The Book of the Annals of the Kings of Israel
The Book of the Annals of the Kings of Israel
The Book of the Annals of the Kings of Israel appears seventeen times in 1 Kings and 2 Kings as a source citation for additional information about the northern kingdom's monarchs [7]. This lost historical record served as a repository for royal acts, military campaigns, and administrative details that the biblical authors chose not to include in their canonical narrative. The formulaic references—"Now the rest of the acts of [king's name], behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel" [1, 2]—punctuate the reigns of Israel's rulers from Jeroboam through Pekah, directing readers to a more comprehensive account that no longer survives.
Nature and Content
The annals functioned as official court records, likely originating with material kept by the royal recorder, an administrative position documented in Solomon's bureaucracy [7]. These chronicles contained details about warfare, governance, and notable events during each reign. When the biblical text notes that "the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he warred... and how he reigned" are recorded in this book [5], it signals that the canonical account offers only a selective narrative. The annals preserved information about border skirmishes, administrative decisions, and the character of each king's rule—whether conducted "wisely, and justly, and in clemency, or not" [5].
The scope extended beyond mere military exploits. For Zechariah's six-month reign, the chroniclers recorded acts "during his six months' reign, and what he might do before in the interregnum," capturing events "be they more or fewer, good or bad" that held significance [8]. Even Shallum's conspiracy and brief rule merited documentation, with the annals presumably detailing "the cause of the conspiracy, and of the persons assisting to him in it" [11]. This suggests a comprehensive archival practice that tracked political intrigue, succession crises, and the mechanics of royal power.
Distinction from Canonical Chronicles
The Book of the Annals of the Kings of Israel must be distinguished from the canonical books of Chronicles. The biblical books of 1 and 2 Chronicles, which "formed originally but one book in the Hebrew Scriptures" [4], constitute a separate theological history written from a priestly perspective, likely during or after the Babylonian exile. The annals cited in Kings, by contrast, were contemporary court records compiled during the divided monarchy itself. The canonical Chronicles occasionally reference their own sources, including prophetic writings, but these differ from the royal annals [6, 9].
A parallel set of records existed for the southern kingdom: the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah, cited for rulers like Rehoboam [9]. These Judahite annals involved "annalists or historiographers" and drew on the work of "Shemaiah the prophet, and Iddo the seer" for genealogies and other material [9]. The existence of separate northern and southern chronicles reflects the political division that fractured the united monarchy after Solomon's death.
Historical Context and Authorship
The books of Kings themselves "contain the annals of the Jewish commonwealth from the accession of Solomon till the subjugation of the kingdom by Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians (apparently a period of about four hundred and fifty-three years)" [4]. Within this larger narrative framework, the author or compiler of Kings drew selectively from the northern annals, incorporating material that served the theological purposes of the canonical history while directing readers elsewhere for fuller detail.
The relationship between Kings and the broader historical literature is complex. The division between Kings and Samuel "is equally artificial," and "the historical books commencing with Judges and ending with 2 Kings present the appearance of one work, giving a continuous history of Israel from the time of Joshua to the death of Jehoiachin" [3]. This unified historiographic project used multiple sources, including the lost annals, to construct a theologically interpreted account of Israel's monarchy.
The Lost Record
The Book of the Annals of the Kings of Israel "is now lost" [7], as is the parallel record for Judah and other sources mentioned in Chronicles [10]. The disappearance of these documents means that modern readers possess only the selective, theologically shaped narrative preserved in the canonical text. The biblical authors chose which events to include based on their interpretive framework—emphasizing covenant faithfulness, prophetic fulfillment, and the consequences of idolatry—while leaving fuller political and military details in the archival sources.
The repeated citation formula serves a dual function: it acknowledges the existence of more comprehensive records while simultaneously justifying the canonical narrative's selectivity. The authors of Kings were not attempting exhaustive political history but rather a theological interpretation of Israel's monarchy, one that explained the northern kingdom's eventual destruction as divine judgment for persistent covenant violation. The annals provided raw material; the biblical text provided meaning.
