And the acts of David the king, first and last, behold, they are written in the book of Samuel the seer, and in the book of Nathan the prophet, and in the book of Gad the seer;
Chronicles closes David's reign with a list of books: three men wrote down what he did, from first to last. That raises three questions — what a "seer" was, who wrote the books we call Samuel, and why the writings named here are lost today.
Two of the three men here are called seers; the third is called a prophet. The older word for a prophet was "seer."
In the days of Samuel it is said that today's "prophet" was formerly called a seer (1 Sam. 9:9). They were called this, it seems, because God gave them the ability to foresee events or to see visions. Isaiah 30:10 confirms this. There rebellious Israel said to the seers, in effect, "Do not see." They did not want to hear what God had to say to them. Ezekiel also says, "Woe to the foolish prophets, who follow their own spirit and have seen nothing!" (Ezek. 13:3).
The verse covers David's acts "from first to last." Gad's own story with David stretches just as far.
He was with David when he fled from Saul, and gave him counsel (1 Sam. 22:5). Whether he stayed with David through his rejection is not recorded. He was with him at the end of his reign, and he was given the painful task of announcing God's judgements on David for counting the people. He is called David's "seer," which suggests he had been with him all along. The acts of David were written in "the book of Gad the seer." There is no further record of it, and it has not been handed down to us.
Samuel dies partway through the book that bears his name, so he cannot have written all of it. This verse is the one place Scripture points to the writers.
Ancient Jewish tradition says that Samuel wrote the first twenty-four chapters of the first book of Samuel. These chapters cover the life of Samuel up to the time of his death. The twenty-fifth chapter begins with the record of his death. It is reasonable that Samuel wrote these opening chapters of the first book that bears his name. Chapter 10:25 puts it beyond doubt that Samuel did write... The same Jewish tradition credits Nathan the prophet and Gad the seer with writing the rest of the two books. The passage in the first book of Chronicles seems to support this view.
The sources named here set Chronicles apart from the books of Kings.
Another clear difference between these two interesting books is where their writers got their material. In Kings it always comes from state records, as we can see from "the book of the acts of Solomon" (1 Kings 11:41)... Chronicles draws more on the writings of individual men (or selections from them), such as "Samuel the seer," "Nathan the prophet," "Gad the seer," "the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite," "the visions of Iddo the seer"...
No book of Gad has come down to us. That loss is not a hole in the Bible, and the same thing happened with the apostles' letters.
It is a mistake to suppose that the apostles never wrote other letters than those we have. God made sure that the letters meant for the lasting blessing of the believer were not lost. He inspired them for ongoing use, so He watched over them to that end... There is no doubt that inspired men wrote messages that were not necessarily inspired to be part of the Scriptures. We find a similar fact in the Old Testament, as for instance books by Solomon and others. If God has not preserved the whole amount, He has secured what was inspired for lasting use.
Scripture tells of David's end more than once, and the tone differs. Chronicles closes his story in honor.
The last verses of our chapter (1 Chron. 29:26-30) repeat 1 Kings 2:10-12 in order at last to close David's history. The Holy Spirit mentions his old age, "full of days, riches, and honor," which fits the purpose of this book. It stands in contrast with his end as recorded for us in 2 Samuel 23:1-6 and in 1 Kings 1.
- Seen — a seer had that name because God gave him the ability to foresee events or see visions. Rebellious Israel's answer to such men was "Do not see."
- Sourced — Kings draws its material from state records. Chronicles draws on the writings of prophets: Samuel, Nathan, Gad and Iddo.
- Shadowed — Gad advised David when he fled from Saul. He was still there at the end, which suggests he had been with him all along.
- Signposted — this verse is Scripture's own pointer to who wrote the books of Samuel. Tradition gives the opening chapters to Samuel and the rest to Nathan and Gad.
- Secured — God did not keep every line inspired men wrote. He kept everything He inspired for lasting use, right down to David's end "full of days, riches, and honor."
with all his reign and his might, and the times that passed over him, and over Israel, and over all the kingdoms of the countries.
The last verse of 1 Chronicles closes David's story by pointing away from itself. It sends the reader to other books, kept by other men, for the full record of his reign. So who wrote those records, and where are they now?
Chronicles and Kings do not draw on the same kind of records. One commentator marks the difference.
Another clear difference between these two interesting books is where their writers got their material. In Kings it always comes from state records, it seems, such as "the book of the acts of Solomon"... Chronicles draws more on the writings of individual men, or selections from them, such as "Samuel the seer," "Nathan the prophet," "Gad the seer," "the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite," "the visions of Iddo the seer."
Commentators differ on what became of these writings. One points the reader to books we still have:
So the acts of David are written in the words of Samuel the seer, in the words of Nathan the prophet, and in those of Gad the seer (compare 1 Chronicles 29:29 with 1 and 2 Samuel).
Another treats one of the named books as lost. Gad's record of David is one nobody can read now:
The acts of David were written in "the book of Gad the seer." Nothing more is known of that book, and it has not been passed down to us.
Does a lost book mean a gap in the Bible? One commentator answers that worry.
Even where writers were inspired, God did not keep everything they wrote. He kept only what was essential to the plan and purpose of the Bible. The rest may have been completely true and completely good, but He preserved only what was part of God's purpose in the Bible... One chapter more than God's purpose required would have spoiled the Bible. There is not a word too much. But, on the other hand, there is not a word too little.
The verse points to the circumstances that came upon David. One writer explains why those hard years fill Samuel and Kings more than Chronicles.
To make His purposes about Christ's reign known before they came to pass, God gave us in the Old Testament pictures of kingdom rule that match His counsels, in men like David and Solomon. But how could such pictures hold fully true when these men of God sinned so badly during their lives? Their history belongs instead to the story of man under responsibility and of rule, as the books of Samuel and Kings present it... God accomplishes this by forming them through trials. This is the subject of the books of Samuel and Kings. But Chronicles is not about restoring grace that repairs the faults of a believer placed under responsibility. It is about giving us a preview of the counsels of God.
David's might reached over the nations around him. One commentator asks why such a list of conquests should interest us, and reads David's rule as a type — a picture of something later.
We are now shown how far David's power reached over the nations around him. Great as it was, it is only the faint and passing image of what will be when the King of glory comes. Still it is a type, and must be read that way. Otherwise what great interest is there for us in the list of these beaten powers?
Chronicles names its sources again and again. One writer looks past them to the Author behind the book.
These books mention many historical records that the writer could build on (1 Chronicles 5:17; 9:1; 23:27; 27:24; 29:29...). For the reader who accepts the Bible as God's inspired Word, though, such details are not that important. What matters more is that God Himself had these books written to teach and warn us.
- Sources. Chronicles leans on the writings of individual prophets and seers — Samuel, Nathan, Gad — rather than on royal state archives.
- Selection. Some of the named books are lost. God kept only what served the purpose of His Book — not a word too much, not a word too little.
- Trials. The hard years that came upon David fill Samuel and Kings, where God forms His servants through trial.
- Reach. David's power over the surrounding kingdoms is a faint and passing image of the day when the King of glory comes.
- Purpose. The point is never the archive but the Author: God had these books written to instruct us.