Matthew 8:9 - Printer Friendly

ESV: For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it."

NIV: For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it."

NASB: For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, ‘Go!’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come!’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this!’ and he does it.'

CSB: For I too am a man under authority, having soldiers under my command. I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this!’ and he does it."

NLT: I know this because I am under the authority of my superior officers, and I have authority over my soldiers. I only need to say, ‘Go,’ and they go, or ‘Come,’ and they come. And if I say to my slaves, ‘Do this,’ they do it.'

KJV: For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.

NKJV: For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

Jesus was ready and willing to enter the Roman centurion's house to heal the man's servant (Matthew 8:5–7). The centurion, though, objected to this. He said he was not worthy to have Jesus in his home (Matthew 8:8). He respected the Jewish people (Luke 7:5) and likely understood that their custom prohibited them from entering the house of a Gentile (non-Jew). As this verse shows, though, the centurion also understood Jesus to be a man of great power and connection to God.

The centurion has said that Jesus can heal his servant merely by speaking a word. Now he explains why. He understands the principle of authority, which powered the Roman army. He himself was under the authority of his superiors, and he had authority over all the soldiers under him. He could accomplish anything with the words "come," "go," "do this." His soldiers would immediately carry out his will without any need for the centurion to be present with them. This is a man who respects and instinctively recognizes authority.

In short, the centurion recognized Jesus' authority over the natural world. He saw that Jesus' healings were not like the attempted supernatural works of the pagans of his day. They would offer sacrifices and perform rituals and sometimes work themselves into a frenzy attempting to convince their gods to do their bidding. They saw their gods as having the authority, and they attempted to win their favor. Jesus, though, simply spoke and it was done. He was the one with the authority.

As Jesus will show in the following verses, this was the conclusion the Jewish people should have reached when seeing His miracles. This was the faith in Him they should have shown.

Matthew 8:5–13 describes Jesus' response to the request of a Roman centurion in Capernaum. The Gentile officer has a servant who is paralyzed and suffering greatly. The centurion says that Jesus does not even need to come to his home, but that He can heal the man with a word. As a man with authority, this soldier recognizes Christ's right to command, even with respect to healing. Jesus applauds this faith, and notes that many Gentiles will be in the kingdom of heaven, along with the Jewish patriarchs. Not all Israelites will be included, however. Jesus tells the Roman officer his servant has been healed.

Matthew begins a series of stories revealing Jesus' authority over sickness, demons, and even the weather. Jesus heals a humble man with leprosy and great faith. He then heals the servant of a Roman centurion who understands that Jesus does not need to come to his home; He can just speak a word. Jesus praises the Gentile man's amazing faith. After healing many more, Jesus and the disciples get caught in a deadly storm on the Sea of Galilee. Jesus stops the storm with a word. Later, He casts demons out of two men and into a huge herd of pigs.

Matthew 8 follows the conclusion of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:1–2). He turns to telling a series of dramatic stories to show Jesus' power and authority over every kind of disease, over demons, and even over the weather. Jesus also gives brief teachings about the hard road of following Him on earth. He calms a violent storm with a single command and casts demons from two violently possessed men. Matthew will focus mostly on miracles until shifting focus to Jesus' teachings and parables in chapter 11.

The Gospel of Matthew clearly shows the influence of its writer's background, and his effort to reach a specific audience. Matthew was one of Jesus' twelve disciples, a Jewish man, and a former tax collector. This profession would have required literacy, and Matthew may have transcribed some of Jesus' words as they were spoken. This book is filled with references to the Old Testament, demonstrating to Israel that Jesus is the Promised One. Matthew also includes many references to coins, likely due to his former profession. Matthew records extensive accounts of Jesus' teaching, more than the other three Gospels.