Eli [ÔöÇ├å’lÔöÇ┬¢]…–jehovah is high or my god. The high priest and judge of Israel of the family of Ithamar (1 Sam. 1-414:3). The Man Who Lacked Parental Authority There are few Bible men in whose character we cannot find some great and glaring fault. There is usually a dead fly in the ointment, a rent […]

Edom [ÔöÇ├å’dom] red earth. The elder son of Isaac, and so named in memory of the red color of the lentil pottage for which he sold his birthright to his twin brother Jacob (Gen. 25:3036:1, 8, 19). See ESAU. Name is also used to describe those descended from Esau, the Edomites (Gen. 36:9).

Festus [FÔöÇ├▓s’tus]……joyful, festal, prosperous.…Porcius Festus was a Roman governor of Judea in the reign of Nero (Acts 24:272526:24, 32). The Man Who Called Paul Mad Felix, seeking to court the favor of the Jews, left Paul in prison, thinking that the Jews would compensate him for such a favor. This act was an investment in […]

Ezekiel [ÔöÇ├ÂzÔöÇ├┤kÔöÇ┬íel] god is strong or the man god strengthens.…The son of Buzi, a priest who prophesied to the exiles by the river Chebar, and fourth of "The Greater Prophets" (Ezek. 1:324:24). “What should we learn from the life of Ezekiel?”……For the first-time reader of the Bible, the book of Ezekiel is mostly a perplexing […]

Felix [FÔöÇ├┤’lÔöÇ┬íx]…happy, prosperous. ……A cruel Roman governor of Judea, appointed by the Emperor Claudius, whose freedman he was (Acts 23:24, 2624:2-2725:14). Felix is described by Tacitus as a bad and cruel governor, even though the title of "most excellent" was given to him. The Man Who Procrastinated As a true preacher, Paul pressed home the […]

Enoch, Henoch [ÔöÇ├å’nÔö╝├àch,HÔöÇ├┤’nÔö╝├àch…–teacher, initiated, dedicated. The eldest son of Cain, who had a city called after him (Gen. 4:17, 181 Chron. 1:3). A son of Jared, a descendant of Seth and father of Methuselah (Gen. 5:18-23Luke 3:37Heb. 11:5Jude 14). The Man Who Was Missed In some six verses the Bible sets forth the brief biography […]

Esau [ÔöÇ├å'sÔö£Ôöñu]…–hairy.…The eldest son of Isaac and twin brother of Jacob by Rebekah. His name is associated with his appearance at birth (Gen. 25:25). The Man Who Bartered His Birthright This cunning hunter and man of the field (Gen. 25:27) supplies us with one of the tragic biographies among the men of the Bible. He […]