2 Samuel 24
“But after he had taken the census, David’s conscience began to bother him. And he said to the Lord, “I have sinned greatly by taking this census. Please forgive my guilt, Lord, for doing this foolish thing.”
2 Samuel 24:10 NLT
The book of 2 Samuel describes David’s reign. Since the Israelites first entered the Promised Land under Joshua, they had been struggling to unite the nation and drive out the wicked inhabitants. Now, after more than 400 years, Israel was finally at peace. David had accomplished what no leader before him had done. The nation of Israel had extended its borders and become a recognized power. It was against this background that David ordered for a census, thus sinning against the Lord.
What was wrong in taking a census?
We recall that in Numbers 1:2 and 26:2, a census was commanded by God to prepare an army for conquering the Promised Land through direct conscription of men. But now that Israel was at peace, David had no need to enlist troops.
David’s sin was *pride and ambition* in counting the people so that he could glory in the size of his nation and army, its power and defences. By doing this, he put his faith in the size of his army rather than in God’s ability to protect them regardless of their number as He has always done.
We must be cautious so as not to say God makes people to sin as we read the first verse of the chapter. God did not cause David to sin. In the rendition of
1Chronicles 21:1, scripture says that Satan incited David to take the census. This is consistent with James 1:13-15 which shows us the process that births sin.
God would sometimes allow the sinfulness of our hearts to be revealed by our actions, and this was the case with David. Taking the census presented David with an opportunity for God to confront his personal pride and deal with Israel’s disastrous national tendency to take pride in their own military strength rather than trusting in God’s protection.
Application
-We sin in a similar way to David when we place our confidence or security in money, possessions, or the might of our nation.
– David sinned. But his heart was sensitive toward the Lord. As soon as his conscience bothered him, he was convicted and quickly repented. Likewise, we must respond to the conviction of the Holy Spirit; take responsibility for our sins; confessing them to God and trusting in His mercy.
– David’s generous heart came to fore in this story. Verse 24 says, *But the king replied to Araunah, “No, I insist on buying it, for I will not present burnt offerings to the Lord my God that have cost me nothing.” So David paid him fifty pieces of silver for the threshing floor and the oxen(NLT)
A generous heart is consistent with our new nature in Christ. We may not have threshing floors or wine presses today, but we are still called to give generously from that which God has blessed us. Renewing our minds through the Word of God is the key to cultivating a generous heart. God loves a cheerful giver. All that we have belongs to God(including our very selves), so let’s trust that God will take care of us and bless us, as we make up our minds to be generous givers and not just takers.
