1 Chronicles 21
1 Then Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel.
And the Accuser stood up against Israel, and incited David to count Israel.
2 So David said to Joab and the commanders of the troops, “Go and count the Israelites from Beersheba to Dan and bring me a report, so that I may know their number.”
And David said to Joab, and to the princes of the people, Go, number Israel from Beer-sheba' even to Dan, and bring their number to me, that I may know it.
3 But Joab replied, “May the LORD multiply His troops a hundred times over. My lord the king, are they not all servants of my lord? Why does my lord want to do this? Why should he bring guilt on Israel?”
Then said Joab, May the Lord add unto his people, how many soever they be, a hundred-fold more: are they not all, my lord the king, my lord's servants? why then will my lord require this thing? why shall it be a cause of guiltiness for Israel?
4 Nevertheless, the king’s word prevailed against Joab. So Joab departed and traveled throughout Israel, and then he returned to Jerusalem.
Nevertheless the king's word remained firm against Joab; and Joab went out, and moved about throughout all Israel, and came [back] to Jerusalem.
5 And Joab reported to David the total number of the troops. In all Israel there were 1,100,000 men who drew the sword, including 470,000 in Judah.
And Joab gave up the sum of the number of the people unto David: and there were [in] all Israel a thousand times thousand and one hundred thousand men that drew the sword: and [of] Judah were four hundred and seventy thousand men that drew the sword.
6 But Joab did not include Levi and Benjamin in the count, because the king’s command was detestable to him.
But Levi and Benjamin did he not count among them: for the king's word was abominable to Joab.
7 This command was also evil in the sight of God; so He struck Israel.
And this thing was displeasing in the eyes of God, and he smote Israel.
8 Then David said to God, “I have sinned greatly because I have done this thing. Now I beg You to take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have acted very foolishly.”
And David said unto God, I have sinned greatly, because I have done this thing; but now, I beseech thee, cause the iniquity of thy servant to pass away; for I have acted very foolishly.
9 And the LORD instructed Gad, David’s seer,
And the Lord spoke unto Gad, David's seer, saying,
10 “Go and tell David that this is what the LORD says: ‘I am offering you three options. Choose one of them, and I will carry it out against you.’”
Go and speak unto David, saying, Thus hath said the Lord, Three things do I offer thee: choose for thyself one of them, and I will do it unto thee.
11 So Gad went and said to David, “This is what the LORD says: ‘You must choose
So Gad came to David, and said unto him, Thus hath said the Lord, Select for thyself,
12 between three years of famine, three months of being swept away before your enemies and overtaken by their swords, or three days of the sword of the LORD—days of plague upon the land, with the angel of the LORD ravaging every part of Israel.’ Now then, decide how I should reply to Him who sent me.”
Whether there shall be three years famine; or three months, to be destroyed before thy adversaries, so that the sword of thy enemies overtake thee; or that during three days the sword of the Lord, even the pestilence, shall be in the land, and an angel of the Lord destroying throughout all the boundaries of Israel? And now reflect what word I shall bring back to him that hath sent me.
13 David answered Gad, “I am deeply distressed. Please, let me fall into the hand of the LORD, for His mercies are very great; but do not let me fall into the hands of men.”
And David said unto Gad, I am in a great strait: let me fall then into the hand of the Lord; for his mercies are very great; but let me not fall into the hand of man.
14 So the LORD sent a plague upon Israel, and seventy thousand men of Israel fell dead.
So the Lord sent a pestilence in Israel, and there fell of Israel seventy thousand men.
15 Then God sent an angel to destroy Jerusalem, but as the angel was doing so, the LORD saw it and relented from the calamity, and He said to the angel who was destroying the people, “Enough! Withdraw your hand now!” At that time the angel of the LORD was standing by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
And God sent an angel unto Jerusalem to destroy it; but as he was destroying, the Lord looked on, and he bethought himself of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed, It is enough: now stay thy hand. And the angel of the Lord was standing by the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
16 When David lifted up his eyes and saw the angel of the LORD standing between heaven and earth, with a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem, David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell facedown.
