Key word: Covenant
Like the books of Samuel and Kings, the Chronicles were originally one book, which begins with the death of Saul and continues through the captivity in Babylon. As such, much of the material overlaps with the book of 2 Samuel and Kings. So a legitimate question might be what is the purpose for the Chronicles? The answer is that the target audience are the returning exiles who were in need of a brief history of Judah since they had been out of the land for decades.
1 & 2 Chronicles deal almost exclusively with the house of David and Judah. The first book concerns the reign of David, much as 2 Samuel does. The returning exiles needed to be reminded of God’s faithfulness in the setting up of the dynasty with David, in connection with His promises to Abraham. 1 Chronicles, unlike 2 Samuel, focuses almost exclusively on God’s promises to David and his faithful obedience. Virtually nothing concerning David’s faults are mentioned. Even the civil war between Israel and Judah is skipped over. Instead much attention is given to the Davidic covenant, which will be kept by God, regardless of the faithfulness of future kings (1 Chronicles 17). And 1 Chronicles not only describes the preparation David made for the construction of the temple, but also how the expenses for the construction were funded (something not found in 2 Samuel) (chapter 29). As the exiles were commissioned to rebuild the temple, the example is important.
Our key word then is covenant, for despite all the rebellion and sin of God’s people, He has kept His covenant with them – both His promises to the Jews in general, and to David specifically.
Key verse: 1 Chronicles 17:16 – “Who am I, O LORD God, and what is my house that You have brought me this far?”
