Andronicus

Andronicus, a name meaning man-conquering, is greeted by Paul in Romans 16:7 as a Jewish Christian who was his kinsman and had shared his imprisonment. Paul describes him and Junia as “outstanding among the apostles” who were in Christ before him, indicating they were among the earliest converts to the faith, possibly from the Jerusalem community. The precise meaning of “of note among the apostles” has been debated, with some interpreters understanding it to mean they were themselves notable apostles and others that they were well-regarded by the apostles.

A second Andronicus appears in 2 Maccabees as a deputy of Antiochus Epiphanes who committed murder at the king's behest, though this figure has no connection to the Christian named by Paul. The Andronicus of Romans represents the kind of early Jewish believer whose conversion predated Paul's own, reminding readers of the deep Jewish roots of the church at Rome.