Our Eyes Are Upon Thee

A chronicle is a history written in chronological order, usually without interpretation or commentary. The books of Chronicles in the Old Testament cover approximately the same period of Israelite history as 2 Samuel – 2 Kings. Many events are covered in both sets of books, but Chronicles has a distinct perspective. As the Bible Dictionary explains:

The writers dwell with most satisfaction upon the ecclesiastical and religious aspects of the history, and the progress of temple worship in Jerusalem.

It’s useful to keep this in mind when studying these books. Historians make countless decisions about which events to include and what to emphasize about each. Even if they focus on facts and avoid editorializing, their purposes affect this prioritization. For example, Jehoshaphat appears repeatedly in the books of 1 and 2 Kings, but generally in dialog with his counterparts in the kingdom of Israel. Chronicles shows more of his relationship with God, including a humble public prayer ending with the following words: “O our God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee.” (2 Chronicles 20:12).

Book of Mormon authors explained that their editorial choices were dictated by their purposes. Early in the book, Nephi writes:

It mattereth not to me that I am particular to give a full account of all the things of my father, for they cannot be written upon these plates, for I desire the room that I may write of the things of God.

1 Nephi 6:3

And Mormon later explains:

There had many things transpired which, in the eyes of some, would be great and marvelous; nevertheless, they cannot all be written in this book; yea, this book cannot contain even a hundredth part of what was done among so many people in the space of twenty and five years; …
And I know the record which I make to be a just and a true record; nevertheless there are many things which, according to our language, we are not able to write.

3 Nephi 5:8, 18

Mormon identified multiple records that formed the source material for his book (3 Nephi 5:9-10). The Chroniclers similarly listed several primary sources from which they built their record, including:

1. The book of Nathan the prophet
2. The prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite
3. The visions of Iddo the seer

(2 Chronicles 9:29)

This week, as we study Chronicles, let’s pay attention to the editorial choices of its authors. Let’s particularly notice how they emphasized religious life in the kingdom of Judah, including temple worship.