Most Christians think 2 Chronicles is just a long list of old kings, old wars and old buildings. ‘I already read this in Kings,’ they argue. ‘Why read it again?’
But Jesus Himself quoted 2 Chronicles, using it to speak about the whole Old Testament—and about His own death.
There are more reasons to read the book. In the Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament in Jewish order), the last book isn’t Malachi. It’s Chronicles. So the Jewish Scriptures end with an open question: where’s the promised King from David’s family? And the New Testament’s first verse answers:
“The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.” (Matthew 1:1)
Here are 10 clear signposts to Jesus in 2 Chronicles.
Jesus in the Old Testament — Book 14 of 39
This post is the fourteenth instalment in our series tracing Christ through every book of the Old Testament. See the full series index.
First, How Do We Find Jesus in 2 Chronicles?
On the day He rose from the dead, Jesus gave two followers a Bible lesson:
“And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.” (Luke 24:27)
‘All the Scriptures’ includes 2 Chronicles. Reformer John Calvin put it simply in his commentary on John 5:39: ‘We ought to read the Scriptures with the express design of finding Christ in them.’ But we cannot make a verse mean anything we like. We need safety rules.
4 SAFETY RULES FOR FINDING JESUS IN THE OLD TESTAMENT
Jesus’s own words: If Jesus applies a passage to Himself, we follow Him.
The apostles’ teaching: The New Testament writers show us how to read the Old.
The writer’s own hope: We ask what the original writer was hoping for.
God-designed patterns: A ‘type’ is a real person, place or event that God designed as a picture of something greater to come. The greater thing is its fulfilment.
Edmund P Clowney, a much-loved teacher of preaching, advised we should ask first what the Bible story meant then, and only then how Christ fulfils it.
What Is 2 Chronicles About?
1 and 2 Chronicles were first one book. We call its unnamed writer ‘the Chronicler’. He wrote after the exile—the time when Babylon destroyed Jerusalem (586 BC) and carried God’s people away. From 538 BC, however, some began trickling home in droves.
Life was hard. No king sat on David’s throne. Many asked, ‘Has God forgotten His promises?’ The Chronicler wrote to answer that question. Bible scholar Martin J Selman described Chronicles as a kind of early commentary on Scripture—a fresh sermon on old history for a new generation.
Kings and Chronicles: same history, different purpose
| QUESTION | 1–2 KINGS | 1–2 CHRONICLES |
|---|---|---|
| When was it written? | During the exile | After the return from exile |
| What does it ask? | Why did God send us into exile? | Does God still have a future for us? |
| What is its focus? | Both kingdoms, north and south | Judah, David’s family and the temple |
| What is its tone? | Warning | Hope and a call to seek God |
Richard L Pratt Jr says the Chronicler called readers to seek God wholeheartedly and keep hoping. That hope points to Jesus.
The 10 Signposts at a Glance
A quick map of Jesus in 2 Chronicles
| # | SIGNPOST | PASSAGE | HOW JESUS FULFILS IT |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Abel to Zechariah | 24:20–22 | Jesus quotes it; His blood speaks mercy |
| 2 | The promise that would not die | 13:5; 21:7 | David’s forever King |
| 3 | The hidden baby king | 22:10–23:3 | Kept safe from Herod |
| 4 | The temple | 3:1; 5–7 | The true temple |
| 5 | Wiser than Solomon | 1; 9 | The wisdom of God |
| 6 | The king who could not be priest | 26:16–21 | Both King and Priest |
| 7 | Good kings who fell | 14–35 | The King who never fails |
| 8 | Grace, prayer and victory | 20; 30; 33 | Prays, forgives and wins for us |
| 9 | Messengers mocked, land at rest | 36:15–21 | The Son sent last; gives rest |
| 10 | ‘Let him go up’ | 36:22–23 | Builds God’s house |
Signpost 1: Jesus Quoted 2 Chronicles
In 2 Chronicles 24, King Joash turns from God. Priest Zechariah (not to be confused with Prophet Zechariah, who wrote the book of Zechariah, and lived around 300 years later) warns the people and the king about the danger of forsaking God. And ‘by command of the king they stoned Zechariah with stones in the court of the house of the LORD’ (24:21). He died crying, ‘May the LORD see and avenge!’ (24:22). Centuries later, Jesus spoke of this murder:
“…from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary.” (Luke 11:51)
Abel is the first murder in Genesis, the Hebrew Bible’s first book. Zechariah is the last in Chronicles, its last book. Jesus means ‘from A to Z’—and shows His Bible had our Old Testament books.
