2 Samuel 24:2 So the king said to Joab and the army commanders with him, Go throughout the tribes of Israel from Dan to Beersheba and enroll the fighting men, so that I may know how many there are.
Joab opposed this idea knowing it would inflate David’s pride, and cause him to trust in his army instead of God. But David insisted, so Joab obeyed. Nearly ten months later Joab returned with the count: David had well over a million able-bodied men who could handle a sword (2 Samuel 24:9).
David should’ve been thrilled but, instead, he was troubled. I have sinned greatly in what I have done. Now, Lord, I beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing (2 Samuel 24:10), he said.
During the months Joab was gone, it seems that David wrestled with his conscience. In the past, whenever he put his trust in God, he was successful. And whenever he took his eyes off God, he failed. So why was David taking his eyes off God, and putting them on his army? When the numbers came back, David realized how faithful God had been to him, and how faithless he had been toward God. I have sinned, he said.
We also sin whenever we put our trust anywhere but God. Family, friends and doctors ought to be trustworthy—but our trust shouldn’t be in them. Nor should it be in our savings, government or the military. Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God (Psalm 20:7), wrote David. Whenever our highest trust isn’t in God, we sin like David.
2 Samuel 24:11-12 Before David got up the next morning, the word of the Lord had come to Gad the prophet, David’s seer: Go and tell David, This is what the Lord says: I am giving you three options.
God let David choose between three years of famine, three months of fleeing from his enemies, or three days of plague. Again we see that sin has consequences that repentance may not remove. None of the options David faced would be easy and, as a result, he was in deep distress (2 Samuel 24:14).
This is what happens whenever we have to face the consequences of our sin. Whoever steals from their employer, and is found out, goes through deep distress. Whoever cheats on their taxes, and is found out, goes through deep distress. And whoever has an affair, and is found out, goes through deep distress. Almost every day there’s someone in the news, who’s going through deep distress, because of what they’ve done.
The best time to think about this isn’t after we sin, but before we sin. There’s not much we can do after we sin but, if we think about the deep distress before we sin, we might find the presence of mind to avoid it. God sees everything we do, and through the fear of the Lord evil is avoided (Proverbs 16:6), says Proverbs.
David chose three days of plague, not only because it was brief, but because of God’s mercy. Let us fall into the hands of the Lord, for his mercy is great (2 Samuel 24:14), he said. When we consider all the evil we’ve done, and the little justice we’ve received, we’ll agree with David that God is merciful. The consequences may be severe, but they’re always less than we deserve.
2 Samuel 24:15 So the Lord sent a plague on Israel from that morning until the end of the time designated, and seventy thousand of the people from Dan to Beersheba died.
This wasn’t only due to David’s sin, but also to the people’s sin. God was angry at the nation (2 Samuel 24:1), and this would get their attention. When things are going well we might pray a little less, give a little less, serve a little less, and sin a little more. But when tragedy strikes, we come back to the importance of knowing and serving God. It’s not the way it ought to be, but often the way it is.
2 Samuel 24:16-17 When the angel stretched out his hand to destroy Jerusalem, the Lord relented concerning the disaster and said to the angel who was afflicting the people, Enough! Withdraw your hand. The angel of the Lord was then at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. When David saw the angel who was striking down the people, he said to the Lord, I have sinned.
The plague was due, in part, to David’s sin, and he took responsibility. I, the shepherd, have done wrong, he said. David was a good shepherd, most of the time. But in this case he was a bad shepherd, and the people suffered because of him.
This contrasts with Jesus Christ who is the good shepherd all the time. I am the good shepherd . . . and I lay down my life for the sheep (John 10:14-15) he said. Many of David’s sheep died because of his sin, but those who belong to Christ will live because of his righteousness.
2 Samuel 24:18 On that day Gad went to David and said to him, Go up and build an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
When David arrived, Arunah was there with oxen and wood for the sacrifice. He offered them to David, free of charge, but David insisted on paying. I will not sacrifice to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing (1 Samuel 24:14), he said. So David paid Araunah six hundred shekels of gold for the site (1 Chronicles 21:25). This was a great amount, even for David, and the Lord accepted his sacrifice. He even sent fire from heaven to consume it (1 Chronicles 21:26).
Sacrifice reveals our commitment to God, but also God's commitment to us. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement (Romans 3:25), wrote Paul. For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy (Hebrews 10:14), says Hebrews. And, This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice (1 John 4:10), wrote John. Whatever we sacrifice for God is nothing, compared to the sacrifice he has made for us.
Reflection and Review
How did David sin by taking a census?
