The books of 1 and 2 Chronicles are two of the historical books in the Old Testament. Originally they were a single book (and still are in the Hebrew Bible).
After an initial historical review (chapters 1 through 9), the book of First Chronicles focuses on the reign of King David (also covered in Second Samuel).
The book of Second Chronicles covers the reign of David’s son and successor, Solomon. After Solomon, his son, Rehoboam, succeeds him as king, but following the bad advice of his peers, the nation is ultimately split in two.
The smaller part (the tribes of Judah and Benjamin) is called Judah and is ruled by Rehoboam and his heirs (who are King David’s descendants).
The nation of Judah is the focus of the remaining part of Second Chronicles, with only brief attention to what happens in their sister nation of Israel. Second Chronicles coincides with the events of First and Second Kings.
The nation of Judah is ruled exclusively by descendants of King David, some of whom are good and godly rulers, others are not. Resulting from their recurring disobedience, they are conquered and all but the poorest people are deported to Babylon.
Most of the prophets lived during the timeframe covered in Second Chronicles. Their ministries and messages give additional insight into the recurring tendency of the nations of both Israel and Judah to turn their backs on God.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront a status quo faith and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
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