2 Samuel 24
24
The Census Taken
1Now again the anger of the Lord burned against Israel, and #24:1 See 1 Chr 21:1. As in the case of Paul’s thorn in the flesh (2 Cor 12:7; cf 1 Cor 5:5), God sometimes accomplishes His purposes by allowing Satan to inflict injury or cause trouble.He incited David against them to say, “Go, #24:1 Ordinarily taking a census would have been a routine procedure for a nation as a way of assessing taxes or conscripting and assigning men to an army. But in Israel none of this was necessary unless it was commanded by God, and David’s action was the product of ego and an uncharacteristic shift of trust and dependence from God to human resources (as Joab suspected, v 3). To his credit, David eventually realized this and came to God in repentance.count [the people of] Israel and Judah.” 2So the king said to Joab the commander of the army who was with him, “Go now through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan [in the north] to Beersheba [in the south], and conduct a census of the people, so that I may know the number of the people.” 3But Joab said to the king, “May the Lord your God add to the people a hundred times as many as there are, and let the eyes of my lord the king see it; but why does my lord the king #24:3 Lit delight in.want to do this thing?” 4Nevertheless, the king’s word prevailed against Joab and the commanders of the army. So they went from the king’s presence to take a census of the people of Israel. 5They crossed over the Jordan and camped in Aroer, on the south side of the city which is in the middle of the river valley [of the Arnon] toward Gad, and on toward Jazer. 6Then they came to Gilead and to the land of Tahtim-hodshi, and they came to Dan-jaan and around to Sidon, 7and they came to the stronghold of Tyre and to all the cities of the Hivites and Canaanites, and they went out to the south of Judah, to Beersheba. 8So when they had gone about through all the land [taking the census], they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days. 9And Joab gave the sum of the census of the people to the king. In Israel there were 800,000 valiant men who drew the sword, and the men of Judah were 500,000.
10But David’s heart (conscience) troubled him after he had counted the people. David said to the Lord, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. But now, O Lord, please take away the sin of Your servant, for I have acted very foolishly.” 11When David got up in the morning, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Gad, David’s seer, saying, 12“Go and say to David, ‘Thus says the Lord, “I am giving you three choices; select one of them for yourself, and I will do it to you.” ’ ” 13So Gad came to David and told him, and said to him, “Shall seven years of famine come to you in your land? Or will you flee three months before your enemies as they pursue you? Or shall there be three days of pestilence (plague) in your land? Now consider this and decide what answer I shall return to Him who sent me.” 14Then David said to Gad, “I am in great distress. Let us fall into the hands of the Lord, for His mercies are great, but do not let me fall into the hands of man.”
Pestilence Sent
15So the Lord sent a pestilence (plague) [lasting three days] upon Israel from the morning until the appointed time, and seventy thousand men of the people from Dan to Beersheba died. 16When the [avenging] angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the Lord relented from the disaster and said to the angel who destroyed the people, “It is enough! Now relax your hand.” And the angel of the Lord was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. 17When David saw the angel who was striking down the people, he spoke to the Lord and said, “Behold, I [alone] am the one who has sinned and done wrong; but these sheep (people of Israel), what have they done [to deserve this]? Please let Your hand be [only] against me and my father’s house (family).”
David Builds an Altar
18Then Gad [the prophet] came to David that day and said to him, “Go up, set up an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite [where you saw the angel].” 19So David went up according to Gad’s word, as the Lord commanded. 20Araunah looked down and saw the king and his servants crossing over toward him; and he went out and bowed before the king with his face toward the ground. 21Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?” And David said, “To buy the threshing floor from you, to build an altar to the Lord, so that the plague may be held back from the people.” 22Araunah said to David, “Let my lord the king take and offer up whatever seems good to him. Look, here are oxen for the burnt offering, and threshing sledges and the yokes of the oxen for the wood. 23All of this, O king, Araunah gives to the king.” And Araunah said to the king, “May the Lord your God be favorable to you.” 24But the king said to Araunah, “No, but I will certainly buy it from you for a price. I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God which cost me nothing.” So David purchased the #24:24 Later Solomon would build his temple on this site.threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. 25David built an altar to the Lord there, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. So the Lord was moved [to compassion] by [David’s] prayer for the land, and the plague was held back from Israel.
