What is "shemaiah"

Shemaiah, a name which in Hebrew (שמעיה SheMa`YaH) means "God Heard", may refer to:

• Shmaya, a rabbinic sage who was leader of the Pharisees in the 1st century BC
• Any of several people in the Bible/Christian Old Testament - see List of people in the Hebrew Bible called Shemaiah

Shemaiah was a prophet in the reign of Rehoboam ( I Kings 12:22-24). He is venerated as a saint in the liturgical calendar of the Eastern Orthodox Church on January 8.

He is best known for two events:

• Preventing Rehoboam from war with Jeroboam -- 1 Kings 12:22-24; 2 Chronicles 11:2-4;
• Prophesying the punishment of Rehoboam by Shishak, king of Egypt—2 Chronicles 12:5,7

King Rehoboam had assembled 180,000 troops to forcefully bring back the ten rebellious tribes. Shemaiah was known as a "man of God", and prophesies in verse 24 that this thing is from the Lord, and they are not to go up against the Northern Tribes, so "Everyone returned to their own house".