2 Samuel 24:1–17
David Enrolls the Fighting Men
24 Againh the anger of the Lord burned against Israel,i and he incited David against them, saying, “Go and take a census ofj Israel and Judah.”
2 So the king said to Joabk and the army commandersa with him, “Go throughout the tribes of Israel from Dan to Beershebal and enrollm the fighting men, so that I may know how many there are.”
3 But Joabn replied to the king, “May the Lord your God multiply the troops a hundred times over,o and may the eyes of my lord the king see it. But why does my lord the king want to do such a thing?”
4 The king’s word, however, overruled Joab and the army commanders; so they left the presence of the king to enroll the fighting men of Israel.
5 After crossing the Jordan, they camped near Aroer,p south of the town in the gorge, and then went through Gad and on to Jazer.q 6 They went to Gilead and the region of Tahtim Hodshi, and on to Dan Jaan and around toward Sidon.r 7 Then they went toward the fortress of Tyres and all the towns of the Hivitest and Canaanites. Finally, they went on to Beershebau in the Negevv of Judah.
8 After they had gone through the entire land, they came back to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days.
9 Joab reported the number of the fighting men to the king: In Israel there were eight hundred thousand able-bodied men who could handle a sword, and in Judah five hundred thousand.w
10 David was conscience-strickenx after he had counted the fighting men, and he said to the Lord, “I have sinnedy 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.z”
11 Before David got up the next morning, the word of the Lord had come to Gada the prophet, David’s seer:b 12 “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.’ ”
13 So Gad went to David and said to him, “Shall there come on you threeb years of faminec in your land? Or three months of fleeing from your enemies while they pursue you? Or three days of plagued in your land? Now then, think it over and decide how I should answer the one who sent me.”
14 David said to Gad, “I am in deep distress. Let us fall into the hands of the Lord, for his mercye is great; but do not let me fall into human hands.”
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.f 16 When the angel stretched out his hand to destroy Jerusalem, the Lord relentedg concerning the disaster and said to the angel who was afflicting the people, “Enough! Withdraw your hand.” The angel of the Lordh was then at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
17 When David saw the angel who was striking down the people, he said to the Lord, “I have sinned; I, the shepherd,c have done wrong. These are but sheep.i What have they done?j Let your hand fall on me and my family.”k