The Census Taken

1 aNow bagain the anger of the Lord burned against Israel, and it incited David against them to say, “cGo, number Israel and Judah.”

2 The king said to Joab the commander of the army who was with him, “Go about now through all the tribes of Israel, afrom Dan to Beersheba, and 1register the people, that I may know the number of the people.”

3 But Joab said to the king, “aNow may the Lord your God add to the people a hundred times as many as they are, while the eyes of my lord the king still see; but why does my lord the king delight in this thing?”

4 Nevertheless, the king’s word prevailed against Joab and against the commanders of the army. So Joab and the commanders of the army went out from the presence of the king to 1register the people of Israel.

5 They crossed the Jordan and camped in aAroer, on the right side of the city that is in the middle of the valley of Gad and toward bJazer.

6 Then they came to Gilead and to 1the land of Tahtim-hodshi, and they came to Dan-jaan and around to aSidon,

7 and came to the afortress of Tyre and to all the cities of the bHivites and of the Canaanites, and they went out to the south of Judah, to cBeersheba.

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

9 And Joab gave athe number of the 1registration of the people to the king; and there were in Israel beight hundred thousand valiant men who drew the sword, and the men of Judah were five hundred thousand men.

10 Now aDavid’s heart 1troubled him after he had numbered the people. So David said to the Lord, “bI have sinned greatly in what I have done. But now, O Lord, please 2take away the iniquity of Your servant, for cI have acted very foolishly.”

11 When David arose in the morning, the word of the Lord came to athe prophet Gad, David’s bseer, saying,

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

13 So 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 foes while they pursue you? Or shall there be three days’ pestilence in your land? Now consider and see what answer I shall return to Him who sent me.”

14 Then David said to Gad, “I am in great distress. Let us now fall into the hand of the Lord afor His mercies are great, but do not let me fall into the hand of man.”