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2 Samuel 24
24
David’s Census of Israel and Judah
1Ch 21:1–17
1Again the Lord became angry against Israel, and He incited David against them, saying, “Go and count the people of Israel and Judah.” # 1Ch 21:1; 27:23–24
2The king said to Joab the commander of the army who was with him, “Go throughout all of the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Beer-sheba, # Jdg 20:1; 2Sa 3:10 and muster the people so that I may know the number of the people.”
3Joab said to the king, “May the Lord your God add to the people a hundred times as many as they are, # Dt 1:11 in the sight of my lord the king; but why does my lord the king so desire this thing?”
4However, the king’s word prevailed against Joab and the commanders of the army. So Joab and the commanders of the army went out from before the king to register the people of Israel.
5They crossed the Jordan and camped at Aroer, # Dt 2:36; Jos 13:9 south of the city, in the middle of the ravine of Gad toward Jazer. 6They went toward Gilead to the land of Tahtim Hodshi. Then they went toward Dan Jaan and around to Sidon. # Jos 19:28 7They went to the fortress of Tyre # Jos 19:29 and all of the towns of the Hivites and Canaanites. # Jos 11:3 They went to the Negev and Beer-sheba.
8They went throughout the entire land, and after nine months and twenty days, they came to Jerusalem.
9Joab gave the count of the census of the people to the king. There were eight hundred thousand capable men who could draw a sword in Israel, and the men of Judah were five hundred thousand.
Judgment for David’s Sin
10Now the heart of David struck him # 1Sa 24:5 after he had counted the people. David said to the Lord, “I have sinned greatly # 2Sa 12:13 by what I have done. Now may the Lord take away the iniquity of your servant, for I have behaved very foolishly.” # 1Sa 13:13
11When David arose in the morning, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Gad, # 1Sa 22:5 the seer # 1Sa 9:9 for David, saying, 12“Go and speak to David: Thus says the Lord: Three options I am laying before you. Choose for yourself one of them, and I will do this to you.”
13So Gad came to David and told him. He said to him, “Shall seven years of famine come to you in your land? Or shall you flee three months before your enemies while they pursue you? Or shall there be three days of plague in your land? # Lev 26:25; 1Ch 21:12 Now consider and advise what answer I shall return to Him who sent me.”
14David said to Gad, “I am very distressed. Let us fall by the hand of the Lord, for His mercy is great. # Ps 51:1; 119:156 May I not fall by the hand of man.”
15So the Lord sent a plague upon Israel from the morning until the appointed time. Seventy thousand men from the people died, # 1Ch 21:14; 27:24 from Dan to Beer-sheba. 16When the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the Lord relented # Ge 6:6; Ex 12:23 from the calamity. He said to the angel who was annihilating the people, “Enough! Now stay your hand.” The angel of the Lord was at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
17On seeing the angel who was striking down the people, David said to the Lord, “Behold, I have sinned, and I have done wickedly. These sheep, what have they done? # Ps 74:1 Please, let your hand be against me and against the house of my father.”
David Builds an Altar
1Ch 21:18–26
18Gad came to David that day and said to him, “Go up and erect an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.” 19So David went up according to the word of Gad, as the Lord commanded. 20When Araunah looked and saw the king and his servants coming toward him, he went out and bowed low to the king with his face on the ground.
21Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?”
David replied, “To purchase the threshing floor from you in order to build an altar to the Lord, so that the plague may be averted from the people.”
22Araunah said to David, “Let my lord the king take and offer up what seems good to him. Here are the oxen for the burnt offering # 1Sa 6:14; 1Ki 19:21 and the threshing sledges and yokes of the oxen for wood. 23Everything, O king, Araunah gives to the king.” Araunah also said to the king, “May the Lord your God be favorable toward you.”
24However, the king said to Araunah, “No, for I will certainly purchase from you for a fair price. I will not offer up to the Lord burnt offerings that cost me nothing.”
So David purchased the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels # 24:24 About 1.25 pounds, or 575 grams. of silver. # 1Ch 21:24–25 25David built an altar to the Lord # 1Sa 7:17 there and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. Then the land pleaded with the Lord, # 2Sa 21:14 and the plague was averted from Israel.
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