Why does sin cause deep distress?
Why do we need the sacrifice of Christ?
Joab opposed this idea knowing it would inflate David’s pride, and cause him to trust in his army instead of God. But David insisted, so Joab obeyed. Nearly ten months later Joab returned with the count: David had well over a million able-bodied men who could handle a sword (2 Samuel 24:9).
David should’ve been thrilled but, instead, he was troubled. I have sinned greatly in what I have done. Now, Lord, I beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing (2 Samuel 24:10), he said.
During the months Joab was gone, it seems that David wrestled with his conscience. In the past, whenever he put his trust in God, he was successful. And whenever he took his eyes off God, he failed. So why was David taking his eyes off God, and putting them on his army? When the numbers came back, David realized how faithful God had been to him, and how faithless he had been toward God. I have sinned, he said.
We also sin whenever we put our trust anywhere but God. Family, friends and doctors ought to be trustworthy—but our trust shouldn’t be in them. Nor should it be in our savings, government or the military. Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God (Psalm 20:7), wrote David. Whenever our highest trust isn’t in God, we sin like David.
2 Samuel 24:11-12 Before David got up the next morning, the word of the Lord had come to Gad the prophet, David’s seer: Go and tell David, This is what the Lord says: I am giving you three options.
God let David choose between three years of famine, three months of fleeing from his enemies, or three days of plague. Again we see that sin has consequences that repentance may not remove. None of the options David faced would be easy and, as a result, he was in deep distress (2 Samuel 24:14).
This is what happens whenever we have to face the consequences of our sin. Whoever steals from their employer, and is found out, goes through deep distress. Whoever cheats on their taxes, and is found out, goes through deep distress. And whoever has an affair, and is found out, goes through deep distress. Almost every day there’s someone in the news, who’s going through deep distress, because of what they’ve done.
The best time to think about this isn’t after we sin, but before we sin. There’s not much we can do after we sin but, if we think about the deep distress before we sin, we might find the presence of mind to avoid it. God sees everything we do, and through the fear of the Lord evil is avoided (Proverbs 16:6), says Proverbs.
David chose three days of plague, not only because it was brief, but because of God’s mercy. Let us fall into the hands of the Lord, for his mercy is great (2 Samuel 24:14), he said. When we consider all the evil we’ve done, and the little justice we’ve received, we’ll agree with David that God is merciful. The consequences may be severe, but they’re always less than we deserve.
2 Samuel 24:15 So the Lord sent a plague on Israel from that morning until the end of the time designated, and seventy thousand of the people from Dan to Beersheba died.
This wasn’t only due to David’s sin, but also to the people’s sin. God was angry at the nation (2 Samuel 24:1), and this would get their attention. When things are going well we might pray a little less, give a little less, serve a little less, and sin a little more. But when tragedy strikes, we come back to the importance of knowing and serving God. It’s not the way it ought to be, but often the way it is.
2 Samuel 24:16-17 When the angel stretched out his hand to destroy Jerusalem, the Lord relented concerning the disaster and said to the angel who was afflicting the people, Enough! Withdraw your hand. The angel of the Lord was then at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. When David saw the angel who was striking down the people, he said to the Lord, I have sinned.
The plague was due, in part, to David’s sin, and he took responsibility. I, the shepherd, have done wrong, he said. David was a good shepherd, most of the time. But in this case he was a bad shepherd, and the people suffered because of him.
This contrasts with Jesus Christ who is the good shepherd all the time. I am the good shepherd . . . and I lay down my life for the sheep (John 10:14-15) he said. Many of David’s sheep died because of his sin, but those who belong to Christ will live because of his righteousness.
2 Samuel 24:18 On that day Gad went to David and said to him, Go up and build an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
When David arrived, Arunah was there with oxen and wood for the sacrifice. He offered them to David, free of charge, but David insisted on paying. I will not sacrifice to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing (1 Samuel 24:14), he said. So David paid Araunah six hundred shekels of gold for the site (1 Chronicles 21:25). This was a great amount, even for David, and the Lord accepted his sacrifice. He even sent fire from heaven to consume it (1 Chronicles 21:26).
Sacrifice reveals our commitment to God, but also God's commitment to us. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement (Romans 3:25), wrote Paul. For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy (Hebrews 10:14), says Hebrews. And, This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice (1 John 4:10), wrote John. Whatever we sacrifice for God is nothing, compared to the sacrifice he has made for us.
Reflection and Review
How did David sin by taking a census?
Why does sin cause deep distress?
Why do we need the sacrifice of Christ?