As for the events of King David's reign, from beginning to end, they are written in the records of Samuel the seer, the records of Nathan the prophet and the records of Gad the seer. – 1 Chronicles 29:29

Today's Scripture Reading (October 4, 2022): 1 Chronicles 29

I have always loved the story of King Arthur. Admittedly, the movies that have been made about Arthur are situated in the wrong century. We like to think of castles and armor, which existed in more recent history. But the original story, if the tale of King Arthur has any historical merit, takes place in the fifth or early sixth century. Part of the problem is that we don't have any record of the story before about the tenth or eleventh century. That means that more than 500 years could have passed before anyone decided to write the story of Arthur down. Of course, there is always a chance that a contemporary of Arthur wrote the story down, but that telling has been lost in the fog of antiquity.

Some historians believe there is a real Arthur and knights of the Round Table. And others believe that the whole story of Arthur and Camelot is fiction, made up in the mind of some unknown writer. But there is a third option. Maybe Arthur did exist, or more accurately, the story of Arthur exists as a composite story about several real kings who lived during the fifth and sixth centuries. It is these stories that have been combined into one legendary King, Arthur. But we will never really know because there is no record that explains the origins and historicity of the story.

It is important to remember that the author of Chronicles didn't live in the era of David or even Solomon. Chronicles is a historical document that wasn't written until after the Babylonian Exile. We aren't sure who wrote Chronicles, but Christian tradition points to Ezra. But whoever wrote was likely well educated, male, and a resident of Judea, most likely from Jerusalem.

Ezra didn't know David or Solomon. All that Ezra knew was found in the books that he had read. Today, we often talk about whether any historical figure actually lived. Some don't even believe that William Shakespeare was a real person. So, how do we know that David is a historical figure and not the figment of someone's imagination? How do we know that his exploits actually took place and are not made up by someone to produce a more exciting story? For Ezra, or whoever wrote Chronicles, the answer is found here. The author has done his work in researching the story of David, and this story can be found in the writings of Samuel the seer (and the last Biblical judge), Nathan, the prophet, and Gad, the seer. All of these men lived during the days of David, and they would have seen these events occur. The writing of Samuel is quite possibly the Book of Samuel that we have in our Bible, with some history that has been added on finishing the portion of the story of David that occurred after the prophet's death. Unless they refer to the stories included in Samuel that we know the prophet could not have written, the writings of Gad and Nathan have been lost to the darkness of antiquity. But the author of Chronicles wants us to know that he has seen them and that this is a historical record we can trust. 

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: 1 Kings 1