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Texts -- 1 Chronicles 21:1-30 (NET)

Context
The Lord Sends a Plague against Israel
21:1 An adversary opposed Israel , inciting David to count how many warriors Israel had. 21:2 David told Joab and the leaders of the army , “Go , count the number of warriors from Beer Sheba to Dan . Then bring back a report to me so I may know how many we have .” 21:3 Joab replied , “May the Lord make his army a hundred times larger ! My master , O king , do not all of them serve my master ? Why does my master want to do this ? Why bring judgment on Israel ?” 21:4 But the king’s edict stood, despite Joab’s objections . So Joab left and traveled throughout Israel before returning to Jerusalem . 21:5 Joab reported to David the number of warriors . In all Israel there were 1,100,000 sword-wielding soldiers ; Judah alone had 470,000 sword-wielding soldiers . 21:6 Now Joab did not number Levi and Benjamin , for the king’s edict disgusted him. 21:7 God was also offended by it , so he attacked Israel . 21:8 David said to God , “I have sinned greatly by doing this ! Now , please remove the guilt of your servant , for I have acted very foolishly .” 21:9 The Lord told Gad , David’s prophet , 21:10 “Go , tell David , ‘This is what the Lord says : “I am offering you three forms of judgment from which to choose. Pick one of them .”’” 21:11 Gad went to David and told him, “This is what the Lord says : ‘Pick one of these: 21:12 three years of famine , or three months being chased by your enemies and struck down by their swords , or three days being struck down by the Lord , during which a plague will invade the land and the Lord’s messenger will destroy throughout Israel’s territory .’ Now , decide what I should tell the one who sent me.” 21:13 David said to Gad , “I am very upset ! I prefer to be attacked by the Lord , for his mercy is very great ; I do not want to be attacked by men !” 21:14 So the Lord sent a plague through Israel , and 70,000 Israelite men died . 21:15 God sent an angel to ravage Jerusalem . As he was doing so, the Lord watched and relented from his judgment . He told the angel who was destroying , “That’s enough ! Stop now !” Now the Lord’s angel was standing near the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite . 21:16 David looked up and saw the Lord’s messenger standing between the earth and sky with his sword drawn and in his hand , stretched out over Jerusalem . David and the leaders , covered with sackcloth , threw themselves down with their faces to the ground. 21:17 David said to God , “Was I not the one who decided to number the army ? I am the one who sinned and committed this awful deed ! As for these sheep – what have they done ? O Lord my God , attack me and my family , but remove the plague from your people !” 21:18 So the Lord’s messenger told Gad to instruct David to go up and build an altar for the Lord on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite . 21:19 So David went up as Gad instructed him to do in the name of the Lord . 21:20 While Ornan was threshing wheat , he turned and saw the messenger , and he and his four sons hid themselves. 21:21 When David came to Ornan , Ornan looked and saw David ; he came out from the threshing floor and bowed to David with his face to the ground . 21:22 David said to Ornan , “Sell me the threshing floor so I can build on it an altar for the Lord – I’ll pay top price – so that the plague may be removed from the people .” 21:23 Ornan told David , “You can have it! My master , the king , may do what he wants . Look , I am giving you the oxen for burnt sacrifices , the threshing sledges for wood , and the wheat for an offering . I give it all to you.” 21:24 King David replied to Ornan , “No , I insist on buying it for top price . I will not offer to the Lord what belongs to you or offer a burnt sacrifice that cost me nothing . 21:25 So David bought the place from Ornan for 600 pieces of gold . 21:26 David built there an altar to the Lord and offered burnt sacrifices and peace offerings . He called out to the Lord , and the Lord responded by sending fire from the sky and consuming the burnt sacrifice on the altar . 21:27 The Lord ordered the messenger to put his sword back into its sheath . 21:28 At that time , when David saw that the Lord responded to him at the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite , he sacrificed there . 21:29 Now the Lord’s tabernacle (which Moses had made in the wilderness ) and the altar for burnt sacrifices were at that time at the worship center in Gibeon . 21:30 But David could not go before it to seek God’s will, for he was afraid of the sword of the Lord’s messenger .

