Sabachthani

Sabachthani (Aramaic shebaqtani, meaning thou hast forsaken me) is the concluding word of the cry of dereliction that Jesus uttered from the cross: Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? — "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Matt. 27:46; Mark 15:34). The cry is a direct quotation of the opening verse of Psalm 22, spoken in Aramaic, the common language of first-century Judea. Its utterance at the ninth hour (approximately 3 PM) came after three hours of supernatural darkness over the land. The cry has been the subject of profound theological reflection: it expresses the full weight of Christ's atoning suffering, in which he bore the sin of his people and experienced the withdrawal of the Father's felt presence — the darkness of divine judgment — on their behalf. The fact that Psalm 22 moves from lament to triumphant vindication (Ps. 22:24–31) is understood as pointing toward the resurrection that followed the cross.