When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and what happened, they were terrified, and said, “This really was the Son of God!”
So Judas took with him a troop of soldiers together with guards from the chief priests and the Pharisees. They arrived there carrying torches, lanterns, and weapons.
As they stretched him out and tied him down to flog him, Paul asked the centurion standing there, “Is it legal to flog a Roman citizen who hasn't had a trial?”
He summoned two centurions and told them, “Get two hundred soldiers ready to go to Caesarea, together with seventy cavalry-men and two hundred spearmen. Be ready to leave at nine p.m. tonight.
But the centurion, because he wanted to save Paul's life, prevented them from doing this, and ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and make for land.