Tribune of Jerusalem

Today (12 May 05) in the Chapel of the Centurions (On-line) I went to Sacred Space for the Holy Reading. It was Acts 23:6-11.

I read:
When the dissension became violent, the tribune, fearing that they would tear Paul to pieces, ordered the soldiers to go down, take him by force, and bring him into the barracks.

Strong's Greek lists the word as
cilivarcoß Chiliarchos (khil-ee'-ar-khos); Word Origin: Greek, Noun Masculine, Strong #: 5506
1 a chiliarch, the commander of a thousand soldiers
2 the commander of a Roman cohort (a military tribunal)
3 any military commander

This Tribune moved quickly to stop the violence that might have ended Paul's mission. We are not told that he was a God-fearing man, but he may well have been moved by God to take the action he did. Whether or not that was the case, it is clear that he performed his duties to protect a good man from assault and for that we can salute him and be thankful.