1 Chronicles 21:1-30

The Book of 1 Chronicles

God rules History

1 Chronicles

Ian Mackervoy

Chapter 21

David prepares for the construction of the *temple – 1 Chronicles 21:1-29

David’s *sin and God’s goodness – 1 Chronicles 21:1-30

David counts the people – 1 Chronicles 21:1-30

v1 *Satan acted against *Israel, and he persuaded David to count the *Israelites. v2 So, David spoke to Joab and the leaders of the army. ‘Go and count all the *Israelites from Beersheba to Dan. Then report to me. Then I will know how many there are.’

v3 But Joab said, ‘The people in this nation are the *LORD’s. He can increase their numbers 100 times. My *lord and king, the *Israelites are all your servants. You should not want to do this, my *lord. You will make *Israel guilty of *sin.’

v4 But the king still ordered Joab to go. So, Joab left and he went through all *Israel. Then he returned to Jerusalem. v5 Joab gave to David the total count of the people. There were 1 100 000 men in all *Israel who could use a sword. And there were 470 000 men in Judah who could use a sword.

v6 But Joab did not count the *tribes of Levi and Benjamin. He did not include these because the king’s order disgusted him. v7 God was angry at this count and so he punished *Israel.

v8 Then David spoke to God. ‘I have *sinned greatly by what I have done. Now, please forgive me, your servant, because I have been very foolish.’

v9 The *LORD spoke to David’s *prophet, who was called Gad. v10 ‘Go and say this to David. “This is what the *LORD says to you. I offer you three choices. Choose one of them and I will do it to you.” ’

v11 So, Gad went to David and spoke to him. ‘This is what the *LORD says to you. “Make your choice. v12 You can choose three years in which people will starve. Or you can choose three months in which you will have to run away from your enemies. They will chase you and they will attack you with their swords. Or you can choose three days of punishment from the *LORD’s sword. That means that terrible disease will spread through the country. The *angel of the *LORD will go through *Israel and he will kill many people.” Now tell me what you have decided. I must give an answer to the *LORD, because he sent me to you.’

v13 David said to Gad, ‘I am in great trouble. Let the *LORD punish me, because the *LORD is very kind. Do not let people punish me.’

v14 So, the *LORD sent a terrible disease into *Israel. And 70 000 *Israelites died. v15 God sent an *angel to destroy Jerusalem. But as the *angel was doing so, the *LORD saw it. He was very sorry because of the *disaster. He spoke to the *angel who was destroying it. ‘Stop, that is enough.’ The *angel of the *LORD stopped. He was standing at the yard where Araunah the *Jebusite used to prepare his grain.

v16 David looked up and he saw the *angel of the *LORD. The *angel was standing in the sky, between heaven and earth. The *angel held his sword in his hand. He reached out with the sword over Jerusalem. Then David and the leaders fell with their faces to the ground. They wore rough clothes to show that they were sorry.

v17 David said to God, ‘I gave the order to count the people. I have *sinned and I have been very wicked. These people followed me like sheep and they did nothing wrong. *LORD my God, punish me and punish my family. But please stop the terrible disease that is killing your people.’

v18 Then the *angel of the *LORD told Gad to speak to David. He had to tell David to build an *altar to the *LORD. David had to go up to the yard where Araunah the *Jebusite used to prepare his grain. David had to build the *altar there. v19 So, David obeyed what the *LORD had said. And he did what Gad told him to do.

v20 While Araunah was preparing his wheat, he turned round. And he saw the *angel. His 4 sons who were with him hid themselves. v21 Then David came. As soon as Araunah saw him, he left the yard. And he came and he fell down with his face to the ground in front of David.

v22 David said to him, ‘Sell me the yard where you prepare your grain. I will build there an *altar to the *LORD. Then the disease will stop and people will not die. Sell it to me at the proper price.’

v23 Araunah said to David, ‘Take it. Let my *lord the king do what seems good to him. I will also give you *oxen for the *sacrifices by fire. Take the boards that I use to prepare the grain. Use them as wood for the fire. Use the wheat for the grain *sacrifice. I give it all to you.’

v24 But King David said to Araunah, ‘No, I will pay the proper price for it all. I will not take for the *LORD what is yours. I will not give him *burnt *sacrifices that cost me nothing.’

v25 So, David paid Araunah 600 *shekels weight of gold for the place. v26 David built an *altar to the *LORD there. He made whole *sacrifices by fire and *sacrifices for peace. He prayed to the *LORD. The *LORD answered him with fire from heaven on the *altar for *burnt *sacrifices.

v27 Then the *LORD told the *angel to put his sword back into its holder. v28 At that time, David saw that the *LORD had answered him there. So, David made *sacrifices at the yard where Araunah the *Jebusite used to prepare his grain. v29 Moses made the *LORD’s tent while the *Israelites were in the desert. That tent and the *altar for *burnt *sacrifices were at the place of *worship in Gibeon. v30 But David could not go there to speak with God. He was afraid of the *angel of the *LORD’s sword.

