2 Samuel 24

1 Again the anger of Jehovah was kindled against Israel, and he moved David against them, saying, "Go, number Israel and Judah."

Yahweh was angry with the Israeli people again, so he incited David to cause trouble for them. He said to David, “Send [some men] to count the people of Israel and Judah.”

2 The king said to Joab and the captains of the army, who were with him, "Now go back and forth through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan even to Beersheba, and number the people, that I may know the sum of the people."

So the king said to Joab, the commander of his army, “Go [with your officers] through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan [city in the far north] to Beersheba [town in the far south], and count the people, in order that I may know how many people [there are who are able to be soldiers in the army].”

3 Joab said to the king, "Now may Jehovah your God add to the people, however many they may be, one hundred times; and may the eyes of my lord the king see it. But why does my lord the king delight in this thing?"

But Joab replied to the king, “Your Majesty, I wish/desire that Yahweh our God will cause there to be 100 times as many people [in Israel] as there are now, and I wish/desire that you would see that happen [before you die]. But why do you want us to do this?”

4 Notwithstanding, the king's word prevailed against Joab, and against the captains of the army. Joab and the captains of the army went out from the presence of the king, to number the children of Israel.

But the king commanded Joab and his officers to do it. So they left the king and went out to count the people of Israel.

5 They crossed over the Jordan and began at Aroer, and from the city that is in the middle of the valley of Gad; then on to Jazer.

They crossed the Jordan [River] and set up their tents south of Aroer [town], in the middle of the valley, in the territory [that was given to the tribe] of Gad. From there they went [north] to Jazer [city]

6 Then they came to Gilead, and to the region of the Hethites, to Kedesh; and they came to Dan, and around to Sidon,

Then they went [north] to [the] Gilead [region] and to Kadesh [city], in the land where the Heth people-group lived. Then they went to Dan [city in the far north of Israel], and then further west, to Sidon [city near the Mediterranean Sea].

7 and came to the stronghold of Tyre, and to all the cities of the Hivites, and of the Canaanites; and they went out to the south of Judah, at Beersheba.

Then they went [south] to Tyre, a city with high walls around it, and to all the cities where the Hiv and Canaan people-groups live. Then they went [east] to Beersheba, in the southern part of Judah.

8 So when they had gone back and forth through all the land, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days.

After nine months and 20 days, when they had finished going throughout the land [and counting the people], they returned to Jerusalem.

9 Joab gave up the sum of the numbering 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.

They reported to the king the number of people that they had counted. There were 800,000 men in Israel and 500,000 men in Judah who were able to become soldiers in the army [MTY].

10 David's heart struck him after that he had numbered the people. David said to Jehovah, "I have sinned greatly in that which I have done. But now, Jehovah, put away, I beg you, the iniquity of your servant; for I have done very foolishly."

But after David’s men had counted the people, David regretted [IDM] that he had told them to do that. [One night] he said to Yahweh, “I have committed a very big sin. Please forgive me, because what I have done is very foolish.”

11 When David rose up in the morning, the word of Jehovah came to the prophet Gad, David's seer, saying,

When David got up the next morning, Yahweh gave a message to the prophet Gad. He said to him,

12 "Go and speak to David, 'Thus says Jehovah, "I offer you three things. Choose one of them, that I may do it to you."'"

“Go and tell this to David: ‘I am allowing you to choose one of three things [to punish you]. I will do whichever one you choose.’”

13 So Gad came to David, and told him, and said to him, "Shall three years of famine come to you in your land? Or will you flee three months before your foes while they pursue you? Or shall there be three days' pestilence in your land? Now answer, and consider what answer I shall return to him who sent me."

So Gad went to David and told him [what Yahweh had said]. He said to David, “You can choose whether there will be three years of famine in your land, or three months of your [army] running away from your enemies, or three days when there will be a (plague/very severe illness) in your land. You think about it and choose [which one you want, and tell me], and I will return to Yahweh and tell him what your answer is.”

14 David said to Gad, "I am in distress. Let me fall now into the hand of Jehovah; for his mercies are great. Let me not fall into the hand of man."

David said to Gad, “All those are very terrible things for me to choose between! But allow Yahweh to punish [MTY] me, because he is very merciful. Do not allow humans to punish me, [because they will not be merciful].”

15 So Jehovah sent a pestilence on Israel from the morning even to the appointed time; and the destruction began among the people. And there died of the people from Dan even to Beersheba seventy thousand men.

So Yahweh sent a plague on the Israeli people. It started that morning and did not stop until the time that he had chosen/set. All over the land, from Dan to Beersheba, there were 70,000 Israelis who died [because of the plague].

16 When the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, Jehovah relented of the disaster, and said to the angel who destroyed the people, "It is enough. Now stay your hand." The angel of Jehovah was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. And David lifted up his eyes and saw the angel of Jehovah standing between earth and the sky, having a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell down on their faces.

When [Yahweh’s] angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy [the people by this plague], Yahweh changed his mind about punishing [any more] people. He said to the angel who was killing them [with the plague], “Stop what you are doing [IDM]! That is enough!” [When he said that, ] the angel was standing at the ground where Araunah, from the Jebus people-group, threshed grain.

17 David spoke to Jehovah when he saw the angel who struck the people, and said, "Look, I have sinned, and I, the shepherd, have done great evil. But these sheep, what have they done? Please let your hand be against me, and against my father's house."

When David saw the angel who was causing the people to become sick and die, he said to Yahweh, “Truly, I am the one who has committed the sin. I have done a very wicked thing, but these people are [as innocent as] sheep [MET]. They have certainly not [RHQ] done anything [that is wrong]. So you should punish [IDM] me and my family, [not these people]!”

18 Gad came that day to David, and said to him, "Go up, build an altar to Jehovah on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite."

That day Gad came to David and said to him, “Go up to the place where Araunah threshes grain, and build an altar to [worship] Yahweh there.”

19 David went up according to the saying of Gad, as Jehovah commanded.

So David did what Gad told him to do, which was what Yahweh had commanded, [and he went up there].

20 And Araunah looked out and saw the king and his servants coming on toward him, so Araunah went out and bowed himself before the king with his face to the ground.

When Araunah looked down and saw the king and his officials coming toward him, he prostrated himself on the ground in front of the king, with his face touching the ground.

21 And Araunah said, "Why has my lord the king come to his servant?" David said, "To buy your threshing floor, to build an altar to Jehovah, that the plague may be stopped from afflicting the people."

Araunah said, “Your Majesty, why have you come to me?” David replied, “[I have come] to buy this ground where you thresh grain, in order to build an altar to Yahweh [and offer sacrifices on it], in order that he will stop the plague.”

22 Araunah said to David, "Let my lord the king take and offer up what seems good to him. Look, the cattle for the burnt offering, and the threshing instruments and the yokes of the oxen for the wood."

Araunah replied to David, “Your Majesty, offer to Yahweh whatever you wish/want. Here, take my oxen to use for the offering that will be completely burned on the altar. And here, take their yokes and the boards [that I use] for the threshing, [and use them] for the wood that you will burn.

23 All these Araunah gave to the king." And Araunah said to the king, "May Jehovah your God accept you."

I, Araunah, am giving all this to you, the king.” Then he said, “I desire/hope that Yahweh our God will accept your offering.”

24 The king said to Araunah, "No; but I will most certainly buy it from you for a price. I will not offer burnt offerings to Jehovah my God which cost me nothing." So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.

But the king said to Araunah, “No, [I will not take these things as a gift.] I will pay you for it. I will not take sacrifices that have cost me nothing, and offer them to Yahweh to be completely burned on the altar.” So he paid 50 pieces of silver to Araunah for the oxen and the ground.

25 David built an altar to Jehovah there, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. So Jehovah responded to the plea for the land, and the plague was stayed from Israel.

Then David built an altar to Yahweh, and he offered [the oxen] to be completely burned on the altar, and he also offered sacrifices to maintain fellowship with Yahweh. Then, Yahweh answered David’s prayers, and he caused the plague in Israel to end.