1 Chronicles 21
1 And there standeth up an adversary against Israel, and persuadeth David to number Israel,
And the devil stood up against Israel, and moved David to number Israel.
2 And David saith unto Joab, and unto the heads of the people, 'Go, number Israel from Beer-Sheba even unto Dan, and bring unto me, and I know their number.'
And king David said to Joab and to the captains of the forces, Go, number Israel from Bersabee even to Dan, and bring me [the account], and I shall know their number.
3 And Joab saith, 'Jehovah doth add to His people as they are a hundred times; are they not, my lord, O king, all of them to my lord for servants? why doth my lord seek this? why is he for a cause of guilt to Israel?'
And Joab said, May the Lord add to his people, a hundred-fold as many as they [are], and [let] the eyes of my lord the king see [it]: all [are] the servants of my lord. Why does my lord seek this thing? [do it not], lest it become a sin to Israel.
4 And the word of the king [is] severe against Joab, and Joab goeth out, and goeth up and down in all Israel, and cometh in to Jerusalem.
Nevertheless the king's word prevailed against Joab; and Joab went out and passed through all Israel, and came to Jerusalem.
5 And Joab giveth the account of the numbering of the people unto David, and all Israel is a thousand thousand and a hundred thousand, each drawing sword, and Judah [is] four hundred and seventy thousand, each drawing sword.
And Joab gave the number of the mustering of the people to David: and all Israel was a million and a hundred thousand men that drew sword: and the sons of Juda [were] four hundred and seventy thousand men that drew sword.
6 And Levi and Benjamin he hath not numbered in their midst, for the word of the king was abominable with Joab.
But he numbered not Levi and Benjamin amongst them; for the word of the king was painful to Joab.
7 And it is evil in the eyes of God concerning this thing, and He smiteth Israel,
And [there was] evil in the sight of the Lord respecting this thing; and he struck Israel.
8 and David saith unto God, 'I have sinned exceedingly, in that I have done this thing; and now, cause to pass away, I pray Thee, the iniquity of Thy servant, for I have acted very foolishly.'
And David said to God, I have sinned exceedingly, in that I have done this thing: and now, I pray you, remove the sin of your servant; for I have been exceedingly foolish.
9 And Jehovah speaketh unto Gad, seer of David, saying:
And the Lord spoke to Gad the seer, saying,
10 'Go, and thou hast spoken unto David, saying, Thus said Jehovah, Three — I am stretching out unto thee; choose for thee one of these, and I do [it] to thee.'
Go and speak to David, saying, Thus says the Lord, I bring three things upon you: choose one of them for yourself, and I will do it to you.
11 And Gad cometh in unto David, and saith to him, 'Thus said Jehovah, Take for thee —
And Gad came to David, and said to him, Thus says the Lord, Choose for yourself,
12 either for three years — famine, or three months to be consumed from the face of thine adversaries, even the sword of thine enemies to overtake, or three days the sword of Jehovah, even pestilence in the land, and a messenger of Jehovah destroying in all the border of Israel; and now, see; what word do I return to Him who is sending me?'
either three years of famine, or that you should flee three months from the face of your enemies, and the sword of your enemies [shall be employed] to destroy you, or that the sword of the Lord and pestilence [should be] three days in the land, and the angel of the Lord [shall be] destroying in all the inheritance of Israel. And now consider what I shall answer to him that sent the message.
13 And David saith unto Gad, 'I am greatly distressed, let me fall, I pray thee, into the hand of Jehovah, for very many [are] His mercies, and into the hand of man let me not fall.'
And David said to Gad, They are very hard for me, even [all] the three: let me fall now into the hands of the Lord, for his mercies [are] very abundant, and let me not fall by any means into the hands of man.
14 And Jehovah giveth a pestilence in Israel, and there fall of Israel seventy thousand men,
So the Lord brought pestilence upon Israel: and there fell of Israel seventy thousand men.
15 and God sendeth a messenger to Jerusalem to destroy it, and as he is destroying Jehovah hath seen, and is comforted concerning the evil, and saith to the messenger who [is] destroying, 'Enough, now, cease thy hand.' And the messenger of Jehovah is standing by the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite,
And God sent an angel to Jerusalem to destroy it: and as he was destroying, the Lord saw, and repented for the evil, and said to the angel that was destroying, Let it suffice you; withhold your hand. And the angel of the Lord stood by the threshing floor of Orna the Jebusite.
