Mark 8:28

8:28 They said, 1  “John the Baptist, others say Elijah, 2  and still others, one of the prophets.”

Mark 9:4

9:4 Then Elijah appeared before them along with Moses, 3  and they were talking with Jesus.

Mark 15:35

15:35 When some of the bystanders heard it they said, “Listen, he is calling for Elijah!” 4 

1 tn Grk “And they said to him, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

2 sn The appearance of Elijah would mean that the end time had come. According to 2 Kgs 2:11, Elijah was still alive. In Mal 4:5 it is said that Elijah would be the precursor of Messiah.

3 sn Commentators and scholars discuss why Moses and Elijah are present. The most likely explanation is that Moses represents the prophetic office (Acts 3:18-22) and Elijah pictures the presence of the last days (Mal 4:5-6), the prophet of the eschaton (the end times).

4 sn Perhaps the crowd thought Jesus was calling for Elijah because the exclamation “my God, my God” (i.e., in Aramaic, Eloi, Eloi) sounds like the name Elijah.