Bible Figure
Philip the Tetrarch
Philip the Tetrarch was a son of Herod the Great who ruled territories northeast of the Sea of Galilee. Luke names his tetrarchy when dating the beginning of John the Baptist's ministry.
Biography
Luke 3:1 provides a carefully framed political setting for the appearance of John the Baptist. In the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate governed Judea, Herod Antipas was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip was tetrarch of the region of Iturea and Trachonitis. Philip was one of the sons among whom portions of Herod the Great's realm were divided after his death. Unlike Antipas, Philip does not play a direct narrative role in Jesus' ministry in the canonical Gospels. His principal biblical importance is chronological and geographical. The city Caesarea Philippi, prominent in the Gospel tradition, bore a name associated with Philip's development of the site, though the New Testament does not narrate his actions there.
Biblical Significance
Philip the Tetrarch helps establish the political geography of the world into which John and Jesus ministered. His mention alongside Tiberius, Pilate, Antipas, and other rulers anchors the Gospel proclamation within identifiable first-century history.