1 Chronicles 21
1 And Satan stood up against Israel, and moved David to number Israel.
An adversary arose against Israel and incited David to count Israel.
2 And David said to Joab and to the princes of the people, Go, number Israel from Beersheba even to Dan, and bring me word that I may know the sum of them.
David said to Joab and to the commanders of the army, “Go, count the people of Israel from Beersheba to Dan and report back to me, that I may know their number.”
3 And Joab said, Jehovah make his people a hundred times as many as they are. But, my lord the king, are they not all my lord's servants? Why does my lord require this thing? Why will he be a cause of guilt to Israel?
Joab said, “May Yahweh make his army a hundred times greater than it is. But my master the king, do they not all serve my master? Why does my master want this? Why bring guilt on Israel?”
4 Nevertheless the king's word prevailed against Joab. Therefore Joab departed, and went throughout all Israel, and came to Jerusalem.
But the king's word was enforced against Joab. So Joab left and went throughout all Israel. Then he came back to Jerusalem.
5 And Joab gave up the sum of the numbering of the people to David. And all those of Israel were a million and a hundred thousand men who drew a sword. And Judah was four hundred seventy thousand men who drew a sword.
Then Joab reported the total of the count of the fighting men to David. There were in Israel 1,100,000 men who drew the sword. Judah alone had 470,000 soldiers.
6 But he did not count Levi and Benjamin among them, for the king's word was abominable to Joab.
But Levi and Benjamin were not counted among them, for the king's command had disgusted Joab.
7 And God was displeased with this thing, therefore he smote Israel.
God was offended by this action, so he attacked Israel.
8 And David said to God, I have sinned greatly, in that I have done this thing. But now, put away, I beseech thee, the iniquity of thy servant, for I have done very foolishly.
David said to God, “I have greatly sinned by doing this. Now take away your servant's guilt, for I have acted very foolishly.”
9 And Jehovah spoke to Gad, David's seer, saying,
Yahweh told Gad, David's prophet,
10 Go and speak to David, saying, Thus says Jehovah, I offer thee three things. Choose thee one of them, that I may do it to thee.
“Go say to David, 'This is what Yahweh says: I am giving you three choices. Choose one of them.'”
11 So Gad came to David, and said to him, Thus says Jehovah, Take which thou will:
So Gad went to David and said to him, “Yahweh says this, 'Choose one of these:
12 either three years of famine, or three months to be consumed before thy foes while the sword of thine enemies overtakes thee, or else three days the sword of Jehovah, even pestilence in the land, and the agent of Jehovah destroying throughout all the borders of Israel. Now therefore consider what answer I shall return to him who sent me.
either three years of famine, three months being pursued by your enemies and being caught by their swords, or else three days of Yahweh's sword, that is, a plague in the land, with the angel of Yahweh destroying throughout all the land of Israel.' Now then, decide what answer I should take to the one who sent me.”
13 And David said to Gad, I am in a great strait. Let me fall, I pray, into the hand of Jehovah, for his mercies are very great, and let me not fall into the hand of man.
Then David said to Gad, “I am in great distress! Let me fall into the hand of Yahweh rather than into the hand of man, for his merciful actions are very great.”
14 So Jehovah sent a pestilence upon Israel, and there fell of Israel seventy thousand men.
So Yahweh sent a plague on Israel, and seventy thousand people died.
15 And God sent an agent to Jerusalem to destroy it. And as he was about to destroy, Jehovah beheld, and he relented of the evil, and said to the destroying agent, It is enough. Now halt thy hand. And the agent of Jehovah was standing by the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
God sent an angel to Jerusalem to destroy it. As he was about to destroy it, Yahweh watched and changed his mind about the harm. He said to the destroying angel, “Enough! Now draw back your hand.” At that time the angel of Yahweh was standing at the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
16 And David lifted up his eyes, and saw the agent of Jehovah standing between earth and heaven, having a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell upon their faces.
David looked up and saw the angel of Yahweh standing between earth and heaven, having a drawn sword in his hand raised over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, lay facedown on the ground.
17 And David said to God, Is it not I who commanded the people to be numbered? Even I it is who have sinned and done very badly. But these sheep, what have they done? Let thy hand, I pray thee, O Jehovah my God, be against me, and against my father's house, but not against thy people, that they should be plagued.
David said to God, “Is it not I that commanded that the army be numbered? I did this wicked thing. But these sheep, what have they done? Yahweh my God! Let your hand strike me and my family, but do not let the plague remain on your people.”
18 Then the agent of Jehovah commanded Gad to say to David that David should go up, and rear an altar to Jehovah in the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
So the angel of Yahweh commanded Gad to say to David, that David should go up and build an altar for Yahweh at the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
19 And David went up at the saying of Gad, which he spoke in the name of Jehovah.
So David went up as Gad instructed him to do in the name of Yahweh.
20 And Ornan turned back, and saw the agent, and his four sons who were with him hid themselves. Now Ornan was threshing wheat.
While Ornan was threshing wheat, he turned and saw the angel. He and his four sons with him hid themselves.
21 And as David came to Ornan, Ornan looked and saw David, and went out of the threshing-floor, and bowed himself to David with his face to the ground.
When David came to Ornan, Ornan looked and saw David. He left the threshing floor and bowed to David with his face to the ground.
22 Then David said to Ornan, Give me the place of this threshing-floor, that I may build thereon an altar to Jehovah. For the full price thou shall give it me, that the plague may be stopped from the people.
Then David said to Ornan, “Sell me this threshing floor, so I can build an altar for Yahweh. I will pay the full price, so that the plague may be removed from the people.”
23 And Ornan said to David, Take it to thee, and let my lord the king do that which is good in his eyes. Lo, I give thee the oxen for burnt offerings, and the threshing instruments for wood, and the wheat for the meal offering. I give it all.
Ornan said to David, “Take it as your own, my master the king. Do with it what is good in your sight. Look, I will give you oxen for burnt offerings, threshing sledges for wood, and wheat for the grain offering; I will give it all to you.”
24 And king David said to Ornan, No, but I will truly buy it for the full price. For I will not take that which is thine for Jehovah, nor offer a burnt offering without cost.
King David said to Ornan, “No, I insist on buying it for the full price. I will not take what is yours and offer it as a burnt offering to Yahweh if it costs me nothing.”
25 So David gave to Ornan for the place six hundred shekels of gold by weight.
So David paid six hundred shekels of gold for the place.
26 And David built there an altar to Jehovah, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings, and called upon Jehovah. And he answered him from heaven by fire upon the altar of burnt offering.
David built an altar for Yahweh there and offered on it burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. He called on Yahweh, who answered him with fire from heaven on the altar for burnt offerings.
27 And Jehovah commanded the agent, and he put up his sword again into the sheath of it.
Then Yahweh gave an order to the angel, and the angel put his sword back into its sheath.
28 At that time, when David saw that Jehovah had answered him in the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite, then he sacrificed there.
When David saw that Yahweh had answered him at the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite, he performed the sacrifice there at that same time.
29 For the tabernacle of Jehovah, which Moses made in the wilderness, and the altar of burnt offering, were at that time in the high place at Gibeon.
Now at that time, Yahweh's tabernacle, which Moses had made in the wilderness, and the altar for burnt offerings, were at the high place at Gibeon.
30 But David could not go before it to inquire of God, for he was afraid because of the sword of the agent of Jehovah.
However, David could not go there to ask for God's direction, because he was afraid of the sword of the angel of Yahweh.
