Mark 15:39
And when the centurion, which stood over against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God. And when the centurion, which stood over against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God.
The Roman centurion in charge of the soldiers stood opposite Jesus by the cross, and when he saw and heard Him cry out loudly and give up His life, he declared that He truly was the Son of God. What moved him was the manner of the death, His patience, His sudden death within six hours of crucifixion and so soon after being crucified, and His strong, clear, forceful, piercing cry of victory immediately before dying, which astonished the experienced Roman officers. His declaration was an open confession of faith and belief that gave witness to Jesus' divinity and to the fruit of His suffering, made with overpowering conviction even while others mocked His claim to be God's Son. The death took place beneath a dark sky amid fearful events, about three hours of mysterious darkness over the cross that ended just as Jesus died, an earthquake with shaking earth and trembling, and rent and splitting rocks, which with the piercing cry, last words, and sudden death made His identity as the Son of God evident and filled executioners, spectators, and the crowd with terror. The fearful admission was forced from many, not from the centurion alone, for even many who had scoffed and jeered became terribly afraid that He was innocent and might truly be the Son of God as He had claimed, and hastened from the scene stumbling and falling in awful terror. Their conviction, begun at His trial and deepened by the darkness, earthquake, and manner of dying, was sown as seed that ripened into a harvest after His ascension, and the centurion's testimony to Pilate that Jesus was already dead sooner than crucified men usually die led Pilate to believe more firmly that Jesus was no ordinary man and to regret condemning Him.
The Centurion's Confession
The speaker is the Roman centurion in charge of the soldiers, standing opposite Jesus by the cross, who on seeing and hearing Jesus cry out loudly and give up his life declared that He truly was the Son of God. His confession came as Jesus suffered and died on the cross.
What moved him was the manner of the death: Jesus' patience, His sudden death within six hours of crucifixion and so soon after being crucified, and His strong, clear, forceful, piercing cry of victory immediately before dying. That strength of voice at the moment of death, with power and clarity extraordinary for a dying man, astonished the experienced Roman officers.
His declaration was an open confession of faith and belief that gave witness to Jesus' divinity and to the fruit of His suffering, made with overpowering conviction. The confession was made while others were mocking Jesus' claim to be God's Son. Spectators and soldiers became convinced He was the Redeemer Israel awaited, while the priests and rulers remained hardened against the evidence of His divinity.
The centurion was one of three men who made a public declaration of faith in Jesus on the day of His death.
Signs and Wider Impact
Jesus died beneath a dark sky amid fearful upheavals of nature. About three hours of mysterious darkness hung over the cross and ended just as He died, with shaking earth and trembling, rent and splitting rocks, an earthquake and other disturbances surrounding His giving up of life. The darkness, earthquake, rending rocks, piercing cry, last words and sudden death made His identity as the Son of God evident. His enemies were troubled, executioners, spectators and the crowd were filled with terror, and His murderers trembled.
The fearful admission was forced from many, not from the centurion alone. Even many who had scoffed and jeered at the Son of God became terribly afraid that He was innocent and might truly be the Son of God as He had claimed. They hastened from the scene stumbling and falling in awful terror lest the shaking earth and the rent and trembling rocks should put an end to their own lives.
Conviction had begun at His trial, and the earthquake, darkness and manner of dying helped bring conviction to others as well. Their words and convictions were sown as seed that ripened into a harvest after His ascension when the disciples boldly proclaimed the gospel.
The centurion who had witnessed the death and surrounding events testified to Pilate that Jesus was already dead. Jesus had died just as the mysterious darkness passed, sooner than crucified men usually did, since they often lingered for days. The unusually early death and his account led Pilate to believe more firmly that Jesus was no ordinary man and to regret condemning Him.