Zechariah’s blood cried for justice. Jesus’s blood cries for mercy: ‘Father, forgive them’ (Luke 23:34). His is ‘the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel’ (Hebrews 12:24).
A HARD QUESTION: WHY DOES MATTHEW SAY ‘SON OF BARACHIAH’?
Matthew 23:35 calls him ‘Zechariah the son of Barachiah’, but Chronicles names his father Jehoiada. Is this an error? No:
Family words: ‘Son’ can mean grandson. Jehoiada lived to 130 (24:15), so Barachiah may be a generation between.
Copying history: A copyist may have added the phrase, confusing him with the prophet Zechariah (Zechariah 1:1). The first hand of Codex Sinaiticus, a very old manuscript, leaves it out.
Signpost 2: The Promise That Wouldn’t Die
A covenant is a solemn, binding promise. In 2 Samuel 7, God promised David his family would rule forever. We call this the Davidic covenant, and the Chronicler never lets us forget it:
“Ought you not to know that the LORD God of Israel gave the kingship over Israel forever to David and his sons by a covenant of salt?” (2 Chronicles 13:5)
Salt keeps food from rotting, so a ‘covenant of salt’ is a promise that lasts. Even under a wicked king, ‘the LORD was not willing to destroy the house of David’, for He had promised ‘to give a lamp to him and to his sons forever’ (21:7). A lamp is a sign of life in a home.
Old Testament scholar HGM Williamson argued the Chronicler kept this royal hope alive even when no king ruled. The book is waiting for a king. Gabriel named Him: ‘the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David’ (Luke 1:32).
Signpost 3: The Hidden Baby King
Queen Athaliah wanted power, so she killed ‘all the royal family of the house of Judah’ (22:10). David’s line almost ended. But baby Joash was rescued:
“And he remained with them six years, hidden in the house of God, while Athaliah reigned over the land.” (2 Chronicles 22:12)
Then the priest Jehoiada brought him out: ‘Behold, the king’s son! Let him reign, as the LORD spoke concerning the sons of David’ (23:3).
God promised the woman’s ‘offspring’ would crush the serpent (Genesis 3:15), and the serpent keeps attacking that line. When Jesus was born, Herod killed Bethlehem’s baby boys (Matthew 2:16). But, like Joash, the true King was kept safe.
Signpost 4: The Temple Where God Came to Live
A mountain with a history
“Then Solomon began to build the house of the LORD in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah.” (2 Chronicles 3:1)
This is the only verse linking the temple with Moriah—where Abraham nearly sacrificed Isaac, and God provided a ram instead (Genesis 22). Abraham named it ‘The LORD will provide’. In that same city, God provided the true sacrifice: ‘the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world’ (John 1:29).
Glory fills the house
At the dedication, ‘the glory of the LORD filled the house of God’ (5:14), and fire from heaven burned up the sacrifice (7:1), showing God accepted it. Solomon asked:
“But will God indeed dwell with man on the earth?” (2 Chronicles 6:18)
The same prayer in 1 Kings 8:27 asks only, ‘Will God indeed dwell on the earth?’ The Chronicler adds ‘with man’. Solomon couldn’t answer. John could: ‘the Word became flesh and dwelt among us’ (John 1:14). ‘Dwelt’ means ‘pitched his tent’. God became a man.
Something greater than the temple
Jesus said, ‘something greater than the temple is here’ (Matthew 12:6), and ‘Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up’—‘speaking about the temple of His body’ (John 2:19, 21). Now His people are ‘a dwelling place for God by the Spirit’ (Ephesians 2:22).
Signpost 5: A King Wiser Than Solomon
Solomon asked God for wisdom (1:10). His fame drew the Queen of Sheba from far away with gold, spices and precious stones (9:1). Jesus used her story:
“…she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.” (Matthew 12:42)
Solomon had wisdom from God. Jesus is ‘the wisdom of God’ (1 Corinthians 1:24). And as the queen brought gold and spices, wise men brought gold, frankincense and myrrh to baby Jesus (Matthew 2:11). The nations still come to the greater King.
Signpost 6: The King Who Could Not Be a Priest
King Uzziah became strong, but ‘when he was strong, he grew proud’ and entered the temple ‘to burn incense’ (26:16). Only priests from Aaron’s family could do this. (A priest is a go-between who stands before God for the people.) Leprosy broke out on his forehead until he died (26:19–21).
No one could be both king and priest. But God promised Someone who would be:
“The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind, “You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.”” (Psalm 110:4)
Hebrews 7 says this is Jesus: our King, and our Priest who prays for us. Both roles are rightly His.