And David lifted up his eyes, and saw the angel of the Lord standing between the earth and the heavens, with his sword drawn in his hand, stretched out over Jerusalem. Then fell David, with the elders wrapt in sackcloth, upon their faces.
17 And David said to God, “Was it not I who gave the order to count the people? I am the one who has sinned and acted wickedly. But these sheep, what have they done? O LORD my God, please let Your hand fall upon me and my father’s house, but do not let this plague remain upon Your people.”
And David said unto God, Was it not I that ordered to count the people? and I am the one that have sinned and have done evil indeed; but these sheep, what have they done? O Lord my God, let thy hand, I pray thee, be against me, and against my father's house, but not against thy people, that there should be a plague.
18 Then the angel of the LORD ordered Gad to tell David to go up and build an altar to the LORD on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
And the angel of the Lord spoke to Gad to say to David, that David should go up, to erect an altar unto the Lord on the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
19 So David went up at the word that Gad had spoken in the name of the LORD.
And David went up by the word of Gad, which he had spoken in the name of the Lord.
20 Now Ornan was threshing wheat when he turned and saw the angel; and his four sons who were with him hid themselves.
And when Ornan turned back, and saw the angel, then did he and his four sons with him hide themselves. Now Ornan was threshing wheat.
21 David came to Ornan, and when Ornan looked out and saw David, he left the threshing floor and bowed facedown before David.
And as David came up to Ornan, Ornan looked up and saw David; and he went out of the threshing-floor, and bowed himself to David with his face to the ground.
22 Then David said to Ornan, “Grant me the site of this threshing floor, that I may build an altar to the LORD. Sell it to me for the full price, so that the plague upon the people may be halted.”
Then said David to Ornan, “Grant me the site of this threshing-floor, that I may build thereon an altar unto the Lord: for the full price shalt thou give it unto me, so that the plague may be stayed from the people.”
23 Ornan said to David, “My lord the king may take whatever seems good. Look, I will give the oxen for the burnt offerings, the threshing sledges for the wood, and the wheat for the grain offering—I will give it all.”
And Ornan said unto David, Take it for thyself, and let my lord the king do what is good in his eyes: lo, I give the oxen for burnt-offerings, and the threshing-rollers for wood, and the wheat for the meat-offering; the whole do I give [thee].
24 “No,” replied King David, “I insist on paying the full price, for I will not take for the LORD what belongs to you, nor will I offer burnt offerings that cost me nothing.”
And king David said to Ornan, No: but I will surely buy it at the full value; for I will not take what is thine for the Lord, so as to offer burnt-offerings without paying therefore.
25 So David paid Ornan six hundred shekels of gold for the site.
So David gave to Ornan for the place six hundred shekels of gold by weight.
26 And there he built an altar to the LORD and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. He called upon the LORD, who answered him with fire from heaven on the altar of burnt offering.
And David built there an altar unto the Lord, and offered burnt-offerings and peace-offerings, and he called on the Lord: and he answered him from heaven by fire upon the altar of burnt-offering.
27 Then the LORD spoke to the angel, who put his sword back into its sheath.
And the Lord spoke to the angel, and he put back his sword into its sheath.
28 At that time, when David saw that the LORD had answered him at the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite, he offered sacrifices there.
At that time when David saw that the Lord had answered him on the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite, then did he sacrifice there.
29 For the tabernacle of the LORD that Moses had made in the wilderness and the altar of burnt offering were presently at the high place in Gibeon,
But the tabernacle of the Lord, which Moses had made in the wilderness, and the altar of the burnt-offering, were at that time in the high-place at Gib'on.
30 but David could not go before it to inquire of God, because he was afraid of the sword of the angel of the LORD.
But David was not able to go before it to inquire of God; for he was afraid because of the sword of the angel of the Lord.