The loss of these chronicles leaves gaps in our historical reconstruction of the northern kingdom, particularly regarding administrative structures, economic policies, and the details of military campaigns. What survives in Kings reflects the priorities of a narrator concerned primarily with religious fidelity and prophetic word, not with the comprehensive documentation that characterized ancient Near Eastern royal inscriptions and court records.
Sources
- II Kings “II Kings 15:11 (ASV) — Now the rest of the acts of Zechariah, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.”
- II Kings “II Kings 15:31 (ASV) — Now the rest of the acts of Pekah, and all that he did, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.”
- Smith's Bible Dictionary “Smith's Bible Dictionary: Kings, First And Second Books Of — originally only one book in the Hebrew canon, from in the LXX. and the Vulgate the third and fourth books of Kings (the books of Samuel being the first and second). It must be remembered that the division between the books of Kings and Samuel is equally artificial, and that in point of fact the historical books commencing with Judges and ending with 2Kings present the appearance of one work, giving a continuous history of Israel from the time of Joshua to the death of jehoiachin. The books of Kings contain the history from David's de”
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Kings, The Books of — The two books of Kings formed originally but one book in the Hebrew Scriptures. The present division into two books was first made by the LXX., which now, with the Vulgate, numbers them as the third and fourth books of Kings, the two books of Samuel being the first and second books of Kings. They contain the annals of the Jewish commonwealth from the accession of Solomon till the subjugation of the kingdom by Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians (apparently a period of about four hundred and fifty-three years). The books of Chronicles (q.v.) are m”
- 1 Kings (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on 1 Kings 14:18: And the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he warred,.... As he did with Rehoboam, Kg1 14:30, and with Abijam his son, who was an more than a match for him, see Ch2 13:1. and how he reigned; over the people of Israel, whether wisely, and justly, and in clemency, or not: behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel; not in that canonical book of Scripture, so called, for in that there is very little account of the reign of Jeroboam; but in the annals and diaries of the kings of Israel, written by persons appointed for that purpose,”
- 2 Chronicles (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on 2 Chronicles 20:33: Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, first and last,.... Those that were done at the beginning, and those that were done at the latter end of his reign: behold, they are written in the book of Jehu, the son of Hanani, who is mentioned in the book of the kings of Israel; see Kg1 16:1, the same that reproved Jehoshaphat, Ch2 19:2. He wrote a book of his own times, and which was so much esteemed, according to Kimchi, that it was written with, or put along with, the book of the kings of Israel, for so he interprets the phrase; but the Targum understands it of”
- 1 Kings (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on 1 Kings 14:19: 14:19-20 all his wars: Jeroboam engaged in repeated border skirmishes with Rehoboam (14:30). • The Book of the History of the Kings of Israel is mentioned seventeen times in 1 Kgs 14:19—2 Kgs 15:31; it includes material that may have originated in official records kept by the court recorder (see 1 Kgs 4:3). It was known to the original readers of 1–2 Kings but is now lost.”
- 2 Kings (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on 2 Kings 15:8: And the rest of the acts of Zachariah,.... During his six months' reign, and what he might do before in the interregnum: behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel: for be they more or fewer, good or bad, they were all recorded there which were of any moment.”
- 1 Kings (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on 1 Kings 14:28: Now the rest of the acts of Rehoboam and all that he did,.... In the course of his reign, that was memorable: are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? who had annalists or historiographers to write for them, as the kings of Israel had, Kg1 14:19, in the writing of which, especially with respect to genealogies, Shemaiah the prophet, and Iddo the seer, were concerned, Ch2 12:15.”
- 2 Chronicles (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on 2 Chronicles 33:18: 33:18 The Book of the Kings of Israel is a record that no longer exists.”
- 2 Kings (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on 2 Kings 15:12: And the rest of the acts of Shallum, and his conspiracy which he made, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. In which, no doubt, an account of the cause of the conspiracy, and of the persons assisting to him in it, was given, with other things done in his short reign. And the rest of the acts of Shallum, and his conspiracy which he made, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. In which, no doubt, an account of the cause of the conspiracy, and of the persons assisting to him in it, was g”