1. Class 10: First Chronicles, Second Chronicles
By: Marina K. Lam
1/5/2012

2. References Talk thru the Bible, by Bruce Wilkinson, Kenneth Boa, p.47.
Unleashing God’s word in Youth Ministry, by Barry Shafer, p. 253
1/5/2012

3. What will you learn in First Kings?
The Book of Kings was written to the remaining kingdom of Judah before and after its Babylonian exile. The theme of First Kings is that the welfare of Israel and Judah depended upon the covenant faithfulness of the people and their king.
Read 1 King Ch 3: Learn from King Solomon, shortly after he assumed his reign, why wisdom is always a good thing to ask to when you’re requesting things from God.
Read 1 King Ch 13: Solomon’s son Rehoboam unwisely led the nation into a civil war and broke the nation into Northern (Israel) and Southern (Judah) kingdoms.
1/6/2012

4. What will you learn in Second Kings?
The book of Kings show that judgment comes to the kingdoms of Israel and Judah because of their idolatry, immorality, and disunity.
19 consecutive evil kings rule in Israel, leading to the captivity by Assyria.
Judah lasts 136 years longer than Israel because of the relative goodness of eight of its twenty kings.
Read ch 25: The last chapter of Second Kings records the utter destruction of the city of Jerusalem and its glorious temple.
1/6/2012

5. What you will learn in First Chronicles?
Author Ezra
Date and Setting for addressing to the returning remnant. Completed Chronicles between B.C.
Theme and Purpose
Read selected Ch 1-11 for Genealogies from Adam to David.
Read Ch 17: David Covenant
1/5/2012

6. First Chronicles
The books of first and second Chronicles cover the same period of Jewish history described in Second Samuel through Second Kings but the perspective of Chronicles is different. These books are no mere repetition of the same material, but rather are a divine editorial on the history of God’s people. While Second Samuel and Kings give political history of Israel and Judah. The former were written from a prophetic and moral viewpoint, the latter from a priestly and spiritual perspective. The book of First Chronicle begins with the royal line of David, then traces the spiritual significance of David’s righteous reign.
1/5/2012

7. 931 B.C. the year the kingdom was divided into the northern nation of Israel and the southern nation of Judah
Jeroboam
Israel
(Northern
Kingdom)
Assyrian
Captivity of Israel
(722 B.C.)
Saul
David
Solomon
Babylonian
Captivity
of Judah
(586 B.C.)
Judah
(Southern
Kingdom)
1043
2022
971
931
Son of Solomon:
Rehoboam

8. Author
Although the text does not identify the author, several facts seem to support the tradition in the Jewish Talmud that Ezra the priest was the author. The content points to a priestly authorship because of the emphasis on the temple, the priesthood, and the theocratic line of David in the southern kingdom of Judah. The narrative also indicates that Chronicles was at least written by a contemporary of Ezra. Chronicles is quite similar in style to the Book of Ezra, and both share a priestly perspective: genealogies, temple worship, ministry of the priesthood, and obedience to the law of God. In addition, the closing verses of Second Chronicles (36:22-23) are repeated with minor changes as the opening verses of Ezra(1:1-3). Thus, Chronicles and Ezra may have been one consecutive history as were Luke and Acts.
1/5/2012

9. Comparison 2 Chronicles 36:22-23 Ezra(1:1-3)
22 In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah, the LORD moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing:
 23 “This is what Cyrus king of Persia says:
   “‘The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up, and may the LORD their God be with them.’”
1 In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah, the LORD moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing: 2 “This is what Cyrus king of Persia says:
   “‘The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. 3 Any of his people among you may go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple of the LORD, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem, and may their God be with them.
1/5/2012

10. Author(cont.)
Ezra was an educated scribe(Ezra 7:6), and according to the apocryphal Book of Second Maccabees, chapter 2, verses 13-15, Nehemiah collected an extensive library which was available to Ezra for his use in compiling Chronicles. Many of these documents and sources are listed in the book. Scholars of Israel accumulated and compared historical material, and the author of Chronicles was actually a compiler who drew from many sources under the guidance and inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
1/5/2012

