2 Samuel 24

1 Again the wrath of the Lord was burning against Israel, and moving David against them, he said, Go, take the number of Israel and Judah.

And the Lord caused his anger to burn forth again in Israel, and [Satan] stirred up David against them, saying, Go, number Israel and Juda.

2 And the king said to Joab and the captains of the army, who were with him, Go now through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan as far as Beer-sheba, and have all the people numbered, so that I may be certain of the number of the people.

And the king said to Joab commander of the host, who was with him, Go now through all the tribes of Israel and Juda, from Dan even to Bersabee, and number the people, and I will know the number of the people.

3 And Joab said to the king, Whatever the number of the people, may the Lord make it a hundred times as much, and may the eyes of my lord the king see it: but why does my lord the king take pleasure in doing this thing?

And Joab said to the king, Now may the Lord add to the people a hundred-fold as many as they are, and [may] the eyes of my lord the king see it: but why does my lord the king desire this thing?

4 But the king's order was stronger than Joab and the captains of the army. And Joab and the captains of the army went out from the king, to take the number of the children of Israel.

Nevertheless the word of the king prevailed against Joab an the captains of the host: And Joab and the captains of the host went out before the king to number the people of Israel.

5 And they went over Jordan, and starting from Aroer, from the town which is in the middle of the valley, they went in the direction of the Gadites, and on to Jazer;

And they went over Jordan, and encamped in Aroer, on the right of the city which is in the midst of the valley of Gad and Eliezer.

6 Then they came to Gilead, and to the land of the Hittites under Hermon; and they came to Dan, and from Dan they came round to Zidon,

And they came to Galaad, and into the land of Thabason, which is Adasai, and they came to Danidan and Udan, and compassed Sidon.

7 And to the walled town of Tyre, and to all the towns of the Hivites and the Canaanites: and they went out to the South of Judah at Beer-sheba.

And they came to Mapsar of Tyre, and to all the cities of the Evite and the Chananite: and they came by the South of Juda to Bersabee.

8 So after going through all the land in every direction, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days.

And they compassed the whole land; and they arrived at Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days.

9 And Joab gave the king the number of all the people: there were in Israel eight hundred thousand fighting men able to take up arms; and the men of Judah were five hundred thousand.

And Joab gave in the number of the census of the people to the king: and Israel consisted of eight hundred thousand men of might that drew sword; and the men of Juda, five hundred thousand fighting men.

10 And after the people had been numbered, David's heart was troubled. And David said to the Lord, Great has been my sin in doing this; but now, O Lord, be pleased to take away the sin of your servant, for I have done very foolishly

And the heart of David struck him after he had numbered the people; and David said to the Lord, I have sinned grievously, O Lord, [in] what I have now done: remove, I pray you, the iniquity of your servant, for I have been exceedingly foolish.

11 And David got up in the morning; now the word of the Lord had come to the prophet Gad, David's seer, saying,

And David rose early in the morning, and the word of the Lord came to the prophet Gad, the seer, saying, Go, and speak to David, saying,

12 Go and say to David, The Lord says, Three things are offered to you: say which of them you will have, and I will do it to you.

Thus says the Lord, I bring [one of] three things upon you: now choose you one of them, and I will do [it] to you.

13 So Gad came to David, and gave him word of this and said to him, Are there to be three years when there is not enough food in your land? or will you go in flight from your haters for three months, while they go after you? or will you have three days of violent disease in your land? take thought and say what answer I am to give to him who sent me.

And Gad went in to David, and told him, and said to him, Choose [one of these things] to befall you, whether there shall come upon you [for] three years famine in your land; or that you should flee three months before your enemies, and they should pursue you; or that there should be [for] three days mortality in your land. Now then decide, and see what answer I shall return to him that sent me.

14 And David said to Gad, This is a hard decision for me to make: let us come into the hands of the Lord, for great are his mercies: let me not come into the hands of men.

And David said to Gad, On every side I am much straitened: let me fall now into the hands of the Lord, for his compassions [are] very many; and let me not fall into the hands of man.

15 So David made selection of the disease; and the time was the days of the grain-cutting, when the disease came among the people, causing the death of seventy thousand men from Dan as far as Beer-sheba.

So David chose for himself the mortality: and [they were] the days of wheat harvest; and the Lord sent a pestilence upon Israel from morning till noon, and the plague began amongst the people; and there died of the people from Dan even to Bersabee seventy thousand men.

16 And when the hand of the angel was stretched out in the direction of Jerusalem, for its destruction, the Lord had regret for the evil, and said to the angel who was sending destruction on the people, It is enough; do no more. And the angel of the Lord was by the grain-floor of Araunah the Jebusite.

And the angel of the Lord stretched out his hand against Jerusalem to destroy it, and the Lord repented of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed the people, [It is] enough now, withhold your hand. And the angel of the Lord was by the threshing floor of Orna the Jebusite.

17 And when David saw the angel who was causing the destruction of the people, he said to the Lord, Truly, the sin is mine; I have done wrong: but these are only sheep; what have they done? let your hand be against me and against my family.

And David spoke to the Lord when he saw the angel striking the people, and he said, Behold, it is I that have done wrong, but these sheep what have they done? Let your hand, I pray you, be upon me, and upon my father's house.

18 And that day Gad came to David and said to him, Go up, and put up an altar to the Lord on the grain-floor of Araunah the Jebusite.

And Gad came to David in that day, and said to him, Go up, and set up to the Lord and altar in the threshing floor of Orna the Jebusite.

19 So David went up, as Gad had said and as the Lord had given orders.

And David went up according to the word of Gad, as the Lord commanded him.

20 And Araunah, looking out, saw the king and his servants coming to him: and Araunah went out, and went down on his face to the earth before the king.

And Orna looked out, and saw the king and his servants coming on before him: and Orna went forth, and did obeisance to the king with his face to the earth.

21 And Araunah said, Why has my lord the king come to his servant? And David said, To give you a price for your grain-floor, so that I may put up an altar to the Lord, and the disease may be stopped among the people.

And Orna said, Why has my lord the king come to his servant? and David said, To buy of you the threshing floor, in order to build an altar to the Lord that the plague may be restrained from off the people.

22 And Araunah said to David, Let my lord the king take whatever seems right to him, and make an offering of it: see, here are the oxen for the burned offering, and the grain-cleaning instruments and the ox-yokes for wood:

And Orna said to David, Let my lord the king take and offer to the Lord that which is good in his eyes: behold, [here are] oxen for a whole burnt offering, and the wheels and furniture of the oxen for wood.

23 All this does the servant of my lord the king give to the king. And Araunah said, May the Lord your God be pleased with your offering!

Orna gave all to the king: and Orna said to the king, The Lord your God bless you.

24 And the king said to Araunah, No, but I will give you a price for it; I will not give to the Lord my God burned offerings for which I have given nothing. So David got the grain-floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.

And the king said to Orna, Nay, but I will surely buy it of you at a fair price, and I will not offer to the Lord my God a whole burnt offering for nothing. So David purchased the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.

25 And there David put up an altar to the Lord, making burned offerings and peace-offerings. So the Lord gave ear to his prayer for the land, and the disease came to an end in Israel.

And David built there an altar to the Lord, and offered up whole burnt offerings and peace-offerings: and Solomon made an addition to the altar afterwards, for it was little at first. And the Lord listened to the land, and the plague was stayed from Israel.