Blastus, a chamberlain of Herod Agrippa I., is mentioned in Acts 12:20 in connexion with an embassy which the inhabitants of Tyre and Sidon sent to Herod at Caesarea in order to obtain terms of peace. The ambassadors obtained an audience of the prince through the influence of Blastus, who no doubt had been liberally bribed for his services. The incident of the embassy is not mentioned by Josephus nor is the name of Blastus, and this omission has been regarded by some (e.g. Krenkel) as throwing doubt on St. Luke’s narrative, while others regard the incident as a proof of St. Luke’s independence, or as an intentional supplement to the account of the Jewish historian.
W. F. Boyd.