2 Chronicles 9:29
Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, first and last, are they not written in the book of Nathan the prophet, and in the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite, and in the visions of Iddo the seer against Jeroboam the son of Nebat? Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, first and last, are they not written in the book of Nathan the prophet, and in the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite, and in the visions of Iddo the seer against Jeroboam the son of Nebat?
This closing note belongs to the account of Solomon's reign among the kings of Judah before the kingdom divided after his death, standing in the first portion of 2 Chronicles that recounts the undivided kingdom under Solomon and covers events also recorded in 1 Kings 1-11. It sets Solomon's united kingdom in contrast with the later northern kings beginning with Jeroboam, whose golden calves marked Israel's turn away from God. It points to writings associated with Nathan the prophet, Ahijah the Shilonite, and Iddo the seer as historical sources for Solomon's acts from first to last, showing that Chronicles draws on earlier records without further explaining them. These were three separate histories that together covered Solomon's life and reign, a period of at least forty years, and recorded his deeds and wisdom.
Iddo's portion included visions concerning Jeroboam, and Nathan and Iddo described the lives of Solomon and Jeroboam. The naming of Nathan among the sources does not establish that he lived beyond Solomon's reign, since his record may have supplemented the writings of the other named prophets. Ahijah of Shiloh was a prominent prophet of the northern kingdom where schools of prophetic instruction at Bethel, Jericho, Gilgal, and Carmel were located, and Iddo the seer was a prophet of the southern kingdom who testified against Jeroboam the son of Nebat. Jeroboam became king of Israel upon its separation from Judah immediately following Solomon's death, and Iddo is the unnamed prophet from Judah who withstood Jeroboam as he stood at the altar in Bethel to offer incense.
Prophets in later times were careful to commit their messages to writing because they were chosen instruments to compile the history of their respective kingdoms and record the lives of its leading men. The free passage of such prophets between the rival kingdoms kept alive a general sentiment of national religion and preserved a true history of the two kingdoms as related to each other. The records of Solomon's reign by Nathan, Ahijah, and Iddo are no longer extant, but they were as inspired as the records preserved in Scripture. Their loss shows that not everything written by inspiration was given to later generations; what God has preserved in his word is sufficient for doing his will, and people should put its instruction into practice rather than fault God for not giving more.