1 & 2 Chronicles: An Introduction and Study Guide : A Message for Yehud

Leslie C. Allen introduces students to the 1 & 2 Chronicles in the Old Testament, incorporating insights from over two decades of previous scholarship while grounding her analysis in earlier key works.

“A Message for Yehud” sums up what has been judged to be a fundamental motivation underlying the whole book, a conviction that the obligation to “seek the Lord” in the light of the Torah and prophetic texts must be laid on the hearts of the community of Yehud in the fourth century BCE. To this end, using Samuel-Kings as a basis, Chronicles reviewed pre-exilic royal history for positive and negative clues as to how the generation for which it was written might achieve this spiritual ideal. In the book, Allen shows how this program was communicated all through the book by literary and rhetorical means.

“Leslie C. Allen's fine introduction and study guide leads readers from clear discussions of introductory questions through concise analysis of the text, including a cogent presentation of the Chronicler's message to the post-exilic community of Yehud. Highly recommended, especially for beginning students.” —Mark A. Throntveit, Elva B. Lovell Professor Emeritus of Old Testament, Luther Seminary, Saint Paul, USA

“An accessible first guide to the riches of 1 & 2 Chronicles featuring a careful description of what it actually says, a judicious survey of some of its leading themes, and a summary of the rapidly burgeoning scholarship on this vital topic.” —H. G. M. Williamson, Emeritus Regius Professor of Hebrew, University of Oxford, UK