Chronicles: A Vital Genealogy
History Section
As we move onto our next book study in God’s Word, we will be moving on from the Law section of the Bible and moving onto the Historical section of the Bible. We have seen a close-up view of Genesis and Exodus from the Pentateuch, and we will now be looking at where the story goes from here. When mentioning the historical section of the Old Testament, what we mean by this are the books ranging from Joshua to Esther. This historical time frame takes us from when Israel finally entered the Promise Land to the rule and reign of many evil kings over Israel and Judah as well. So with such a massive timeframe that we will be covering, what books can we really study that will give us the best look at what is going on? The answer undeniably, is Chronicles. 1 & 2 Chronicles were written to record the history of the story thus far into the journey, and they recap a vast majority of what happens in this section throughout these two books. I know that we mentioned that we will be diving into one book of the Bible per month, but since 1 & 2 Chronicles were technically written together, we will be studying them as one book throughout this study this month. As T. Desmond Alexander states, “The book of Chronicles is an important part of our divinely inspired Bible, everything that follows in some measure repeats information about the Davidic dynasty that has already been recorded in the books of Samuel and Kings.” So what is there to learn from this great line of history? Obviously a lot, but where to start? Let’s go to the very beginning.
The Family Tree
If we were to just open up our Bibles to 1 Chronicles, we would find that this book has a very interesting opening. The first 9 chapters are a genealogy from Adam up until this point in history. Many people find these chapters boring or lackluster since they seem to go on and on, but we can’t just gloss over them as if they have nothing to teach us. One of the most important aspects that this genealogy has to show us is that God has not forgotten His promises and will uphold what He has said to Abraham, even years after his death. This is why 1 Chronicles 1:28-29 says, “The sons of Abraham were Isaac and Ishmael. These are their genealogies:...” This chapter even goes further into this lineage from Isaac’s family tree in verse 34 “Abraham fathered Isaac. The sons of Isaac were Esau and Israel.” The lineage of this family alone completes the rest of this chapter, all the way through verse 54. And beyond this, none of the genealogies that we see in the following 8 chapters would even exist without the use of Abraham and his family. This shows the grace and righteousness of God abounding throughout history as God never forgets His plan for His people and strives to fulfill His promise as generations come and go. It can be easy to see how God would fulfill a promise to Abraham that He made at the moment, but to see these promises upheld year after year, as hundreds of them go by, speaks volumes as to how righteous and just our Lord really is. This may not be your first thought when reading through 9 chapters of genealogies, but when you come across them, I hope you remember that they are written down for a purpose.
Pointing To Christ
Furthermore, the purposes of these genealogies are more than just a reminder of God’s faithfulness to generations past, they’re also a reminder of His promises to generations in the future. It is through this lineage that we will ultimately see the person of Jesus Christ step into the scene. Despite the amount of evil and wickedness that has taken over the earth and filled the land that even the Israelites walk on, God still has a plan to redeem His people. This is what is so fascinating to me about genealogies in the Bible. At any moment in history, God could have decided that this mankind thing was never going to work out and either have a new plan or intervene immediately. And yet, throughout all the years and generations of mankind, God remained patient with His people and faithful to His promise. I don’t know about you, but if I were God, and all I saw year after year and generation after generation was disobedience, sinfulness, and fallenness, I would become pretty fed up and hopeless. Thankfully, I am not God, and thankfully, God’s plan doesn’t rest on mankind’s ability to be righteous as we’ve seen thus far. Even from the very moment that sin entered the world, God had a plan in place to redeem His people from their sin and deliver them to Himself. He knew exactly how it was going to happen and when it was going to happen.
Which is what makes these family trees all the more interesting. God remained merciful with generations He knew wouldn’t turn from their wickedness, and stayed just and true with His plan to save His elect. This is why these genealogies are recorded. To point us time and time again to the patience, grace, and faithfulness of God. This is why our Lord is sure to put these records in His Word and remind us that they are in there with passages like 1 Chronicles 9:1 “So all Israel was enrolled in genealogies; and behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel.” The historical section of God’s Word is filled with God’s awesome character and amazing stories, but we can’t overlook how this all began. Yes, we will get to many more action-pact stories in this study, but I hope and pray that you don’t skim over these genealogies when you read them, but that you actually take them at face value. As you read through the Chronicles, may you see God’s great character on display, even if it means taking a little bit more time to read these vital genealogies.
Sources
[1] Blue Letter Bible. (n.d.). Blue Letter Bible. https://www.blueletterbible.org/
[2] 3 Things You Should Know about 1 & 2 Chronicles. (n.d.). Ligonier Ministries. https://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/3-things-chronicles
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