"So all Israel was enrolled by genealogies and they are written in the books of the Kings of Israel" 1 Chronicles 9:1
If ever there was a portion of Scripture I've been tempted to skim over it's the first nine chapters of Chronicles. Actually, I usually do succumb to the temptation to completely skip over this extremely long list of Jewish men's names. Many are unpronounceable and a majority of the names seem to be just that- a name. No story. No picture. Save for the short prayer by a man named Jabez, this lengthy writing has always seemed...well, a little "dull" to me.
At my last attempt to skip this list- God stopped me. I clearly heard him say "do not ignore these names". I've learned that when God speaks to my spirit - so unexpectedly, He's got something to reveal to my sometimes ignorant thought process. I figured that He would probably have to pound whatever the lesson was into my brain. What could I possibly get out of a record of names from a book that mostly repeats the two books I've just read (1 & 2 Kings)? I stopped and read the names.
I don't think I've ever been as humbled about reading Scripture as I was that day. Before I got out of chapter one, God showed me that although we don't know anything about a majority of these people listed, He knew all about them. They were important to Him and important enough to track in Israel's history. The same is true today. God knows our names. Everyone that truly follows Him- He keeps track! The generations of people promised to the patriarch Abraham had a place in the development of God's kingdom on earth. Even if only the name is listed, every person played a part. And so do all of us today.
The second lesson God taught me was that although Chronicles does repeat most of what was already written in the books of Kings, it was written with a different feeling and purpose. It was written as a reminder and encouragement to those who had been taken captive or born during their captive's reign. Those who had spent nearly a lifetime from their homeland were being given highlights of their history- the good, the bad and the ugly. They were being given encouragement that national unity was what God still intended for them. The Jews needed to know who the men and families were that played a part in their history. It was important to their faith - in order to have faith- to go back home.
I now look at Chronicles as a "spiritual scrapbook" of Israel. Pages of important family histories. Pictures of defeats & victories. Testimonies of the faithful and unfaithful; people just like me (and you) traveling on the roads they chose to take. Some pages broke God's heart. Some made Him smile. The reality and memory of these people has been preserved for our benefit. There's so much to learn from them. I'm so thankful that God urged me to stop and read this list of names.
