5506. chiliarchos
Lexical Summary
chiliarchos: Commander, Captain, Tribune

Original Word: χιλίαρχος
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Transliteration: chiliarchos
Pronunciation: khil-ee'-ar-khos
Phonetic Spelling: (khil-ee'-ar-khos)
KJV: (chief, high) captain
NASB: commander, commanders, military commanders
Word Origin: [from G5507 (χίλιοι - thousand) and G757 (ἄρχω - began)]

1. the commander of a thousand soldiers ("chiliarch"), i.e. colonel

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
commander, captain

From chilioi and archo; the commander of a thousand soldiers ("chiliarch"; i.e. Colonel -- (chief, high) captain.

see GREEK chilioi

see GREEK archo

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from chilioi and archos (leader)
Definition
a chiliarch, a commander of a thousand
NASB Translation
commander (18), commanders (3), military commanders (1).

Topical Lexicon
Overview

Strong’s Greek 5506 (χιλίαρχος) designates a senior Roman military officer—variously rendered “commander,” “tribune,” or “chief captain.” In the imperial army a tribune normally led a cohort (about six hundred soldiers) and functioned as a key link between the legion’s legate and the centurions. Within the New Testament the term embodies the intersection of civil authority and divine providence, repeatedly illustrating how God directs governmental power for the advance and protection of the gospel.

Historical Context

Under Caesar Augustus the legion contained six military tribunes, each enjoying senatorial or equestrian rank and tasked with discipline, administration, and field command. In Judea the tribune stationed at the Antonia Fortress (north-west of the Temple Mount) commanded Roman forces in Jerusalem and reported to the provincial governor in Caesarea. His presence in Acts explains how Rome maintained order during volatile Jewish festivals.

Occurrences in the New Testament

The term appears twenty-two times:

• Narrative focus—Acts (21:31-24:22) supplies eighteen of the occurrences, centering on Claudius Lysias, whose decisions repeatedly spare Paul’s life and facilitate his witness before Jews and Romans alike.
• Passion focus—John 18:12 records a tribune present at Jesus’ arrest: “Then the band of soldiers, the commander, and the officers of the Jews arrested Jesus and bound Him.”
• Royal court—Mark 6:21 notes military commanders at Herod Antipas’ birthday feast.
• Eschatological focus—Revelation 6:15 and 19:18 portray tribunes among the great and mighty brought low at the Lamb’s judgment.

Portrait of Claudius Lysias

Acts paints Lysias as a composite of Roman justice and worldly expedience:

Acts 21:33 “Then the commander came up and arrested him and ordered that he be bound with two chains.”

Acts 22:28 reveals his purchased citizenship, contrasting sharply with Paul’s birthright Roman status.

Acts 23:17-35 depicts the tribune’s strategic protection of Paul—moving him by night with two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen, and two hundred spearmen—to ensure a fair hearing before Felix.

Through Lysias Luke displays God’s sovereign use of secular authority: without this tribune Paul would likely have died in the temple riot or at the hands of the forty sworn assassins (Acts 23:12-15).

The Tribune in the Passion Narrative

John alone mentions a tribune at Gethsemane, underscoring Rome’s complicity in Christ’s arrest and foreshadowing the cross as a meeting point of Jewish hostility and Gentile power. Even so, Jesus asserts ultimate reign: “You would have no authority over Me if it were not given to you from above” (John 19:11).

Eschatological Echoes

Revelation elevates the word from historical description to prophetic warning:

Revelation 6:15 lists tribunes among those who cry for mountains to fall on them when the Lamb opens the sixth seal.

Revelation 19:18 includes tribunes in the “great supper of God,” where birds feast on the flesh of the defeated. Military rank affords no refuge when Christ appears in glory.

Theological Reflections

1. Divine sovereignty over earthly powers: God turns the decisions of a Roman tribune into means of gospel advance (Acts 22:30; 23:24).
2. Citizenship and stewardship: Paul’s respectful yet courageous invocation of legal rights before the tribune models wise engagement with civil structures (Acts 22:25-29).
3. Equality at judgment: Revelation reveals that rank—tribune or slave—stands level before Christ’s throne.

Practical Ministry Application

• Christians may appeal to legitimate governmental processes without compromising faithfulness.
• Military and law-enforcement personnel occupy positions God can use for justice and protection; believers serving in such roles may view their authority as stewardship under Christ (Romans 13:1-4).
• The gospel speaks to every echelon of society—from tribunes in palaces to prisoners in chains—encouraging comprehensive evangelistic vision.

Summary

The χιλίαρχος threads through the New Testament as a witness to God’s governance of history. Whether shielding Paul, standing at Jesus’ arrest, or falling under end-time judgment, the tribune’s presence proclaims that Christ is Lord over armies and empires alike, and that no human authority can thwart His redemptive purposes.

