2 Samuel 24 Footnotes

24:1 This verse indicates that God’s anger incited David to take a census which was not in the Lord’s will, yet 1Ch 21:1 states that it was Satan who led David to take this wrongful action. The two statements would not be considered contradictory in the ancient Israelite way of thinking. The writer of 2 Samuel affirms that God is the ultimate ruler of the universe; every event is subject to his authority. If even King David, despite his strength and intelligence, could be led into a foolish decision, the Lord’s hand is still involved (see Ps 76:10). Satan, too, is subject to God’s complete control (see Jb 1:6-12). In his position as Sovereign over all, God used one of his created beings—in this case Satan—to bring about judgment on another. People have the authority to resist Satan (Jms 4:7) but David declined to do so, and thus experienced the consequence in the effects of God’s wrath (see Rm 1:18).

It was not wrong for David to take a census, as such; the law of Moses explicitly permitted this (Ex 30:12). Censuses had been taken among the Israelites on two occasions in the days of Moses (Nm 1:2; 4:2,22; 26:2) with no adverse consequences. The problem with David’s census lay either in his motivation for it or the manner in which it was conducted. If the former, David’s purpose was to build his nationalistic ego; he would number the troops in order to boast of his nation’s military might, instead of trusting in God. If the latter, David failed to direct his officials to use the proper procedure. The law required every person counted to pay half a shekel (about one-fifth of an ounce) of silver to the sanctuary treasury (Ex 30:13), but perhaps this was not done. According to the law, failure to collect the money would result in an outbreak of plague, which is exactly what happened in this case.

24:24 In this passage David is said to have purchased “the threshing floor and the oxen” for fifty shekels of silver. In 1Ch 21:22-25, David asks to buy the “threshing-floor plot” (lit “the place of the threshing floor”), apparently a parcel of land that included much more than the threshing floor itself, and accordingly pays a much larger sum of money, six hundred shekels of gold. The different payments are not contradictions, but refer to different purchases.