Have you ever noticed how every now and then, New Testament authors will throw in an Aramaic phrase?
Taking her by the hand he said to her, “Talitha cumi,” which means, “Little girl, I say to you, arise.” (Mark 5:41 ESV)
And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.” (Mark 7:34 ESV)
And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34 ESV)
In these three verses, the Aramaic is complicated, so Mark follows Jesus’ quotes with translations. Consider the word, ephphatha. This would not have been a common saying. I mean, how many times have you told something, “be opened!” The readers probably didn’t know the word, ephphatha, so it makes sense that Mark notes that ephphatha means “be opened.” The same goes with sabachthani (literally, “you have forsaken me”). The average Greek-speaking Christian in the first century wouldn’t know these words, so Mark translates them.
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