Mile

The mile mentioned in the New Testament (Matthew 5:41) is the Roman mile (milion), a unit of distance equal to one thousand double paces (mille passuum), approximately 4,854 English feet or about 1,478 meters — slightly shorter than the modern statute mile. Roman roads were marked with milestones (milliaria) throughout the empire, making the mile a familiar unit of distance in the Greco-Roman world. Jesus's instruction whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two refers specifically to the Roman legal right of angareia — the commandeering of civilians to carry soldiers' equipment for one Roman mile — a common imposition in occupied Palestine.