I & II Chronicles: A Commentary (The Old Testament Library)

With fresh insight and scholarly depth, I and II Chronicles: A Commentary reclaims these often-overlooked texts as far more than a retelling of Israel’s past. They are vital witnesses to the theological and communal imagination of a people rebuilding identity in the shadow of empire.

In this critical and illuminating volume of the Old Testament Library, internationally respected scholar Louis C. Jonker reveals Chronicles as a dynamic text that reinterprets sacred traditions to help the postexilic Judahite community navigate shifting political and religious landscapes.

Written during the late Persian and early Hellenistic periods, Chronicles offers a bold vision for “all Israel” centered on the Jerusalem Temple, reframing Judah’s identity through genealogies, liturgical reform, and idealized history. Drawing on interdisciplinary methods―including text-pragmatical analysis, social psychology, postcolonial theory, and reception history―Jonker explores how the Chronicler constructs communal memory, reclaims older traditions, and resists imperial dominance by portraying YHWH as the true king.

A distinctive feature of this commentary is Jonker’s proposed diachronic model of composition. He identifies an early priestly-oriented stratum affirming the Davidic monarchy and Aaronide priesthood, followed by a later redactional layer that elevates the Levites―especially in the Hezekiah and Josiah narratives―as spiritual leaders. This evolution signals a broader theological and ideological shift within the community. Jonker also traces the reception of Chronicles through history―from its shaping influence on Ezra-Nehemiah to its use in rabbinic interpretation, feminist biblical scholarship, Jewish visual art, and post-apartheid South African theology.

With fresh insight and scholarly depth, I and II Chronicles: A Commentary reclaims these often-overlooked texts as vital witnesses to the theological and communal imagination of a people rebuilding identity in the shadow of empire.

The Old Testament Library series provides fresh and authoritative treatments of important aspects of Old Testament study through commentaries and general surveys. The contributors are scholars of international standing. The editorial board consists of William P. Brown, William Marcellus McPheeters Professor of Old Testament, Columbia Theological Seminary; C. L. Crouch, Professor of Hebrew Bible and Ancient Judaism, Radboud University Nijmegen; and Brent A. Strawn, D. Moody Smith Distinguished Professor of Old Testament and Professor of Law, Duke University.

Louis C. Jonker is a distinguished professor at Stellenbosch University in South Africa. He specializes in the biblical literature of the late Achaemenid and early Hellenistic periods, particularly Chronicles and Ezra-Nehemiah. He has published widely, including Defining All-Israel in Chronicles: Multi-levelled Identity Negotiation in Late Persian-Period Yehud for which he has received the Andrew Murray–Desmond Tutu prize for the best theological publication in South Africa for 2015–2016. He is the recipient of several fellowships and the Georg Forster prize (2024–2026) from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.