Chronicles Through the Centuries

Offering a history of the interpretation Chronicles in theology, worship, music, literature and art from the ancient period to the present day, Chronicles Through the Centuries demonstrates the foundational importance of this book within the Old Testament. The book explores important topics within Chronicles that differ from the same biblical narratives told in Genesis through Kings, such as the pious depiction of David, the clear correlation between moral behavior and divine reward, and the elevation of music in worship. It examines Chronicles reception among its interpreters, including rabbis of the Talmud, Jerome, Martin Luther, Johann Sebastian Bach, Cotton Mather, and others. The discussion is organized by verse to illuminate each one s changing meaning across the ages. It also delves into a broad range of interpretations, from Jewish and Christian to ancient and modern to secular and pop cultural.  Comprehensive and insightful, Chronicles Through the Centuries reveals the enduring vitality and relevance of this biblical book from its creation to today.

Blaire A. French is an adjunct lecturer in Biblical Hebrew at the University of Virginia, USA. She holds a doctorate in Judaism and Christianity in Antiquity from the University of Virginia. She is the author of The Ticking Tenure Clock: An Academic Novel (1998) and The Presidential Press Conference: Its History and Role in the American Political System (1982).