For Israel’s king to build up the same kind of power common to pagan kings was tantamount to repudiating God’s over-kingship. He did this indirectly, as I will explain. David said to the Lord, “I have sinned greatly by doing this! The king choose to, as he put it, 'fall into the hands of the Lord,' which meant the pestilence. For his strength was not found in numbers but in God ’s mighty power of deliverance. The author of 2 Samuel, who is usually truthful, might have felt he … It was Satan the devil who moved David to disobey God. Click To Tweet . By only being able to count what the people offered to God it reinforced the point that the people do not belong to Moses or any leader. Any reason for God’s displeasure is mainly conjecture because the bible doesn’t explicitly say why God was upset with David taking the census. When the census had been completed, the prophet Gad informed David that God was angry and intended to punish him and all Israel. As the census was taking place, David began to contemplate over the consequences of what he had done and he knew that he was making a mistake. With his cunning ways, the devil set out to entice David to sin by numbering his army through a census, which is exactly what he did (2Samuel 24:1)! As Deuteronomy chapter 17 so strongly insists, the human kingship of Israel was to be noticeably dependent on God’s divine kingship. Because David failed to show trust in God, and disobeyed him by doing an illegal census (counting) of the people. This was the message: 10 “Go and say to David, ‘This is what the Lord says: I will give you three choices. His wise counsel, however, went unheeded. What do locusts represent? He had come to the point in his life where he was relying far more on his own strength and that of his army rather than on God. Herein we find that David appears to offend God by ordering Joab to take a census of Israel and of his army in particular (V. 2). The devil tempted, but the king went along with it and wanted to use the census as evidence to trust in his own power not God's. After a brief illness, the child was gathered up into the arms of God—as all innocents are. Why did God punish the Israelite people when it was David who ordered the census?" Presbyterian Church. July 28, 2002. David knew what this was like, as he had many times fled from Saul and even had to flee from his son Absalom. Some sin was occurring and it could have been anything from building an army instead of trusting God to just wanting more money from taxes. This is not a bad thing. This is, in my view, the very thing the church in America is suffering from today. The great lesson in these passages is that David’s fear or insecurity came as a result of his lack of trust in God. It is also the exact spot chosen by King Solomon to build God's magnificent temple (2Chronicles 3:1). The devil tempted, but the king went along with it and wanted to use the census as evidence to trust in his own power not God's. Any exceptions Who incited David to take the census in 2 Samuel 24, God or Satan? Why was God so angry at David for taking the census? I am inclined to blame David himself, since as king, he would bear blame for all royal decisions. This sermon is all about David's sin in taking a census and God who gives David three choices of punishment. A census was preliminary to a draft of soldiers and a levying of taxes. Taking a census or numbering something can be justified if having that information serves a useful purpose. God’s wrath was so stirred up that 70,000 people died as a result. Ten of thousands died throughout Israel until the death angel was stopped just before entering Jerusalem. God offered David the choice of a three year famine, three months of military fight from Israel’s enemies, or 3 day’s pestilence. 7 God was very displeased with the census, and he punished Israel for it. David pleaded for mercy and was told to build an altar to God on a particular threshing floor (2Samuel 24:16 - 18). David eventually saw how evil this usurpation was in the eyes of the Lord. a plague sent … 1. The parallel account of the incident surrounding the census, however, reveals it was Satan who incited David to take the census: “Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel” (1 Chronicles 21:1). by Ben Mordecai is close to it in my view; it was a procedural thing whereby a tax was to be collected whenever there was a census and David failed to do it. The reason for the census or the accounting must also be sufficient to justify the effort and cost that such a project might involve. Why Does God Punish Israel For Something He Told David To Do? The sin of taking a census of the truth was that it represented not relying on God. Moses was only permitted to take a census indirectly (Exodus 30:12-13) by having each Israelite offer a coin as a sin offering and then count the coins. His sacrifice for taking a census took place on Mount Moriah. David, taking census without the ransom price reminder that their lives were pledged to God, was usurping in the people's minds God’s lawful place as their protector and true king. Why did God punish David for Census? When David conducted the census in 1 Chronicles 21:1-16, the Bible does not spell out what exactly caused God to be displeased with David's census other than Satan rose up against Israel that caused David to conduct a census. !st Chronicles Ch 21 ;verse 1 Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census, Joab David"s General advised David ,You don"t need to do this,God will give You all that is needed,David ordered Him do it,Joab did ,But He excluded the Tribe of Benjamin and Levi ,because the King"s Order was repulsive to Him; He needs faith and obedience. Anytime Satan is involved you can