Scripture does not give his name. A Roman soldier — and the first person in Mark's Gospel to confess who Jesus is.
The Centurion at the Cross
The Soldier Who Saw
In Mark’s Gospel
Stood facing Jesus through the crucifixion — the darkness, the cry of dereliction, the final breath
Mark 15:33-37
Saw how he breathed his last — not just that he died, but how: the manner of his death undid him
Mark 15:39
Confessed: "Truly this man was the Son of God!" (Mark 15:39) — the only human confession of Jesus's divine sonship in Mark's Gospel comes from a Gentile executioner
Who they were
- Observant — he watched, and what he saw changed him (Mark 15:39)
- Honest — a professional executioner who spoke the truth at personal risk (Mark 15:39)
- The first confessor — in Mark's Gospel, demons confessed Jesus (Mark 1:24; 5:7), Peter confessed him (Mark 8:29) — but this Gentile soldier is the climactic human voice (Mark 15:39)
Read about them
Faces of Faith
“Surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses” — Hebrews 12:1
A keepsake of The Centurion at the Cross’s story — the portrait on the front, the key moments on the back.
Faces of Faith cards coming soon to the TruVINE store.
Every claim above is from Scripture unless labeled “Tradition.” Depictions are checked against the WEB text on this site.
