A guide to 1 Chronicles

Who wrote 1 Chronicles, and when?

Unnamed; Jewish tradition names Ezra. About 450–400 BC, after the return from exile.

The book names no author. Jewish tradition credits Ezra the scribe, and the closing verses of 2 Chronicles overlap with the opening of Ezra, which suggests a connection. Most scholars simply call the writer the Chronicler and think the book was put together in Jerusalem around 450 to 400 BC, after the exiles had returned and rebuilt the temple. Some date it slightly later. First and Second Chronicles were originally one book. The Chronicler used Samuel and Kings as main sources, along with genealogies, temple records and other writings the book itself mentions. The exact author matters less than the setting: this is history retold by someone who lived in the small, fragile community of the return.

Who was 1 Chronicles written to?

The small community back in Jerusalem after the exile, wondering whether they were still God’s people.

The first readers were the Jews who had come back from Babylon to Judah. Their city was small, their temple was modest compared with Solomon's, and they had no king, only a Persian governor. Many of them wondered whether they were still the people of God or only a leftover. First Chronicles was written for that community. The long genealogies that open the book, tedious to modern readers, were precious to them because they tied living families back to Adam, Abraham, Jacob and David. The detailed lists of priests, singers and gatekeepers told them that their worship in the rebuilt temple stood in a real line from the worship David had set up.

What was happening at the time?

The exiles have come home to a modest city, a rebuilt temple and no king. Chronicles retells the history they already knew from Samuel and Kings but with a different aim: nine chapters of genealogy connect them to Adam and Abraham, and David is shown chiefly as the one who prepared for the temple and ordered its worship. His sins with Bathsheba are left out; the focus is on what the community should carry forward.

Why was 1 Chronicles written?

To reassure the post-exilic community of their identity and to centre their life on temple worship and the promises to David.

First Chronicles wants its readers to know who they are and what to build their life around. It reassures them that the same God who chose Abraham and David is still with them, and that the promises to David have not expired even without a king on the throne. It puts the temple and its worship at the centre: David is shown chiefly as the man who gathered the materials, organised the priests and singers, and prepared everything for his son to build. His failures with Bathsheba are left out, not to hide them, but because the book is about what should be carried forward. In the wider story of the Bible, Chronicles keeps alive the hope of a son of David and a house of worship, both of which the New Testament sees fulfilled in Jesus.

How to read 1 Chronicles today

Skim the genealogies in chapters 1 to 9 rather than reading every name, but pause at the small stories tucked inside them, such as the prayer of Jabez in chapter 4. Then read from chapter 10 onward, where the story of David begins. Watch how much space is given to the ark, the temple plans and the organisation of worship, and how David's final prayer in chapter 29 sums up the book. Compare with 2 Samuel if you like, noticing what the Chronicler leaves out and what he adds. Do not try to reconcile every number with Samuel and Kings; ancient copying and different sources account for many differences, and the point is the message. As you read, pray about what stands at the centre of your own life, and ask God to make worship of him the thing everything else gathers around.

The key verse in 1 Chronicles

Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.

Passages worth knowing in 1 Chronicles

• 1 Chronicles 4:9-10

  The prayer of Jabez

  A brief prayer for blessing set in the middle of a genealogy.

• 1 Chronicles 11

  David becomes king

  All Israel gathers to him at Hebron.

• 1 Chronicles 16

  The ark and David’s psalm

  Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good.

• 1 Chronicles 17

  The covenant with David

  The promise of an everlasting house retold.

• 1 Chronicles 21

  The census and the threshing floor

  The future temple site bought at a price.

• 1 Chronicles 29

  David’s prayer of praise

  Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power.

The main themes of 1 Chronicles

• Identity and continuity
• Worship
• David and the temple
• All Israel
• God’s faithfulness

An outline of 1 Chronicles