Apr 5 - 1 Chronicles 19-22
1 Chronicles
1Now it happened that Nahash, the king of the sons of Ammon, died, and his son reigned in his place2And David said: "I will act with mercy toward Hanun, the son of Nahash. For his father was gracious to me." And so David sent messengers to console him over the death of his father. But when they had reached the land of the sons of Ammon, so that they might console Hanun3the leaders of the sons of Ammon said to Hanun: "Do you think that perhaps David has sent them to console you in order to honor your father? Have you not noticed that his servants came to you so that they might explore, and investigate, and examine your land?4And so Hanun shaved the heads and beards of the servants of David, and he cut away their tunics from the buttocks to the feet, and he sent them away5And when they had gone, and had sent word to David, (for they had suffered a great disgrace,) he sent to meet them, and he instructed them that they should remain at Jericho until their beards grew, and then they should return6Then, when the sons of Ammon realized that they had committed an injury against David, both Hanun and the rest of the people sent one thousand talents of silver, so that they might hire for themselves chariots and horsemen from Mesopotamia, and from Syrian Maacah, and from Zobah7And they hired thirty-two thousand chariots, and the king of Maacah with his people. When these had arrived, they made camp in the region opposite Medeba. Also, the sons of Ammon, gathering from their cities, went to war8And when David had heard this, he sent Joab and the entire army of strong men9And the sons of Ammon, going out, set up a battle line before the gate of the city. But the kings who had come to their aid stood separately in the field10And so Joab, understanding the war to be set facing him and behind his back, chose the strongest men from all of Israel, and he went out against the Syrians11But the remaining portion of the people he placed under the hand of his brother Abishai. And they went out against the sons of Ammon12And he said: "If the Syrians prevail over me, then you shall be a help to me. But if the sons of Ammon prevail over you, I will be a safeguard for you13Be strengthened, and let us act manfully on behalf of our people, and on behalf of the cities of our God. And the Lord will do what is good in his own sight.14Therefore, Joab, and the people who were with him, went out to battle against the Syrians. And he put them to flight15Then the sons of Ammon, seeing that the Syrians had fled, also themselves fled from Abishai, his brother, and they entered into the city. And now Joab returned to Jerusalem16But the Syrians, seeing that they had fallen before Israel, sent messengers, and they brought the Syrians who were across the river. And Shophach, the leader of the military of Hadadezer, was their commander17When this had been reported to David, he gathered together all of Israel, and he crossed the Jordan. And he rushed toward them. And he set up a battle line facing them. And they fought against him18But the Syrians fled from Israel. And David killed of the Syrians seven thousand chariots, and forty thousand men on foot, and Shophach, the leader of the army19Then the servants of Hadadezer, seeing themselves to be overwhelmed by Israel, crossed over to David, and they served him. And Syria was no longer willing to offer aid to the sons of Ammon
1Now it happened that, after the course of a year, in the time when kings usually go forth to war, Joab gathered an army with experienced soldiers, and he laid waste to the land of the sons of Ammon. And he continued on and besieged Rabbah. But David was staying in Jerusalem when Joab struck Rabbah and destroyed it2Then David took the crown of Milcom from his head, and he found in it the weight of one talent of gold, and very precious gems. And he made for himself a diadem from it. Also, he took the best spoils of the city, which were very many3Then he led away the people who were in it. And he caused plows, and sleds, and iron chariots to go over them, so much so that they were cut apart and crushed. So did David treat all the cities of the sons of Ammon. And he returned with all his people to Jerusalem4After these things, a war was begun at Gezer against the Philistines, in which Sibbecai the Hushathite struck Sippai from the race of the Rephaim, and he humbled them5Also, another war was undertaken against the Philistines, in which Adeodatus, a son of the forest, a Bethlehemite, struck the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the wood of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam6Then too, another war occurred in Gath, in which there was a very tall man, having six digits, that is, all together twenty-four. This man too was born from the stock of the Rephaim7He blasphemed Israel. And Jonathan, the son of Shimea, the brother of David, struck him down.8These were the sons of the Rephaim in Gath, who fell by the hand of David and his servants.
