Abdiel

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Abdiel (Hebrew: עֲבְדִּיאֵל "Servant of El") is a biblical name which has been used as the name for a number of several notable people. The name has the same meaning as Obadiah and is cognate with the Arabic name Abdullah. Abdiel is mentioned a single time in the Bible, in 1 Chronicles 5:15: "Ahi the son of Abdiel, the son of Guni, chief of the house of their fathers."[1]

People[edit]

Notable people with the name include:

Fictional characters[edit]

Paradise Lost[edit]

Chief among fictional characters bearing the name Abdiel is the seraph Abdiel appearing in Milton's Paradise Lost (1667), specifically in Book V and Book VI. Two passages from Book V serve to establish Abdiel's character:

Had audience; when among the Seraphim
Abdiel, than whom none with more zeal adored
The Deity, and divine commands obeyed

— Book V, lines 804-806

So spake the Seraph Abdiel, faithful found
Among the faithless, faithful only he
Among innumerable false. Unmoved,
Unshaken, unreduced, unterrified
His loyalty he kept, his love, his zeal.

— Book V, lines 896-900

Abdiel denounces Satan after hearing him incite revolt among the angels, and abandons Lucifer to bring the news of his defection to God. However, when he arrives, he finds that preparations are already underway for battle. In the ensuing fight, Abdiel smites Satan, Ariel, Ramiel, and Arioch, presumably among others. In Asimov's Annotated Paradise Lost, Isaac Asimov theorized that Abdiel was in fact a representation of Milton himself. Likewise, in Cyder, Ambrose Philips refers to Milton as "that other bard" and contrasts Milton to his character Abdiel.

Other uses[edit]

The character name Abdiel has also been used:

References[edit]

  1. ^ Authorised Version / King James Version