(1) In the first place the genealogies were not recorded by the Chronicler simply for the archaeological interest they possess. They served a most _practical_ purpose, in that they helped to determine for the Jewish community of the Chronicler’s time what families were of proper Levitical descent and might claim a share in the privileges pertaining thereto, and――on a wider scale――what families might justly be considered to be the pure blood of Israel. How serious the consequences entailed by the absence of a name from such lists might be is well illustrated by Ezra ii. 61‒63 (= Nehemiah vii. 63‒65), “the children of Habaiah, the children of Hakkoz ... sought their register among those that were reckoned by genealogy, but they were not found: therefore were they deemed polluted and put away from the priesthood.” On the other hand the Jew who could successfully trace his ancestry in the great lists knew himself indubitably a member of the chosen people and was confident of his part in the covenantal grace and in all those hopes which the faith of Israel inspired and sustained. (2) The practical aspect of these lists was thus essentially connected with high _religious_ sentiment. They were an expression of the continuity of Israel, a declaration that the Present was one with the Past, a witness and an assurance of the unfailing grace of Israel’s God. The genealogies therefore are in perfect harmony with the spirit and purpose of the Chronicler’s work――see the Introduction § 6. (3) Finally, in the lists of place-names and genealogies of inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem, various facts of great historical interest are preserved――see Introduction § 7, pp. xlvii f. and (e.g.) ii. 42 note. Chapter i. contains the genealogies of the earliest age, showing the origin of the nations. It concludes with a list of the chiefs of Edom. The names are those given in the genealogies of Genesis i.‒xxxvi., but the lists are abbreviated to the utmost by the omission of statements of relationship. Evidently the Chronicler was able to assume that the connection between the names was a matter of common knowledge. =1‒4= (compare Genesis v. 3‒32). A GENEALOGY FROM ADAM TO THE SONS OF NOAH. ¹ADAM, Seth, Enosh; ²Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared; =1.= _Seth ... Noah_] This genealogy of ten antediluvian patriarchs follows Genesis v. 3‒32 (P), the “Sethite” line as compared with Genesis iv. 17‒24 (J) where the descent is traced through Cain. There is some ancient connection between the list and the Babylonian tradition of ten kings before the Flood (see Ryle, _Genesis_, pp. 88 ff. in this series). For the symbols J and P, see the Introduction p. xx. _Enosh_] A poetical word which, like _Adam_ in prose writings, was used as a generic term for “man.” ³Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech; ⁴Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.