Manaen
“Comforter or consoler”
Summary
Manaen was a Christian prophet and teacher in the church at Antioch who had been raised as a foster-brother of Herod Antipas, the tetrarch who beheaded John the Baptist.
☩Connection to the Herod Family
Manaen was described as the 'foster-brother' (Greek σύντροφος) of Herod Antipas, the tetrarch who executed John the Baptist and mocked Jesus during His trial. This term can mean either that Manaen's mother nursed Herod, or that they were brought up together as companions, sharing education and household. The connection appears to have been hereditary—Josephus records that an earlier Manaen, an Essene, had prophesied to Herod the Great as a boy that he would become king, and was afterward held in honor by the Herodian court. The later Manaen was likely a grandson or other relative of this elder prophet.
☩Ministry at Antioch
When Luke introduces the church at Antioch and its missionary enterprise, he names five leading prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen, and Saul. It was from this company that the Holy Spirit commanded Barnabas and Saul to be set apart for missionary work. The contrast between Manaen and his foster-brother Herod is striking—one became a murderer of prophets and mocker of Christ, while the other became a servant of the gospel. Some scholars suggest that if Luke was indeed from Antioch, he may have learned the many details about the Herod family found in his Gospel and Acts directly from Manaen.
Related Verses1 mention
Acts· 1 verse
References
- 1.James Hastings (ed.), "Manaen," in Dictionary of the Apostolic Church, vol. II (T. & T. Clark, 1915–1918).
- 2.James Hastings (ed.), "Manaen," in Dictionary of Christ and the Gospels, vol. II (T. & T. Clark, 1906–1908).
- 3.Andrew Robert Fausset, "Manaen," in The Englishman's Critical and Expository Bible Cyclopædia (Hodder & Stoughton, 1878).
- 4.George Morrish, "Manaen," in Morrish's Concise Bible Dictionary (George Morrish, 1898).