Signpost 7: Good Kings Who Still Fell
The Chronicler loves reforming kings—kings who turned the nation back to God. But look closely:
Judah’s reforming kings: their best, their worst and the better King
| KING | DID WELL | FAILED | JESUS IS BETTER |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asa | Trusted God in battle (14:11) | Trusted a foreign king; jailed a prophet (16:7–10) | Trusted His Father to the end |
| Jehoshaphat | Sent teachers of God’s law (17:7–9) | Allied with wicked Ahab (18:1) | Never joins with evil |
| Joash | Repaired the temple (24:4) | Had Zechariah killed (24:21) | Gave His life for others |
| Hezekiah | Cleansed the temple (29) | Grew proud (32:25) | Humbled Himself to the cross (Philippians 2:8) |
| Josiah | Found God’s law (34) | Ignored God’s warning (35:22) | Always obeyed His Father |
Raymond B Dillard, in his commentary on 2 Chronicles, showed how the Chronicler links obedience with blessing and sin with trouble, often within one lifetime: ‘If you seek Him, He will be found by you, but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you’ (15:2).
But every king eventually forsook God. Who can stand? Only a King who never fails—and who bears the punishment for those who do. ‘Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us’ (Galatians 3:13).
DID YOU KNOW? JOSIAH’S DEATH POINTS TO THE CROSS
When Josiah died at Megiddo, all Judah mourned (35:24–25). Prophet Zechariah later said people would ‘look on me, on him whom they have pierced’ and mourn like ‘the mourning for Hadad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo’ (Zechariah 12:10–11). John says this came true at the cross (John 19:37).
Signpost 8: Grace, Prayer and a Battle Already Won
- A king who prays for sinners: Hezekiah prayed, ‘May the good LORD pardon everyone who sets his heart to seek God’, and ‘the LORD… healed the people’ (30:18–20). Jesus ‘always lives to make intercession’ for His people (Hebrews 7:25).
- The worst king forgiven: Manasseh even burned his sons as an offering (33:6). Yet in chains he humbled himself, ‘and God was moved by his entreaty’ (33:13). Christ Jesus came ‘to save sinners’ (1 Timothy 1:15).
- The battle belongs to God: Facing a huge army, Jehoshaphat was told, ‘the battle is not yours but God’s’ (20:15). The people sang; God won. At the cross, Jesus ‘disarmed the rulers and authorities’ (Colossians 2:15). We receive His victory.
Signpost 9: Messengers Mocked and a Land at Rest
Why did Jerusalem fall? God sent messengers ‘because He had compassion on His people’, ‘but they kept mocking the messengers of God’ (36:15–16). Jesus told this story as a parable: servant after servant beaten, then the beloved son killed (Mark 12:1–9). God ‘spoke… by the prophets, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son’ (Hebrews 1:1–2).
The land ‘enjoyed its Sabbaths’ for ‘70 years’ (36:21), making up for rest years Israel ignored (Leviticus 25:4). These 70 years set up Daniel’s ‘70 weeks’ prophecy about the Messiah (Daniel 9:24). And Jesus gives true rest: ‘Come to me, all who labour and are heavy laden’ (Matthew 11:28).
Signpost 10: ‘Let Him Go Up’—An Ending That Waits for Jesus
“Whoever is among you of all His people, may the LORD his God be with him. Let him go up.” (2 Chronicles 36:23)
Cyrus, a Persian king, tells God’s people to go up and build God’s house. Isaiah called him the Lord’s ‘anointed’ (Isaiah 45:1)—chosen for a task. But Cyrus could send people home. He could not bring them to God.
The Hebrew Bible stops here. Iain M Duguid, who reads Chronicles with Christ at the centre, is among scholars who note that the returning people still needed a better King and temple. Turn the page: Matthew begins with David’s Son, who says, ‘See, we are going up to Jerusalem’ (Luke 18:31). He went up, died, rose—and declared, ‘I will build my church’ (Matthew 16:18).
What About 2 Chronicles 7:14?
“If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14)
Many treat this as a promise for their country. But God spoke it about Israel. Verse 13 mentions drought and locusts—covenant warnings for the Promised Land. ‘My people’ first meant Israel; ‘their land’ meant Canaan.
2 CHRONICLES 7:14: HOW TO USE IT RIGHTLY
Wrong use: Treating the verse as a promise that any modern nation will be healed if its churches pray.
Right use: Its best understood as God’s covenant promise to Israel, revealing His heart towards humble sinners.
Fulfilled in Christ: ‘My people’ are now all who belong to Jesus (1 Peter 2:9–10). If we confess, ‘he is faithful and just to forgive us’ (1 John 1:9).