Forms and Transliterations
χιλιαρχοι χιλίαρχοι χιλιαρχοις χιλιάρχοις χιλιαρχον χιλίαρχον χιλιαρχος χιλίαρχος χιλιάρχους χιλίαρχους χιλιαρχω χιλιάρχω χιλιάρχῳ χιλιαρχων χιλιάρχων chiliarcho chiliarchō chiliarchoi chiliárchoi chiliárchōi chilíarchoi chiliarchois chiliárchois chiliarchon chiliarchōn chiliárchon chiliárchōn chilíarchon chiliarchos chilíarchos
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Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
Mark 6:21 N-DMP
GRK: καὶ τοῖς χιλιάρχοις καὶ τοῖς
NAS: for his lords and military commanders and the leading men
KJV: lords, high captains, and chief
INT: and to the chief captians and to the

John 18:12 N-NMS
GRK: καὶ ὁ χιλίαρχος καὶ οἱ
NAS: the [Roman] cohort and the commander and the officers
KJV: the band and the captain and officers
INT: and the chief captain and the

Acts 21:31 N-DMS
GRK: φάσις τῷ χιλιάρχῳ τῆς σπείρης
NAS: came up to the commander of the [Roman] cohort
KJV: came unto the chief captain of the band,
INT: a report to the chief captain of the band

Acts 21:32 N-AMS
GRK: ἰδόντες τὸν χιλίαρχον καὶ τοὺς
NAS: to them; and when they saw the commander and the soldiers,
KJV: when they saw the chief captain and
INT: having seen the chief captain and the

Acts 21:33 N-NMS
GRK: ἐγγίσας ὁ χιλίαρχος ἐπελάβετο αὐτοῦ
NAS: Then the commander came
KJV: Then the chief captain came near,
INT: having drawn near the chief captain laid hold of him

Acts 21:37 N-DMS
GRK: λέγει τῷ χιλιάρχῳ Εἰ ἔξεστίν
NAS: he said to the commander, May
KJV: he said unto the chief captain, May
INT: says to the chief captain if Is it permitted

Acts 22:24 N-NMS
GRK: ἐκέλευσεν ὁ χιλίαρχος εἰσάγεσθαι αὐτὸν
NAS: the commander ordered
KJV: The chief captain commanded him
INT: commanded the chief captain to be brought him

Acts 22:26 N-DMS
GRK: προσελθὼν τῷ χιλιάρχῳ ἀπήγγειλεν λέγων
NAS: [this], he went to the commander and told
KJV: and told the chief captain, saying,
INT: having gone to the chief captain he reported [it] saying

Acts 22:27 N-NMS
GRK: δὲ ὁ χιλίαρχος εἶπεν αὐτῷ
NAS: The commander came
KJV: Then the chief captain came, and said
INT: moreover the chief captain said to him

Acts 22:28 N-NMS
GRK: δὲ ὁ χιλίαρχος Ἐγὼ πολλοῦ
NAS: The commander answered, I acquired
KJV: And the chief captain answered,
INT: moreover the chief captain I with a great

Acts 22:29 N-NMS
GRK: καὶ ὁ χιλίαρχος δὲ ἐφοβήθη
NAS: let go of him; and the commander also
KJV: and the chief captain also
INT: and the chief captain also was afraid

Acts 23:10 N-NMS
GRK: φοβηθεὶς ὁ χιλίαρχος μὴ διασπασθῇ
NAS: was developing, the commander was afraid
KJV: dissension, the chief captain, fearing
INT: having feared the chief captain lest should be torn in pieces

Acts 23:15 N-DMS
GRK: ἐμφανίσατε τῷ χιλιάρχῳ σὺν τῷ
NAS: notify the commander to bring him down
KJV: signify to the chief captain that
INT: make a report to the chief captain with the

Acts 23:17 N-AMS
GRK: πρὸς τὸν χιλίαρχον ἔχει γὰρ
NAS: young man to the commander, for he has
KJV: unto the chief captain: for
INT: to the chief captain he has for

Acts 23:18 N-AMS
GRK: πρὸς τὸν χιλίαρχον καί φησιν
NAS: him and led him to the commander and said,
KJV: [him] to the chief captain, and
INT: to the chief captain and says

Acts 23:19 N-NMS
GRK: αὐτοῦ ὁ χιλίαρχος καὶ ἀναχωρήσας
NAS: The commander took him by the hand
KJV: Then the chief captain took him
INT: of him the chief captain and having withdrawn

Acts 23:22 N-NMS
GRK: μὲν οὖν χιλίαρχος ἀπέλυσε τὸν
NAS: So the commander let the young man
KJV: So the chief captain [then] let
INT: indeed therefore [the] chief captain dismissed the

Acts 24:7 Noun-NMS
GRK: Λυσίας ὁ χιλιαρχος μετὰ πολλῆς
KJV: But the chief captain Lysias came
INT: Lysias the chief captain with great

Acts 24:22 N-NMS
GRK: Λυσίας ὁ χιλίαρχος καταβῇ διαγνώσομαι
NAS: Lysias the commander comes down,
KJV: Lysias the chief captain shall come down,
INT: Lysias the chief captain might have come down I will examine

Acts 25:23 N-DMP
GRK: σύν τε χιλιάρχοις καὶ ἀνδράσιν
NAS: accompanied by the commanders and the prominent
KJV: with the chief captains, and
INT: with both chief captains and men

Revelation 6:15 N-NMP
GRK: καὶ οἱ χιλίαρχοι καὶ οἱ
NAS: and the great men and the commanders and the rich
KJV: and the chief captains, and
INT: and the chief captains and the

Revelation 19:18 N-GMP
GRK: καὶ σάρκας χιλιάρχων καὶ σάρκας
NAS: and the flesh of commanders and the flesh
KJV: the flesh of captains, and
INT: and flesh of chief captains and flesh

Strong's Greek 5506
22 Occurrences


χιλιάρχῳ — 4 Occ.
χιλιάρχων — 1 Occ.
χιλίαρχοι — 1 Occ.
χιλιάρχοις — 2 Occ.
χιλίαρχον — 3 Occ.
χιλίαρχος — 11 Occ.

5505
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