David Numbers Israel and Judah

24¹ Again the anger of the Lord was aroused against Israel, and He moved David against them to say, "Go, number Israel and Judah." ² So the king said to Joab the commander of the army who was with him, "Now go throughout all the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, and count the people, that I may know the number of the people." ³ And Joab said to the king, "Now may the Lord your God add to the people a hundred times more than there are, and may the eyes of my lord the king see it. But why does my lord the king desire this thing?" ⁴ Nevertheless the king's word prevailed against Joab and against the captains of the army. Therefore Joab and the captains of the army went out from the presence of the king to count the people of Israel. ⁵ And they crossed over the Jordan and camped in Aroer, on the right side of the town which is in the midst of the ravine of Gad, and toward Jazer. ⁶ Then they came to Gilead and to the land of Tahtim Hodshi; they came to Dan Jaan and around to Sidon; ⁷ and they came to the stronghold of Tyre and to all the cities of the Hivites and the Canaanites. Then they went out to South Judah as far as Beersheba. ⁸ So when they had gone through all the land, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days. ⁹ Then Joab gave the sum of the number of the people to the king. And there were in Israel eight hundred thousand valiant men who drew the sword, and the men of Judah were five hundred thousand men.

¹⁰ And David's heart condemned him after he had numbered the people. So David said to the Lord, "I have sinned greatly in what I have done; but now, I pray, O Lord, take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have done very foolishly." ¹¹ Now when David arose in the morning, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Gad, David's seer, saying, ¹² "Go and tell David, 'Thus says the Lord: "I offer you three things; choose one of them for yourself, that I may do it to you." ' " ¹³ So Gad came to David and told him; and 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' plague in your land? Now consider and see what answer I should take back to Him who sent me." ¹⁴ And David said to Gad, "I am in great distress. Please let us fall into the hand of the Lord, for His mercies are great; but do not let me fall into the hand of man." ¹⁵ So the Lord sent a plague upon Israel from the morning till the appointed time. From Dan to Beersheba seventy thousand men of the people died. ¹⁶ And when the angel stretched out His hand over Jerusalem to destroy it, the Lord relented from the destruction, and said to the angel who was destroying the people, "It is enough; now restrain your hand." And the angel of the Lord was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. ¹⁷ Then David spoke to the Lord when he saw the angel who was striking the people, and said, "Surely I have sinned, and I have done wickedly; but these sheep, what have they done? Let Your hand, I pray, be against me and against my father's house."

¹⁸ And Gad came that day to David and said to him, "Go up, erect an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite." ¹⁹ So David, according to the word of Gad, went up as the Lord commanded. ²⁰ Now Araunah looked, and saw the king and his servants coming toward him. So Araunah went out and bowed before the king with his face to the ground. ²¹ Then Araunah 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, that the plague may be withdrawn from the people." ²² Now Araunah said to David, "Let my lord the king take and offer up whatever seems good to him. Look, here are oxen for burnt sacrifice, and threshing implements and the yokes of the oxen for wood. ²³ All these, O king, Araunah has given to the king." And Araunah said to the king, "May the Lord your God accept you." ²⁴ Then the king said to Araunah, "No, but I will surely buy it from you for a price; nor will I offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God with that which costs me nothing." So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. ²⁵ And David built there an altar to the Lord, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. So the Lord heeded the prayers for the land, and the plague was withdrawn from Israel.

David Numbers Israel and Judah

21¹ Now Satan stood up against Israel, and moved David to number Israel. ² So David said to Joab and to the leaders of the people, "Go, number Israel from Beersheba to Dan, and bring the number of them to me that I may know it." ³ And Joab answered, "May the Lord make His people a hundred times more than they are. But, my lord the king, are they not all my lord's servants? Why then does my lord require this thing? Why should he be a cause of guilt in Israel?" ⁴ Nevertheless the king's word prevailed against Joab. Therefore Joab departed and went throughout all Israel and came to Jerusalem. ⁵ Then Joab gave the sum of the number of the people to David. All Israel had one million one hundred thousand men who drew the sword, and Judah had four hundred and seventy thousand men who drew the sword. ⁶ But he did not count Levi and Benjamin among them, for the king's word was abominable to Joab.

⁷ And God was displeased with this thing; therefore He struck Israel. ⁸ So David said to God, "I have sinned greatly, because I have done this thing; but now, I pray, take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have done very foolishly." ⁹ And the Lord spoke to Gad, David's seer, saying, ¹⁰ "Go and tell David, saying, 'Thus says the Lord: "I offer you three things; choose one of them for yourself, that I may do it to you." ' " ¹¹ So Gad came to David and said to him, "Thus says the Lord: 'Choose for yourself, ¹² either three years of famine, or three months to be defeated by your foes with the sword of your enemies overtaking you, or else for three days the sword of the Lord--the plague in the land, with the angel of the Lord destroying throughout all the territory of Israel.' Now consider what answer I should take back to Him who sent me." ¹³ And David said to Gad, "I am in great distress. Please let me fall into the hand of the Lord, for His mercies are very great; but do not let me fall into the hand of man." ¹⁴ So the Lord sent a plague upon Israel, and seventy thousand men of Israel fell. ¹⁵ And God sent an angel to Jerusalem to destroy it. As he was destroying, the Lord looked and relented of the disaster, and said to the angel who was destroying, "It is enough; now restrain your hand." And the angel of the Lord stood by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. ¹⁶ Then David lifted his eyes and saw the angel of the Lord standing between earth and heaven, having in his hand a drawn sword stretched out over Jerusalem. So David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell on their faces. ¹⁷ And David said to God, "Was it not I who commanded the people to be numbered? I am the one who has sinned and done evil indeed; but these sheep, what have they done? Let Your hand, I pray, O Lord my God, be against me and my father's house, but not against Your people that they should be plagued."

