H7249 H7249
Rab-saris (chief eunuch, Babylonian court official); chief, master (title in compound expressions)
Senses
1. Rab-saris (chief eunuch, Babylonian court official) — The specific Babylonian court title 'Rab-saris' designating the chief eunuch or chief courtier, treated in some traditions as a proper title rather than a generic rank. Both clusters use 'saris/eunuch' translations: eng: eunuch / Saris, spa: eunucos / Saris, hin: सारीस, arb: الْخَصِيِّينَ / سَارِسَ, kor: 내시의 / 환관, swa: matowashi. While S134566 translates descriptively as 'eunuch' and S134569 transliterates as 'Saris,' both refer to the same office (rab-saris = chief of the eunuchs) in the Babylonian and Assyrian court hierarchy. Attested in 2Ki 18:17; Jer 39:3,13. 3×
AR["الْخَصِيِّينَ","سَارِسَ"]·ben["নপুংসক","নপুংসকদের","সারীষকে"]·DE["Saris","[סריס]"]·EN["Saris","eunuch"]·FR["Saris","eunuque"]·heb["סריס"]·HI["सारीस"]·ID["Saris"]·IT["Saris","capo"]·jav["Saris","punggawa-istana"]·KO["내시의","환관"]·PT["Saris"]·RU["Сарис","Сариса"]·ES["Saris","eunucos"]·SW["matowashi"]·TR["Saris","hadım"]·urd["خواجہ-سرا","ساریس"]
2. chief, master (title in compound expressions) — A title meaning 'chief' or 'master,' used as the first element in Babylonian official compound titles such as Rab-mag (chief magician), Rab-saris (chief eunuch), and Rab-shakeh (chief cupbearer). The multilingual evidence confirms the 'chief/head' meaning: eng: chief / Rav, spa: jefe de / Rab, hin: रब, arb: رَبُّ / رَبَّ (lord/master), kor: 장 / 총 (chief/head), swa: mkuu wa (chief of). This is the titular/rank sense distinct from the adjectival 'great/many' (H7227). Attested in Jer 39:3,13 in the compound titles of Nebuchadnezzar's officers. 3×
AR["رَبَّ-","رَبُّ"]·ben["প্রধান-","রব-"]·DE["Rav","[רב]"]·EN["Rav","chief"]·FR["Rab","nombreux"]·heb["רב-"]·HI["रब-"]·ID["Rab-"]·IT["Rav","capo"]·jav["Rab-","kepala-"]·KO["장-","총-"]·PT["Rav","Rav-"]·RU["Рав-"]·ES["Rab","jefe-de"]·SW["mkuu-wa","mkuu-wa-"]·TR["Rav-","baş-"]·urd["رب-"]
BDB / Lexicon Reference
II. רַב49 n.m. chief (Assyrian-Bab. influence, cf. rab DlHWB 609b; Biblical Aramaic רַב);—cstr. ר׳ Je 39:9 +; pl. cstr. רַבֵּי 39:13; 41:1 (but v. infr.);—especially רַב־ טַבָּחִים chief of guardsmen (v. טַבָּח), only as title of Bab. officer Je 39:9, 10 + 15 times Je, 7 times ‖ 2 K 25 (cf. שַׂר הַטּ׳ in Gn [JE]); also †רַב הַחֹבֵל Jon 1:6 chief of the sailors, i.e. captain; †in gen. כָּל־רַב…