4
But David wouldn't take no for an answer, so Joab went off and did it - canvassed the country and then came back to Jerusalem
5
and reported the results of the census: There were 1,100,000 fighting men; of that total, Judah accounted for 470,000.
6
Joab, disgusted by the command - it, in fact, turned his stomach! - protested by leaving Levi and Benjamin out of the census-taking.
7
And God, offended by the whole thing, punished Israel.
8
Then David prayed, "I have sinned badly in what I have just done, substituting statistics for trust; forgive my sin - I've been really stupid."
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.