The meaning of Captain in the Bible
(From International Standard Bible Encyclopedia)
kap'-tin: In the King James Version there are no fewer than 13 Hebrew words, and 4 different Greek words, which are rendered by this one English word. In the Revised Version (British and American) some of these are rendered by other English words, and so we find for "captain": "marshal" (Jer. 27; Nahum 3:17), "prince" (I Samuel 9:16), "governor" (Jeremiah 51:23, Jeremiah 51:18), while in the case of one of these Hebrew words a different construction is found altogether (Jeremiah 13:21).
1. In the Old Testament:
Of Hebrew words in the Old Testament rendered by "captain" (1) the most frequent is sar, which denotes "a military commander," whether of thousands or hundreds or fifties (Numbers 31:48; I Samuel 8:12 and many other places). Sar is the chief officer of any department, civil and religious, as well as military—captain of the guard the King James Version and the Revised Version (British and American), chief of the executioners the Revised Version, margin (Genesis 37:36); chief butler (Genesis 40:9); chief baker (Genesis 40:16); chief of a district (Nehemiah 3:15); chiefs of tribes (Naphtali; Zebulun, Psalms 68:27); chiefs over gangs of slaves (Exodus 1:11); chiefs of the priests and the Levites (Ezra 8:29). (2) rabh, later Hebrew for chief of the executioners or captain of the guard, a title always given to Nebuzar-adan (II Kings 25:8 ff.; Jeremiah 39:9 ff.) and to Arioch (Daniel 2:14). Compare also Rab-mag, chief of the magicians (Jeremiah 39:13), and Ashpenaz, chief of the eunuchs (Daniel 1:3). (3) ro'sh, "head" over a host (Israel in the wilderness, Numbers 14:4), over tribes (Deuteronomy 29:10, where the Revised Version (British and American) renders "heads"), over thousands (I Chronicles 12:20). Abijah, king of Judah, before joining battle against Jeroboam, claimed "God himself is with us for our captain" the King James Version, "with us at our head" the Revised Version (British and American) (II Chronicles 13:12). (4) shalish, originally the third man in the chariot, who, when the chief occupant was the king, or commander-in-chief, was of the rank of captain (II Kings 7:2; II Kings 9:25), the term "third man" being generalized to mean "a captain" in II Kings 10:25; II Chronicles 8:9, where "chief of his captains" combines (1) and (4). (5) naghidh, leader by Divine appointment: of Saul (I Samuel 9:16, "captain," the King James Version, "prince" the Revised Version (British and American) I Samuel 10:1); of David (II Samuel 5:2); of Hezekiah (II Kings 20:5); with a charge in connection with the temple (II Chronicles 31:13). It is the word used of Messiah "the prince" (Daniel 9:25), who is also Prince of the Covenant (Daniel 11:22). (6) nasi', rendered "captain" in the King James Version Numbers 2:3, Numbers 2:5, Numbers 2:7 only, there in the Revised Version (British and American) and in other places, both the King James Version and the Revised Version (British and American), rendered "prince." In I Chronicles 7:40 "chief of the princes" combines (3) and (6). (7) pechah, is found almost entirely in a foreign title denoting "governor," and belongs to the later history of Israel (Nehemiah 2:7, Nehemiah 2:9; Ezra 8:36; Haggai 1:1), rendered "captain" in exclusively foreign associations (I Kings 20:24; II Kings 18:24; Daniel 3:27 f.). (8) qatsin (from root of qadi, Arabic for "judge"), denotes "dictator," almost "usurper," and is found in "rulers of Sodom" the King James Version and the Revised Version (British and American), "judges of Sodom" the Revised Version, margin (Isaiah 1:10), used of Jephthah in sense of "captain" the King James Version, "chief" the Revised Version (British and American) (Judges 11:6), found combined with (3), "head and captain" (King James Version, "head and chief" the Revised Version (British and American) Judges 11:11). In Joshua 10:24 it denotes commanders of troops, the King James Version "captains of the men of war," the Revised Version (British and American) "chiefs of the men of war." (9) kar, in Ezekiel 21:22 "to set captains" the King James Version, is translated "to set battering rams" the Revised Version (British and American). (10) ba'al, only once in "captain of the ward" (Jeremiah 37:13). (11) Tiphcar, a dignitary belonging to an oriental court, in the King James Version rendered "captain," in the Revised Version (British and American) "marshal" (Nahum 3:17; Jeremiah 51:27). (12) shalliT, in Daniel 2:15 of Arioch, the king's captain; in Ecclesiastes 8:8 "having power over," and in Ecclesiastes 7:19 used of "mighty men" (the Revised Version (British and American) "rulers").
2. In the New Testament:
Of Greek words rendered by "captain" in New Testament there are the following: (1) archegos, rendered "captain" in Hebrews 2:10 the King James Version but relegated to the margin in the Revised Version (British and American), where "author" (of their salvation) is preferred, this being the rendering of Hebrews 12:2 the King James Version and the Revised Version (British and American), "author" (and finisher of our faith), "captain" being still retained in the Revised Version, margin. Compare Acts 3:15 and Acts 5:31, where the same Greek word is rendered "Prince," the Revised Version, margin of the former passage giving "Author." In the Risen and Ascended Christ the various conceptions thus expressed are found to blend. (2) chiliarchos, the Latin tribunus militum of which there were six to a legion, commanding the six cohorts of which it was composed. In its lit. acceptation it would be "commander of a thousand," and it is so used in Acts 22:28 where it designates the commander of the Roman garrison in Jerusalem, consisting of a cohort, and is rendered "chief captain" (John 18:12; Acts 21:31; Acts 22:24; Acts 24:22). It is used more vaguely in the sense of "military officer" in Mark 6:21; Revelation 6:15; Revelation 19:18. (3) strategos, used only by Luke in the New Testament, and almost exclusively of (a) officials in charge of the Temple (Luke 22:4, Luke 22:52; Acts 4:1; Acts 5:24, Acts 5:26). The captain of the Temple had the superintendence of the Levites and priests who were on guard in and around the Temple, and under him were strategoi, who were also captains of the Temple police, although they took their instruction from him as their head. He was not only a priest, but second in dignity only to the high priest himself; (b) the exception to Luke's general usage is where the word is used of the chief authorities in civil affairs at Philippi; where "the magistrates," as the word is rendered (Acts 16:20 f.), called themselves "praetors" (strategoi). In the case of Paul and Silas they placed themselves in peril of removal from their office by ordering them to be beaten, being Romans and uncondemned. (4) stratopedarches, the captain of the guard to whom Julius of the Augustan band (according to the Textus Receptus of the New Testament, Acts 28:16) delivered Paul and his fellow-prisoners. The word has disappeared from the Revised Version (British and American), but the passage in which it occurs has attestation which satisfies Blass, Sir William Ramsay, and other scholars. It was supposed that this was the captain of the Praetorian guard, but Mommsen and Ramsay believe him to be the princeps peregrinorum castrorum.
See AUGUSTAN BAND; ARMY, ROMAN.
T. Nicol.
See more on the meaning of Captain in the Bible:
Captain {Easton's Bible Dictionary}
DISCLAIMER: Church of the Great God (CGG) provides these resources to aid the individual in studying the Bible. However, it is up to the individual to "prove all things, and hold fast to that which is good" (I Thessalonians 5:21). The content of these resources does not necessarily reflect the views of CGG. They are provided for information purposes only.
