Acts 13:1

The Church at Antioch Commissions Barnabas and Saul

13:1 Now there were these prophets and teachers in the church at Antioch:1 Barnabas, Simeon called Niger,2 Lucius the Cyrenian,3 Manaen (a close friend of Herod4 the tetrarch5 from childhood6) and Saul.

1	sn Antioch was a city in Syria (not Antioch in Pisidia). map For location see JP1-F2; JP2-F2; JP3-F2; JP4-F2.
2	sn Simeon may well have been from North Africa, since the Latin loanword Niger refers to someone as “dark-complexioned.”
3	sn The Cyrenian refers to a native of the city of Cyrene, on the coast of northern Africa west of Egypt.
4	sn Herod is generally taken as a reference to Herod Antipas, who governed Galilee from 4 b.c. to a.d. 39, who had John the Baptist beheaded, and who is mentioned a number of times in the gospels.
5	tn Or “the governor.” sn A tetrarch was a ruler with rank and authority lower than a king, who ruled only with the approval of the Roman authorities. This was roughly equivalent to being governor of a region. Several times in the NT, Herod tetrarch of Galilee is called a king (Matt 14:9, Mark 6:14–29), reflecting popular usage.
6	tn Or “(a foster brother of Herod the tetrarch).” The meaning “close friend from childhood” is given by L&N 34.15, but the word can also mean “foster brother” (L&N 10.51). BDAG 976 s.v. σύντροφας states, “pert. to being brought up with someone, either as a foster-brother or as a companion/friend,” which covers both alternatives. Context does not given enough information to be certain which is the case here, although many modern translations prefer the meaning “close friend from childhood.”