Verses 1-3 This account of David’s life misses a period of years. During that time, there had been the problems with his son Absalom and other crises. These events are in 2 Samuel Chapter s 13 to 23. They took about 20 years. The writer of Chronicles does not record them. The reason for this is that they did not match his purpose. He wanted to encourage the *exiles as they returned from Babylon. So, he shows how God was in control of their history. The count in this chapter probably happened about 975 *BC.

*Satan hates God and all who trust in God. He was an enemy of *Israel because the *Israelites are God’s special people. He persuaded David to order this count. So, David ordered Joab to count the people from Beersheba to Dan. The phrase ‘Beersheba to Dan’ means the whole country of *Israel from the south to the north.

We do not know why David wanted to count the people. It may have been because he was proud of himself. He wanted to know the extent of his power. It could have been for practical reasons. Perhaps he wanted to know how large an army he could have in a war. Or perhaps he had a scheme to tax the people in order to get money for the government.

It was not always wrong to count the people (for example, see Numbers Chapter s 1 and 26). But God had given Moses clear instructions about such counts (Numbers 3:47-48). Foreign kings might count their people for any reason. But the *Israelites were different, because they were the *LORD’s people. So when a leader counted the *Israelites, he had to pay a price for their lives. He would do this by means of a tax that he collected from them at the same time. The leader could not keep that tax. He paid the money to the priests. They used it for the *worship of God at the *LORD’s tent (or afterwards, at the *temple). God also told Moses that the *Israelites must not count the *tribe of Levi with the soldiers. That was because they belonged to God in a special way.

However, David did not obey God’s instructions about the count. Joab knew that it was wrong to count the people at this time. He was the commander of Israel’s army. Joab was a wicked man (1 Kings 2:5-6). But even he realised that David was not trusting God. Joab protested that the *LORD could make *Israel’s army strong enough for any battle. He urged David not to begin the count. Joab knew that the result would be punishment on *Israel. The *LORD was already angry against *sin in *Israel (2 Samuel 24:1). But David did what was wrong. He counted the people and he did not pay the price for their lives. So, the *LORD punished him. And also, the people in *Israel suffered as well.

Verses 4-6 David insisted that Joab must obey his order. He told Joab to go and Joab obeyed him. He and his officers went through all *Israel. The task took them almost 10 months. Then they came and they gave to David the results of their count.

The total for all *Israel was 1 100 000 men. This number included 300 000 men who were already in the army. (The number of the soldiers in 27:1-9 is 288 000 but with other officers this would be about 300 000. In the account in 2 Samuel 24:9, the total is 800 000 men. That total does not seem to include the men who were already in the army.)

David’s orders so disgusted Joab that he did not count all the *tribes. He left out the *tribes of Levi and Benjamin. Later David ordered a count of the *tribe of Levi (23:3). Joab may have left them out because of their tasks in *Israel’s religion (Numbers 1:47). If the count were for the purpose of taxes, this would not include the *Levites. Also, they could not be soldiers. But there can be no such reason for him not to count Benjamin.

Verses 7-8 God was angry about the count and David now realised it. His conscience told him how wrong he had been. He confessed that he had *sinned. Now he knew that he had been foolish. He asked God to forgive him. But in order to *repent, it is not enough just to be sorry. A person must also turn away from *sin. David had not paid the tax for the *LORD’s tent or the *temple. He had not paid the price for the lives of his men. And he had not given *sacrifices so that God’s punishment would be against the animals instead of the people.

So although David had asked God to forgive him, David’s wrong action would still have an effect. The result was that God punished *Israel.

Verses 9-13 God spoke to a man whose name was Gad. Gad was a *prophet by means of whom God had spoken to David before. When David was hiding from Saul, Gad had advised him to go to Judah (1 Samuel 22:5). Later he helped David and Nathan to organise the *Levites for the *temple (2 Chronicles 29:25). Also he made a record of all the events that happened during the rule of David (1 Chronicles 29:29).

God chose this *prophet, Gad, to speak to David on his behalf. By this means, God gave David three choices of punishment for his *sin. David’s choices were three years, three months or three days.

The first choice was three years of hunger in *Israel. During those three years, many of the people would starve to death.

The second choice was three months of defeat for *Israel. During those three months, enemy armies would kill many *Israelites. Much of the land that David had gained in battles he would lose. The nation would suffer shame and it would lose its power in the region.

