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.

This book is volume 11 of The forms of the Old Testament literature, a 24-volume series that aims to present a form-critical analysis of every book and each unit in the Old Testament (Hebrew Bible). In his introduction De Vries sketches the canonical setting of the books of Chronicles, especially their relation with Ezra-Nehemiah, and then discusses the redacted and original versions of Chronicles. He describes Chronicles as genealogical and narrative history that tells who ideal Israel is, how it has suffered by its unfaithfulness, and how it will remain true Israel by trusting in God. Following the series format throughout his work, De Vries offers an analysis of the structure, genre, setting, and intention of each section of the biblical text. Bibliographies guide the reader to further discussion; a glossary of formulas and genres concludes the volume. - Back cover.

In this commentary on the books of 1 and 2 Chronicles, Dr. Williamson brings to light the theological and spiritual richness of these historical books. Composed in the era after the Babylonian Exile, they brought a new perspective to the idea of Israel and to the story of its past. Making full use of a wide range of studies by Jewish and Christian scholars, this commentary offers a wealth of new insights and conclusions.

In his latest addition to the esteemed Anchor Bible Commentaries, scholar Gary Knoppers examines one of the most neglected books of the Old Testament and established its importance as a key to understanding the nation of Israel. Who were the Israelites? Was Israel's first king, Saul, a hero or a disaster? Was David a gifted and accomplished leader or a murderer and a cheat? Did Solomon preside over the most glorious epoch in Israelite history or did he lead the nation into a fateful decline? In I Chronicles, the distinguished scholar Gary Knoppers addresses these questions through a thoughtful and exacting reading of one of the last books of the Hebrew Bible. He shows that Chronicles, which contains a variety of viewpoints on the major events and people, provides a distinct perspective on much of Israel's past, especially the monarchy. He discusses how the chronicler's introduction to the people of Israel redefines Israel itself; explains and defends the transition from Saul to David; and shows how the Davidic-Solomonic monarchy was not only a time of incomparable achievement and glory, but also the period during which the nations most important public institutions -the Davidic dynasty, the Jerusalem Temple, the priests, and the Levites--took formative shape. I Chronicles, part of a two-volume set, is the first to employ systematically the Dead Sea Scrolls to reconstruct the biblical author's text. Knoppers reveals how Chronicles is related to and creatively drawn from many earlier biblical books, and presents a fascinating look at its connections, in both compositional style and approach, to the historical writings of ancient Mesopotamia and classical Greece. Featuring a new translation and an extensive introduction that incorporates up-to-date research, this volume replaces the Anchor Bible I Chronicles commentary written by Jacob Myers in 1965.