Bible Person

Melzar

Meaning: circumcision of a narrow place · Male · 2 cross references

Melzar is the Babylonian official, or title-bearing attendant, who oversees the food and drink assigned to Daniel and his companions. Because the term may function as a title rather than a conventional personal name, the page should be read as a court-role entry as much as an individual profile. First appears in Dan 1:11.1

AI summary: Melzar matters because his cross references place him at the practical point of tension between imperial assimilation and covenant faithfulness. Through his supervision, the narrative shows that small decisions about diet become a stage for God's favor and wisdom to be displayed. Taken together, the material presents Melzar as a court officer whose role helps frame Daniel's first public act of faithful distinction in Babylon.1

Central Figure

Melzar

Meaning: circumcision of a narrow place

Probably a Persian word meaning master of wine, i.e., chief butler; the title of an officer at the Babylonian court (Dan.