It is rumored that the  Commentary of Zuo  was written by Zuo Qiuming from the state of Lu in the late Spring and Autumn Period. In reality, however, the book was completed in the middle of Warring States Period (475–221 BC). During the Spring and Autumn Period, there were already historians recording major historical events with concise language in China, and the  Spring and Autumn Annals  was one of their works. There were also blind historians called  gumeng , who memorized and relayed accounts of historical events and ancient legends to supplement written documents in the form of oral narration. Zuo Qiuming was one of such  gumengs . In the fourth century BC, scholars, building on the entries of the  Spring and Autumn Annals , and making use of the  Guoyu , a compilation of narrated stories by  gumeng , as well as other sources available then such as  Precepts of Xia ,  Book of Documents ,  Records of Zhou  and  Book of Zheng , created this splendid chronicle,  Commentary of Zuo . Judging from its contents, the book should have been produced in the middle of Warring States Period. As the historical events recorded in it were possibly narrated by Zuo Qiuming, the editors named him as the author of the book.

The  Commentary of Zuo  expounded on the short entries of the  Spring and Autumn Annals  by giving detailed accounts of specific historic events that happened in the Spring and Autumn Period. For example, there is an entry in the  Annals  about the first year of Duke Yin ( r . 722–712 BC) providing no more information than that the Earl of Zheng conquered Duan at a place called Yan. The  Commentary of Zuo  added a detailed description of more than 500 words on this event, describing the tangled relationship and power struggles among the Earl of Zheng, his father Duke Wu of Zheng, his mother Wu Jiang and his younger brother Gongshu Duan. The event reflected the collapse of the patriarchal system in the early Spring and Autumn Period and the ferocious competition between lineal descendants and other family members among the nobles. The narrative provided a stark comparison between Wu Jiang's over indulgence of her younger son, Gongshu Duan's contemptuous manner and the intelligent, self-possessed Earl of Zheng, who was very popular among the large populace. As a result, the Earl of Zheng was able to defeat and banish Gongshu Duan, who had been conspiring against him for several years. After gaining a firmer grip on his state, the Earl of Zheng laid a solid foundation for the rise of the Zheng State in later days and secured a dominant position for Duke Zhuang in the future. Only after reading through the detailed accounts of the historical events in  Commentary of Zuo  can there be a true understanding of the meaning of each entry in the  Spring and Autumn Annals . Therefore, " Zuoshi Zhuan  to the classics is like the lining to a garment; they complement each other" ( Xin Lun  by Huan Tan).

 Commentary of Zuo , transcript

The  Commentary of Zuo  not only provides records of various important historical events during the Spring and Autumn Period, but also preserves some ancient myths and legends. Some records imply a certain degree of emancipation of thoughts. For instance, humanity shall take precedence over gods and ghosts, and sovereigns shall remain loyal to their people and manage state affairs well. The emphasis on "subjects" pervades the entire book. On the other hand, it also reveals the political ideologies dominating the Spring and Autumn Period. For example, centralized power was not recognized. Sovereigns and their ministers collaborated and worked for the interests of the country, and both parties were free to choose who they would like to work with. Subjects did not have to be absolutely loyal to their rulers. Meanwhile, the book also stresses the feudal hierarchy and rules governing the patriarchal clan system. Particular emphasis is placed upon the maintenance of relationships between seniors and juniors and the distinction of people of different social status. The book provides important historical records for the research of Confucianism prior to the Qin Dynasty (221–206 BC).

In the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC–AD 25), the  Commentary of Zuo  was classified as a "classic," and it formed an essential part of the "ancient classics." Due to the divergent views among classic researchers in the Han Dynasty (206 BC–AD 220), the  Commentary of Zuo  was excluded from the curriculum of the National University, and no erudite scholar could be legally appointed to research the  Commentary of Zuo . However, owing to its great academic value, the book was circulated among the masses, being studied and recognized by many prominent scholars. Du Yu in the Western Jin Dynasty (265–317) wrote  Collected Commentaries on Spring and Autumn Annals , in which he combined the  Spring and Autumn Annals  and the  Commentary of Zuo . By studying annotations and commentaries of various learned scholars in the Han Dynasty, he compared their notes and developed his own theories. As time progressed, the significance of the  Commentary of Zuo  gradually overtook that of  Commentary of Gongyang  and  Commentary of Guliang .