Pericope

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Bible Dictionary

  • Temptation

    [ebd] (1.) Trial; a being put to the test. Thus God "tempted [Gen. 22: 1; R.V., 'did prove'] Abraham;" and afflictions are said to tempt, i.e., to try, men (James 1:2, 12; comp. Deut. 8:2), putting their faith and patience to the ...
    [nave] TEMPTATION. Gen. 3:1-13; Gen. 20:6; Ex. 34:12 vs. 13-16.; Deut. 7:25; Deut. 8:11-14, 17, 18; Deut. 13:3; 1 Chr. 21:1; 2 Chr. 32:30, 31; Psa. 119:165; Prov. 1:10-17; Prov. 2:10-12, 16; Prov. 4:14, 15; Prov. 5:6-21; Prov. 6:2...

  • David

    [isbe] DAVID - da'-vid (dawidh, or dawidh, "beloved"; Daueid, also in New Testament, Dauid, Dabid; see Thayer's Lexicon): I. NAME AND GENEALOGY II. EARLY YEARS 1. Shepherd 2. Slinger 3. Harpist 4. Poet 5. Psalmist 6. Tribesman III....
    [smith] (well-beloved), the son of Jesse. His life may be divided into three portions: His youth before his introduction to the court of Saul; His relations with Saul; His reign. The early life of David contains in many important re...
    [nave] DAVID 1. King of Israel. Genealogy of, Ruth 4:18-22; 1 Sam. 16:11; 17:12; 1 Chr. 2:3-15; Matt. 1:1-6; Luke 3:31-38. A shepherd, 1 Sam. 16:11. Kills a lion and a bear, 1 Sam. 17:34-36. Anointed king, while a youth, by the ...

  • Gad

    [ebd] fortune; luck. (1.) Jacob's seventh son, by Zilpah, Leah's handmaid, and the brother of Asher (Gen. 30:11-13; 46:16, 18). In the Authorized Version of 30:11 the words, "A troop cometh: and she called," etc., should rather be...
    [smith] (a troop). Jacob?s seventh son, the first-born of Zilpah, Leah?s maid, and whole-brother to Asher. (Genesis 30;11-13; 46:16,18) (B.C. 1753-1740.) "The seer," or "the king?s seer," i.e. David?s (1 Chronicles 29:29; 2 Ch...
    [nave] GAD 1. Jacob's seventh son, Gen. 30:11; 35:26; Ex. 1:4. Children of, Gen. 46:16; Num. 26:15-18; 1 Chr. 5:11. Prophecy concerning, Gen. 49:19. 2. A tribe of Israel. Blessed by Moses, Deut. 33:20. Enumeration of, at Sinai,...

  • Araunah

    [ebd] agile; also called Ornan 1 Chr. 21:15, a Jebusite who dwelt in Jerusalem before it was taken by the Israelites. The destroying angel, sent to punish David for his vanity in taking a census of the people, was stayed in his wo...
    [isbe] ARAUNAH - a-ro'-na ('arawnah, 2 Sam 24:16,20 ff; 'aranyah 2 Sam 24:18, and 'ornan, 1 Ch 21:15 ff; 2 Ch 3:1, all from a Hebrew root meaning "to be strong"): A Jebusite from whom David at the request of the prophet Gad bought ...
    [smith] (ark), a Jebusite who sold his threshing floor on Mount Moriah to David as a site for an altar to Jehovah, together with his oxen. (2 Samuel 24:18-24; 1 Chronicles 21:25)
    [nave] ARAUNAH A Jebusite from whom David bought a site for an altar, 2 Sam. 24:16-24. Called also Ornan, 1 Chr. 21:15-25.

  • Ornan

    [ebd] 1 Chr. 21:15. (See ARAUNAH.)
    [isbe] ORNAN - or'-nan (1 Ch 21:15). See ARAUNAH.
    [smith] (active). (1 Chronicles 21:15; 2 Chronicles 3:1) [ARAUNAH]
    [nave] ORNAN A Jebusite, 1 Chr. 21:15-25, 28; 2 Chr. 3:1. Called Araunah, 2 Sam. 24:16-25.

  • Miracles

    [nave] MIRACLES. Index of Sub-topics Catalog of, and Supernatural Events, Of Jesus, in Chronological Order, Of the Disciples of Jesus; Convincing Effect of; Design of; Miraculous Gifts of the Holy Spirit; Miscellany of Minor Sub-...

