Author: Jonker, Louis

Source: Vetus Testamentum, Volume 57, Number 1, 2007 , pp. 21-44(24)

Publisher: BRILL

Abstract:

Different views have been expressed in past scholarship about the nature of the Books of Chronicles. Some regard the Chronicler to be an exegete, others see the Chronicler as theologian, and still others see the Chronicler as a historian. The opinion expressed in this article is that Chronicles could be characterized as "reforming history". The ambiguity of this designation is intentional. The Books of Chronicles are an attempt to reformulate and sanitize the past. It is, however, simultaneously an attempt to reformulate the identity of God's people during the Second Temple period. Such a "reforming history" forms a unique bridge between past and present. The focus of this article is therefore on the hermeneutical significance of the Books of Chronicles.

Keywords: CHRONICLES; HISTORY; IDENTITY

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/156853307X167846

Affiliations: 1: Stellenbosch

Publication date: 2007-02-01

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