Chronicles 21:1-8
New International Version
David Counts the
Fighting Men
21 Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel.
2 So David said to Joab and the commanders of the troops, “Go and count
the Israelites from Beersheba to Dan. Then report back to me so that I may know
how many there are.”
3 But Joab replied, “May the Lord multiply his troops a hundred times over.
My lord the king, are they not all my lord’s subjects? Why does my lord want to
do this? Why should he bring guilt on Israel?”
4 The king’s word, however, overruled Joab; so Joab left and went throughout
Israel and then came back to Jerusalem.
5 Joab reported the number of the fighting men to David: In all Israel
there were one million one hundred thousand men who could handle a sword, including
four hundred and seventy thousand in Judah.
6 But Joab did not include Levi and Benjamin in the numbering, because
the king’s command was repulsive to him.
7 This command was also evil in the sight of God; so he punished Israel.
8Then David said to God, “I have sinned greatly by doing this. Now, I
beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing.”
What Are You Counting on?
1 Chronicles 21:1-8
We live in a world of numbers. Our grades, salary, achievements, followers, and so on. We work with numbers and count items all the time but when we count on numbers this can be a problem.
“So David said to Joab and the commanders of the army, “Go, number Israel, from Beersheba to Dan, and bring me a report, that I may know their number.” ”
1 Chronicles 21:2 ESV
David wanted to know how many soldiers were in his army. There is nothing wrong with King David's curiosity, but when you find security in those numbers, this becomes a problem. Putting your faith in something other than God creates a problem and becomes a sin.
We see in the previous verse that it is Satan who instigated this curiosity. This temptation does not seem so bad, but we know with Satan, he is usually trying to encourage us to find a way that is different from God's word.
“ Then Satan stood against Israel and incited David to number Israel. ”
1 Chronicles 21:1 ESV
A character whom we know is not the best character, Joab, warn King David over his folly. Joab sees the problem and warns King David not to insult God.
King David is the highest human authority in Israel. He outranks Joab and ignores his advice. God will often put people in our lives to warn us or give good advice but our arrogance prevents us from seeing the truth or the danger. We must discern right from wrong, but we also must be humble enough to listen to others who are telling the truth.
After Joab and the officers take the census and report the numbers, God strikes Israel and King David sees his own folly.
“And David said to God, “I have sinned greatly in that I have done this thing. But now, please take away the iniquity of your servant, for I have acted very foolishly.” ”
1 Chronicles 21:8 ESV
King David sees his mistake. He does not blame other people or minimize what he did. He does use his title as an excuse for his actions. King David sees it is the direction of his heart that has put him in this position.
Numbers will go up and down. If the numbers go up, we should not be proud. When the numbers go down, we should not lose hope. We need to place our hope in God. We need to give thanks for what we have been given. We need to understand whom we trust and what the direction of our heart is
