1:1–9:34 Section
The family lines recorded in 1 Chronicles start with Adam. They stop around the year 538 BC. That is when Cyrus allowed Jews living in Babylon to return to Judah.
These family lines were a short way to describe the entire history of God’s people. That history was told in the books of the Bible from Genesis to 2 Kings. After Adam, the family lines follow many people that God chose to make a covenant with. This includes Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and David.
The family lines also follow people groups that God didn’t make a covenant with. This includes the families of Ishmael and Esau. These families were important in the history of the 12 tribes of Israel. The family lines follow Jacob’s sons except for Dan and Zebulun. They were part of the northern kingdom.
1 Chronicles made something clear about the tribes of the northern kingdom. They never returned from Assyria. That is where they had been forced to live in exile. 1 Chronicles also made something clear about God. God answered people who cried out to him and trusted him for help. This was true when Jabesh prayed (prayer). It was true when the tribes east of the River Jordan prayed during a battle.
The family lines focus on the tribes of Judah and of Levi and on King David. 1 Chronicles follows these family lines until the end of the exile of the southern kingdom. This helped Jews to understand something important. They had faced the covenant curses. They had been forced to leave the land God had given them. But God was still faithful to them. Those who had returned to Judah should remember David’s example. They should remember the example of the Levites David appointed. They should obey the Mount Sinai covenant and worship God faithfully.