MARANATHA

 NOVEMBER 28, 2022

Revelation 22:20

“He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming soon.’” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.                                                      (MARANATHA)


Paul’s letters are mostly written in Greek, but when he closes 1 Corinthians he uses a surprise Aramaic word - Maranatha. This suggests that Maranatha was a common phrase of worship and prayer handed down from the earliest Aramaic speaking followers of Jesus, and that it had a particular importance

for the church in early times. If you think about this in our worship language today we use ancient words like Hallelujah, Hosanna, and Amen in a similar way – they have become part of the language of our worship.

So what does Maranatha mean? It is commonly translated “Come, Lord” (see Revelation 22:20), Bible scholar Kenneth Bailey, in his book Paul Through Mediterranean Eyes points out that there are really three possible meanings for Maranatha:

He writes, “As often observed, this last word can be read maran atha (Our Lord has come). This translation addresses the readers and affirms a reality in the present (he is here). The two Aramaic words can also be divided to read marana tha (Our Lord-come!). This is a request addressed to the risen

Lord that looks to the end of all things with the plea ‘Please come!’ A variant on this second option is, ‘Our Lord is coming.’ This also looks to the future but it is a statement of fact rather than a plea, and it is not addressed to Jesus.” (Pages 495-496)

What Bailey shows is that all three translations have been adopted through church history, and that the rendering, which is less known to us, the past-tense confession “Our Lord has come” has in fact been the favoured interpretation in Middle Eastern countries.

What if we do not need to settle on one definition over another, what if we understood the meaning of Maranatha as all these at the same time.

We declare with confidence that Jesus came in the incarnation. We can proclaim with hope that he is coming again. We can call to him in faith, interceding for our world and asking him to be present in our midst as we wait for his final return.

We would then confess the following when we say Maranatha,

Our Lord has come.
Our Lord is coming.
Our Lord - come!

1 Corinthians 16:23-24

Come, Lord!
23 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you.
24 My love to all of you in Christ Jesus. Amen.