To its own generation the book of Chronicles was a vivid reminder of hope in the faithfulness of God, a reminder of the promise--made both to the world and to the house of David--of peace and prosperity, to be fulfilled through the covenant people of God. Structurally, the book may be considered an exegetical summary of Old Testament history. Not only does it recount the important events of God's dealing with Israel, but it also explains the significance of those events to Israel's history.

History, Literature and Theology in the Book of Chronicles presents a new way of approaching this key biblical text, arguing that the Book employs both multiple viewpoints and the knowledge of the past held by its intended readership to reshape social memory and reinforce the authority of God. The Book of Chronicles communicates to its intended readership a theological worldview built around multiple, partial perspectives which inform and balance each other. This is a worldview which emphasizes the limitations of all human knowledge, even of theologically "proper" knowledge. When Chronicles presents the past as explainable it also affirms that those who inhabited it could not predict the future. And, despite expanding an "explainable" past, the Book deliberately frames some of YHWH's actions - crucial events in Israel's social memory - as unexplainable in human terms. The Book serves to rationalise divinely ordained, prescriptive behaviour through its emphasis on the impossibility of adequate human understanding of a past, present and future governed by YHWH.

This volume of the Navarre Bible commentaries unlocks the mysteries of a wide-ranging sequence of Old Testament books: the historical books of Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Maccabees and the little-known but pivotally important books of Tobit, Judith, and Esther. In these books you'll find the rich and instructive stories of Kings David and Solomon, the Babylonian exile, and its aftermath; the heroism of the Maccabees who gave their lives to preserve their faith in God; and the deep faith and awareness of divine blessing that invests the books of Tobit, Judith, and Esther.

This volume, a part of the Old Testament Library series, explores the books of I and II Chronicles. The Old Testament Library provides fresh and authoritative treatments of important aspects of Old Testament study through commentaries and general surveys. The contributors are scholars of international standing.

The thirteen essays in this volume are largely revised papers which were originally presented as part of the Ancient Historiography Seminar of the Canadian Society of Biblical Studies and they investigate particular texts of Chronicles, examine central themes, and consider future prospects for Chronicles study. The volume includes chapters by Shannon E. Baines, Ehud Ben Zvi, Mark J. Boda, Keith Bodner, Paul S. Evans, Louis Jonker, Gary N. Knoppers, Christine Mitchell, Peter J. Sabo, Steven J. Schweitzer, and John W. Wright. The essays represent many different perspectives, methodologies, and conclusions regarding the Chronicler's work and this volume will be of particular interest to scholars and students of Chronicles, ancient Israelite historiography and biblical literature in general.

In this insightful, readable commentary, Michael Wilcock shows how the various characters in Chronicles make vivid the truth by which the Lord's people in every generation are to live. This thoughtful exposition on Chronicles sheds light on great overall pattern of God's hand in history, making the book come alive for students, teachers, and anyone seeking to delve deeper in the text.

This book facilitates the study of the historical books of Samuel, Kings, and Chronicles in the Hebrew bible. It illustrates how the Chronicler refashioned many texts in Samuel-Kings and also incorporated texts and details from other biblical translations of these books such as the Psalms and Isaiah. Since many biblical translation of these books have not focused on the issue of parallels, this book features a fresh translation based on the principle of synoptic parallels.