Philip’s Encounter with the “Ethiopian Eunuch”

The African man that Philip meets on his journey from Jerusalem to Gaza in Acts 8:26–40 is the most prominent unnamed character in the biblical book. Yet the deceptively simple phrase used to identify him—“Ethiopian eunuch” (v. 27)—raises significant interpretive issues that scholars continue to debate. What can we know about this important figure and his journey based on the information provided in the text?1 The man is said to be an Aithiops, “Ethiopian.” This term, however, needs clarification. In antiquity, Ethiopia did not refer to the modern country of that name. Rather, it was located in modern Sudan and […]