What does Luke 7:5 mean?

While in Capernaum, city elders approach Jesus with a request. The local centurion's servant is on the brink of death. The centurion has sent them to ask Jesus for healing. The elders do so willingly. They quickly find Jesus and passionately make their case. For the good the centurion has done for the community, they believe he deserves this request (Luke 7:2–4).

The elders point out the centurion "loves our nation." Such details are one reason scholars suggest the man was not a convert to Judaism: he is not described as a lover or worshipper of "our God." Perhaps he appreciates the morality and monotheism of Jewish culture, or simply the culture itself, but has not gone as far as adopting their religion.

A synagogue was a place where Jews met regularly, particularly on the Sabbath, to read from Scripture and discuss its meaning. Jesus often went into the synagogue on the Sabbath and healed someone, much to the consternation of the Pharisees (Luke 6:6–11; 13:10–17). Paul would go to the local synagogue whenever he entered a new city and argue from the Scriptures to try to convince the Jews that Jesus is the Messiah (Acts 9:20; 13:16–41; 14:1). Archaeologists have found a synagogue in Capernaum built in the second or fourth century that, they suggest, may be built on the foundation of this synagogue.

It's not entirely clear how the centurion built the synagogue. He may be a benefactor: someone with power and influence who uses their own resources to benefit the community. Yet it wasn't unusual for Romans to support synagogues; some leaders did so because they promoted general morality. According to Josephus, the emperor Augustus even decreed that internal taxes on Jews be reserved for their own use, including for their "sacred schools." So, it's not entirely clear if the centurion paid for the synagogue himself or used government funds, although most commentators suspect the former.