  • Nation

    [nave] NATION Sins of, Isa. 30:1, 2. Chastised, Isa. 14:26, 27; Jer. 5:29; 18:6-10; 25:12-33; Ezek. 2:3-5; 39:23, 24; Dan. 7:9-12; 9:3-16; Hos. 7:12; Joel 1:1-20; Amos 9:9; Zeph. 3:6, 8. Perish, Psa. 9:17; Isa. 60:12. National a...

  • THRESHING-FLOOR

    [isbe] THRESHING-FLOOR - thresh'-ing-flor (goren; halon; 'iddar, occurs in Dan 2:35): The location and method of making threshing-floors have already been described under AGRICULTURE. These floors have come into prominence because ...

  • Census

    [ebd] There are five instances of a census of the Jewish people having been taken. (1.) In the fourth month after the Exodus, when the people were encamped at Sinai. The number of men from twenty years old and upward was then 603,...
    [nave] CENSUS Numbering of Israel by Moses, Ex. 38:26; Num. 1; 3:14-43; 26; by David, 2 Sam. 24:1-9; 1 Chr. 21:1-8; 27:24. A poll tax to be levied at each, Ex. 30:12-16; 38:26. of citizens, Isa. 4:3. Of the Roman Empire, by Caes...

  • Joab

    [isbe] JOAB - jo'-ab (yo'-abh, "Yahweh is father"; Ioab): (1) Son of Zeruiah, David's sister. He was "captain of the host" (compare 2 Sam 19:13) under David. 1. Joab and Abner: (a) Joab is first introduced in the narrative of the w...
    [nave] JOAB 1. Son of David's sister, 1 Chr. 2:16. Commander of David's army, 2 Sam. 8:16; 20:23; 1 Chr. 11:6; 18:15; 27:34. Dedicated spoils of his battles, 1 Chr. 26:28. Defeated the Jebusites, 1 Chr. 11:6. Defeats and slays ...

  • Rulers

    [nave] RULERS Appointed and removed by God. See: Government, God in. Chastised, Dan. 4. See: Nation. Monarchical, See: Kings. Patriarchal, Gen. 27:29, 37. Instances of Nimrod, Gen. 10:8-10. Abraham, Gen. 14:13-24; 17:6; 21:2...

  • Conscience

    [nave] CONSCIENCE. Job 15:21, 24; Job 27:6; Prov. 20:12; Matt. 6:22, 23; Luke 11:33 [Matt. 5:15, 16.] Luke 11:34 [Matt. 6:22.] Luke 11:35, 36; Acts 23:1; Acts 24:16; Rom. 2:14, 15; Rom. 7:15-23; Rom. 9:1; Rom. 14:1-23; 1 Cor. 8:7,...

  • Angel of the Lord

    [nave] ANGEL OF THE LORD Gen. 16:7, 9, 10, 11; 22:11, 15; Ex. 3:2; Num. 22:22; Judg. 2:1, 4; 5:23; 6:11; 13:3, 13; 2 Sam. 24:16; 1 Kin. 19:7; 2 Kin. 1:3, 15; 19:35; 1 Chr. 21:12, 15, 16, 18, 27, 30; 2 Chr. 32:21; Psa. 34:7; 35:5, 6...

  • SACRIFICE, IN THE OLD TESTAMENT, 2

    [isbe] SACRIFICE, IN THE OLD TESTAMENT, 2 - V. The Mosaic Sacrificial System. 1. The Covenant Sacrifice: The fundamental function of Moses' work was to establish the covenant between Israel and God. This important transaction took ...

  • JEBUSITES

    [ebd] the name of the original inhabitants of Jebus, mentioned frequently among the seven nations doomed to destruction (Gen. 10:16; 15:21; Ex. 3:8, 17; 13:5, etc.). At the time of the arrival of the Israelites in Palestine they w...
    [smith] (descendants of Jebus), The, were descended from the third son of Canaan. (Genesis 10:16; 1 Chronicles 1:14) The actual people first appear in the invaluable report of the spies. (Numbers 13:29) When Jabin organized his ri...

