Ammizabad is a name found in the King James Bible, appearing 1 time in the text.
Who This Was
Ammizabad was the son of Benaiah, a man described in Scripture as “mighty among the thirty, and above the thirty.” Benaiah served under King David as commander over the Cherethites and Pelethites, the royal guard, and his reputation among Israel’s warriors was exceptional. Ammizabad is named only once in the King James Bible, in a passage that lists the military divisions David organized for the service of the kingdom.
The setting of 1 Chronicles 27 is the administrative ordering of David’s reign, in which the king appointed officers over monthly courses of troops, tribal leaders, and overseers of his property. In this arrangement, each division of twenty-four thousand men served one month of the year. The text states that Ammizabad belonged to his father’s course: “and in his course was Ammizabad his son.” The word “course” refers to the rotating division or shift of service, indicating that Ammizabad was enrolled in the same monthly course as his father Benaiah.
Scripture records nothing further of Ammizabad’s deeds, character, or later life. He appears as a single line within a genealogical and administrative record, named because of his place in his father’s division. His inclusion in the chronicle shows that he was counted among those who served in the ordered structure of David’s kingdom, yet the text gives no account of anything he said or did. He is remembered chiefly as the son of a faithful and mighty man, standing in the course his father had before him.
The Name
The name Ammizabad is a Hebrew compound name, and its elements are reasonably transparent. It appears to combine *ammi*, meaning “my people,” with a form related to *zabad*, meaning “he has given” or “endowed.” On this basis the name is commonly understood to mean something like “my people has given” or “the people’s gift,” though some render it “my people is endowed.” Because the exact grammatical relationship between the two elements is not certain, the precise sense is debated among scholars. What can be said plainly is that the name carries the idea of giving or endowment joined to the word for “people,” but its full meaning is not recoverable with complete confidence.
A Closing Thought
Ammizabad’s entire legacy in Scripture is one sentence: he was in his father’s course. He built no monument and won no recorded battle, yet he stood where he was placed, in the division his father had served before him. Most of God’s people are remembered this way—not for greatness, but for faithfulness in an assigned place. There is quiet honor in simply being found in your post, counted among those who serve. The Lord keeps no insignificant records, and a name written once in His book is written forever.
At a Glance
- Gender: Male
- Testament: Old
- Mentions in the KJV: 1
Where It Appears in Scripture
- 1 Chronicles 27:6 — This is that Benaiah, who was mighty among the thirty, and above the thirty: and in his course was Ammizabad his son.