The Historical Books

The challenge is to give due both to the continuity and disunity evidenced in the Former Prophets. The four books were likely once independent works, largely in their present form. These underwent a brief period of editorial integration after the destruction of Jerusalem. What they share with Deuteronomy is best attributed to the imposing figure of the prophet Moses. His theology of history, reflected in Deuteronomy, became the theological model by which Israel interpreted its history. The Former Prophets play out what in essence Moses had forewarned concerning God's blessing and cursing (Deut. 28).

First and Second Chronicles and Ezra-Nehemiah give a second perspective on Israel's history, complementing the account of Genesis through 2 Kings. First and Second Chronicles parallel this first history from creation to the destruction of Jerusalem. Ezra-Nehemiah continues the account with the return of the exiles from Babylon and the restoration of the religious life of Judah (about 400 b.c.). Since these books were written during and after the exile when there was no monarchy, they focus on the religious life of restored Israel. Temple worship and observance of the law of Moses are particularly emphasized.

Like the Former Prophets, the Books of Chronicles and Ezra-Nehemiah have been ascribed to a single author or compiler. The rabbinic tradition attributed these four books to Ezra the scribe. Some modern scholars who have emphasized the unity of the books in language, content, and perspective follow this position.

Others, agreeing in principle with the idea of a single author or compiler, have proposed an unnamed author (the "Chronicler"). The Chronicler drew on sources, including the memoirs of Ezra and Nehemiah and the Books of Samuel and Kings. He completed his "Chronicler's History" no earlier than 400 b.c.

In a variation on this view, two different viewpoints are discerned within the history. First and Second Chronicles plus Ezra 1-6 was an early edition by the Chronicler (about 515 b.c.), in conjunction with the prophetic ministries of Haggai and Zechariah. At this time Israel's hope was for a restored Davidic monarchy (1 Chr. 3:17-19; see Ezra 1:8; 3:8; 5:1-2; 6:14; Hag. 2:6-9; 2:23; Zech. 3:1-4:14; 6:9-15). The inclusion of Ezra 7-10 (Ezra's reforms) and Nehemiah's material came later (about 400 b.c.). At this later time the community shifted its emphasis from the monarchy and the religious role of David to the law of Moses. Some prefer, therefore, to speak of a "Chronistic school" rather than one person.

The similar language and content of Chronicles and Ezra-Nehemiah points to a single work. Both works stress, for instance, the role of the temple and worship customs. Further evidence of linkage is 2 Chronicles 36:1-21, which recounts the pilfering of temple articles, and Ezra 1:7-11, which inventories the restored temple treasuries. Most significant is the verbatim agreement of 2 Chronicles' final verses (36:22-23) with the opening paragraph of Ezra (1:1-3a). These verses relate the decree of Cyrus announcing the release of the Jews from captivity. In fact, the last verse of 2 Chronicles ends in the middle of a thought that is completed in the Ezra version (1:3b). This duplication of verses, it is argued, indicates that the books were once bound as a consecutive whole. Evangelical as well as critical scholars hold this view of a single work. Conservative scholarship uniformly holds that the Chronicler used reliable sources and did not materially distort them.

Other scholars, both evangelical and critical, argue that Ezra and Nehemiah were the authors of their own works. Proponents of this position point to significant differences in both language and content between Chronicles and Ezra-Nehemiah. (For instance, Chronicles does not address the subject of mixed marriages.) Finally, the Hebrew arrangement of Ezra-Nehemiah followed by 1 and 2 Chronicles is said to evidence that the two were not authored as one piece. The common paragraph shared by the two can best be explained as a much later attempt to bind together what were once separate books.

The arrangement of the Hebrew canon, however, is not a decisive witness for either position. The arrangement is better explained by appeal to the envelope construction created by the repetition of the decree of Cyrus. In this arrangement, like bookends, Ezra begins and 2 Chronicles closes with the decree of Cyrus. This proclamation of freedom embodied the abiding hope that God would yet again gather the Jews dispersed among the nations. By closing the Hebrew canon on this note of freedom, the compiler emphasized this proclamation and therefore encouraged the Jews throughout the Diaspora.

In conclusion, the differences between the books cautions against concluding without more evidence that the works of Chronicles and Ezra-Nehemiah constituted an original Chronicler's history.

Ruth and Esther are included among the five Megilloth. These books—Song of Solomon, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, and Esther—are related to the five festivals (and fasts) of the Jewish calendar. Ruth, set at the harvest, is read at the Feast of Weeks (Pentecost), which celebrates the spring gathering (May-June). Esther's story gives the origins of the Feast of Purim and is read on that occasion (14th and 15th of Adar [Feb.- Mar.]). Purim is the only Old Testament feast not legislated by the Mosaic law.