  • Vision

    [nave] VISION, a mode of revelation, Num. 12:6; 1 Sam. 3:1; 2 Chr. 26:5; Psa. 89:19; Prov. 29:18; Jer. 14:14; 23:16; Dan. 1:17; Hos. 12:10; Joel 2:28; Obad. 1; Hab. 2:2; Acts 2:17. Of Abraham, concerning his descendants, Gen. 15:1-...

  • Choice

    [nave] CHOICE Between judgments, by David, 2 Sam. 24:12; 1 Chr. 21:11-13. The Sier's Deut. 30:19, 20; Josh. 24:15-18; 1 Kin. 18:21 See: Contingencies; Blessing, Contingent on Obedience.

  • Angel

    [ebd] a word signifying, both in the Hebrew and Greek, a "messenger," and hence employed to denote any agent God sends forth to execute his purposes. It is used of an ordinary messenger (Job 1:14: 1 Sam. 11:3; Luke 7:24; 9:52), of...
    [nave] ANGEL. One of the Holy Trinity Trinitarian authorities interpret the Scriptures cited under this topic as referring to Christ, who according to this view was the divine presence in the wilderness. Called Angel, Acts 7:30, ...

  • Satan

    [isbe] SATAN - sa'-tan (saTan), "adversary," from the verb saTan, "to lie in wait" (as adversary); Satan, Satanas, "adversary," diabolos, "Devil," "adversary" or "accuser," kategor (altogether unclassical and unGreek) (used once in...
    [smith] The word itself, the Hebrew satan , is simply an "adversary," and is so used in (1 Samuel 29:4; 2 Samuel 19:22; 1 Kings 6:4; 11:14,23,25; Numbers 22:22,33; Psalms 109:6) This original sense is still found in our Lord...
    [nave] SATAN Called Abaddon, Rev. 9:11; accuser of our brethren, Rev. 12:10; adversary, 1 Pet. 5:8; angel of the bottomless pit, Rev. 9:11; Apollyon, Rev. 9:11; Beelzebub, Matt. 12:24; Mark 3:22; Luke 11:15; Belial, 2 Cor. 6:15; th...