The third choice was three days of death by disease in *Israel. In these three days, the *angel of the *LORD would move through the nation. He would kill many people.

Each of these punishments would reduce the number of people in *Israel. So David’s count would not still be accurate. But David could see that it was right for God to punish *Israel.

David was still unwilling to do what God wanted him to do. God did not want to punish the *Israelites, but David had still not paid the price for their lives. The *prophet had told David about God’s judgement. But we do not yet read that David was praying for the people. And David was not offering *sacrifices for them. God forgives when there is a *sacrifice. That is because God’s judgement acts against the *sacrifice instead of the person or people.

David chose the direct punishment of the *LORD. David was wise not to trust people. They could be cruel and they would know no limits. But the *LORD is a God of sympathy. He is a God who pities his people. The *LORD would not punish more than was necessary.

*Israel could not avoid the punishment. 70 000 people died from a sudden, terrible disease.

Verse 15 The *angel began to destroy Jerusalem. People were starting to die in the city. The *angel got as far as the yard where Araunah was preparing his grain. But when the *LORD saw this, he stopped the *angel.

David was right. The *LORD is a God who has sympathy for his people. The *LORD pities his people. So, he reduced the punishment for their *sin.

Verses 16-17 David and the leaders were *repenting of their *sin. They were genuinely humble. They came to the place in rough clothes. They were sorry for what they had done. When they saw the *angel in the air, they fell down with their faces to the ground.

David spoke to God. Again, he confessed his *sin. This time, he accepted the total blame for everything that had happened. The people did only what he told them to do. Therefore, he said that he alone was to blame. He prayed that God would the stop the punishment of the people. He and his family should take all the punishment. He was responsible for everything that had happened to the people.

Verses 18-21 The *angel of the *LORD spoke to the *prophet Gad. He told Gad to tell David to build an *altar. Gad came to David. And he told him to build the *altar at the place where Araunah prepared grain. That is, the place where the punishment stopped. David obeyed and he built the *altar. But before he did, he had to buy the place.

Araunah was preparing his wheat. The count started in the autumn and it took almost 10 months. So, this was at the end of the wheat harvest.

The normal way to prepare grain was to spread it out on the special floor of a flat yard. Then a driver sent two *oxen forward and back over the grain. The *oxen pulled wooden boards on which the driver sat. The boards had three large wooden tubes with sharp points all over them. These tubes turned as the boards moved. Another person drew back the straw to separate it from the grain. They took the straw away. Then they threw what remained up in the air. The bits that were not grain blew away. This left only the grain on the floor. So the grain was now clean. And it was ready for people to store it.

Araunah saw the *angel. His 4 sons hid from the *angel. But Araunah did not hide. Then David arrived and Araunah stopped his work.

Verses 22-26 David asked to buy the property so that he could build the *altar there. Araunah would have given it to his king. But David insisted that he must pay the proper price. He would not give to the *LORD what was not his own. A *sacrifice must cost the person who makes it. If there is no cost, it is not a *sacrifice.

The *sacrifices would be of two animals and grain. Araunah provided the *oxen that he used to prepare the grain. A grain *sacrifice always went with animal *sacrifices. So, he gave his wheat for the grain *sacrifice. And he told David to use his wooden boards to make the fire for the *sacrifice by fire.

David bought the whole property. The price was 600 *shekels weight of gold (about 15 pounds or 6.6 *kilograms in weight). He bought the *oxen and the special floor. For these he paid 50 *shekels of silver (about 1 and a quarter pounds or 0.5 *kilograms in weight) (2 Samuel 24:24).

The property that Araunah owned was on *Mount Moriah. *Mount Moriah is the place where Abraham went to *sacrifice Isaac (Genesis 22:2). Solomon would later build the *temple there.

Then David built the *altar and he prepared the *sacrifices. Then he prayed to the *LORD. The *LORD sent fire from heaven to burn the *sacrifice on the *altar. This answer showed that God accepted the prayers and *sacrifices of David.

Verses 27- 30 In answer to David’s prayer, the *LORD told the *angel to put his sword away. The *LORD had stopped the disease. Now the *angel would not destroy Jerusalem. And David continued to make *sacrifices there to the *LORD.

