Ebed-Melech ( he, עֶבֶד-מֶלֶךְ ''‘Eḇeḏmeleḵ''; la, Abdemelech; gez, አቤሜሌክ) is mentioned in the ''
Book of Jeremiah
The Book of Jeremiah ( he, ספר יִרְמְיָהוּ) is the second of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, and the second of the Prophets in the Christian Old Testament. The superscription at chapter Jeremiah 1:1–3 identifies the boo ...
''
chapter 38 as an Ethiopian official at the palace of king
Zedekiah
Zedekiah (), was the 20th and last king of Judah before the destruction of the kingdom by King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon. His birth name was Mattaniah/Mattanyahu ( he, מַתַּנְיָהוּ, ''Mattanyāhū'', "Gift of God"; el, Μαθθ ...
of
Judah during the
Siege of Jerusalem (597
BCE). The name is translated as ''Servant of the
King
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...
'', and as such may not be his proper name but a royal title. The text relates that he was a
Cushite.
Ebed-Melech is notable for rescuing the prophet
Jeremiah
Jeremiah, Modern: , Tiberian: ; el, Ἰερεμίας, Ieremíās; meaning " Yah shall raise" (c. 650 – c. 570 BC), also called Jeremias or the "weeping prophet", was one of the major prophets of the Hebrew Bible. According to Jewish ...
from the
cistern
A cistern (Middle English ', from Latin ', from ', "box", from Greek ', "basket") is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. Cisterns are distinguished from wells by t ...
into which he had been cast to his death. Later Jeremiah relayed God's message to him saying that he, Ebed-Melech, would "not fall by the sword" during the Fall of Jerusalem to the
Babylonians
Babylonia (; Akkadian: , ''māt Akkadī'') was an ancient Akkadian-speaking state and cultural area based in the city of Babylon in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq and parts of Syria). It emerged as an Amorite-ruled state c. ...
because he had put his trust in Him (God).
See also
*
Entering heaven alive
Entering heaven alive (called by various religions "ascension", "assumption", or "translation") is a belief held in various religions. Since death is the normal end to an individual's life on Earth and the beginning of afterlife, entering hea ...
*
Proselyte
The biblical term "proselyte" is an anglicization of the Koine Greek term προσήλυτος (''proselytos''), as used in the Septuagint (Greek Old Testament) for "stranger", i.e. a "newcomer to Israel"; a "sojourner in the land", and in the G ...
*
Baruch ben Neriah
Baruch ben Neriah ( he, בָּרוּךְ בֶּן־נֵרִיָּה ''Bārūḵ ben Nērīyyā''; c. 6th century BC) was the scribe, disciple, secretary, and devoted friend of the Biblical prophet Jeremiah. He is traditionally credited with autho ...
References
*
*
6th-century BC people
Hebrew Bible people
Eunuchs
Jeremiah
Book of Jeremiah
Entering heaven alive
Ethiopian people
Ancient slaves
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