Reference: Captain
Easton
(1.) Heb. sar (1Sa 22:2; 2Sa 23:19). Rendered "chief," Ge 40:2; 41:9; rendered also "prince," Da 1:7; "ruler," Jg 9:30; "governor,' 1Ki 22:26. This same Hebrew word denotes a military captain (Ex 18:21; 2Ki 1:9; De 1:15; 1Sa 18:13, etc.), the "captain of the body-guard" (Ge 37:36; 39:1; 41:10; Jer 40:1), or, as the word may be rendered, "chief of the executioners" (marg.). The officers of the king's body-guard frequently acted as executioners. Nebuzar-adan (Jer 39:13) and Arioch (Da 2:14) held this office in Babylon.
The "captain of the guard" mentioned in Ac 28:16 was the Praetorian prefect, the commander of the Praetorian troops.
(2.) Another word (Heb. katsin) so translated denotes sometimes a military (Jos 10:24; 11/6/type/kj2000'>Jg 11:6,11; Isa 22:3 "rulers;" Da 11:18) and sometimes a civil command, a judge, magistrate, Arab. kady, (Isa 1:10; 3:6; Mic 3:1,9).
(3.) It is also the rendering of a Hebrew word (shalish) meaning "a third man," or "one of three." The LXX. render in plural by tristatai; i.e., "soldiers fighting from chariots," so called because each war-chariot contained three men, one of whom acted as charioteer while the other two fought (Ex 14:7; 15:4; 1Ki 9:22; comp. 2Ki 9:25). This word is used also to denote the king's body-guard (2Ki 10:25; 1Ch 12:18; 2Ch 11:11) or aides-de-camp.
(4.) The "captain of the temple" mentioned in Ac 4:1; 5:24 was not a military officer, but superintendent of the guard of priests and Levites who kept watch in the temple by night. (Comp. "the ruler of the house of God," 1Ch 9:11; 2Ch 31:13; Ne 11:11.)
(5.) The Captain of our salvation is a name given to our Lord (Heb 2:10), because he is the author and source of our salvation, the head of his people, whom he is conducting to glory. The "captain of the Lord's host" (Jos 5:14-15) is the name given to that mysterious person who manifested himself to Abraham (Ge 12:7), and to Moses in the bush (Ex 3:2,6, etc.) the Angel of the covenant. (See Angel.)
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And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto your descendants will I give this land: and there built he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him.
And the Midianites sold him into Egypt unto Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh's, and captain of the guard.
And Joseph was brought down to Egypt; and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him of the hands of the Ishmaelites, who had brought him down there.
And Pharaoh was angry against two of his officers, against the chief of the butlers, and against the chief of the bakers.
Then spoke the chief butler unto Pharaoh, saying, I do remember my faults this day: Pharaoh was angry with his servants, and put me in custody in the captain of the guard's house, both me and the chief baker:
And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.
Moreover he said, I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.
And he took six hundred chosen chariots, and all the chariots of Egypt, and captains over every one of them.
Pharaoh's chariots and his host has he cast into the sea: his chosen captains also are drowned in the Red sea.
Moreover you shall provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens:
So I took the heads of your tribes, wise men, and known, and made them heads over you, captains over thousands, and captains over hundreds, and captains over fifties, and captains over tens, and officers among your tribes.
And he said, Nay; but as captain of the army of the LORD am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What says my lord unto his servant? And the captain of the LORD'S army said unto Joshua, Loose your shoes from off your feet; for the place on which you stand is holy. And Joshua did so.
And it came to pass, when they brought out those kings unto Joshua, that Joshua called for all the men of Israel, and said unto the captains of the men of war who went with him, Come near, put your feet upon the necks of these kings. And they came near, and put their feet upon the necks of them.
And when Zebul the ruler of the city heard the words of Gaal the son of Ebed, his anger was kindled.
And they said unto Jephthah, Come, and be our captain, that we may fight with the children of Ammon.
Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and captain over them: and Jephthah uttered all his words before the LORD in Mizpah.
And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became a captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men.
