1 Chronicles 21:2-13 –
So David said to Joab and the
commanders of the army, “Go, number Israel, from Beersheba to Dan, and bring me
a report, that I may know their number.” But Joab said, “May the Lord add to his people a hundred times as many
as they are! Are they not, my lord the king, all of them my lord's servants?
Why then should my lord require this? Why should it be a cause of guilt for
Israel?” But the king's word prevailed against Joab. So Joab departed
and went throughout all Israel and came back to Jerusalem. And Joab gave the sum of
the numbering of the people to David. In all Israel there were 1,100,000 men who drew the sword, and in
Judah 470,000 who drew the sword. But he did not include
Levi and Benjamin in the numbering, for the king's command was abhorrent to
Joab. But God was displeased with this thing, and he struck Israel. And David said to God, “I
have sinned greatly in that I have done this thing. But now, please take away the iniquity of your servant,
for I have acted very foolishly.” And the Lord spoke to Gad, David's seer, saying, “Go and say to David,
‘Thus says the Lord, Three things I offer you; choose one of
them, that I may do it to you.’” So Gad came to David and
said to him, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Choose what you will: either three years of famine, or three months of
devastation by your foes while the sword of your enemies overtakes you, or else
three days of the sword of the Lord, pestilence on the land, with the angel
of the Lord destroying throughout all the territory of
Israel.’ Now decide what answer I shall return to him who sent me.” Then David said to Gad, “I
am in great distress. Let me fall into the hand of the Lord, for his mercy is very great, but do not
let me fall into the hand of man.”
Psalm
6:4 – Turn, O Lord, deliver my life; save me for the sake of your
steadfast love.
Application:
- · Appeal to God’s “love, kindness, mercy” is frequent in the Old Testament since it summarizes all that the Lord covenanted to show to Israel as well as to David and his dynasty.
All Scripture verses taken from ESV
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