Last Seven Words of Jesus

INTRODUCTION TO THE SEVEN LAST WORDS OF JESUS ON THE CROSS

The Seven Last “Words” of Jesus Christ from the cross are actually 7 short phrases that Jesus uttered on Calvary that serve as an excellent Good Friday meditation ― or, for that matter, at any other time of the year. The seven last words of Jesus Christ are not found in one Gospel, but are taken from all four Gospels, since no Evangelist records all 7 last words from the cross. The sayings would have been originally uttered by Jesus in the Aramaic language, but only one of the last seven words of Jesus is preserved for us in the original Aramaic, namely “Eli, Eli, lama sabacthani” or “My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me” ― which is actually a direct quote of the opening verse of Psalm 21.

The rest of the seven last words of Jesus from the cross are found in the gospels after having been translated from Aramaic into Greek by the four Evangelists. We reproduce them here in Latin as well as English, since the Latin version of the Seven Last Words of Christ has been used so extensively in sacred music, notably by composers such as Franz Josef Hayden. For centuries these seven last words of Jesus have been also used as meditation points for spiritual conferences, retreats, and Lenten missions. They are particularly wonderful to use for prayer during Holy Week, especially on Good Friday.

1. “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do” … “Pater, dimitte illis, quia nesciunt, quid faciunt.” (Luke 23:34).

2. “This day thou shalt be with Me in Paradise.” … “Hodie mecum eris in Paradiso.” (Luke 23:43).

3. “Woman, behold thy son! Behold thy Mother!” … “Mulier, ecce filius tuus. Deinde dicit discipulo : Ecce mater tua!” (John 19:26-27).

4. “My God! My God! Why hast thou forsaken me?” … “Deus meus! Deus meus! Ut quid dereliquisti me?” (Mark 15:34; Matthew 27:46).

5. “I thirst!” … “Sitio!” (John 19:28).

6. “It is consumated!” … “Consummatum est!” (John 19:30).

7. “Father, into Thy hands I commend my spirit!” … “In manus tuas, Domine, commendo spiritum meum!” (Luke 23:46, which is a quote from Psalm 31:6).

BRIEF OVERVIEW AND SHORT THOUGHTS ON EACH OF THE SEVEN WORDS OR PHRASES
(for a much more detailed reflection and meditation, click on the individual links for each of the Seven Words that you will find at the top of this page)

For centuries Catholics have pondered the rich meaning of Jesus’ seven last words from the Cross. These “words” are the seven brief sayings Jesus uttered while He hung on the Cross in utmost pain and loneliness. Let’s look at them, consider their Source and their context, and ponder how they might console and strengthen us as we bear our own immeasurably lighter crosses.

1. “Father! Forgive them! For they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34)
Christ’s first words from the Cross, in the earliest throes of His agony, are to ask God to forgive the very people who placed Him there. How many of us are lonely because of estrangement from someone once close to us whom we have refused to forgive or who has been unforgiving of us? Can we make a gesture to reach out to that person while our arms remain free to move? Even if we should be rebuffed, can we do as Christ did and pray that God will forgive that person — and us, too?

2. “Amen I say to thee, this day thou shalt be with Me in Paradise!” (Luke 23:43)
The completely innocent Christ was given two criminals as His companions as He hung from the Cross. One of them railed at Him, demanding that He save them all if He truly was the Christ. The other rebuked the first for not fearing God present in Christ, who suffered the same punishment as theirs even though He was innocent.

When that “good thief” asked Jesus to remember him when He came into His kingly power, Jesus uttered His second word from the Cross: “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” These words certainly brought that thief incredible solace and joy. If we are or should become victims of severe emotional or social isolation, how might we treat those in the same boat, bearing a similar cross? Will we recognize Christ in them and treat them accordingly? Our ultimate reward will be great one day should we, too, share Paradise with Christ.

3. “Woman, behold, your son!. . . .Behold, your Mother!” (John 19:26–27)
Now imagine Christ’s loneliness as He looks down at His totally loving, devoted, and sinless mother, beside John, His “beloved disciple.” He knows how they share His tortures and will soon have to cope with His loss in their earthly existence, but He is anything but paralyzed by His distress. He wants those whom He loves to continue to love and care for each other in the most intimate of ways, as that between a mother and her child, a child and his mother. Of course, Jesus grants Mary as Queen of Heaven to be Mother, not only to John, but to every man and woman on Earth. She is as willing to fly to our aid today, as she was to John’s on the day of Christ’s Crucifixion.

Centuries after that day, St. Thérèse of Lisieux would ponder the strength of the Blessed Mother in enduring so many sorrows, noting that, unlike all of us, Mary herself did not have a Blessed Mother to pray to (although, of course, she had her Son)! So, is there a lonely person in your life, perhaps someone bereaved of a parent, or a child, for whom you might step forward and offer love and support, as John and the Blessed Mother offered each other love and support?

4. “My God! My God! Why hast Thou forsaken Me?” (Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34)
Christ here echoes Psalm 22:1, which expresses the desolation He felt in His human nature. Here is Christ suffering. Here is another example of how we can join our suffering with Christ’s. In our loneliest hours, do we feel that we are forsaken not only by man, but by God? If so, can we still call out to God in prayer, expecting that He will hear us?

5. “I thirst!” (John 19:28)
Here is another reminder that Christ joined us in our humanity. The eternal Word who was in the beginning, who was with God, and who was God (see John 1:1) has agreed to take on the weakness, the cravings, and the gnawing of the human flesh of His creatures, for our own sake, and yet we let Him suffer.

Do we take much time to think of the lonely people in our lives for whom Christ died and of how they might thirst for attention? And we needn’t get too metaphorical, for sometimes the lonely are isolated and may experience physical thirst and hunger that we might help relieve. The Church has always recognized that we are not disembodied souls, but ensouled bodies and both elements of our unity are good and deserving of care. This is why she has long encouraged both spiritual and corporal (fleshly, bodily) works of mercy.

In fact, sometimes we spend so much time in the virtual, electronic world that we forget that we all have bodies with needs we can help each other fulfill. When a text or an e-mail replaces a phone call, we have cut ourselves off from the recipient’s voice.

When a call replaces face-to-face contact, we have cut ourselves off not only from that person’s face, but from his or her body language, all those subtle ways that God has given us to communicate with one another by virtue of having bodies. When we connect only over distant airwaves, we can certainly suggest that a thirsty friend get a drink, but we are in no position to hand him one.

6. “It is consummated!” (John 19:30)
What a relief Christ must have felt when His task, the most gruesome yet important task ever assigned on earth, was complete! He expressed it in these simple words: “It is consummated” meaning “It is finished.” Our own life task is clearly not finished.

What, then, will we do to establish new emotional and social connections and strengthen the ones we already have in our time left on earth before, God willing, we pass through the gates of heaven Christ opened for us by completing His mission on the wood of the Cross?

7. “Father, into Thy hands I commit My spirit!” (Luke 23:46)
These are the very last words Jesus breathed on earth before His spirit returned to His Father. Will our focus be on God in our last moment? It is, after all, “in Him that we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). Are we willing to commit our spirits to God now? Such commitment to God, who is no mere abstract power or force, let alone an uncaring ruler, but is our Father, who has given His Son for our salvation, and who gives us His Holy Spirit to dwell in the temples of our bodies, cannot help but provide relief to our deepest feelings of loneliness, and motivation to reach out with His love to the lonely around us.