  • Temple

    [nave] TEMPLE. Solomon's Called also Temple of the Lord, 2 Kin. 11:10; Holy Temple, Psa. 79:1; Holy House, 1 Chr. 29:3; House of God, 1 Chr. 29:2; 2 Chr. 23:9; House of the Lord, 2 Chr. 23:5, 12; Jer. 28:5; Father's House, John 2...
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Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • Abraham's purchase of a burial site in the Promised Land demonstrated his intention to remain in Canaan rather than going back to his native homeland. Since he was a sojourner in Canaan his friends probably expected him to bu...
  • 5:13-15 "Despite Joshua's long military experience he had never led an attack on a fortified city that was prepared for a long siege. In fact, of all the walled cities in Palestine, Jericho was probably the most invincible. T...
  • The residents of the town of Gibeon decided that if they could not defeat the Israelites they would join them. This has been a strategy that enemies of believers have employed for centuries (cf. Num. 25:1-2).9:1-2 Israel is t...
  • After the process of assigning land to the three tribes mentioned above, Israel's attention turned to relocating the tabernacle in a more central location (v. 1). God undoubtedly made the choice of Shiloh (lit. rest; cf. Deut...
  • The Book of Samuel covers the period of Israel's history bracketed by Samuel's conception and the end of David's reign. David turned the kingdom over to Solomon in 971 B.C.3David reigned for 40 and one-half years (2 Sam. 2:11...
  • The Philistines, as we have already seen in Judges, were Israel's primary enemy to the west at this time. Samson, too, fought the Philistines (Judg. 13-16).52There are about 150 references to the Philistines in 1 and 2 Samuel...
  • Saul's improper view of his role as Israel's king comes through clearly in verse 24. The Philistines were not Saul's enemies as much as God's enemies. This was holy war (cf. Judg. 16:28), but Saul viewed the battle too person...
  • David probably ordered this census about 975 B.C."After the revolutions of both Absalom and Sheba it would have been reasonable for David to reassess his military situation against the possibility of similar uprisings or othe...
  • David proceeded to offer sacrifices in response to Gad's instructions (v. 18). David needed to commit himself again to God (the burnt offering) and to renew his fellowship with God (the peace offering, v. 25). God instructed ...
  • Achtemeier, Paul J., and Elizabeth Achtemeier. The Old Testament Roots of Our Faith. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1979.Ackerman, James S. "Knowing Good and Evil: A Literary Ananysis of the Court History in 2 Samuel 9-20 and ...
  • A tabernacle, evidently the Mosaic tabernacle, and the Mosaic tabernacle's bronze altar still stood at Gibeon (lit. little hill; 1 Chron. 16:39-40; 21:28-29; 2 Chron. 1:3, 5-6). Gibeon was one of the so-called high places whe...
  • Another significant battle occurred between the battle of Ramoth-gilead that the writer recorded in chapter 22 (853 B.C.) and the battles he recorded in chapter 20. Ahab and his Aramean ally Ben-Hadad II (860-841 B.C.) defeat...
  • The central subject of 1 and 2 Chronicles is the temple of God. Someone evidently wrote these books at the end of the Babylonian exile to encourage the Israelites to reestablish Israel's national life in the Promised Land. In...
  • I. Israel's historical roots chs. 1-9A. The lineage of David chs. 1-3B. The house of Israel chs. 4-71. The family of Judah 4:1-232. The family of Simeon 4:24-433. The families of Transjordan ch. 54. The family of Levi ch. 65....
  • "Having established the remnant's genealogical link with the Davidic and priestly lines, he [the writer] focused on the groundwork of the Davidic promises. His design was to show how the kingly and priestly concerns came toge...
  • "In the Chronicler's eyes David's reign consisted of two great religious phases, his movement of the ark to Jerusalem (chs. 13-16) and his preparations for the building of the temple (chs. 17-19 or at least 17-22, 28, 29). Th...
  • The dominating theme in 1 Chronicles is the Davidic Covenant, the receiving of which was the most important event in David's life. God promised to give him an eternal kingdom, and He formalized that promise by making a covena...
  • In some particulars the promises God gave David related to himself personally. However other promises pertained to his descendants and, in particular, to one descendant who would do for Israel much more than David could do. I...
  • Chapter 21 records the fulfillment of God's second personal promise to David, namely, that He would appoint a place where Israel could dwell securely (17:9). This was a promise of peace for Israel, but as the verses following...
  • Numbers in Chronicles That Disagree With Their Old Testament Parallels89HigherSameLowerParallel PassageEvaluation of ChroniclesA.1 Chron. 11:11300 slain by Jashobeam, not 8002 Sam. 23:8Scribal errorB.1 Chron. 18:4Hadadezer's ...
  • Ackroyd, Peter R. I and II Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah. London: SCM Press, 1973.Aharoni, Yohanan, and Michael Avi-Yonah. The Macmillan Bible Atlas. Revised ed., New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., 1977.Albright, William F. Arc...
  • The Chronicler's main interest in David's reign, as we have seen, focused on the Davidic Covenant with its promises to David and his descendants. In recounting the events of Solomon's reign he proceeded to emphasize the templ...
  • This section of the text is similar to 1 Chronicles 18-21. Those chapters showed how God did keep His promises to David that the Chronicler recorded in 1 Chronicles 17:8-12. These chapters (8-9) show how God kept His promise ...
  • David had emerged from an experience of chastening by the Lord for some sin he had committed and praised Him that His anger is temporary but His favor is permanent.The title of this psalm is subject to two interpretations. It...
  • 38:1-2 The Lord commanded Ezekiel to utter an oracle of judgment against Gog (cf. 1 Chron. 5:4; Rev. 20:8), who was the prince (king) over Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal. His land was Magog (cf. Gen. 10:2; Rev. 20:8).The identity o...
  • 3:1 Zechariah's guiding angel next showed the prophet, in his vision, Joshua (lit. Yahweh saves), Israel's current high priest (6:11; Ezra 5:2; Neh. 7:7; Hag. 1:1), standing before the angel of the Lord (1:11-12). "The accuse...
  • The first four verses of this poem deal with the north and the last four with the south. The first two verses and the last two speak of salvation, and the middle four speak of judgment. The passage begins and ends with a refe...
  • This last part of Jesus' conversation with His disciples in the upper room is unique to Luke. It continues the theme of Jesus' rejection leading to death and what the disciples could expect in view of that rejection.22:35 Jes...
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