Chronicles of King David

The Chronicles of King David (1 Chr. 27:24) refers to a specific official register or record book associated with David's census and military organization — the statistical state records maintained by Joab the commander but never completed because the census provoked divine anger before it was finished. This document is distinct from the canonical books of Chronicles but represents one of the court archives that formed the historical source material used by later compilers of Israel's history, including the Chronicler himself. The reference illustrates the existence of a rich archival tradition in ancient Israel alongside the canonical historical books.