11. Read Ezra (7:6, 7:10)
1 After these things, during the reign of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Ezra son of Seraiah, the son of Azariah, the son of Hilkiah, 2 the son of Shallum, the son of Zadok, the son of Ahitub,3 the son of Amariah, the son of Azariah, the son of Meraioth, 4 the son of Zerahiah, the son of Uzzi, the son of Bukki, 5 the son of Abishua, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the chief priest— 6 this Ezra came up from Babylon. He was a teacher well versed in the Law of Moses, which the LORD, the God of Israel, had given. The king had granted him everything he asked, for the hand of the LORD his God was on him. 7 Some of the Israelites, including priests, Levites, musicians, gatekeepers and temple servants, also came up to Jerusalem in the seventh year of King Artaxerxes. 8 Ezra arrived in Jerusalem in the fifth month of the seventh year of the king. 9 He had begun his journey from Babylon on the first day of the first month, and he arrived in Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month, for the gracious hand of his God was on him. 10 For Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the LORD, and to teaching its decrees and laws in Israel.
1/5/2012

12. Date and Setting (Read selected section of Ch 1-11 for genealogies)
The genealogies in chapters 1-9 cover the time from Adam to David, and chapters focus on the thirty-three (33) years of David’s rule over the united kingdoms of Israel and Judah( B.C.). However, the genealogies extend to about 500B.C. as seen in the mention of Zerubbabel, grandson of King Jeconiah, who leads the first return of the Jews from exile in 538 B.C., and also Zerobbabel’s two grandsons Pelatiah and Jesaish (3:21).
1/5/2012

13. Date and Setting (cont.)
Ezra probably completed Chronicles between 450 and 430 B.C. and addressed it to the returned remnant. Ezra leads some of the exiles to Jerusalem in 457 B.C. and ministers to the people as their spiritual leader. During Ezra’s time, Nehemiah is the political leader and Malachi is the moral leader.
1/5/2012

14. Date and Setting (cont.)
Chronicles spends a disproportionate time on the reigns of David and Solomon because they bring the nation to its pinnacle. The book is written to the people of Israel’s “Second Commonwealth” to encourage them and to remind them that they must remain the covenant people of God. This would remind the Jews of their spiritual heritage and identity during the difficult times they were facing.
1/5/2012

15. Theme and Purpose
Chronicles was written to provide a spiritual perspective on the historical events from the time of David to Cyrus’ decree in 538B.C. It traces Israel’s lineage back to the dawn of the human race and forward to the end of the Babylonian captivity to reveal God’s faithfulness and continuing purpose of His people.
1/5/2012

16. Theme and Purpose (cont.)
Because it was written to the returning remnant, Chronicles has a more positive thrust than Samuel or Kings. It does not deny failures but concentrates on the messianic line, the temple, and spiritual reforms. The readers needed encouragement in rebuilding their heritage. Chronicles teaches that Yahweh is still with them—He brought them back and enabled them to rebuild the temple. All is not lost; though the glory was departed and they are under the control of Gentile powers, God still has a future for them. The throne of David was gone but the line of David still stood.
1/5/2012

17. Theme and Purpose (cont.)
Chronicles emphasizes the role of the Law, the priesthood, and the temple. Although Solomon’s temple was gone, the second temple could be regarded as the remnant’s link to the first. This book also taught that the past was pregnant with lessons for their present. Apostasy, idolatry, intermarriage with Gentiles, and lack of unity were the reasons for their recent ruin. It is significant that after the Exile, Israel never again worshipped foreign gods.
Apostacy: abandonment of a previous loyality
Idolatry: the worship of a physical object as a god
1/5/2012

18. Key Word: Davidic Covenant (Read Ch 17)
17:11 When your days are over and you go to be with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. 12 He is the one who will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. 13 I will be his father, and he will be my son. I will never take my love away from him, as I took it away from your predecessor. 14 I will set him over my house and my kingdom forever; his throne will be established forever.' "
1/5/2012

19. Key Word: Davidic Covenant
1CH 29:11 Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours.
Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.
1/5/2012

20. Key Chapter (Read Ch 17)
Pivotal for the book of First Chronicles as well as for the rest of the Scriptures is the Davidic covenant recorded in Second Samuel Ch 7 and First Chronicles Ch 17. God promises David that He will “establish him (David’s ultimate offspring, Jesus Christ) in My house and in My kingdom forever; and his throne shall be established forever.” (1 Chro. 17:14).
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21. Second Chronicles
1/5/2012

