8:27

Ethiopian: From the region of an ancient nation S of Egypt, then referred to as Ethiopia. The Greek word for “Ethiopia” (Ai·thi·o·piʹa, meaning “Region of Burnt Faces”) was the name applied by the ancient Greeks to the region of Africa S of Egypt. It generally corresponded with the Hebrew name Cush, which primarily embraced the southernmost part of modern-day Egypt and the present Sudan. When the Septuagint translation was made, the translators used the Greek term “Ethiopia” to render the Hebrew “Cush” in almost all passages. One example is Isa 11:11, where “Cush” (“Ethiopia” in LXX) is mentioned as one of the lands to which the Jewish exiles were scattered after the Babylonian conquest of Judah. Hence, this Ethiopian official may have had association with Jews in his area or perhaps in Egypt, where many Jews resided.

eunuch: In a literal sense, the Greek word eu·nouʹkhos refers to a man deprived of his ability to procreate. Castrated men were often appointed to serve in various capacities in ancient royal courts of the Middle East and northern Africa, especially as attendants or caretakers of the queen and the concubines. However, the term “eunuch” was not always used of men who had been castrated. It came to refer more generally to men assigned to various official duties in royal courts. Similar to the Greek term, the Hebrew word for “eunuch” (sa·risʹ) can refer to a royal officer. For example, Potiphar, a married man, is called “a court official [lit., “a eunuch”] of Pharaoh.” (Ge 39:1) In this account, the Ethiopian man who oversaw the royal treasury is referred to by the term “eunuch,” apparently used in the sense of a court official. He was obviously a circumcised proselyte​—that is, a non-Jew who had embraced the worship of Jehovah​—for he had just gone to Jerusalem to worship. (See Glossary, “Proselyte.”) The Mosaic Law forbade castrated men from coming into the congregation of Israel (De 23:1), so he could not have been a literal eunuch. Therefore, this Ethiopian proselyte was apparently not viewed as a Gentile and did not precede Cornelius as the first uncircumcised Gentile to convert to Christianity.​—Ac 10:1, 44-48; for an explanation of the figurative use of the term “eunuch,” see study notes on Mt 19:12.

Candace: Instead of being a specific personal name, Candace, like Pharaoh and Caesar, is considered to be a title. Ancient writers, including Strabo, Pliny the Elder, and Eusebius used this designation in referring to queens of Ethiopia. Pliny the Elder (c. 23-79 C.E.) wrote that “the town [Meroë, capital of ancient Ethiopia] possesses few buildings. They said that it is ruled by a woman, Candace, a name that has passed on through a succession of queens for many years.”​—Natural History, VI, XXXV, 186.