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 Herod 4 the tetrarch 5 from childhood 6 ) and Saul.
1 sn Antioch was a city in Syria (not Antioch in Pisidia).
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
5 tn Or “the governor.”
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.”
7 tn The emphasis on Christ is continued through the use of the intensive pronoun, αὐτός (autos), and is rendered in English as “it was he” as this seems to lay emphasis on the “he.”
8 sn Some interpreters have understood the phrase pastors and teachers to refer to one and the same group. This would mean that all pastors are teachers and that all teachers are pastors. This position is often taken because it is recognized that both nouns (i.e., pastors and teachers) are governed by one article in Greek. But because the nouns are plural, it is extremely unlikely that they refer to the same group, but only that the author is linking them closely together. It is better to regard the pastors as a subset of teachers. In other words, all pastors are teachers, but not all teachers are pastors. See ExSyn 284.
9 tn Grk “because of the time.”
10 tn Grk “the elements of the beginning of the oracles of God.”
11 tn Grk “you have come to have a need for.”
12 tc ‡ Most texts, including some early and important ones (א2 A B* D Ψ 0122 0278 1881 Ï sy Cl), have καί (kai, “and”) immediately preceding οὐ (ou, “not”), but other equally significant witnesses (Ì46 א* B2 C 33 81 1739 lat Or Did) lack the conjunction. As it was a natural tendency for scribes to add a coordinating conjunction, the καί appears to be a motivated reading. On balance, it is probably best to regard the shorter reading as authentic. NA27 has καί in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.