be sure he intends to get someone to sin! I agree with all the other posts in that David is perhaps acting out of either pride or the flesh by wanting to know numbers. Either God caused David to take a census, or Satan did. After his sin, God told David to choose one of three ways to be punished. If we look closely at the Hebrew, the evidence for contradiction seems to grow. Why did God change his mind? Tonight I am going to briefly handle three questions that have come to me recently. Why did God punish the Israelite people when it was David who ordered the census?" It was the Spirit of God that convicted him and revealed to him the error of his decision. But in 1 Chronicles, the writer says that Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census. In 2 Samuel 24:1 (NET), it states that God "incited" David to take a census: The Lord’s anger again raged against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go count Israel and Judah.” The story goes on to state in 24:10 that. What makes this more interesting is that the chapter begins by saying that the LORD incited David to do this, apparently by giving Satan permission to tempt him. Taking a census was a common way to guage a nation's potential strength in battle (Numbers 1:1 - 4, 19). God's humorous punishment of Philistines. The Gospel According to Isaiah. David eventually saw how evil this usurpation was in the eyes of the Lord. The first asks, “Why was it such a great sin for King David to order a census of Israel?” This refers to 2 Samuel 24:1-17, where God’s anger burned against Israel because David took a census of the fighting men. If you read 2Samuel 24 (or 1Chronicles 21), you’d find that God punished David for doing a census. and why take it out on the common folk? The reason is not explicitly written on the Bible so there are lots of interpretations on this. If there was ever a good candidate for a biblical contradiction, surely this is it. It would be the threshing floor location on which David appeased God, and ended he and nation being punished, that another momentous event would take place! I do not believe that God literally incited David to sin by taking a census. Posted by Christian Research Institute | Feb 28, 2011 | Ask Hank , Audio Download and Listen As soon as David did it he, too, knew it was a sin. He was seeking ultimate allegiance to himself, his kingdom, and his power. Did God tell David to take a census and then punish him for it? In both sentences, the phrase ויסת את דוד “he moved [i.e. The parallel account in 1 Chronicles 21 says, “Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel.” The record in Chronicles places this right after a great victory over the Philistines, so the sin was probably related to a problem with pride and self-reliance. So, putting it in a nutshell, Israel was facing punishment from God and Satan was the means of this punishment by tempting David to take an illegal census; David succumbed to the sin. Joab, David’s general, strongly cautioned him not to take the census, but David insisted. This discrepancy is often explained by the understanding that, in order to achieve His purposes, sometimes God sovereignly permits Satan to act. God offered David his choice of punishments: a three-year famine, three months of military fighting from Israel’s enemies, or three days of pestilence. to the above must be approved by Tenth Presbyterian Church. The third way of being punished was three days of pestilence (a deadly epidemic) upon the land. David Takes a Census (2 Samuel 24.1-25)1 Satan wanted to bring trouble on the people of Israel, so he made David decide to take a census. 2 Samuel 24:1-25 tells the story of Kind David following Gods will to take a census of the Israelites, then God punishing him for following his command by sending a plague and killing 70,000 Israelites. The second choice of correction was to flee from his enemies for three months. This is the same mount where Abraham was to sacrifice his son Isaac (Genesis 22:2). or in unaltered excerpts, as long as you do not charge a fee. Answer: Second Samuel 24:1 says, “Again the anger of the Lord burned against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, 'Go and take a census of Israel and Judah. A capricious and arbitrary God? Even Joab, David’s thug general, knew this would bring trouble, saying, “Why does my lord the king want to do such a thing?” (24:3). In Jewish tradition census taking of the people of Israel was forbidden (Hosea 2:1). Please forgive my guilt for doing this foolish thing.” 9 Then the Lord spoke to Gad, David’s seer. Here is a great link that shows the literal story page by page. Easton's Illustrated Bible Dictionary also has some interesting comments regarding this incident. It states that David acted out of pride and a desire to glorify himself. Again the anger of the Lord was aroused against Israel, and He moved David against them to say, “Go, number Israel and Judah.” (2 Samuel 24:1) Now Satan stood up against Israel, and moved David to number Israel. Young's Literal Translation offers a more accurate explanation of what transpired. But, interestingly, the biblical account never explains why this was a sin. B. David’s guilt and God’s punishment. Looking at the Hebrew More evidence for a contradiction. God had blessed David with abundance and had given Israel peace from its enemies. David chose the three day’s pestilence, figuring it was better to fall by God’s hand than an enemy’s. Answer: The taking of a census, by David or anyone else, is not a sin of itself. By Rick Phillips. Who has been corrected by their own sins? (10) David knows that he has done wrong in numbering the people. God was so angered by the census that he sent a plague that killed 70,000 men. The people died for their disobedience to God’s command. Satan moved in spiritual warfare against the whole nation of Israel and not just the king. Not all Jewish sources agree that God directly or indirectly led David to sin by the census, but rather attribute David's act to his own inclinations to do what is evil in God's eyes. Website: tenth.org, Series: The king seemed to have been prompted by a feeling of pride and ambitious curiosity. Permissions: You are permitted and encouraged to reproduce and distribute this material in its entirety There is nothing wrong with prudent surveys about how the church may better serve its people, or how practical matters may be improved. