Chapter 21
1Then Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel. 2So 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.” 3But 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?” 4Nevertheless, the king’s word prevailed against Joab. So Joab departed and traveled throughout Israel, and then he returned to Jerusalem. 5And 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. 6But Joab did not include Levi and Benjamin in the count, because the king’s command was detestable to him. 7This command was also evil in the sight of God; so He struck Israel. 8Then 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.” 9And the LORD instructed Gad, David’s seer, 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.’ ” 11So Gad went and said to David, “This is what the LORD says: ‘You must choose 12between 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.” 13David 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.” 14So the LORD sent a plague upon Israel, and seventy thousand men of Israel fell dead. 15Then 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. 16When 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. 17And 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.” 18Then 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. 19So David went up at the word that Gad had spoken in the name of the LORD. 20Now Ornan was threshing wheat when he turned and saw the angel; and his four sons who were with him hid themselves. 21David came to Ornan, and when Ornan looked out and saw David, he left the threshing floor and bowed facedown before David. 22Then 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.” 23Ornan said to David, “Take it! May my lord the king do whatever seems good to him. 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.” 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.” 25So David paid Ornan six hundred shekels of gold for the site. 26And 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. 27Then the LORD spoke to the angel, who put his sword back into its sheath. 28At that time, when David saw that the LORD had answered him at the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite, he offered sacrifices there. 29For 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, 30but David could not go before it to inquire of God, because he was afraid of the sword of the angel of the LORD.
Chapter 22
1Then David said, “Here shall be the house of the LORD God, as well as the altar of burnt offering for Israel.” 2So David gave orders to gather the foreigners in the land of Israel, from whom he appointed stonecutters to prepare finished stones for building the house of God. 3David provided a large quantity of iron to make the nails for the doors of the gateways and for the fittings, together with more bronze than could be weighed 4and more cedar logs than could be counted; for the Sidonians and Tyrians had brought a large quantity of cedar logs to David. 5And David said, “My son Solomon is young and inexperienced, and the house to be built for the LORD must be exceedingly magnificent—famous and glorious throughout all lands. Therefore I must make preparations for it.” So David made lavish preparations before his death. 6Then David called for his son Solomon and instructed him to build a house for the LORD, the God of Israel. 7“My son,” said David to Solomon, “it was in my heart to build a house for the Name of the LORD my God, 8but this word of the LORD came to me: ‘You have shed much blood and waged great wars. You are not to build a house for My Name because you have shed so much blood on the ground before Me. 9But a son will be born to you who will be a man of rest. I will give him rest from all his enemies on every side; for his name will be Solomon, and I will grant to Israel peace and quiet during his reign. 10He is the one who will build a house for My Name. He will be My son, and I will be his Father. And I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel forever.’ 11Now, my son, may the LORD be with you, and may you succeed in building the house of the LORD your God, as He said you would. 12Above all, may the LORD give you insight and understanding when He puts you in command over Israel, so that you may keep the Law of the LORD your God. 13Then you will succeed, if you carefully follow the statutes and ordinances that the LORD commanded Moses for Israel. Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged. 14Now behold, I have taken great pains to provide for the house of the LORD—100,000 talents of gold, 1,000,000 talents of silver, and bronze and iron too great to be weighed. I have also provided timber and stone, and you may add to them. 15You also have many workers: stonecutters, masons, carpenters, and men skilled in every kind of work— 16in gold and silver, bronze and iron—craftsmen beyond number. Now begin the work, and may the LORD be with you.” 17Then David ordered all the leaders of Israel to help his son Solomon: 18“Is not the LORD your God with you, and has He not granted you rest on every side? For He has given the inhabitants of the land into my hand, and the land has been subdued before the LORD and His people. 19Now set your heart and soul to seek the LORD your God. Begin building the sanctuary of the LORD God, so that you may bring the ark of the covenant of the LORD and the holy articles of God into the temple that will be built for the Name of the LORD.”