Study Desk

But the chiefs of the children of Ammon said to Hanun, Does it seem to you that David is honouring your father, by sending comforters to you? is it not clear that these men have only come to go through the land and to make secret observation of it so that they may overcome it?

So Hanun took David's servants, and cutting off their hair and the skirts of their robes up to the middle, sent them away.

So with this money they got thirty-two thousand war-carriages, and the help of the king of Maacah and his people, who came and took up their position in front of Medeba. And the children of Ammon came together from their towns for the fight.

So the children of Ammon came out and put their forces in position on the way into the town; and the kings who had come were stationed by themselves in the field.

So Joab and the people who were with him went forward into the fight against the Aramaeans, and they went in flight before him.

And David said to Joab and the captains of the people, Now let all Israel, from Beer-sheba to Dan, be numbered; and give me word so that I may be certain of their number.

But the king's word was stronger than Joab's. So Joab went out and went through all Israel and came to Jerusalem.

And God was not pleased with this thing; so he sent punishment on Israel.

Go and say to David, The Lord says, Three things are offered to you: say which of them you will have, so that I may do it to you.

So Gad came to David and said to him, The Lord says, Take whichever you will:

So the Lord sent disease on Israel, causing the death of seventy thousand men.

And God sent an angel to Jerusalem for its destruction: and when he was about to do so, the Lord saw, and had regret for the evil, and said to the angel of destruction, It is enough; do no more. Now the angel of the Lord was by the grain-floor of Ornan the Jebusite.

Then David said to Ornan, Give me the place where this grain-floor is, so that I may put up an altar here to the Lord: let me have it for its full price; so that this disease may be stopped among the people.

So David gave Ornan six hundred shekels of gold by weight for the place.

But David was not able to go before it to get directions from the Lord, so great was his fear of the sword of the angel of the Lord.

And David said, Solomon my son is young and untested, and the house which is to be put up for the Lord is to be very great, a thing of wonder and glory through all countries; so I will make ready what is needed for it. So David got ready a great store of material before his death.

Only may the Lord give you wisdom, and knowledge of his orders for Israel, so that you may keep the law of the Lord your God.

Now give your heart and soul to the worship of the Lord your God; and get to work on the building of the holy place of the Lord God, so that you may put the ark of the Lord's agreement and the holy vessels of God in the house which is to be made for the name of the Lord.

Jahath was the chief and Zizah the second; but Jeush and Beriah had only a small number of sons, so they were grouped together as one family.

So among the last acts of David was the numbering of the sons of Levi, from twenty years old and over.