David’s other sons are passed over in order to focus on Solomon, the chosen descendant. Unlike the book of Kings, Chronicles never reports the struggle between Solomon and Adonijah for David’s throne (see 1 Kings 1:1 – 2:46). From the Chronicler’s perspective, the move from David to Solomon was a smooth transition perfectly conformed to the plan of God.1
The Chronicler reports the complete list of Davidic kings reigning in the southern kingdom of Judah during the period of the divided Hebrew monarchies (1 Chronicles 3:10–16). The wicked queen Athaliah, who reigned in the period between Azariah and Josiah (2 Chronicles 22:10 – 23:21), is understandably left out as non-Davidic in descent. Azariah, mentioned in 1 Chronicles 3:12, is a variant of Uzziah
(2 Chronicles 26:1–23). Similarly, Shallum in 1 Chronicles 3:15 is a variant of Jehoahaz.
2
There is a difficulty relating to the order in which Josiah’s sons are listed as coming to the throne of their father. Josiah’s firstborn son was Johanan (1 Chronicles 3:15), but is nowhere to be found in the rest of Scripture. It may be assumed that he preceded his father in death or was unfit for the throne.3 The other three sons of Josiah, Jehoiakim, Zedekiah (whose name originally was Mattaniah, 2 Kings 24:17), and Shallum are listed here in the order of their age and not in the order of their accession to the throne. After the death of Josiah, the people of the land took Jehoahaz the [youngest] son of Josiah, and anointed him, and made him king in his father’s place
(2 Kings 23:30). He only reigned for three short months before he was carried off to Egypt by Neco (Jeremiah 22:10). Jehoiakim succeeded him and reigned for eleven years, but rebelled against the king of Babylon. He was succeeded by Eliakim’s son Jeconiah at a very early age. He only reigned for three months after which he was replaced by his uncle Mattaniah who was renamed Zedekiah by Nebuchadnezzar.4
10 The son of Solomon was Rehoboam, Abijah his son, Asa his son, Jehoshaphat his son,