Is it “Eli” or “Eloi” in Matthew 27:46?
Question:
God bless you my brothers and sisters of this church. Now I noticed when I was reading one of your articles on the calling that Jesus shouted while on the cross; I noticed that you have Matthew 27:46 incorrect. What it should say is "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?" Not Eli.
Answer:
The verse is quoted correctly.
"And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" that is, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"" (Matthew 27:46 NKJV)
"About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACHTHANI?" that is, "MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?"" (Matthew 27:46 NASB 95)
"And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" (Matthew 27:46 KJV)
The only version that puts in eloi is the NIV, which doesn't match the Greek. Yet another reason to not like the New International Version.
Question:
Then why does the NIV Bible say Eloi, Eloi?
Answer:
The NIV has a footnote that says "Some manuscripts Eli, Eli" but I checked and I can't find a contrary manuscript (not that some might not be there, but if it is, it is definitely rare). All the composite manuscripts have Eli, Eli, so at best the NIV's footnote is misleading. You would have to ask the translators of the NIV why they went against the evidence.
See the question: "Why does Mark have "Eloi" and Matthew have "Eli" for the same statement? for a discussion of why Matthew and Mark's records differ on this quote.