The holy tent at which the priests should make *sacrifices was about 4 or 5 miles from Jerusalem. It was in Gibeon. But David had built an *altar as the *LORD had told him. He did not go to Gibeon then. But he continued to *worship God in this place. He knew that by the *sacrifices on this *altar he had caused the *angel to stop his work.

temple ~ a special building for the worship of God. Or, a building for the worship of false gods. The Jews had a temple in Jerusalem for the worship of the real God.
worship ~ acts to show honour to God (or to a false god). When people praise and thank God.
Jews ~ another name for the Israelites.
Israelites ~ the people whose ancestors are Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
ancestors ~ people in history from whom your family has come.
sin ~ Sin is the wrong things that we do. To sin is to do wrong, bad or evil deeds and not to obey God. People are called sinners because they are guilty of sin.
Satan ~ a spirit that God made. Satan was an angel but he decided to fight against God. Satan tries to persuade God’s people to do wrong things. But Satan can only do this when God permits him to do it. In the New Testament (the second part of the Bible), the writers call him ‘the devil’.
angel ~ one of God’s special servants from heaven. God made angels to serve him and to take his messages.
Israel ~ Israel is the special name that God gave to Jacob. His descendants were called Israel after him. So, Israel is the nation whose ancestors were Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The country in which they live is called Israel.
descendant ~ a future member of a family or nation.
ancestors ~ people in history from whom your family has come.
Israelites ~ the people whose ancestors are Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
ancestors ~ people in history from whom your family has come.
lord ~ someone with authority such as the king.
Lord ~ a title for God, to show that he is over all people and things.
LORD ~ ‘LORD’ is the special name that God gave to himself. The name probably means: ‘He is always God.’ This name has a relationship with God’s special promises to his people.
lord ~ someone with authority such as the king.
Lord ~ a title for God, to show that he is over all people and things.
LORD ~ ‘LORD’ is the special name that God gave to himself. The name probably means: ‘He is always God.’ This name has a relationship with God’s special promises to his people.
tribe ~ The Israelites originally consisted of the 12 large families of the sons of Jacob. These families became the 12 tribes of Israel.
Israelites ~ the people whose ancestors are Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Israel ~ Israel is the special name that God gave to Jacob. His descendants were called Israel after him. So, Israel is the nation whose ancestors were Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The country in which they live is called Israel.
ancestors ~ people in history from whom your family has come.
descendant ~ a future member of a family or nation.
prophet ~ a person who speaks for God. He can sometimes say what will happen in the future.
angel ~ one of God’s special servants from heaven. God made angels to serve him and to take his messages.
disaster ~ when something very bad happens.
Jebusites ~ people who lived in the city called Jebus. David defeated them and he changed the name of the city to Jerusalem.
altar ~ the special table where the priests burned animals or other gifts to God (or to false gods).
oxen ~ plural of ox.
ox ~ a large and strong animal that farmers used to pull the plough. See also bull.
bulls ~ the male farm animals of which the females are cows.
sacrifice ~ The priests killed a special animal when people offered it as a gift to God. They burned all or part of it on an altar. That animal was called a sacrifice. They offered a sacrifice when they asked God to forgive sins. When Jesus died, he was the perfect sacrifice for our sins. ‘To sacrifice’ means ‘to give a sacrifice’.
altar ~ the special table where the priests burned animals or other gifts to God (or to false gods).
sin ~ Sin is the wrong things that we do. To sin is to do wrong, bad or evil deeds and not to obey God. People are called sinners because they are guilty of sin.'burnt (sacrifice) ~ a sacrifice that the priests burned completely on the altar.
sacrifice ~ The priests killed a special animal when people offered it as a gift to God. They burned all or part of it on an altar. That animal was called a sacrifice. They offered a sacrifice when they asked God to forgive sins. When Jesus died, he was the perfect sacrifice for our sins. ‘To sacrifice’ means ‘to give a sacrifice’.
altar ~ the special table where the priests burned animals or other gifts to God (or to false gods).
sin ~ Sin is the wrong things that we do. To sin is to do wrong, bad or evil deeds and not to obey God. People are called sinners because they are guilty of sin.
shekel ~ equal to 0.4 ounces (11 grams) in weight.
worship ~ acts to show honour to God (or to a false god). When people praise and thank God.
exile ~ When people have to live in a foreign country, they are in exile. Such a person is called an exile.
BC ~ years before Christ was born.
Levite ~ a person who belongs to the tribe of Levi.
tribe ~ The Israelites originally consisted of the 12 large families of the sons of Jacob. These families became the 12 tribes of Israel.
Israelites ~ the people whose ancestors are Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Israel ~ Israel is the special name that God gave to Jacob. His descendants were called Israel after him. So, Israel is the nation whose ancestors were Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The country in which they live is called Israel.
ancestors ~ people in history from whom your family has come.
descendant ~ a future member of a family or nation.
repent ~ to change the mind; to turn away from sin and turn to God.
sin ~ Sin is the wrong things that we do. To sin is to do wrong, bad or evil deeds and not to obey God. People are called sinners because they are guilty of sin.
kilogram ~ measurement of weight; also called a kilo. It is slightly over 2 pounds.
Mount ~ mountain.