16 and David lifteth up his eyes, and seeth the messenger of Jehovah standing between the earth and the heavens, and his sword drawn in his hand, stretched out over Jerusalem, and David falleth, and the elders, covered with sackcloth, on their faces.
And David lifted up his eyes, and saw the angel of the Lord, standing between the earth and the heaven, and his sword drawn in his hand, stretched out over Jerusalem: and David and the elders clothed in sackcloth, fell upon their faces.
17 And David saith unto God, 'Did not I — I say to number the people? Yea, I it [is] who have sinned, and done great evil: and these, the flock, what did they? O Jehovah, my God, let, I pray Thee, Thy hand be on me, and on the house of my father, and not on Thy people — to be plagued.'
And David said to God, [Was it] not I [that] gave orders to number the people? and I am the guilty one; I have greatly sinned: but these sheep, what have they done? O Lord God, let your hand be upon me, and upon my father's house, and not on your people for destruction, O Lord!
18 And the messenger of Jehovah spake unto Gad, saying for David, 'Surely David doth go up to raise an altar to Jehovah in the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite.'
And the angel of the Lord told Gad to tell David, that he should go up to erect and altar to the Lord, in the threshing floor of Orna the Jebusite.
19 And David goeth up by the word of Gad, that he spake in the name of Jehovah.
And David went up according to the word of Gad, which he spoke in the name of the Lord.
20 And Ornan turneth back, and seeth the messenger, and his four sons [are] with him, hiding themselves, and Ornan is threshing wheat.
And Orna turned and saw the king; and he hid himself and his four sons with him. Now Orna was threshing wheat.
21 And David cometh in unto Ornan, and Ornan looketh attentively, and seeth David, and goeth out from the threshing-floor, and boweth himself to David — face to the earth.
And David came to Orna; and Orna came forth from the threshing floor, and did obeisance to David with his face to the ground.
22 And David saith unto Ornan, 'Give to me the place of the threshing-floor, and I build in it an altar to Jehovah; for full silver give it to me, and the plague is restrained from the people.'
And David said to Orna, Give me your place of the threshing floor, and I will build upon it an altar to the Lord: give it me for its worth in money, and the plague shall cease from [amongst] the people.
23 And Ornan saith unto David, 'Take to thee — and my lord the king doth that which is good in his eyes: see, I have given the oxen for burnt-offerings, and the threshing instruments for wood, and the wheat for a present; the whole I have given.'
And Orna said to David, Take it to yourself, and let my lord the king do what is right in his eyes: see, I have given the calves for a whole burnt offering, and the plough for wood, and the corn for a meat-offering; I have given all.
24 And king David saith to Ornan, 'Nay, for I surely buy for full silver; for I do not lift up that which is thine to Jehovah, so as to offer a burnt-offering without cost.'
And king David said to Orna, Nay; for I will surely buy it for its worth in money: for I will not take your property for the Lord, to offer a whole burnt offering to the Lord without cost [to myself].
25 And David giveth to Ornan for the place shekels of gold [in] weight six hundred;
And David gave to Orna for his place six hundred shekels of gold [by] weight.
26 and David buildeth there an altar to Jehovah, and offereth burnt-offerings and peace-offerings, and calleth unto Jehovah, and He answereth him with fire from the heavens on the altar of the burnt-offering.
And David built there an altar to the Lord, and offered up whole burnt offerings and peace-offerings: and he cried to the Lord, and he answered him by fire out of heaven on the altar of whole burnt offerings, and [it] consumed the whole burnt offering.
27 And Jehovah saith to the messenger, and he turneth back his sword unto its sheath.
And the Lord spoke to the angel; and he put up the sword into its sheath.
28 At that time when David seeth that Jehovah hath answered him in the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite, then he sacrificeth there;
At that time when David saw that the Lord answered him in the threshing floor of Orna the Jebusite, he also sacrificed there.
29 and the tabernacle of Jehovah that Moses made in the wilderness, and the altar of the burnt-offering, [are] at that time in a high place, in Gibeon;
And the tabernacle of the Lord which Moses made in the wilderness, and the altar of whole burnt offerings, [were] at that time in the high place at Gabaon.
30 and David is not able to go before it to seek God, for he hath been afraid because of the sword of the messenger of Jehovah.
And David could not go before it to enquire of God; for he hasted not because of the sword of the angel of the Lord.
