the Week of Proper 17 / Ordinary 22
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Bible Dictionaries
Chronicles
American Tract Society Bible Dictionary
The name of two historical books of the Old Testament, the author of which is not known, though the general opinion ascribes them to Ezra, B. C. 457. In writing them the inspired penman made use, not only of the earlier books of Scripture, but of numerous other public annals, now lost, 2 Chronicles 9:29 16:11 20:32 . The first book contains a recapitulation of sacred history, by genealogies, from the beginning of the world to the death of David. The second book contains the history of the kings of Judah, without those of Israel, from the beginning of the reign of Solomon only, to the return from the captivity of Babylon. In this respect it differs from the books of Kings, which give the history of the kings of both Judah and Israel. In many places, where the history of the same kings is related, the narrative in Chronicles is almost a copy of that in Kings; in other places, the one serves as a supplement to the other. In the Septuagint, these books are called Paraleipomena, that is, things omitted. The two books of Chronicles dwell more on ecclesiastical matters than the books of Kings; they enlarge upon the ordinances of public worship; and detail minutely the preparation of David for the building of the temple, and its erection and dedication by Solomon; the histories of the other kings also are specially full in respect to their religious character and acts, 1 Chronicles 13:8-11 2 Chronicles 11:13 19:8-11 26:16-19 , etc. The Chronicles should be read in connection with the books of Samuel and the Kings; treating of the same periods, they illustrate each other, and form a continuous and instructive history, showing that religion is the main source of national prosperity, and ungodliness of adversity, Proverbs 14:34 . The details of these books may be studied with interest, in view of their bearing upon the coming and the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ. The whole period treated of in the Chronicles is about 3,500 years.
These files are public domain and are a derivative of the topics are from American Tract Society Bible Dictionary published in 1859.
Rand, W. W. Entry for 'Chronicles'. American Tract Society Bible Dictionary. https://www.studylight.org/​dictionaries/​eng/​ats/​c/chronicles.html. 1859.