Amasai

Biblical Record

Amasai appears only in 1 Chronicles 12, a chapter that records the warriors who gathered to David while he was hiding from Saul. The opening of the chapter (1 Chronicles 12:1) is set during the period when David was at Ziklag, but the passage in which Amasai appears (1 Chronicles 12:16–18) records that some of the children of Benjamin and Judah came to the "hold," or stronghold, where David was staying.

David went out to meet them and told them that if they had come peaceably to help him, his heart would be knit to them; but if they had come to betray him to his enemies, the God of their fathers would look upon it and rebuke it. Then the Spirit came upon Amasai, "the chief of the thirty" (KJV: "chief of the captains"), and he answered: "Thine are we, David, and on thy side, thou son of Jesse: peace, peace be unto thee… for thy God helpeth thee" (1 Chronicles 12:18, KJV). David received them and made them captains of the band.

The text does not say whether Amasai belonged to the tribe of Benjamin or of Judah, nor does it describe what became of him afterward.

Significance Within Scripture

Amasai's words are read as depicting people who recognize and follow God's purpose to make David king. 1 Chronicles 11–12 portrays men from many tribes rallying to David, and Amasai's declaration briefly sums up that movement. Particularly notable is the presence of Benjamites, members of Saul's own tribe. The declaration repeats a wish for peace three times.

The Hebrew expression rendered "the Spirit came upon" literally means "the Spirit clothed." The same expression is used of Gideon (Judges 6:34) and of Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest (2 Chronicles 24:20). The New Testament does not mention Amasai.

Interpretations and Debates

• Relationship to "the thirty": 1 Chronicles 11 and 2 Samuel 23 contain lists of David's "thirty" mighty men, but Amasai's name does not appear in them. It is therefore unclear whether the "thirty" he led were the same group.
• Identification with another figure: Some commentators suggest that Amasai is the same person as Amasa, the commander of Absalom's army, or as Abishai, David's nephew. Because the text does not state this, such identifications are treated as hypotheses.
• Others of the same name: The Kohathite Levite Amasai mentioned in 1 Chronicles 6:25 and 6:35–36, and the Amasai named as the father of Mahath in the time of Hezekiah (2 Chronicles 29:12), are different individuals who share the name.

In the Korean Church

Amasai is not a widely known figure. His declaration, however, is occasionally cited in sermons on loyalty in supporting a leader and on partnership in ministry. The Korean Revised Version (Gaeyeok Hangeul) renders the word for the Spirit as seongsin, while the New Korean Revised Version renders it as seongryeong.