Person New Testament
Philip
Philip, the son of Herod the Great, who ruled as tetrarch of Iturea and Traconitis during the time of John the Baptist's ministry. Mentioned once in Scripture, at Luke 3:1.
Why it matters. Tetrarch of Iturea and Traconitis
- Primary passages
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-30 by the FaithGraph team
About Philip
Philip was one of the sons of Herod the Great by his wife Cleopatra of Jerusalem (not the same as Cleopatra of Egypt). He ruled as tetrarch over the regions of Western Galilee - Iturea and Traconitis (Luk.3.1). He was a half-brother to Herod Antipas who ruled East Galilee and Perea and Herod Archelaus who ruled Judea, Samaria, and Idumea. Philip's reign coincided with the beginning of John the Baptist's ministry and the early years of Jesus' life. The specific dates of his rule are not provided in the Bible, but historical records indicate that he reigned from 4 BC to AD 34. Philip is described by the Jewish historian Josephus as a moderate and peaceful ruler who was devoted to his subjects. He is not mentioned in connection with any of the events in Jesus' life or ministry.
Description from STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House, Cambridge), CC BY 4.0, lightly reformatted. This is background reference material, not Scripture and not a FaithGraph editorial claim.
Connections
No reviewed connections yet.
Family
Family links from STEPBible TIPNR (CC BY 4.0). Where the dataset marks an identification as uncertain, the mark is kept. Matthew and Luke give different genealogies for Jesus; see the Lineage page, which never merges them.
- Parents
- Herod the Great
- Siblings
- ArchelausHerod AntipasPhilip
Appears in Scripture
Named in 1 verse across 1 book. Occurrence data from STEPBible TIPNR (CC BY 4.0); references only, no translation text.
Luke (1 verse)