And the king of Israel said, Take Micaiah, and carry him back unto Amon the governor of the city, and to Joash the king's son;
Then said Jehu to Bidkar his captain, Take him up, and cast him in the portion of the field of Naboth the Jezreelite: for remember how that, when I and you rode together after Ahab his father, the LORD laid this burden upon him;
And it came to pass, as soon as he had finished offering the burnt offering, that Jehu said to the guard and to the captains, Go in, and slay them; let none come forth. And they struck them with the edge of the sword; and the guard and the captains cast them out, and went to the city of the house of Baal.
And Azariah the son of Hilkiah, the son of Meshullam, the son of Zadok, the son of Meraioth, the son of Ahitub, the chief officer of the house of God;
Seraiah the son of Hilkiah, the son of Meshullam, the son of Zadok, the son of Meraioth, the son of Ahitub, was the ruler of the house of God.
Hear the word of the LORD, you rulers of Sodom; give ear unto the law of our God, you people of Gomorrah.
When a man shall take hold of his brother of the house of his father, saying, you have clothing, be our ruler, and let this ruin be under your hand:
All your rulers have fled together, they are captured by the archers: all that are found in you are bound together, who have fled from afar.
So Nebuzar-adan the captain of the guard sent, and Nebushazban the Rabsaris, and Nergal-sharezer the Rab-mag, and all the king of Babylon's other officers;
The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, after Nebuzar-adan the captain of the guard had let him go from Ramah, when he had taken him being bound in chains among all that were carried away captive of Jerusalem and Judah, who were carried away captive unto Babylon.
Unto whom the prince of the eunuchs gave names: for he gave unto Daniel the name of Belteshazzar; and to Hananiah, of Shadrach; and to Mishael, of Meshach; and to Azariah, of Abednego.
Then Daniel answered with counsel and wisdom to Arioch the captain of the king's guard, who had gone forth to slay the wise men of Babylon:
After this shall he turn his face unto the coastlands, and shall take many: but a ruler for his own behalf shall bring the reproach brought by him to cease; with his reproach removed he shall cause it to turn back on him.
And I said, Hear, I pray you, O heads of Jacob, and you rulers of the house of Israel; Is it not for you to know judgment?
Hear this, I pray you, you heads of the house of Jacob, and rulers of the house of Israel, that abhor justice, and pervert all equity.
And as they spoke unto the people, the priests, and the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees, came upon them,
Now when the high priest and the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these things, they were perplexed of what might come of this.
And when we came to Rome, the centurion delivered the prisoners to the captain of the guard: but Paul was allowed to dwell by himself with a soldier that kept him.
For it befitted him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.
Fausets
CAPTAIN OF THE TEMPLE (Lu 22:4; Ac 4:1; 5:24): not military, but over the guard of the temple, consisting of priests and Levites (2Ki 12:9), "the priests that kept the door" (2Ki 25:18); they visited the posts by night, and saw that the sentries were on the alert. In Heb 2:10, (Greek "Prince leader of their salvation,") the antitypical Joshua who leads us into the heavenly Canaan. The same Greek in Heb 12:2, "the Author," rather "Prince leader of our faith." Ac 3:15, "Prince of life."
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But Jehoiada the priest took a chest, and bored a hole in its lid, and set it beside the altar, on the right side as one comes into the house of the LORD: and the priests that kept the door put in it all the money that was brought into the house of the LORD.
But Jehoiada the priest took a chest, and bored a hole in its lid, and set it beside the altar, on the right side as one comes into the house of the LORD: and the priests that kept the door put in it all the money that was brought into the house of the LORD.
And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest, and Zephaniah the second priest, and the three keepers of the door:
And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest, and Zephaniah the second priest, and the three keepers of the door:
And he went his way, and conferred with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray him unto them.
And he went his way, and conferred with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray him unto them.
And killed the Prince of life, whom God has raised from the dead; of which we are witnesses.
And killed the Prince of life, whom God has raised from the dead; of which we are witnesses.
And as they spoke unto the people, the priests, and the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees, came upon them,
And as they spoke unto the people, the priests, and the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees, came upon them,
Now when the high priest and the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these things, they were perplexed of what might come of this.
