Junia — person in the Bible

Junia

Woman living at the time of the New Testament

Junia, along with Andronicus, was recognized as a prominent apostle and a relative of Paul who had been imprisoned with him.

Junia is mentioned in Rom.16.7 as a prominent apostle and a relative of Paul. The context of the passage is the final chapter of Romans, where Paul extends personal greetings to various members of the Roman church (Rom.16.1-16).

In his greeting, Paul mentions Andronicus and Junia, describing them as his fellow Jews, his relatives, and his fellow prisoners (Rom.16.7). He also states that they were in Christ before him, indicating their early conversion and involvement in the Christian faith.

Notably, Paul refers to Andronicus and Junia as "outstanding among the apostles" (Rom.16.7, NIV). This phrase has been interpreted in two ways: either they were well-known and respected by the apostles, or they were themselves apostles, recognized for their significant contributions to the early church. The latter interpretation would make Junia one of the few women explicitly identified as an apostle in the New Testament.

The fact that Junia had been imprisoned with Paul suggests that she faced persecution and hardship for her faith and ministry. Her inclusion in Paul's greetings, along with the recognition of her apostolic status, highlights her important role and leadership in the early church.

Apart from this brief mention in Paul's letter, no other information about Junia's life, ministry, or specific contributions to the church is provided in the Bible.

Connections

Paul's "kinsmen" in Romans 16

FamilyDebated

Paul calls Andronicus, Junia, Herodion, and Lucius, Jason, and Sosipater his syngeneis. The word can mean blood relatives or fellow Jews. Whether Jason is Paul's host at Thessalonica is uncertain.

PaulAn apostle JuniaA prominent apostle and relative of Paul AndronicusFellow prisoner with Paul, outstanding among the apostles HerodionA relative of Paul in Rome.JasonPaul's host in Thessalonica; relative of Paul

Where the text shows it: Romans 16:7 — Andronicus and Junia, kinsmen and fellow prisonersRomans 16:11 — Herodion, kinsmanRomans 16:21 — Lucius, Jason and Sosipater, kinsmenActs 17:5-9 — Jason hosts Paul and Silas in Thessalonica

Ways people read this (3)

Blood relatives (Origen, later commentators).
Fellow Jews, as in Romans 9:3, where Paul calls all Israel his kinsmen.
Jason of Acts 17 and Jason of Romans 16 may or may not be the same man.

Sources: Scripture

Junia and Andronicus "among the apostles"

RoleDebated

Paul greets Andronicus and Junia as prominent "among the apostles" and as having been in Christ before him. Whether Junia was a woman and whether "among" means "counted as apostles" or "esteemed by apostles" is argued.

JuniaA prominent apostle and relative of Paul AndronicusFellow prisoner with Paul, outstanding among the apostles PaulAn apostle

Where the text shows it: Romans 16:7 — Notable among the apostlesGalatians 1:19 — Paul also uses "apostle" of James, beyond the Twelve

Ways people read this (3)

Junia was a woman, and they were counted as apostles (Chrysostom).
They were well known to the apostles but not apostles themselves.
The name Junias (a man) is a medieval reading; the early manuscripts do not settle accents.

Sources: Scripture

Bible dictionary

Junia Easton Easton’s Bible Dictionary (1897)

(Rom. 16:7), a Christian at Rome to whom Paul sends salutations along with Andronicus.

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Junia Smith Smith’s Bible Dictionary (1863)

(belonging to Juno), a Christian at Rome, mentioned by St. Paul as one of his kinsfolk and fellow prisoners, of note among the apostles, and in Christ before St. Paul. (Romans 16:7) (A.D. 55).

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Junia Hitchcock Hitchcock’s Bible Names Dictionary (1869)

youth

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Junia Hastings Hastings’ Dictionary of the Bible (1898)

JU'NIA, a Christian at Rome saluted by Paul. Rom 16:7.

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Junia Schaff Schaff’s Dictionary of the Bible

JU'NIA, a Christian at Rome saluted by Paul. Rom 16:7.

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Easton (1897), Smith (1863), Hitchcock (1869), Hastings (1898) and Schaff are in the public domain. Parsed text: neuu-org/bible-dictionary-dataset (CC BY 4.0). Headwords and whitespace normalised for this site.

Where Junia appears

1 verse in 1 book · English text: BSB (change it from the menu at the top) · Strong’s G2458

Names, family links and references: STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). Short descriptions were drafted with AI assistance by STEPBible. Family links follow STEPBible’s scholarly decisions where genealogies are ambiguous.