Can I un-corrupt Mac Messages chat database that no longer saves new chats?

I am running 10.12.6. My computer was almost out of available space (a few gigabytes left) and then got unplugged and died. When it turned back on, it booted from safe sleep mode and then got unplugged again, and then booted from safe sleep mode one additional time. Because there was so little space left, I think there was something funky about the safe sleep image it was booting from. Messages (the app-as in the old iChat app) gave the message over and over that due the computer being out of disk space new messages would be lost (the computer at this point had 100 mb free space reported). In spite of this new messages continued to appear. However, after making more space and restarting the computer, I have run into the following problem: Messages shows all my previous chats, but any new chats with existing or new contacts results in those new additions not being saved in spite of the option to save chat history when conversations are closed being checked. They show up in real time, but if I quit messages or close the chat, anything new since the problem (with the computer turning back on from safe sleep mode with low disk space) is gone. There is also a badge icon on the dock constantly showing 15 unread messages no matter that I've read all of them and it doesn't change when new ones come in and one conversation in particular always shows the blue unread glyph which doesn't change even when I click "mark all messages as read." I tried deleting various plist files, but I was stabbing in the dark and not sure which to delete. None helped. The chat.db file has not been updated since the issue, so it seems new messages truly aren't being saved. Also no new messages show up under Archive either. (These are the files you find under ~/Library/Messages.) My archive folder is about 500 mb and the db file is only 40 mb for some reason. Is the Archive folder just text copies of what is in the db file? Can I delete anything and force it to rebuild itself? And if I can't uncorrupt it, can I start over with it saving messages? I have already backed up the Messages folder. Thank you. **Edit: I just noticed that chat.db actually is updating with a more current modified time stamp as is chat.db-wal. However, chat.db-shm is stuck on the modified date of when the problems started. The Archive folder still does not show new chats. Also I noticed that unlike what I previously thought, not only does Messages not display new chats after the window is closed, it only displays a certain number of new ones in a particular chat. It displays all the old ones from before the problem started but only a certain number from any particular person I'm chatting with before older ones drop off and are then butted up against the older chats up above if that makes any sense.**