Shimma is a name found in the King James Bible, appearing 1 time in the text.
Who This Was
Shimma was a descendant of Benjamin whose name appears in the genealogies of the tribe recorded in 1 Chronicles. He is listed in the line of Jesse, the Bethlehemite, as the third of Jesse’s sons: “And Jesse begat his firstborn Eliab, and Abinadab the second, and Shimma the third” (1 Chronicles 2:13). His mention comes within the broader genealogical record that traces the families of Israel, and specifically the house of Jesse, from whom David would later come.
The setting of Shimma’s appearance is a genealogy rather than a narrative. Scripture does not record any deed, word, or event from his life. He is named only once in the King James Bible, in this single verse, as one of Jesse’s eight sons. The same son appears elsewhere in the accounts of David’s family under the name Shammah (1 Samuel 16:9; 17:13), but the source note and the KJV text before us present him here simply as Shimma, the third-born of Jesse.
What Scripture says of Shimma is therefore limited to his place in the family line. He was a son of Jesse, a brother of David, and a member of the tribe of Benjamin by descent through the genealogical record. Beyond his birth order and his father’s name, the text is silent. His life is known to God, but not to us.
The Name
The name Shimma is a Hebrew name whose meaning is not clearly recoverable from the text itself. It appears to be a variant form related to the name Shammah, and Hebrew names of this type are often understood in connection with words for “hearing” or “desolation,” but the precise sense of this particular form is uncertain. Because the meaning is not well established, it is best to say so plainly rather than assign a definition the text does not give. What we can say is that his name, like all names in Scripture, marked him as a distinct individual before God.
A Closing Thought
Most of us will never be remembered by crowds. Shimma’s entire legacy in Scripture is a single line in a long list of names. Yet that line matters: he was known, counted, and placed within the family through whom God would bring David, and ultimately the Messiah. A quiet life hidden in a genealogy is still a life held in the hand of God. If your days feel unrecorded and small, take heart—heaven keeps a fuller record than any chronicle, and no one who belongs to God’s family is forgotten.
At a Glance
- Gender: Male
- Testament: Old
- Mentions in the KJV: 1
Where It Appears in Scripture
- 1 Chronicles 2:13 — And Jesse begat his firstborn Eliab, and Abinadab the second, and Shimma the third,