How did the book of Chronicles trace the history of the theocracy and temple?
The chronicler wrote after the Israelites had returned from captivity to emphasize their continuity with their past. The remnant was returning to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple because of the promises God had given to David many year before (Ezra 7:10-23). God’s promises were still in effect even though the people had been in exile. It seems clear that when the chronicler set himself to cover the same ground as Samuel and Kings, he desired to present from his own point of view the history of God’s people from the days of Samuel to the captivity. His nation needed rebuilding on a solid spiritual foundation, for their long captivity had caused a serious break in their relationship to the God through the covenant laws and temple worship. Now they needed to understand their past in order to move in the right direction for the future. The long genealogical section in First Chronicles emphasizes this continuity with the past (chs. 1-9). The genealogies point out that the promises to David w
