2 Samuel 24:1

David Displeases the Lord by Taking a Census

24:1 The Lord’s anger again raged against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go count Israel and Judah.” ¹ 

2 Samuel 24:1

David Displeases the Lord by Taking a Census

24:1 The Lord’s anger again raged against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go count Israel and Judah.” ² 

1 Tawarikh 21:2-5

21:2 David told Joab and the leaders of the army, ³  “Go, count the number of warriors ⁴  from Beer Sheba to Dan. Then bring back a report to me so I may know how many we have.” ⁵  21:3 Joab replied, “May the Lord make his army ⁶  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?” ⁷ 

21:4 But the king’s edict stood, despite Joab’s objections. ⁸  So Joab left and traveled throughout Israel before returning to Jerusalem. ⁹  21:5 Joab reported to David the number of warriors. ¹⁰  In all Israel there were 1,100,000 ¹¹  sword-wielding soldiers; Judah alone had 470,000 sword-wielding soldiers. ¹² 

[24:1]  ¹ sn The parallel text in 1 Chr 21:1 says, “An adversary opposed Israel, inciting David to count how many warriors Israel had.” The Samuel version gives an underlying theological perspective, while the Chronicler simply describes what happened from a human perspective. The adversary in 1 Chr 21:1 is likely a human enemy, probably a nearby nation whose hostility against Israel pressured David into numbering the people so he could assess his military strength. See the note at 1 Chr 21:1.

[24:1]  ² sn The parallel text in 1 Chr 21:1 says, “An adversary opposed Israel, inciting David to count how many warriors Israel had.” The Samuel version gives an underlying theological perspective, while the Chronicler simply describes what happened from a human perspective. The adversary in 1 Chr 21:1 is likely a human enemy, probably a nearby nation whose hostility against Israel pressured David into numbering the people so he could assess his military strength. See the note at 1 Chr 21:1.

[21:2]  ³ tn Or “people.”

[21:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “Go, count Israel.” See the note on “had” in v. 1.

[21:2]  ⁵ tn Heb “their number.”

[21:3]  ⁶ tn Or “people.”

[21:3]  ⁷ tn Heb “Why should it become guilt for Israel?” David’s decision betrays an underlying trust in his own strength rather than in divine provision. See also 1 Chr 27:23-24.

[21:4]  ⁸ tn Heb “and the word of the king was stronger than Joab.”

[21:4]  ⁹ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[21:5]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and Joab gave to David the number of the numbering of the army [or “people”].”

[21:5]  ¹¹ tn Heb “a thousand thousands and one hundred thousand.”

[21:5]  ¹² tc The parallel text in 2 Sam 24:9 has variant figures: “In Israel there were eight hundred thousand sword-wielding warriors, and in Judah there were five hundred thousands soldiers.”