Now when the high priest and the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these things, they were perplexed of what might come of this.
For it befitted him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.
For it befitted him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.
Looking unto Jesus the author and perfecter of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
Looking unto Jesus the author and perfecter of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
Hastings
This word occurs very frequently in the OT (AV and RV), and appears to have been favoured by the translators as a comprehensive term to denote a ruler, or a military commander of any unit, whatever its size might be. In modern military language it means especially the commander of a company of infantry, numbering about 100 to 110 men, and is quite unsuitable as a translation. It represents in OT 13 different Hebrew words. In Ezekiel it is often used for the secular head of the Messianic kingdom: 'prince' will there and often elsewhere do as a rendering; 'officer' and 'chief' will suit other passages. There are further places where none of these words will do as a translation. In the NT it translates four Greek words, and means: (1) Joh 18:12; Ac 22:28 a Roman military officer, a tribune of the soldiers, in command of about 1000 men, constituting the garrison of Jerusalem (hence Re 6:15; 19:18 in a general sense); (2) Lu 22:4,52; Ac 4:1 etc., the captain of the Temple, a Levite, who had under him a body of police, probably themselves also priests, whose duty it was to keep order in the Temple at Jerusalem and guard it by night; (3) Heb 2:10 (RV 'author') leader, initiator; (4) Ac 28:16 AV 'captain of the guard' (wanting in RV), a doubtful reading and of doubtful sense. See also Army,
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And he went his way, and conferred with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray him unto them.
Then Jesus said unto the chief priests, and captains of the temple, and the elders, who were come to him, Do you come out, as against a thief, with swords and clubs?
Then the band and the captain and officers of the Jews took Jesus, and bound him,
And as they spoke unto the people, the priests, and the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees, came upon them,
And the chief captain answered, With a great sum obtained I this freedom. And Paul said, But I was free born.
And when we came to Rome, the centurion delivered the prisoners to the captain of the guard: but Paul was allowed to dwell by himself with a soldier that kept him.
For it befitted him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.
And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the generals, and the mighty men, and every slave, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;
That you may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave, both small and great.
Morish
In the O.T. this word is used for one filling any office of rule or command: as the head of a tribe, Nu 2:3-29; commander of an army, etc. The person who appeared to Joshua as 'a man' declared himself to be 'captain of the Lord's host.' He told Joshua to remove his shoes from his feet, for the ground was holy, evincing that he was God's representative to lead their warfare. Jos 5:14-15. In the N.T. the Lord is called 'Captain' of our salvation, ???????, 'chief leader.' Heb 2:10.
There was also a 'CAPTAIN OF THE TEMPLE,' ?????????. Lu 22:4,52; Ac 4:1; 5:24,26. This word is literally 'the leader of an army;' it is also applied to magistrates, Ac 16:20, but the captain of the temple was set not over the soldiers, but over the priests and Levites: cf. Nu 3:32; 1Ch 9:11; Jer 20:1.
THE CHIEF CAPTAIN or HIGH CAPTAIN is ?????????, lit. 'Captain of a thousand,' applied to the chief of the soldiers in Jerusalem. Acts 21 - 25.
CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD, Ac 28:16, is ??????????????, properly 'commander of a camp,' but here the prefect of the Praetorian Guard, an officer to whom state prisoners were entrusted at Rome.
