Aramaic as well.<ref name="critexeg2" /><ref>Williams P.J. 2004. The linguistic background to Jesus' Dereliction Cry. The New Testament in its first century setting (ed. Williams P.J., Andre D. Clarke et al.) p. 7-8.</ref>

In the next verse, in both accounts, some who hear Jesus' cry imagine that he is calling for help from [[Elijah]] (''Ēlīyā'' in Aramaic).

Almost all ancient Greek manuscripts show signs of trying to normalize the two slightly different versions of Jesus's saying, presented in Mark and Matthew. For instance, the peculiar [[Codex Bezae]] renders both versions with ηλι ηλι λαμα ζαφθανι (''ēli ēli lama zaphthani''). The Alexandrian, Western and Caesarean textual families all reflect harmonization of the texts between Matthew and Mark. Only the Byzantine textual tradition preserves a distinction.

The Aramaic word form ''šəḇaqtanī'' is based on the verb ''šǝḇaq''/''šāḇaq'', 'to allow, to permit, to forgive, and to forsake', with the perfect aspect ending ''-t'' (second person singular: 'you'), and the object suffix ''-anī'' (first person singular: 'me').

The most likely rendition of the phrase in its original Aramaic, as said by Jesus, would have been "אלי, אלי, למה שבקתני", [[Transliteration|transliterated]] as ''Eli, Eli, ləmā šəḇaqtanī.''

In Hebrew, the saying would be "{{Script/Hebrew|אֵלִי אֵלִי, לָמָה עֲזַבְתָּנִי}}" (''ēlī ēlī, lāmā ‘azabtānī'' in [[Biblical Hebrew]], ''eli eli lama azavtani'' in [[Modern Hebrew]] pronunciation), while the [[Syriac language|Syriac-Aramaic]] phrase according to the [[Peshitta]] would be {{langx|syr|ܐܝܠܝ ܐܝܠܝ ܠܡܐ ܫܒܩܬܢܝ|translit=ʔēl ʔēl lǝmā šǝḇaqtān}} (Matthew 27:46) or {{langx|syr|ܐܠܗܝ ܐܠܗܝ ܠܡܢܐ ܫܒܩܬܢܝ|translit=ʾalāh ʾalāh lǝmānā šǝḇaqtān}} (Mark 15:34).

This saying is taken by some as an abandonment of the Son by the Father. Another interpretation holds that at the moment when Jesus took upon himself the sins of humanity, the Father had to turn away from the Son because the Father is "of purer eyes than to see evil and cannot look at wrong" ([[ESV]]).<ref>{{cite web |title=Habakkuk 1:13 |url=https://biblehub.com/habakkuk/1-13.htm |access-date=12 September 2021 |publisher=Bible Hub}}</ref> Other theologians understand the cry as that of one who was truly human and who felt forsaken. Put to death by his foes, very largely deserted by his friends, he may have also felt deserted by God.<ref>{{cite book |last=Conner |first=W. T. |title=The Cross in the New Testament |date=1954 |publisher=Broadman Press |location=Nashville, TN |page=34 |oclc=2882455}}</ref>

Others see these words in the context of Psalm 22 and suggest that Jesus recited these words, perhaps even the whole psalm, "that he might show himself to be the very Being to whom the words refer; so that the Jewish scribes and people might examine and see the cause why he would not descend from the cross; namely, because this very psalm showed that it was appointed that he should suffer these things."<ref>{{cite web |title=Pulpit Commentary – Mark 15:34 |url=http://biblehub.com/commentaries/pulpit/mark/15.htm |access-date=12 September 2021 |publisher=Bible Hub}}</ref>

===Jot and tittle ({{lang|grc|Ἰῶτα ἓν ἢ μία κεραία}})===
{{see also|Matthew 5:18}}
[[Gospel of Matthew|Matthew]] 5:18
:''For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the Law (that is, the Torah) till all is fulfilled.''

The quotation uses them as an example of extremely minor details. In the [[Greek language|Greek]] text translated as [[English language|English]] [[tittle|jot and tittle]] is found ''iota'' and ''keraia''. [[Iota]] is the smallest letter of the Greek alphabet (ι), but since only [[majuscule|capitals]] were used at the time the Greek New Testament was written (Ι; still, it is the smallest of all the Greek majuscules) and because the Torah was written in Hebrew, it probably represents the Hebrew [[yodh]] (י) which is the smallest letter of the [[Hebrew alphabet]]. ''Keraia'' is a hook or [[serif]].

===Korban (Κορβάν)===
{{see also|Judas Iscariot#Death}}
[[Gospel of Matthew|Matthew]] 27:6
:''But the chief priests, taking the pieces of silver, said, ‘It is not lawful to put them into the '''treasury''', since they are blood money.’''

In Aramaic (קרבנא) it refers to the treasury in the [[Temple in Jerusalem]], derived from the Hebrew [[Korban]] (קרבן), found in Mark 7:11 and the [[Septuagint]] (in Greek transliteration), meaning ''religious gift'' or ''offering''.

The Greek {{lang|grc|κορβανᾶς}} is declined as a Greek noun, much like other examples.

===Sikera (Σίκερα)===
{{see also|Zechariah (priest)}}
[[Gospel of Luke|Luke]] 1:15
:''for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He must never drink wine or '''strong drink'''; even before his birth he will be filled with the Holy Spirit.''

===Hosanna ({{lang|grc|Ὡσαννά}})===
{{see also|Triumphal entry into Jerusalem}}
[[Gospel of Mark|Mark]] 11:9
:''Then those who went ahead and those who followed were shouting, [[Hosanna]]! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!''

This word is derived from הושע נא. It is generally considered to be a quote from [[Psalms]] 118:25 "O {{smallcaps|Lord}}, save (us)", but the original Biblical Hebrew form was הושיעה נא (''hōšî‘āh nā''). The shortened form הושע could be either Aramaic or Hebrew.<ref>Brunson, Andrew. 2003. Psalm 118 in the Gospel of John: An Intertextual Study on the New Exodus Pattern in the Theology of John. P.204</ref><ref>Balz, Horst. Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament, Volume 3. P.509</ref>