Andronicus

Biblical Record

Andronicus appears only once in the entire Bible, in Romans 16:7. In the greetings at the close of the letter (Romans 16:1–7), Paul names him together with Junia and describes him in four ways:

• He is Paul's kinsman.
• He was one of Paul's fellow prisoners.
• He is of note among the apostles.
• He was in Christ before Paul; that is, he believed in Jesus before Paul did.

The name is Greek and is commonly interpreted to mean something like "conqueror of men." Scripture records nothing about his place of origin, occupation, conversion, or later life.

Significance Within Scripture

Although the record is brief, it is read as a clue to the life of the early church. On the basis of the statement that he believed before Paul, many scholars infer that he was a believer from the time of the first community of faith in Jerusalem. When and where he was imprisoned with Paul is unknown. Among Paul's coworkers were married couples who served together, such as Priscilla and Aquila. Because Andronicus and Junia are likewise named together, they are often understood as a pair, such as husband and wife or brother and sister. The text, however, does not specify their relationship.

Interpretation and Points of Debate

• The meaning of "kinsman": Paul uses the same Greek word translated "kinsman" here in Romans 9:3 to refer to his fellow Israelites. Interpreters therefore take it to mean either a blood relative or a fellow Jew. Several other people in the same chapter are described with the same word.
• "Of note among the apostles": This phrase can be read in two ways. One reading is "outstanding among the apostles," which regards the two as apostles in a broader sense. The other is "well known to and highly regarded by the apostles," which holds that they were not apostles. Because this question is bound up with whether Junia, who is named alongside him, was a woman, it is frequently raised in discussions of the ordination of women. The matter is treated in detail in the article on Junia.
• Tradition: The tradition of the Eastern churches, including the Eastern Orthodox Church, numbers Andronicus among the Seventy disciples. It also holds that he ministered in the region of Pannonia (part of present-day Central Europe). This is later tradition and does not appear in the biblical text.

In the Korean Church

Sermons or Sunday school lessons devoted to Andronicus alone are rare. He is usually treated alongside Paul's other coworkers in expositions of Romans 16, where he is briefly mentioned in connection with themes such as unsung workers or partnership in shared suffering. In interdenominational discussions of women's ministry, he is sometimes mentioned together with Junia in connection with the interpretation of Romans 16:7.