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And on the east side toward the rising of the sun shall they of the standard of the camp of Judah encamp according to their armies: and Nahshon the son of Amminadab shall be captain of the children of Judah. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were threescore and fourteen thousand and six hundred. read more. And those that do encamp next unto him shall be the tribe of Issachar: and Nethanel the son of Zuar shall be captain of the children of Issachar. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were fifty and four thousand and four hundred. Then the tribe of Zebulun: and Eliab the son of Helon shall be captain of the children of Zebulun. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were fifty and seven thousand and four hundred. All that were numbered in the camp of Judah were a hundred and fourscore thousand and six thousand and four hundred, according to their armies. These shall first set forth. On the south side shall be the standard of the camp of Reuben according to their armies: and the captain of the children of Reuben shall be Elizur the son of Shedeur. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were forty and six thousand and five hundred. And those who encamp by him shall be the tribe of Simeon: and the captain of the children of Simeon shall be Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were fifty and nine thousand and three hundred. Then the tribe of Gad: and the captain of the sons of Gad shall be Eliasaph the son of Reuel. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were forty and five thousand and six hundred and fifty. All that were numbered in the camp of Reuben were a hundred and fifty and one thousand and four hundred and fifty, according to their armies. And they shall go forth second. Then the tabernacle of meeting shall move forward with the camp of the Levites in the midst of the camp: as they encamp, so shall they move forward, every man in his place by their standards. On the west side shall be the standard of the camp of Ephraim according to their armies: and the captain of the sons of Ephraim shall be Elishama the son of Ammihud. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were forty thousand and five hundred. And by him shall be the tribe of Manasseh: and the captain of the children of Manasseh shall be Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were thirty and two thousand and two hundred. Then the tribe of Benjamin: and the captain of the sons of Benjamin shall be Abidan the son of Gideoni. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were thirty and five thousand and four hundred. All that were numbered of the camp of Ephraim were a hundred and eight thousand and a hundred, according to their armies. And they shall go forward third. The standard of the camp of Dan shall be on the north side by their armies: and the captain of the children of Dan shall be Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were threescore and two thousand and seven hundred. And those that encamp by him shall be the tribe of Asher: and the captain of the children of Asher shall be Pagiel the son of Ocran. And his host, and those that were numbered of them, were forty and one thousand and five hundred. Then the tribe of Naphtali: and the captain of the children of Naphtali shall be Ahira the son of Enan.
And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest shall be head over the leaders of the Levites, and have the oversight of them that keep the charge of the sanctuary.
And he said, Nay; but as captain of the army of the LORD am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What says my lord unto his servant? And the captain of the LORD'S army said unto Joshua, Loose your shoes from off your feet; for the place on which you stand is holy. And Joshua did so.
Now Pashhur the son of Immer the priest, who was also chief officer in the house of the LORD, heard that Jeremiah prophesied these things.
And he went his way, and conferred with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray him unto them.
Then Jesus said unto the chief priests, and captains of the temple, and the elders, who were come to him, Do you come out, as against a thief, with swords and clubs?
And as they spoke unto the people, the priests, and the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees, came upon them,
Now when the high priest and the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these things, they were perplexed of what might come of this.
Then went the captain with the officers, and brought them without violence: for they feared the people, lest they should have been stoned.
And brought them to the magistrates, saying, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city,
And when we came to Rome, the centurion delivered the prisoners to the captain of the guard: but Paul was allowed to dwell by himself with a soldier that kept him.
For it befitted him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.
Smith
Captain.
1. As a purely military title, "captain" answers to sar in the Hebrew army and tribune in the Roman. The captain of the guard in
was probably the prefectus pratorio.
2. Katsin, occasionally rendered captain, applies Sometimes to a military,
Jos 10:24; 11/6/type/kj2000'>Jg 11:6,11; Isa 22:3; Da 11:18
sometimes to a civil command, e.g.
3. The captain of the temple, mentioned
superintended the guard of priests and Levites who kept watch by night in the temple.
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And it came to pass, when they brought out those kings unto Joshua, that Joshua called for all the men of Israel, and said unto the captains of the men of war who went with him, Come near, put your feet upon the necks of these kings. And they came near, and put their feet upon the necks of them.
And they said unto Jephthah, Come, and be our captain, that we may fight with the children of Ammon.
Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and captain over them: and Jephthah uttered all his words before the LORD in Mizpah.
Hear the word of the LORD, you rulers of Sodom; give ear unto the law of our God, you people of Gomorrah.
All your rulers have fled together, they are captured by the archers: all that are found in you are bound together, who have fled from afar.
After this shall he turn his face unto the coastlands, and shall take many: but a ruler for his own behalf shall bring the reproach brought by him to cease; with his reproach removed he shall cause it to turn back on him.
And as they spoke unto the people, the priests, and the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees, came upon them,
Now when the high priest and the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these things, they were perplexed of what might come of this.