Matthew 27:54

Matthew 27:54 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God.
• New International Version (NIV)When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!”
• English Standard Version (ESV)When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, "Truly this was the Son of God!"
• New King James Version (NKJV)So when the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things that had happened, they feared greatly, saying, “Truly this was the Son of God!”

Context of Matthew 27:54

52And tombs were opened, and the bodies of many saints who had died were raised. 53(They came out of the tombs after his resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people.) Now when the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and what took place, they were extremely terrified and said, “Truly this one was God’s Son!” 55Many women who had followed Jesus from Galilee and given him support were also there, watching from a distance. 56Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.

Matthew 27:54 word by word

Ὁ δὲ ἑκατόνταρχος καὶ οἱ μετ᾽ αὐτοῦ τηροῦντες τὸν Ἰησοῦν ἰδόντες τὸν σεισμὸν καὶ τὰ γενόμενα ἐφοβήθησαν σφόδρα λέγοντες· ἀληθῶς θεοῦ υἱὸς ἦν οὗτος.¶Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Now whenδέde · thenG1161
• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• the centurionἑκατόνταρχοςhekatontarchēs hekatontarchos · centurionG1543
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• withμετάmeta · with/afterG3326
• himαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• watchingτηρέωtēreō · to keep: guardG5083
• JesusἸησοῦςIēsous · JesusG2424
• sawὁράωhoraō · to see: seeG3708
• the earthquakeσεισμόςseismos · earthquakeG4578
• those things that were doneγίνομαιginomai · to beG1096
• they fearedφοβέωphobeō · to fearG5399
• greatlyσφόδραsphodra · veryG4970
• sayingλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
• Trulyἀληθῶςalēthōs · trulyG230
• thisοὗτοςhoutos houtoi hautē hautai · this/he/she/itG3778
• wasεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• the Sonυἱόςuihos · sonG5207
• of Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316

Cross-references for Matthew 27:54

• Matthew 27:36Then they sat down and kept guard over him there.
• Matthew 8:5When he entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him asking for help:
• Acts 10:1Now there was a man in Caesarea named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort.
• Acts 21:32He immediately took soldiers and centurions and ran down to the crowd. When they saw the commanding officer and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul.
• Acts 23:17Paul called one of the centurions and said, “Take this young man to the commanding officer, for he has something to report to him.”
• Acts 27:1When it was decided we would sail to Italy, they handed over Paul and some other prisoners to a centurion of the Augustan Cohort named Julius.
• Mark 15:39Now when the centurion, who stood in front of him, saw how he died, he said, “Truly this man was God’s Son!”
• Luke 23:47Now when the centurion saw what had happened, he praised God and said, “Certainly this man was innocent!”
• 2 Kings 1:13The king sent a third captain and his fifty soldiers. This third captain went up and fell on his knees before Elijah. He begged for mercy, “Prophet, please have respect for my life and for the lives of these fifty servants of yours.
• Acts 2:37Now when they heard this, they were acutely distressed and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “What should we do, brothers?”
• Acts 16:29Calling for lights, the jailer rushed in and fell down trembling at the feet of Paul and Silas.
• Revelation 11:13Just then a major earthquake took place and a tenth of the city collapsed; seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.
• Matthew 27:40and saying, “You who can destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are God’s Son, come down from the cross!”
• Matthew 26:63But Jesus was silent. The high priest said to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.”
• Luke 22:70So they all said, “Are you the Son of God, then?” He answered them, “You say that I am.”
• John 19:7The Jewish leaders replied, “We have a law, and according to our law he ought to die, because he claimed to be the Son of God!”

Commentaries on Matthew 27:54

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 54The centurion - The Roman officer who superintended the execution, called centurio, from centum, a hundred, because he had the command of one hundred men. Truly this was the Son of God - An innocent, holy, and Divine person; and God thus shows his disapprobation of this bloody tragedy. It is not likely that this centurion had any knowledge of the expectation of the Jews relative to the Messiah, and did not use the words in this sense. A son of God, as the…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 54Now when the centurion … - Centurion, a captain of a hundred soldiers. He was here placed over the band that attended the crucifixion. They feared greatly - They regarded these things as proof that God was angry, and they were terrified at the prospect that vengeance was coming on them. Truly this was the Son of God - They had heard, probably, that Jesus professed to be the Son of God. Seeing these wonders, they believed that God was now attesting the…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 51-56Verses 51-56 The rending of the veil signified that Christ, by his death, opened a way to God. We have an open way through Christ to the throne of grace, or mercy-seat now, and to the throne of glory hereafter. When we duly consider Christ's death, our hard and rocky hearts should be rent; the heart, and not the garments. That heart is harder than a rock that will not yield, that will not melt, where Jesus Christ is plainly set forth crucified. The graves…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 54The Roman officer and the other soldiers were not Jewish. the Son of God: This could be a clear statement that Jesus is the unique Son of God (see Matthew 14:33; 16:16) or perhaps a general statement about the innocence of Jesus (see Luke 23:47). They reacted to the earthquake and everything that happened as signs of divine involvement in this event.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 5454. Now when the centurion--the military superintendent of the execution. and they that were with him watching Jesus, saw the earthquake--or felt it and witnessed its effects. and those things that were done--reflecting upon the entire transaction. they feared greatly--convinced of the presence of a Divine Hand. saying, Truly this was the Son of God--There cannot be a reasonable doubt that this expression was used in the Jewish sense, and that it points…Read the comment

Topics related to Matthew 27:54

• Armies
• Centurion
• Jesus Continued
• Jesus, the Christ

In the dictionaries

• God
• Jesus
• Jesus, Jesus Christ, Christ Jesus
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Son of God
• Accusation
• Centurion
• Crucifixion
• Earthquake
• Notable

Commentaries on Matthew 27

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Catena Aurea
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• John Lightfoot Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings