Bible Strands
Acts 22:26
On hearing this, the centurion went and reported it to the commander. “What are you going to do?” he said. “This man is a Roman citizen.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The centurion addresses the military commander immediately after Paul warns that flogging him as a Roman citizen without a trial would be unlawful. This exchange occurs during the arrest sequence, just before the commander questions Paul directly about his citizenship status.
The words — The centurion uses ἀκούσας (akousas), meaning “having heard,” to mark his immediate response to Paul’s warning, and ἀπήγγειλεν (apēngeilen), meaning “he reported,” to describe his action toward the commander. These terms emphasize the centurion’s prompt acknowledgment of the legal danger.
The thread — The commander’s alarm over Roman citizenship resurfaces in Acts 22:29 when the interrogators retreat and Acts 23:27 when the commander explains his rescue of Paul from the Jews. Both passages show the same legal protection triggering military hesitation.
Why it lands — A reader must recognize that Roman citizenship functioned as a legal shield that halted unauthorized punishment. The text demands acknowledgment that institutional rights can override immediate religious or mob pressure.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
When the centurion heard that, he went and told the chief captain, saying, Take heed what thou doest: for this man is a Roman.
Cross-references
- Acts 23:27 This man was seized by the Jews, and they were about to kill him when I came with my troops to rescue him. For I had learned that he is a Roman citizen,
- Acts 22:29 At once those who were about to interrogate Paul stepped back, and the commander himself was alarmed when he realized that he had put a Roman citizen in chains.