1 Chronicles 21:1–14

¹And there standeth up an adversary against Israel, and persuadeth David to number Israel, ²And David saith unto Joab, and unto the heads of the people, ‘Go, number Israel from Beer-Sheba even unto Dan, and bring unto me, and I know their number.’ ³And Joab saith, ‘Jehovah doth add to His people as they are a hundred times; are they not, my lord, O king, all of them to my lord for servants? why doth my lord seek this? why is he for a cause of guilt to Israel?’ ⁴And the word of the king is severe against Joab, and Joab goeth out, and goeth up and down in all Israel, and cometh in to Jerusalem. ⁵And Joab giveth the account of the numbering of the people unto David, and all Israel is a thousand thousand and a hundred thousand, each drawing sword, and Judah is four hundred and seventy thousand, each drawing sword. ⁶And Levi and Benjamin he hath not numbered in their midst, for the word of the king was abominable with Joab.

⁷And it is evil in the eyes of God concerning this thing, and He smiteth Israel, ⁸and David saith unto God, ‘I have sinned exceedingly, in that I have done this thing; and now, cause to pass away, I pray Thee, the iniquity of Thy servant, for I have acted very foolishly.’ ⁹And Jehovah speaketh unto Gad, seer of David, saying: ¹⁰‘Go, and thou hast spoken unto David, saying, Thus said Jehovah, Three—I am stretching out unto thee; choose for thee one of these, and I do it to thee.’ ¹¹And Gad cometh in unto David, and saith to him, ‘Thus said Jehovah, Take for thee— ¹²either for three years—famine, or three months to be consumed from the face of thine adversaries, even the sword of thine enemies to overtake, or three days the sword of Jehovah, even pestilence in the land, and a messenger of Jehovah destroying in all the border of Israel; and now, see; what word do I return to Him who is sending me?’ ¹³And David saith unto Gad, ‘I am greatly distressed, let me fall, I pray thee, into the hand of Jehovah, for very many are His mercies, and into the hand of man let me not fall.’ ¹⁴And Jehovah giveth a pestilence in Israel, and there fall of Israel seventy thousand men,