Samuel or Shmu'el is an important leader of ancient Israel in the Book(s) of Samuel in the Hebrew Bible. His status, as viewed by rabbinical literature, is that he was the last of the Hebrew Judges and the first of the major prophets who began to prophesy inside the Land of Israel. He was thus at the cusp between two eras. According to the text of the Book(s) of Samuel, …

Abimelech or Avimelech (אֲבִימֶלֶךְ / אֲבִימָלֶךְ "father/leader of a king; my father/leader, a king", Standard Hebrew Aviméleḫ / Avimáleḫ, Tiberian Hebrew ʼĂḇîméleḵ / ʼĂḇîmāleḵ) was a common name of the Philistine kings, much as "Pharaoh" was of the Egyptian kings.

Joab (יוֹאָב "The LORD is father", Standard Hebrew Yoʾav, Tiberian Hebrew Yôʾāḇ) was the nephew of King David, the son of Zeruiah in the Bible. He was made the captain of David's army (2 Samuel 8:16; 20:23; 1 Chronicles 11:6; 18:15; 27:34). He had two brothers, Abishai and Asahel. Asahel was killed by Abner, for which Joab took revenge by treacherously murdering Abner (2 Samuel 2:13-32; 3:27).

Everett Fox is a scholar and translator of the Hebrew Bible. He is currently the Allen M. Glick Professor of Judaic and Biblical Studies at Clark University. Fox is perhaps best known for his translation into English of the Torah. His translation is heavily influenced by the principles of Martin Buber and Franz Rosenzweig, who in 1962 completed their translation of the Old Testament into German.

Eli was, according to the Books of Samuel, the name of a priest of Shiloh, and one of the last Israelite Judges before the rule of kings in ancient Israel.

Elkanah was, according to the Books of Samuel, the husband of Hannah, and the father of her children including her first - either Samuel or Saul depending on whether it is those who take the Bible at face value or textual scholars (respectively) that are to be trusted. Elkanah is a bigamist, his other wife, less favoured but bearing more children, was named "Peninnah". The names of Elkanah's other children apart from Samuel/Saul are not given.

Hannah (also occasionally transliterated as Chana) was a wife of Elkanah mentioned in the Books of Samuel. According to the Hebrew Bible she was the mother of Samuel. The Hebrew word "Hannah" has multiple meanings and interpretations such as beauty or passionate. In the Biblical narrative, Hannah is one of two wives of Elkanah; the other, "Peninnah", bore a child to Elkanah, but Hannah remained childless. Nevertheless, Elkanah preferred Hannah.

Benjamin Kennicott (April 4, 1718 - September 18, 1783), was an English churchman and Hebrew scholar. He was born at Totnes, Devon. He succeeded his father as master of a charity school, but the generosity of some friends enabled him to go to Wadham College, Oxford, in 1744, and he distinguished himself in Hebrew and divinity. While an undergraduate he published two dissertations, "On the Tree of Life in Paradise, with some Observations on the Fall of Man", …

Rabbi D Sidney Brichto is a British Liberal Jewish rabbi. He was born on 21 July, 1936, in Philadelphia. He briefly lived in New York before moving to England in the 1960s. Brichto is also a prolific author, having written extensively in the Jewish and national press. In the 1960s, he was the first Executive Director of (as it was then) the "Union of Liberal and Progressive Synagogues", now known as Liberal Judaism.

Abigail (is a female name occurring in Biblical narratives from the Books of Samuel, and reflected in the Books of Chronicles. The name "Abigal" occurs on one occasion, and is thought by the vast majority of scholars to be an alternate spelling of "Abigail". There appear to be two individuals named "Abigail": *The wife of Nabal, who became a wife of David after Nabal's sudden death (see Nabal). She became the mother of one of David's sons, …

Paulus Aemilius, Hebrew bibliographer, publisher, and teacher; born at Rödlsee, Germany, probably in the first quarter of the sixteenth century; embraced Christianity in Rome; died 1575. He was employed in copying Hebrew manuscripts, and for this purpose visited the libraries of Paris, Louvain, and Rome. In 1544 he edited and printed at Augsburg a Judaeo-German translation of the "Pentateuch" and the "Haftarot", dedicating it to Widmannstadt, …