(Hebrews E'bed-Me'lek, עֶבֶדמֶלֶךְ , servant of the king, i.e., Arabic Abd el-Malek, Sept. Ἀβδεμέλεχ,Vulgate Abdemelech), an Ethiopian at the court of Zedekiah, king of Judah, who was instrumental in saving the prophet Jeremiah from death by famine (Jeremiah 38:7-13), and who, for his humanity in this circumstance, was promised deliverance when the city should fall into the enemy's hands (Jeremiah 39:15-18). B.C. 589. (See JEREMIAH). He is there styled a eunuch ( אַישׁ סָרַיס and he probably had charge of the king's harem (compare Jeremiah 38:22-23), an office which would give him the privilege of free private access to the king; but his name seems to be an official title = King's slave, i.e., minister. (See EUNUCH).
The Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature was edited by John McClintock and James Strong. It contains nearly 50,000 articles pertaining to Biblical and other religious literature, people, creeds, etc. It is a fantastic research tool for broad Christian study.
John McClintock was born October 27, 1814 in Philadelphia to Irish immigrants, John and Martha McClintock. He began as a clerk in his father's store, and then became a bookkeeper in the Methodist Book Concern in New York. Here he converted to Methodism and considered joining the ministry. McClintock entered the University of Pennsylvania in 1832 and graduated with high honors three years later. Subsequently, he was awarded a doctorate of divinity degree from the same institution in 1848.WikipediaRead More