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband. David’s census without the ransom price reminder that their lives were pledged to God, was usurping in the people’s minds God’s lawful place as their protector and true king. The book of Chronicles tells us that Satan the devil, who was against ancient Israel, moved or provoked King David to count his troops (1Chronicles 21:1). THE HUMANIST's ACCUSATION: The Old Testament contains an interesting contradiction in the story of the census taken by King David and the resulting punishment of the Israelites. He was seeking ultimate allegiance to himself, his kingdom, and his power. David felt guilty after he had numbered the army. But when the church takes surveys of felt needs and desires so as to identify consumers and convert them into customers—paying customers, of course—by redesigning its worship and message, then, like David in his census, the church repudiates its reliance on God, places its own prowess in the place of his provision, denies the gospel by implication, and angers God so that he judges it and allows it to spiritually wither. After David’s sin with Bathsheba, God did not have David to cut the marital relationship with her since her husband was dead and she was released from that marital law “For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. In 2 Samuel, the author says that God incited David to take a census of the people because He was angry with Israel. The first way was to have a famine throughout the land for seven years. It was his vanity and the desire to exalt himself in his own mind that got David in trouble. God offered David his choice of punishments: a three-year famine, three months of military fighting from Israel’s enemies, or three days of pestilence. The king seemed to have been prompted by a feeling of pride and ambitious curiosity. For Internet posting, please use only The pestilence was thus halted. An In-Depth Analysis of God's Apparent Acts of Cruelty in the Bible _____ One of the most perplexing events in the Bible is found in II Samuel 24. Please include the following statement on any distributed copy: Samuel states, "And the anger of Jehovah addeth to burn against Israel, and an adversary [Satan] moveth David about them, saying, 'Go, number Israel and Judah'" (2Samuel 24:1). He put the thought in David's mind that if he knew the number of young men under his rule (meaning those fit for war) he could brag or boast how great a king he was by the size of his army! Upon completion of the census the Prophet Gad informed David of God’s anger and intention to punish David and all Israel for this sin. It would be like us spending hours and hours counting our money rather than serving God and letting God take care of our wealth. This sin is repeated today when churches rely on marketing and salesmanship to gain success. It was Satan the devil who moved David to disobey God. One of the most popular “theories” is because David did not rely on God anymore but on his own army’s strength (hence, why he tried to find out the strength of his military power). God was very displeased with King David for his effort to number or take a census of Israel. The feeling that one gets from reading the accounts of David’s census is that the command to pay half a shekel ransom had been completely forgotten and neglected during the intervening years between Moses and David. God’s intention in taking the infant in death was to punish David. © 2020 Tenth Looking at the scriptures we can know that there is an evil intent by their content. Joab, commander of David's army, tried to warn him to not number Israel so that he and the nation would not be punished (1Chronicles 21:2 - 3). unaltered excerpts (not the content in its entirety) and provide a hyperlink to this page. It may be the men and women of Israel and Judah did not trust God either. So it seems taking a census demonstrated a lapse in David's faith, for he was looking to the physical evidence of his national strength, instead of depending upon God to be the nation's shield. The KJV Bible translation of 2Samuel 24:1, unfortunately, tends to give the reader the wrong impression regarding the motivation behind the census. The reason for doing it, however, certainly can be and is something that might be worthy of being punished for! Rick Phillips The parallel account in 1 Chronicles 21 says, “Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel.” The record in Chronicles places this right after a great victory over the Philistines, so the sin was probably related to a problem with pride and self-reliance. He then, it appears, sinned by calling for a census and violated other biblical principles. It seems, therefore, that David’s intent was to increase the royal power in a way that contrasted with humble reliance on God. And David’s heart condemned him after he had numbered the people. However the key to the issue is that it wasn’t David who was punished, but Israel because their hearts were not right before God. 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