G2982 G2982
lema (Aramaic: why?), transliteration of Hebrew/Aramaic 'why'
This is a transliteration of the Aramaic לְמָא (lemā) or Hebrew לָמָה (lāmâ), meaning 'why?' It appears in Jesus' cry from the cross in both Matthew 27:46 and Mark 15:34: 'Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?'—'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?' (quoting Psalm 22:1). Matthew uses 'lema' while Mark has 'lama,' reflecting minor dialectal or textual variation. The word has no Greek etymology; it's a direct quotation of Jesus' Aramaic (or Hebrew) words preserved in the Greek text, emphasizing the authenticity and solemnity of this moment.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Matthew 27:46 records Jesus crying 'Eli, Eli, lema (λεμὰ) sabachthani'—'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?' Mark 15:34 has the parallel 'Eloi, Eloi, lema (λεμὰ) sabachthani.' The multilingual glosses simply transliterate: English 'lema,' Spanish 'lema/lemá,' French 'lama,' German 'Lema/λεμὰ.' This is not a Greek word but a preserved Semitic exclamation, the interrogative 'why?' from Psalm 22:1, spoken in Jesus' death agony. 2×
AR["لَمَا"]·ben["লামা", "লেমা"]·DE["Lema", "λεμὰ"]·EN["lema"]·FR["lama"]·heb["לְמָה", "לָמָה"]·HI["लमा"]·ID["lema"]·IT["lema"]·jav["lama", "lema"]·KO["레마"]·PT["lema", "lemá"]·RU["лема"]·ES["lema", "lemá"]·SW["lema"]·TR["lema"]·urd["لمّا"]
Related Senses
G3588 1. definite article (18298×)H0853 1. definite direct object marker (10915×)G2532 1. (8312×)H3068 1. YHWH (the divine name) (6522×)H0834a 1. relative pronoun (who/which/that) (4839×)H3588a 1. causal: because, for (3498×)G1161 1. and (2806×)H3478 1. Israel (proper name and nation) (2507×)G4771 1. you (plural address) (1853×)H1931 1. personal pronoun he/she/it (1431×)G3739 1. relative pronoun who/which/that (1149×)H1732 1. David (proper name) (1075×)H2088 1. this, this one (demonstrative) (1059×)G1063 1. (1047×)G3778 1. this thing, these things (1003×)H???? 2. (1002×)G2424 1. (924×)G3754 1. that (content clause) (881×)H2009 1. presentative particle: behold, look (881×)H0589 1. I (first person singular pronoun) (874×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
Transliteration of Hebrew מָה 'what?' [H4100]. Not in LSJ.