211 And there standeth up an adversary against Israel, and persuadeth David to number Israel, 2 And 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.' 3 And 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?' 4 And 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. 5 And 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. 6 And Levi and Benjamin he hath not numbered in their midst, for the word of the king was abominable with Joab.
7 And it is evil in the eyes of God concerning this thing, and He smiteth Israel, 8 and 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.' 9 And 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.' 11 And Gad cometh in unto David, and saith to him, 'Thus said Jehovah, Take for thee— 12 either 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?' 13 And 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.'
Matthew Henry's Commentary on 1 Chronicles 21:1-13
Chapter Contents
David's numbering the people.
No mention is made in this book of David's sin in the matter of Uriah, neither of the troubles that followed it: they had no needful connexion with the subjects here noted. But David's sin, in numbering the people, is related: in the atonement made for that sin, there was notice of the place on which the temple should be built. The command to David to build an altar, was a blessed token of reconciliation. God testified his acceptance of David's offerings on this altar. Thus Christ was made sin, and a curse for us; it pleased the Lord to bruise him, that through him, God might be to us, not a consuming Fire, but a reconciled God. It is good to continue attendance on those ordinances in which we have experienced the tokens of God's presence, and have found that he is with us of a truth. Here God graciously met me, therefore I will still expect to meet him.