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,

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