8:9

In 8:9, the words of the centurion show that he understood authority. He understood that when someone in authority gives a command, that command is obeyed. This implies that he recognized Jesus’ authority and believed that Jesus had the power to heal his servant, even from a distance. As 8:10 says, Jesus was amazed at the centurion’s faith.

Be careful that your translation of this verse does not imply that the centurion was ordering Jesus to heal his servant.

If people in your area will not understand the correct meaning of these words, you may want to add a footnote to explain. Here is a sample footnote:

In saying this, the centurion indicated that he believed that Jesus had the authority and power to heal by simply commanding it.

8:9a

For: In this context, the Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as For introduces an explanation for the centurion saying “just say the word” (in 8:8c). In this verse, the centurion explained that he knew that someone with authority could give a command, and the command would be obeyed. This implies that he recognized that Jesus had authority, and he believed that Jesus could heal his servant with a command.

Here are some ways to begin this verse:

• With a conjunction or introductory phrase that introduces the explanation. For example:

I know this because (New Living Translation (2004))

• Without any conjunction. For example:

I, too, am a man under the authority of superior officers (Good News Translation)

I myself am a man under authority: The phrase a man under authority means “a man who is placed under the authority of others.” A centurion in the Roman army was an officer, but he was not the highest officer. There were senior officers who had authority over him. In some languages, it may be necessary to make some of this explicit. For example:

I am under the authority of my superior officers (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
I have officers who give orders to me (Contemporary English Version)

I myself: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as myself probably has the sense of “also” here. The centurion used this word to compare himself to Jesus. Both had the authority to give commands.

It is perhaps going too far to say that the centurion was saying that Jesus is under authority like he was under authority. In most of this verse, the centurion spoke of his authority to give commands, not receive them. So he was comparing his authority to give commands with Jesus’ authority. It is perhaps because of this difficulty that some English versions do not translate the word myself.

under authority: The phrase under authority refers to the centurion submitting to officers of higher rank than him. Greek and English use the words “under” and “over” to describe differing levels of authority. Other languages may use different words to describe this relationship such as “in front” and “behind.” Translate this in a way that is natural in your language.

Here are some other ways to translate this:

I must obey people with higher authority
-or-
I must do what people with greater power tell me

8:9b

with soldiers under me: This phrase means that the centurion had authority to command the soldiers that he led. He implied that, in the same way, he believed that Jesus had authority to heal people.

Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

I also have soldiers who must obey me
-or-
And I give orders to soldiers who are under me

8:9c–d

I tell one to go, and he goes; and another to come, and he comes: The phrases one and another refer generally to any of the soldiers under the centurion’s authority.

Here is another way to translate this:

I tell one ⌊soldier⌋ ‘Go’ and he goes; and ⌊I tell⌋ another ⌊soldier⌋ ‘come’ and he comes

I tell one to go: Here the command go means that the centurion was giving the soldier an order to “go somewhere” or to “go do something.” It does not mean that the centurion was chasing away the soldier. In some languages, it may be necessary to make this more explicit. For example:

I send one soldier saying, “Go ⌊over there⌋.”

8:9e

my servant: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as servant here is not the same Greek word as “servant” in verse 8:6a. Here the Greek word refers generally to any servant or slave. The Roman centurion also commanded his servants or slaves and they obeyed him.

Some English versions translate these two words differently. For example, the Good News Translation translates this word as “slave.”

Use an expression that refers generally to any servant of the centurion. For example:

one of my servants
-or-
anyone who serves me

-or-

my slave (Good News Translation)

General Comment on 8:9c–e

In the Greek, the words “go,” “come,” and “Do something” are direct speech. For example:

And I say to the one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it. (English Standard Version)

However, in some languages, it may be more natural to translate these commands as indirect speech, as the Berean Standard Bible models.

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