2 Samuel 24

And the nose of God added to burn against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go, count Israel and Judah.” \*

And the king said to Joab, the commander of the army that {was} with him, “Go about, please, among all of the tribes of Israel, from Dan and to Beersheba, and muster the people, that I may know the number of the people.” \*

And Joab said to the king, “Now may God your God add to the people like them and like them a hundred times, and may the eyes of my lord the king be seeing. But my lord the king, why does he delight in this matter?” \*

But the word of the king prevailed against Joab and over the commanders of the army. So Joab and the commanders of the army went out to the face of the king to muster the people, Israel. \*

And they crossed the Jordan, and they camped at Aroer, south of the city that {is} in the midst of the wadi, Gad and to Jazer.

And they came to Gilead and to the land of Tahtim Hodshi. And they came to Dan Jaan, and around to Sidon.

And they came {to} the fortress of Tyre and {to} all of the cities of the Hivites and the Canaanites. And they went out to the Negev of Judah, {to} Beersheba. \*

So they went about in all of the land. And they came, at the end of nine months and twenty days, {to} Jerusalem. \*

And Joab gave the number of the mustering of the people to the king. And Israel was 800,000 men of valor drawing the sword, and the men of Judah {were} 500,000 men. \*

But the heart of David struck him after this, he had counted the people. And David said to God, “I have sinned greatly {by} what I have done. But now, God, please take away the iniquity of your servant, for I have acted very foolishly.” \*

And David arose in the morning, and the word of God was to Gad, the prophet, a seer of David, saying,

“Go, and you shall say to David, ‘Thus says God, “Three I am lifting over you. Choose for yourself one from them, and I will do {it} to you.”’” \*

And Gad came to David, and he declared to him. Then he said to him, “Shall seven years of famine come to you in your land, or three months of your fleeing to the face of your enemies and he is pursuing you, or three days of plague being in your land? Now, know and see what word I shall return {to} the one having sent me.” \*

And David said to Gad, “Great distress {is} to me. Please, let us fall into the hand of God, for his mercies {are} many, but into the hand of man, do not let me fall.” \*

And God caused a plague in Israel from the morning and until the time of appointment. And from the people, from Dan and to Beersheba, 70,000 men died.

And the angel stretched out his hand {against} Jerusalem to destroy it, but God relented concerning the harm. And he said to the angel, the destroyer among the many people, “Now lower your hand.” And the angel of God was near the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. \*

And David spoke to God when he saw the angel, the striker among the people, and he said, “Behold, I, I have sinned, and I, I have committed iniquity. But these sheep, what have they done? Please, let your hand be against me and against the house of my father.” \*

And Gad came to David on that day, and he said to him, “Go up, set up an altar for God on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.”

So David went up according to the word of Gad, just as God had commanded.

And Araunah looked down, and he saw the king and his servants coming over to him. And Araunah went out, and he prostrated himself to the king, his nose to the ground. \*

And Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?” \* And David said, “To buy from you the threshing floor to build an altar for God, that the plague may be restrained from against the people.” \*

And Araunah said to David, “May my lord the king take and offer up the good in his eyes. See, the oxen for the burnt offering and the threshing instruments and the equipment of the oxen for wood.

Everything, Araunah gives, O king, to the king.” And Araunah said to the king, “May God your God be pleased with you.” \*

And the king said to Araunah, “No, but buying, I will buy {it} from you for a price. For I will not offer to God my God burnt offerings for nothing.” \* So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for silver, 50 shekels.

And David built an altar there for God, and he offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. And God was entreated for the land, and the plague was restrained from against Israel.