Final healing: It comes in the new creation, ‘for the healing of the nations’ (Revelation 22:2).
The verse is still precious, for ‘all the promises of God find their Yes in Him’ (2 Corinthians 1:20).
Conclusion: The King the Chronicler Was Waiting For
2 Chronicles is full of hope. Every good king fell. So did the great temple. Yet God’s promise never fell.
Charles Spurgeon said that as every English village has a road to London, every Bible text has a road to Christ. In 2 Chronicles, the roads are wide.
The Chronicler wrote for tired people with no king. If you feel tired and far from God, his message is for you. The King has come. His name is Jesus. Go up to Him, and find rest.
Tough Questions, Honest Answers
Who wrote 1 and 2 Chronicles?
The books don’t name the writer. An old Jewish tradition in the Talmud says Ezra the priest wrote them. This fits well, because 2 Chronicles ends with the same words that begin the book of Ezra (compare 2 Chronicles 36:22–23 with Ezra 1:1–3). Many scholars simply call the writer ‘the Chronicler’ and date the book to around 450–400 BC. Whoever held the pen, the true author is the Holy Spirit, who ‘carried along’ the human writers (2 Peter 1:21).
Why does 2 Chronicles leave out the kings of northern Israel?
After Solomon died, the kingdom split in 2. The northern kingdom (Israel) rejected David’s family and the temple in Jerusalem. The Chronicler focuses on Judah because God’s promise was tied to David’s line and to His chosen temple. He mentions northern kings only when their story touches Judah. This doesn’t mean he hated the north—Hezekiah even invited the northern tribes to his Passover (2 Chronicles 30:1). His point is God’s people are truly united only around God’s chosen King.
What happened to the Ark of the Covenant after 2 Chronicles 35:3?
The Ark is last mentioned in Israel’s history when Josiah told the Levites to put it back in the temple (2 Chronicles 35:3). Most likely the Babylonians took or destroyed it in 586 BC, when they carried off the temple treasures (36:18). A later Jewish book, 2 Maccabees, says Jeremiah hid it in a cave, but that book isn’t Scripture. Jeremiah himself said a day would come when the Ark wouldn’t be ‘missed’ or ‘made again’ (Jeremiah 3:16). We don’t need to hunt for it. Its lid, the mercy seat, pointed to Jesus, whom God ‘put forward as a propitiation by His blood’ (Romans 3:25)—the place where God’s anger is turned away and mercy is given.
Why do some numbers in Chronicles differ from Kings?
Some numbers do. For example, 2 Kings 8:26 says King Ahaziah was 22 when he began to reign, while most Hebrew copies of 2 Chronicles 22:2 say 42. Scribes copied the Bible by hand for centuries, and numbers were easy to miscopy. That’s why many English Bibles add a footnote or follow other ancient copies in such places. We believe the Bible was without error as God first gave it. These rare copying slips don’t change any teaching about God, sin or salvation.
Why does Kings not mention Manasseh’s repentance, and is the ‘Prayer of Manasseh’ Scripture?
Both books tell the truth, but they have different aims. Kings shows how much damage Manasseh’s sin caused—so much that it helped bring the exile (2 Kings 24:3–4). Chronicles, written for people back from exile, adds he repented, to show that God welcomes back even the worst sinner. 2 Chronicles 33:18–19 says his prayer was recorded in other official writings. The short ‘Prayer of Manasseh’ found in some old Bibles was written much later and belongs to the Apocrypha. Protestant churches don’t treat it as Scripture, because it wasn’t part of the Hebrew Bible.
Who was the Queen of Sheba, and where was Sheba?
The Bible doesn’t tell us her name. Most scholars think Sheba was the kingdom of Saba in south-west Arabia, in today’s Yemen, which grew rich by trading spices and incense. Ethiopian tradition calls her Makeda and says she had a son with Solomon, but this story comes from a much later book, not the Bible. Jesus calls her ‘the queen of the South’ who came ‘from the ends of the earth’ (Matthew 12:42). Her real importance is her example. She travelled far to hear a wise king—how much more should we listen to Jesus, who speaks to us in His word.
How many kings of Judah were good?
After Solomon, 19 kings from David’s family ruled Judah, plus one queen, Athaliah, who seized the throne. Chronicles says 8 of these kings did what was right in some way: Asa, Jehoshaphat, Joash, Amaziah, Uzziah, Jotham, Hezekiah and Josiah. Most started well and ended badly. Even the best, Hezekiah and Josiah, had moments of pride or disobedience. This honest record teaches us not to put our final hope in any human leader. It makes us long for the one perfect King, Jesus.