22. What you will learn in this chapter?
Read “Theme and purpose”
Read Ch 34 for tracing the dramatic revival that takes place under the good king, Josiah, when the “book of the Law” is found, read, and obeyed.
Read Ch 36 for tracing the last Judah evil king, Zedekiah, and closing with Cyrus’ announcement that the Jewish people can return to Jerusalem.
1/5/2012

23. Introduction and Title
Chronicles focuses on those kings who pattern their lives and reigns after the life and reign of godly King David. It gives extended treatment to such zealous reformers as Asa, Jehoshaphat, Joash, Hezekiah, and Josiah.
The temple and temple worship, central throughout the book; befit a nation whose worship of God is central to its very survival. The book begins with Solomon’s glorious temple and concludes with Cyrus’s edict to rebuild the temple more than four hundred years later.
1/5/2012

24. Date and Setting
Chapters 1-9 cover the forty years from 971 B.C. to 931 B.C., and chapters cover the 393 years from 931 B.C. to 538 B.C. Jeremiah’s prediction of a seventy-year captivity in Babylonia (36:21; Jer. 29:10) is fulfilled in two ways:
(1) A political captivity in which Jerusalem is overcome from 605 B.C. to 536 B.C.; and (2) a religious captivity involving the destruction of the temple in 586B.C. and the completion of the new temple in 516 or 515 B.C.
1/5/2012

25. Jeremiah 29:10
10 This is what the LORD says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back from captivity.[b] I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.”
1/5/2012

26. Theme and Purpose
The temple symbolically stood for God’s presence among His people and their high calling. It was the spiritual link between their past and future. Thus, Ezra wrote this book to encourage the people to accept the new temple raised on the site of the old and to remind them of their true calling and God’s faithfulness in spite of their low circumstances. The Davidic line, temple, and priesthood were still theirs.
1/5/2012

27. Key Word: Priestly view of Judah
7:14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land…
1/5/2012

28. Key Word: Priestly view of Judah
2CH 16:1 In the thirty-sixth year of Asa's reign Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah and fortified Ramah to prevent anyone from leaving or entering the territory of Asa king of Judah.
2CH 16:2 Asa then took the silver and gold out of the treasuries of the LORD's temple and of his own palace and sent it to Ben-Hadad king of Aram, who was ruling in Damascus. 3 "Let there be a treaty between me and you," he said, "as there was between my father and your father. See, I am sending you silver and gold. Now break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel so he will withdraw from me."
2CH 16:4 Ben-Hadad agreed with King Asa and sent the commanders of his forces against the towns of Israel. They conquered Ijon, Dan, Abel Maim and all the store cities of Naphtali. 5 When Baasha heard this, he stopped building Ramah and abandoned his work. 6 Then King Asa brought all the men of Judah, and they carried away from Ramah the stones and timber Baasha had been using. With them he built up Geba and Mizpah.
2CH 16:7 At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him: "Because you relied on the king of Aram and not on the LORD your God, the army of the king of Aram has escaped from your hand. 8 Were not the Cushites and Libyans a mighty army with great numbers of chariots and horsemen? Yet when you relied on the LORD, he delivered them into your hand. 9 For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. You have done a foolish thing, and from now on you will be at war."
1/5/2012

29. Key Chapter (Read Ch 34)
Second Chronicles records the reforms and revivals under such kings as Asa, Jehoshaphat, Joash, Hezekiah, and Josiah. Chapter 34 traces the dramatic revival that takes place under Josiah when the “book of the Law” is found, read, and obeyed.
The first five books of the Bible are sometimes called the Pentateuch which means “five books.” They are also known as the books of the law because they contain the laws and instruction given by the Lord through Moses to the people of Israel. These books were written by Moses, except for the last portion of Deuteronomy because it tells about the death of Moses. These five books lay the foundation for the coming of Christ in that here God chooses and brings into being the nation of Israel. As God’s chosen people, Israel became the custodians of the Old Testament, the recipients of the covenants of promise, and the channel of Messiah (Rom. 3:2; 9:1-5).
1/5/2012

30. Read last Ch 36
Chapter 36 traces the last Judah evil king, Zedekiah, and closes with Cyrus’ announcement that the Jewish people can return to Jerusalem.
1/5/2012