1Now Satan rose up against Israel, and he incited David so that he would number Israel2And David said to Joab and to the leaders of the people: "Go, and number Israel, from Beersheba even to Dan. And bring me the number, so that I may know it.3And Joab responded: "May the Lord increase his people a hundred times more than they are. But, my lord the king, are they not all your servants? Why would my lord seek this thing, which may be imputed as a sin to Israel?4But the word of the king prevailed instead. And Joab went away, and he traveled around, through all of Israel. And he returned to Jerusalem5And he gave to David the number of those whom he had surveyed. And the entire number of Israel was found to be one million and one hundred thousand men who could draw the sword; but from Judah, there were four hundred and seventy thousand men of war6But Levi and Benjamin he did not number. For Joab executed the orders of the king unwillingly7Then God was displeased with what had been ordered, and so he struck Israel8And David said to God: "I have sinned exceedingly in doing this. I beg you take away the iniquity of your servant. For I have acted unwisely.9And the Lord spoke to Gad, the seer of David, saying10"Go, and speak to David, and tell him: Thus says the Lord: I give to you the option of three things. Choose the one that you will want, and I will do it to you.11And when Gad had gone to David, he said to him: "Thus says the Lord: Choose what you will want12Either three years of famine, or three months for you to flee from your enemies, unable to escape from their sword, or three days for the sword of the Lord and a pestilence to turn within the land, with the Angel of the Lord killing in every part of Israel. Now therefore, see what I should respond to him who sent me.13And David said to Gad: "There are difficulties pressing upon me from every side. But it is better for me to fall into the hands of the Lord, for his mercies are many, than into the hands of men.14Therefore, the Lord sent a pestilence upon Israel. And there fell from Israel seventy thousand men15Also, he sent an Angel to Jerusalem, so that he might strike it. And while he was striking, the Lord saw and took pity over the magnitude of the harm. And he commanded the Angel who was striking: "It is enough. Now let your hand cease." And the Angel of the Lord was standing beside the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite16And David, lifting up his eyes, saw the Angel of the Lord, standing between heaven and earth with a drawn sword in his hand, turned toward Jerusalem. And both he and those greater by birth, being clothed in haircloth, fell prone upon the ground17And David said to God: "Am I not the one who ordered that the people be numbered? It is I who sinned; it is I who did evil. This flock, what does it deserve? O Lord my God, I beg you to let your hand be turned against me and against the house of my father. But let not your people be struck down.18Then the Angel of the Lord instructed Gad to tell David that he should ascend and build an altar to the Lord God on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite19Therefore, David ascended, in accord with the word of Gad, which he had spoken to him in the name of the Lord20Now when Ornan had looked up and seen the Angel, he and his four sons hid themselves. For at that time, he was threshing wheat upon the floor21Then, as David was approaching Ornan, Ornan saw him, and he went out from the threshing floor to meet him. And he reverenced him prone on the ground22And David said to him: "Give this place of your threshing floor to me, so that I may build an altar to the Lord upon it. And you shall accept from me as much money as it is worth, so that the plague may cease from the people.23But Ornan said to David: "Take it, and may my lord the king do whatever pleases him. Moreover, I give the oxen also as a holocaust, and the plow for wood, and the wheat for a sacrifice. I will offer all freely.24And king David said to him: "By no means shall it be so. Instead, I will give money to you, as much as it is worth. For I must not take it from you, and thereby offer to the Lord holocausts that cost nothing.25Therefore, David gave Ornan, for the place, the very just weight of six hundred shekels of gold26And he built an altar to the Lord there. And he offered holocausts and peace offerings, and he called upon the Lord. And he heeded him by sending fire from heaven upon the altar of the holocaust27And the Lord instructed the Angel, and he turned his sword back into its sheath28Then, seeing that the Lord had heeded him at the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite, David immediately immolated victims there29But the tabernacle of the Lord, which Moses had made in the desert, and the altar of holocausts, were at that time on the high place of Gibeon30And David was unable to go to the altar, so that he might pray to God there. For he had been struck with an exceedingly great fear, seeing the sword of the Angel of the Lord
1And David said, "This is the house of God, and this is the altar for the holocaust of Israel.2And he instructed them to gather all the new converts from the land of Israel. And from these he appointed stoneworkers, to hew stones and to polish them, so that he might build the house of God3Also, David prepared very much iron to use for the nails of the gates, and for the seams and joints, as well as an immeasurable weight of brass4Also, the cedar trees, which the Sidonians and Tyrians had transported to David, were not able to be counted5And David said: "My son Solomon is a young and tender boy. But the house that I desire to be built to the Lord ought to be so great that it is renowned in every region. Therefore, I will prepare what will be necessary for him." And for this reason, before his death, he prepared all the expenses6And he called for Solomon, his son. And he instructed him to build a house to the Lord, the God of Israel7And David said to Solomon: "My son, it was my will that I build a house to the name of the Lord my God8But the word of the Lord came to me, saying: ‘You have shed much blood, and you have battled in many wars. You are not able to build a house to my name, so great was the shedding of blood before me9The son who shall be born to you will be a very quiet man. For I will cause him to have rest from all his enemies on every side. And for this reason, he shall be called Peaceful. And I will grant peace and tranquility to Israel during all his days10He shall build a house to my name. And he shall be a son to me, and I will be a father to him. And I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel unto eternity.11Now then, my son, may the Lord be with you, and may you prosper and build a house to the Lord your God, just as he has spoken concerning you12Also, may the Lord give you prudence and understanding, so that you may be able to rule Israel and to guard the law of the Lord your God13For then you will be able to advance, if you keep the commandments and judgments that the Lord instructed Moses to teach to Israel. Be strengthened and act manfully. You should not fear, and you should not dread14Behold, in my poverty I have prepared the expenses for the house of the Lord: one hundred thousand talents of gold, and one million of talents of silver. Yet truly, there is no measuring the brass and the iron. For their magnitude is beyond numbering. And I have prepared the timber and the stones for the entire project15Also, you have very many artisans: stoneworkers, and builders of walls, and craftsmen of wood, and those most prudent in doing the work of every art16with gold and silver, and with brass and iron, of which there is no number. Therefore, rise up and act. And the Lord will be with you.17Also, David instructed all the leaders of Israel, so that they would assist his son Solomon18saying: "You discern that the Lord your God is with you, and that he has given you rest on all sides, and that he has delivered all your enemies into your hands, and that the land has been subdued before the Lord and before his people19Therefore, offer your hearts and your souls, so that you seek the Lord your God. And rise up and build a sanctuary to the Lord God, so that the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and the vessels consecrated to the Lord, may be brought into the house that is built to the name of the Lord.