Matthew 8:9

8:9 For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. ¹  I say to this one, ‘Go’ and he goes, ²  and to another ‘Come’ and he comes, and to my slave ³  ‘Do this’ and he does it.” ⁴ 

Matthew 8:26-27

8:26 But ⁵  he said to them, “Why are you cowardly, you people of little faith?” Then he got up and rebuked ⁶  the winds and the sea, ⁷  and it was dead calm. 8:27 And the men ⁸  were amazed and said, ⁹  “What sort of person is this? Even the winds and the sea obey him!” ¹⁰ 

[8:9]  ¹ tn Grk “having soldiers under me.”

[8:9]  ² sn I say to this one ‘Go’ and he goes. The illustrations highlight the view of authority the soldier sees in the word of one who has authority. Since the centurion was a commander of a hundred soldiers, he understood what it was both to command others and to be obeyed.

[8:9]  ³ tn Though δοῦλος (doulos) is normally translated “servant,” the word does not bear the connotation of a free individual serving another. BDAG notes that “‘servant’ for ‘slave’ is largely confined to Biblical transl. and early American times… in normal usage at the present time the two words are carefully distinguished” (BDAG 260 s.v. 1). The most accurate translation is “bondservant” (sometimes found in the ASV for δοῦλος) in that it often indicates one who sells himself into slavery to another. But as this is archaic, few today understand its force.

[8:9]  ⁴ tn The word “it” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

[8:26]  ⁵ tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[8:26]  ⁶ tn Or “commanded” (often with the implication of a threat, L&N 33.331).

[8:26]  ⁷ sn Who has authority over the seas and winds is discussed in the OT: Ps 104:3; 135:7; 107:23-30. When Jesus rebuked the winds and the sea he was making a statement about who he was.

[8:27]  ⁸ tn It is difficult to know whether ἄνθρωποι (anqrwpoi) should be translated as “men” or “people” (in a generic sense) here. At issue is whether (1) only the Twelve were with Jesus in the boat, as opposed to other disciples (cf. v. 23), and (2) whether any of those other disciples would have been women. The issue is complicated further by the parallel in Mark (4:35-41), where the author writes (4:36) that other boats accompanied them on this journey.

[8:27]  ⁹ tn Grk “the men were amazed, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) has been translated as a finite verb to make the sequence of events clear in English.

[8:27]  ¹⁰ sn Jesus’ authority over creation raised a question for the disciples about his identity (What sort of person is this?). This verse shows that the disciples followed Jesus even though they did not know all about him yet.