I Chronicles 21, An Evil Census

David has triumphed everywhere, greatly extending the domain of Israel, pushing back Canaanites who have persisted in the land since the time of Joshua. As this chapter opens, the date is probably about 975 BC; David has reigned in Israel for thirty years or more. His kingdom has endured his acts of adultery and murder, the accompanying scandals of the palace, and the rebellion of his son Absalom. That material is covered in 2 Samuel 13-23 but skipped by the Chronicler, who focuses on the promises of the Davidic dynasty. But the Chronicler will describe one scandal:

1 Chronicles 21: 1-6, David's census sin

Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel. So David said to Joab and the commanders of the troops, "Go and count the Israelites from Beersheba to Dan. Then report back to me so that I may know how many there are."

But Joab replied, "May the LORD multiply his troops a hundred times over. My lord the king, are they not all my lord's subjects? Why does my lord want to do this? Why should he bring guilt on Israel?"

The king's word, however, overruled Joab; so Joab left and went throughout Israel and then came back to Jerusalem. Joab reported the number of the fighting men to David: In all Israel there were one million one hundred thousand men who could handle a sword, including four hundred and seventy thousand in Judah. But Joab did not include Levi and Benjamin in the numbering, because the king's command was repulsive to him.
 

David, late in his reign, is convinced by "Adversary" (Hebrew: Satan) to conduct a census.  This is apparently a great sin; even Joab recognizes this.

Commentators suggest that the census is a sign of arrogance and pride; David wants to place his power in the size of his army. This website at GotQuestions.org claims that Exodus 30: 11-12 indicates that a census was to occur only when YHWH initiated it and we see in the Exodus passage that a plague is described as punishment for doing it improperly.

A parallel passage 2 Samuel 24: 1 is not clear on how David was "incited", to take the census as there the critical verb, way-ya-set, apparently means "he/it incited" and most translations interpret the pronoun to be God. (I add a comment or two on this in my blogpost on 2 Samuel 24.) The eventual result of this census and the ensuing plague is the identification of the location of the future temple and this is apparently the reason for the Chronicler including this scandal in his report.

Payne says that the 1,100,000 fighting men could also be 1100 fighting groups.

1 Chronicles 21: 7-12, Choose the punishment

This command was also evil in the sight of God; so he punished Israel.

Then David said to God, "I have sinned greatly by doing this. Now, I beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing."

The LORD said to Gad, David's seer, "Go and tell David, `This is what the LORD says: I am giving you three options. Choose one of them for me to carry out against you.'"

So Gad went to David and said to him, "This is what the LORD says: `Take your choice: three years of famine, three months of being swept away before your enemies, with their swords overtaking you, or three days of the sword of the LORD--days of plague in the land, with the angel of the LORD ravaging every part of Israel.' Now then, decide how I should answer the one who sent me."

David is told to choose between three options. Each option itself uses the number three: three years of famine, three months of enemy invasion, three days of plague.

1 Chronicles 21: 13-15a, Three day plague

David said to Gad, "I am in deep distress. Let me fall into the hands of the LORD, for his mercy is very great; but do not let me fall into the hands of men."

So the LORD sent a plague on Israel, and seventy thousand men of Israel fell dead. And God sent an angel to destroy Jerusalem. But as the angel was doing so, the LORD saw it and was grieved because of the calamity and said to the angel who was destroying the people, "Enough! Withdraw your hand." 

 

David, who has spent so much effort on pushing out invaders, does not want the second choice. He then chooses that last one, a plague of three day duration. This is about to culminate in the destruction of Jerusalem (by a supernatural being) when YHWH says, "Enough!" The angel stops -- and the Chronicler will want us to note that location.

Sidenote: some commentators have suggested that the plague was a natural result of Joab and his men moving throughout the population of Israel, intermingling in close contact with thousands of people. But that idea does not describe the plague culminating in three days!

As we have seen previously, the number "thousand" is Hebrew eleph which could be translated something like "chiefs" or "clans."

1 Chronicles 21: 15b-19, The threshing floor of Araunah

The angel of the LORD was then standing at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.

David looked up and saw the angel of the LORD standing between heaven and earth, with a drawn sword in his hand extended over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell facedown.

David said to God, "Was it not I who ordered the fighting men to be counted? I am the one who has sinned and done wrong. These are but sheep. What have they done? O LORD my God, let your hand fall upon me and my family, but do not let this plague remain on your people."

Then 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 Araunah the Jebusite. So David went up in obedience to the word that Gad had spoken in the name of the LORD.

When YHWH says, "Stop!", the angel is "standing between heaven and earth", with sword pointing at Jerusalem. This supernatural being is suddenly visible to David and the elders and they fall down before him. Speaking through the prophet Gad, David is told to build an altar on the threshing floor above which the angel stands.

1 Chronicles 21: 20-25, David purchases the site

While Araunah was threshing wheat, he turned and saw the angel; his four sons who were with him hid themselves. Then David approached, and when Araunah looked and saw him, he left the threshing floor and bowed down before David with his face to the ground.

David said to him, "Let me have the site of your threshing floor so I can build an altar to the LORD, that the plague on the people may be stopped. Sell it to me at the full price."

Araunah said to David, "Take it! Let my lord the king do whatever pleases 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 all this."

But King David replied to Araunah, "No, I insist on paying the full price. I will not take for the LORD what is yours, or sacrifice a burnt offering that costs me nothing." So David paid Araunah six hundred shekels of gold for the site.
 

David, aware that he must build an altar on the threshing floor of Araunah, offers to buy that property. In typical ancient Near Eastern customs, Araunah says, "No, I will give it to you" to which David responds, "No, I insist -- I will pay full price." (We see a similar negotiation in Abraham's purchase of a burial plot for Sarah in Genesis 23.)

1 Chronicles 21: 26-30, A sacrifice

David built an altar to the LORD there and sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. He called on the LORD, and the LORD answered him with fire from heaven on the altar of burnt offering. Then the LORD spoke to the angel, and he put his sword back into its sheath.

At that time, when David saw that the LORD had answered him on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite, he offered sacrifices there.

The tabernacle of the LORD, which Moses had made in the desert, and the altar of burnt offering were at that time on the high place at Gibeon. But David could not go before it to inquire of God, because he was afraid of the sword of the angel of the LORD.

The plague ends with David making a sacrifice on the new altar. Meanwhile, our narrator notes, the ark is still back at Gibeon.