2 Samuel 24:8–17

⁸So they had gone about through the whole land, and they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days.

⁹And Joab gave ^athe total count of the ¹census of the people to the king; and there were in Israel ^b800,000 valiant men who drew the sword, and the men of Judah were 500,000 men.

¹⁰Then ^aDavid’s heart struck him after he had counted the people. So David said to Yahweh, “^bI have sinned greatly in what I have done. But now, O Yahweh, please ¹take away the iniquity of Your slave, for ^cI have acted very foolishly.”

¹¹Then David arose in the morning, and the word of Yahweh came to ^athe prophet Gad, David’s ^bseer, saying,

¹²“Go and speak to David, ‘Thus says Yahweh, “I am offering you three things; choose for yourself one of them, and I will do that to you.” ’ ”

¹³So Gad came to David and told him, and said to him, “Shall ^aseven years of famine come to you in your land? Or will you flee three months before your adversaries while they pursue you? Or shall there be three days’ pestilence in your land? Now, know and see what word I should return to Him who sent me.”

¹⁴Then David said to Gad, “I am in great distress. Let us now fall into the hand of Yahweh, ^afor His compassions are abundant. But do not let me fall into the hand of man.”

¹⁵So ^aYahweh ¹sent a pestilence against Israel from the morning until the appointed time, and 70,000 men of the people ^bfrom Dan to Beersheba died.

^16aThen the angel sent forth his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, and ^bYahweh ¹relented of the calamity and said to the angel who destroyed the people, “It is enough! Now relax your hand!” And the angel of Yahweh was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.

¹⁷Then David spoke to Yahweh when he saw the angel who was striking down the people, and said, “Behold, ^ait is I who have sinned, and it is I who have done unrighteousness; but ^bthese sheep, what have they done? Please let Your hand be against me and my father’s house.”