Some people question the harmony of the accounts in the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) as to what Jesus Christ said as He was dying on a cross, particularly the very last words that He spoke.  So, we will consider relevant scriptures in each of the Gospels.

[Note:  When we quote Scripture in this article, we use the wording in the New King James Version of the Bible, except when we are quoting a source that uses a different translation.]

Matthew 27:46-50 and Mark 15:33-37

Matthew 27:46-50: 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?” Some of those who stood there, when they heard that, said, “This Man is calling for Elijah!” Immediately one of them ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink. The rest said, “Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to save Him.” And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.

Mark 15:33-37: Now when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” which is translated, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” Some of those who stood by, when they heard that, said, “Look, He is calling for Elijah!” Then someone ran and filled a sponge full of sour wine, put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink, saying, “Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to take Him down.” And Jesus cried out with a loud voice, and breathed His last.

Both Matthew 27:4650 and in Mark 15:33-37 mention the same words that Jesus Christ spoke while He was dying on a cross: “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” and they make it clear that Jesus did not die immediately after speaking these words.  Furthermore, neither of these two scripture passages specifically reports anything else that Jesus said while He was dying on the cross, although both scripture passages indicate that Jesus subsequently “cried out with a loud voice” before He died.  Thus, there is no valid reason to believe that either of these scripture passages provides an account of Jesus’ very last words.

Luke 23:43 and John 19:26-27

Luke 23:43: And Jesus said [to one of the two thieves who were crucified with Him], “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.”

John 19:26-27: When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold your son!” Then He said to the disciple, “Behold your mother!” And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home.

Luke 23:43 and John 19:26-27 each report another statement by Jesus Christ while He was dying on a cross, but these statements differ.   In any case, neither of these scriptures nor the verses that immediately follow them provide reason to believe that either statement of Jesus in these scriptures pertains to the very last words of Jesus before He died.

Luke 23:46 and John 19:30

Luke 23:46: And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.” Having said this, He breathed His last.

John 19:30: [W]hen Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.

Both Luke 23:46 and John 19:30 seem to indicate that what Jesus Christ states in these two scriptures are the very last words He spoke before He died.  However, these scriptures differ as to what Jesus said.  The verse in Luke appears to indicate that Jesus died immediately after He said “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit,” whereas the verse in John seems to imply that Jesus died immediately after He said “It is finished.”

Furthermore, neither of these two scriptures indicates that Jesus Christ said anything between the time that He spoke the words stated in the respective scripture and the time that He died.   Thus, there appears to be a contradiction, since both statements by Jesus obviously could not be His very last words.

However, the wording of several biblical translations of these two scriptures does not exclude the possibility that Jesus may have spoken other words between the time He said what is recorded in one or the other of these scriptures and the time that He died.  If so, which of these two scriptures is more likely to contain Jesus’ very last words?

To answer this question, we will consider the wording of John 19:30 in several translations other than the New King James Version, which we previously cited.

American Standard Version: When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, “It is finished!” and he bowed his head, and gave up his spirit.

Amplified Bible: When Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.

Holman Christian Standard Bible: When Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” Then bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.

New Revised Standard Version:  When Jesus had received the wine, he said, “It is finished.” Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

Wycliffe Bible: Therefore when Jesus had taken the vinegar, he said, “It is ended.” And when his head was bowed down, he gave up the ghost.

Although a cursory reading of these translations of John 19:30 may seem to indicate that Jesus Christ bowed His head and immediately gave up His spirit (i.e., died) immediately after stating “It is finished” (or “It is ended.”), there is no certainty that the writer intended to give this impression.  The wording of John 19:30 allows for a reasonable possibility that there may have been a brief interval between the statement Jesus made in this verse of scripture and the time that He bowed His head and died, which gave Him sufficient time to speak several additional words.

Now, we will consider the wording of Luke 23:46 in the same translations.

American Standard Version: And Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said this, he gave up the ghost.

Amplified Bible: And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit! And with these words, He expired.

Holman Christian Standard Bible: And Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into Your hands I entrust My spirit.”[a] Saying this, He breathed His last.

New Revised Standard Version:  Then Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.” Having said this, he breathed his last.

Wycliffe Bible: And Jesus crying with a great voice, said, Father, into thine hands I betake my spirit. And he saying these things, gave up the ghost.

The wording of Luke 23:46 does not seem to allow for a reasonable possibility that there was a brief interval between the statement Jesus Christ made in this verse of scripture and the time that He breathed His last.  Therefore, we think it is likely that Jesus made the statement recorded in this verse (i.e., “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.”) immediately after He spoke the words recorded in John 19:30 (i.e., “It is finished.”).  Thus, the words recorded in Luke 23:46 were probably Jesus’ very last words.

And, there is another reason for believing that Luke 23:46 records the very last words of Jesus Christ.  When Jesus was sent by God to the earth, His mission was to live a sinless life and then willingly become the ultimate sacrifice for the sins of everyone who trusts in Him as their Savior.  In other words, Jesus could be the ultimate sacrifice only if He lived a completely sinless life (i.e., only if He was unblemished by sin).  This follows the precedent set in Old Testament times, which required that only unblemished animals be sacrificed to God.

Therefore, as Jesus Christ was dying on a cross and about to complete His mission, He declared aloud that His mission was finished.  Only then was He ready to commit His spirit into the hands of God, His Heavenly Father.  From a purely logical standpoint, this is more likely than the reverse order that would have resulted in Jesus committing His spirit into the hand of God before He declared that His mission was finished.

Conclusions

Although the Gospel writers differ to some extent as to what Jesus Christ said while He was dying on a cross and as to the order in which He made those statements, this does not mean that these biblical accounts contradict one another.  When assessing scriptures that differ from one another, it is important to keep in mind that even when witnesses are present at the same event, they often focus on different aspects of that event, and as a result, they are likely to report somewhat different accounts of the same event.  Since there do not seem to be any irreconcilable discrepancies or contradictions between the biblical accounts that we have considered, all of these scriptures can justifiably be regarded as accurate.

As for the very last words spoken by Jesus Christ, our study indicates that they probably were those recorded in Luke 23:46 (i.e., “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.”).

In any case, there is ample evidence that the entire Bible is reliable and that, therefore, a credible explanation does exist for any differences in what is reported among two or more scriptures pertaining to the same matter.  [For a discussion of reasons to believe the Bible is credible, click on “Is the Bible Reliable?]