The Roman soldiers is the same term discussed at verse 3. Commanding officer (Jerusalem Bible “captain”; New English Bible “commander”) literally means “commander of a thousand.” It was a technical term in the Roman army for the commander of a cohort (see comments on verse 3). A more generic term, such as commanding officer, “commander,” or “officer in charge” seems preferable to a specific term, such as “captain.” In some languages the commanding officer must be mentioned before the soldiers, for example, “the commanding officer together with the Roman soldiers.” One may, however, introduce the commanding officer in parentheses, for example, “the Roman soldiers (this included their commanding officer) and the Jewish guards.”

Jewish guards is the same term translated temple guards in verse 3 (see also 7.32).

In some languages it is important in rendering tied him up to indicate specifically what happened. It would be wrong to suggest that Jesus was tied both hand and foot and therefore had to be carried, or that he was tied to some object such as a tree or post. What is indicated here is that his hands were tied, probably behind his back.

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on the Gospel of John. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1980. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .