Shammai (son of Onam)

Biblical Record

Shammai appears in the genealogy of the descendants of Judah in 1 Chronicles 2. The genealogy runs from Judah through Perez and Hezron to Jerahmeel. Jerahmeel fathered Onam by his wife Atarah (1 Chronicles 2:26), and the sons of Onam were Shammai and Jada (1 Chronicles 2:28). First Chronicles 2:32 refers to "Jada the brother of Shammai."

The sons of Shammai were Nadab and Abishur (1 Chronicles 2:28). Their descendants are traced as follows:

• Abishur's line: Abishur's wife was Abihail, and their sons were Ahban and Molid (1 Chronicles 2:29).
• Nadab's line: Nadab's sons were Seled and Appaim. Seled died without sons. This line continues from Appaim to Ishi and then to Sheshan (1 Chronicles 2:30–31).

Scripture records none of Shammai's deeds or words. Apart from the inclusion of his name in the genealogy, nothing is known of his life.

Significance Within the Bible

The Jerahmeelite clan to which Shammai belonged is mentioned in David's time as a group in the southern region of Judah (1 Samuel 27:10; 30:29). First Chronicles 2 records the lineage of this clan in comparative detail, showing the various branches of the tribe of Judah.

Jerahmeel was the brother of Ram, an ancestor of David (1 Chronicles 2:9). Because the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew 1:3 runs from Hezron to Ram, Shammai belongs to a collateral branch of the messianic line. The New Testament does not mention Shammai.

The meaning of the name is uncertain. Some scholars relate it to the Hebrew verb meaning "to hear" (shama).

Interpretation and Issues

In 1 Chronicles the name Shammai is borne by three different men. Besides the subject of this article, they are:

• Shammai the son of Rekem: The father of Maon, listed among the descendants of Caleb, the brother of Jerahmeel (1 Chronicles 2:44–45).
• Shammai of the household of Mered: Listed as one of Mered's children in 1 Chronicles 4:17. Because the sentence structure of the Hebrew text in this verse is difficult, translations read it in somewhat different ways.

An interpretive question also arises concerning Sheshan, one of Shammai's descendants. First Chronicles 2:31 names Ahlai as the son of Sheshan, but 2:34 states that Sheshan had no sons, only daughters. Commentators explain this discrepancy in various ways: some regard Ahlai as a daughter or a later descendant, while others see the discrepancy as a trace of two sources that were combined.

The Pharisaic rabbi Shammai of the New Testament era (often mentioned alongside Hillel) bears the same name but is a different person who does not appear in the Bible.

In the Korean Church

Sermons or Sunday school lessons devoted specifically to Shammai are rare. Most believers encounter the name only in passing when reading the genealogies of 1 Chronicles as part of reading through the entire Bible.