¹⁸ Therefore, the angel of the Lord commanded Gad to say to David that David should go and erect an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. ¹⁹ So David went up at the word of Gad, which he had spoken in the name of the Lord. ²⁰ Now Ornan turned and saw the angel; and his four sons who were with him hid themselves, but Ornan continued threshing wheat. ²¹ Then David came to Ornan, and Ornan looked and saw David. And he went out from the threshing floor, and bowed before David with his face to the ground. ²² Then David said to Ornan, "Grant me the place of this threshing floor, that I may build an altar on it to the Lord. You shall grant it to me at the full price, that the plague may be withdrawn from the people." ²³ And Ornan said to David, "Take it to yourself, and let my lord the king do what is good in his eyes. Look, I also give you the oxen for burnt offerings, the threshing implements for wood, and the wheat for the grain offering; I give it all." ²⁴ Then King David said to Ornan, "No, but I will surely buy it for the full price, for I will not take what is yours for the Lord, nor offer burnt offerings with that which costs me nothing." ²⁵ So David gave Ornan six hundred shekels of gold by weight for the place. ²⁶ And David built there an altar to the Lord, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings, and called on the Lord; and He answered him from heaven by fire on the altar of burnt offering. ²⁷ So the Lord commanded the angel, and he returned his sword to its sheath.

The Site for the Temple

²⁸ At that time, when David saw that the Lord had answered him on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite, he sacrificed there. ²⁹ For the tabernacle of the Lord and the altar of the burnt offering, which Moses had made in the wilderness, were at that time at the high place in Gibeon. ³⁰ But David could not go before it to inquire of God, for he was afraid of the sword of the angel of the Lord.

22¹ Then David said, "This is the house of the Lord God, and this is the altar of burnt offering for Israel."

David's Preparation for the Temple

² So David commanded to gather the aliens who were in the land of Israel; and he appointed masons to cut hewn stones to build the house of God. ³ And David prepared iron in abundance for the nails of the doors of the gates and for the joints, and bronze in abundance beyond measure, ⁴ and cedar trees in abundance; for the Sidonians and those from Tyre brought much cedar wood to David. ⁵ Now David said, "Solomon my son is young and inexperienced, and the house to be built for the Lord must be exceedingly magnificent, famous and glorious throughout all countries. I will now make preparation for it." So David made abundant preparations before his death.

⁶ Then he called for his son Solomon, and charged him to build a house for the Lord God of Israel. ⁷ And David said to Solomon: "My son, as for me, it was in my mind to build a house to the name of the Lord my God; ⁸ but the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 'You have shed much blood and have made great wars; you shall not build a house for My name, because you have shed much blood on the earth in My sight. ⁹ Behold, a son shall be born to you, who shall be a man of rest; and I will give him rest from all his enemies all around. His name shall be Solomon, for I will give peace and quietness to Israel in his days. ¹⁰ He shall build a house for My name, and he shall be My son, and I will be his Father; and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel forever.' ¹¹ Now, my son, may the Lord be with you; and may you prosper, and build the house of the Lord your God, as He has said to you. ¹² Only may the Lord give you wisdom and understanding, and give you charge concerning Israel, that you may keep the law of the Lord your God. ¹³ Then you will prosper, if you take care to fulfill the statutes and judgments with which the Lord charged Moses concerning Israel. Be strong and of good courage; do not fear nor be dismayed. ¹⁴ Indeed I have taken much trouble to prepare for the house of the Lord one hundred thousand talents of gold and one million talents of silver, and bronze and iron beyond measure, for it is so abundant. I have prepared timber and stone also, and you may add to them. ¹⁵ Moreover there are workmen with you in abundance: woodsmen and stonecutters, and all types of skillful men for every kind of work. ¹⁶ Of gold and silver and bronze and iron there is no limit. Arise and begin working, and the Lord be with you."

¹⁷ David also commanded all the leaders of Israel to help Solomon his son, saying, ¹⁸ "Is not the Lord your God with you? And has He not given you rest on every side? For He has given the inhabitants of the land into my hand, and the land is subdued before the Lord and before His people. ¹⁹ Now set your heart and your soul to seek the Lord your God. Therefore arise and build the sanctuary of the Lord God, to bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord and the holy articles of God into the house that is to be built for the name of the Lord."

Thanksgiving for Deliverance from Death

30¹ A Psalm. A Song at the dedication of the house of David. I will extol You, O Lord, for You have lifted me up, And have not let my foes rejoice over me. ² O Lord my God, I cried out to You, And You healed me. ³ O Lord, You brought my soul up from the grave; You have kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit. ⁴ Sing praise to the Lord, You saints of His, And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name. ⁵ For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; Weeping may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning.

⁶ Now in my prosperity I said, "I shall never be moved." ⁷ Lord, by Your favor You have made my mountain stand strong; You hid Your face, and I was troubled. ⁸ I cried out to You, O Lord; And to the Lord I made supplication: ⁹ "What profit is there in my blood, When I go down to the pit? Will the dust praise You? Will it declare Your truth? ¹⁰ Hear, O Lord, and have mercy on me; Lord, be my helper!" ¹¹ You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, ¹² To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever.