Acts 13:1 - Coke's Commentary on the Holy Bible

Now there were in the church—at Antioch— The last verse of the foregoing chapter ought to have been the first of this; for ch. Acts 12:24 finishes the history of Herod's death, and the effects which it had upon the Christian church; and then, Acts 13:25 a new history is begun, which is carried on in the present chapter. Some have conjectured that Niger mentioned in this verse, was Simon the Cyrenian, the father of Alexander and Rufus, who was compelled to bear the cross after Christ; for it is very probable that he was called, Niger, as being of a tawny or black complexion, as the Africans generally are. The only objection to this is, that Lucius, who is next mentioned, is called a Cyrenian by way of distinction from the other, as if he had been the only Cyrenian there present. But this Simon, called Niger, might be a native of some other part of Africa. Whoever he was, the Romans most probably had given him the surname of Niger. This is one instance out of many, of St. Luke's Latinizing, where he preserves even the Latin termination. Manaen, probably, from the circumstance here mentioned, was a person of some rank and condition. Josephus mentions one Manaen, an Essene, who had foretold to Herod the Great, while he was a boy, that he should be a king, and who was afterwards in high favour with him; and some have thought this was his son.