Matthew 8:5

5Jesus went into Capernaum. An officer in the Roman army came to meet him. He asked Jesus to help him. 8:5 Rome ruled Israel at that time. The officer had authority over about 100 soldiers. He was not a Jew. Rome was an important city in the world at the time of Jesus. It was a powerful city and it had a strong army. The Romans ruled many other countries and they made the people obey the laws of Rome. They made them pay taxes to Rome.