I Chronicles 21

¹Sotheli Sathan roos ayens Israel, and stiride Dauid for to noumbre Israel.

²And Dauid seide to Joab, and to the princes of the puple, Go ye, and noumbre Israel fro Bersabe til to Dan, and brynge ye the noumbre to me, that Y wite.

³And Joab answeride, The Lord encresse his puple an hundrid fold more than thei ben; my lord the kyng, whether alle ben not thi seruauntis? Whi sekith my lord this thing, that schal be arettid in to synne to Israel?

⁴But the word of the kyng hadde more the maistrie; and Joab yede out, and cumpasside al Israel, and turnede ayen in to Jerusalem.

⁵And he yaf to Dauid the noumbre of hem, which he hadde cumpassid; and al the noumbre of Israel was foundun a thousynde thousande, and an hundrid thousynde of men, drawynge out swerd; forsothe of Juda weren thre hundrid thousynde, and seuenti thousynde of werriouris.

⁶For Joab noumbride not Leuy and Beniamyn, for ayens his wille he dide the comaundement of the kyng.

⁷Forsothe that that was comaundid displeside the Lord, and he smoot Israel.

⁸And Dauid seide to God, Y synnede greetli that Y wolde do this; Y biseche, do thou awey the wickidnesse of thi seruaunt, for Y dide folili.

⁹And the Lord spak to Gad, the profete of Dauid,

¹⁰and seide, Go thou, and speke to Dauid, and seie to him, The Lord seith these thingis, Y yeue to thee the chesyng of thre thingis; chese thou oon which thou wolt, that Y do to thee.

¹¹And whanne Gad was comen to Dauid, he seide to Dauid, The Lord seith these thingis, Chese thou that that thou wolt, ether pestilence thre yeer,

¹²ether that thre monethis thou fle thin enemyes and mow not ascape her swerd, ether that the swerd of the Lord and deeth regne thre daies in the lond, and that the aungel of the Lord slee in alle the coostis of Israel. Now therfor se thou, what Y schal answere to hym that sente me.

¹³And Dauid seide to Gad, Angwischis oppresse me on ech part, but it is betere to me, that Y falle in to the hondis of the Lord, for his merciful doynges ben manye, than in to the hondis of men.

¹⁴Therfor the Lord sente pestilence in to Israel, and seuenti thousynde of men felden doun of Israel.

¹⁵Also he sente an aungel in to Jerusalem, that he schulde smyte it; and whanne it was smytun, the Lord siy, and hadde merci on the greetnesse of yuel; and comaundide to the aungel that smoot, It suffisith, now thin hond ceesse. Forsothe the aungel of the Lord stood bisidis the cornfloor of Ornam Jebusey.

¹⁶And Dauid reiside hise iyen, and siy the aungel of the Lord stondynge bitwixe heuene and erthe, and a drawun swerd in his hond, and turnede ayens Jerusalem. And bothe he and the grettere men in birthe weren clothid with heiris, and felden doun lowe on the erthe.

¹⁷And Dauid seide to the Lord, Whether Y am not that comaundide that the puple schulde be noumbrid? Y it am that synnede, Y it am that dide yuel; what disseruid this floc? My Lord God, Y biseche, thin hond be turned `in to me, and `in to the hows of my fadir; but thi puple be not smytun.

¹⁸Forsothe an aungel of the Lord comaundide Gad, that he schulde seie to Dauid, `that he schulde stie, and bilde an auter to the Lord God in the cornfloor of Ornam Jebusei.

¹⁹Therfor Dauid stiede bi the word of Gad, which he spak to hym bi the word of the Lord.

²⁰Forsothe whanne Ornam hadde `biholde, and hadde seyn the aungel, and hise foure sones `with hym `hadde seyn, thei hidden hem, for in that tyme he threischide whete in the cornfloor.

²¹Therfor whanne Dauid cam to Ornam, Ornam bihelde Dauid, and yede forth fro the cornfloor ayens hym, and worschipide hym, lowli on the ground.

²²And Dauid seide to hym, Yyue the place of thi cornfloor to me, that Y bilde ther ynne an auter to the Lord; so that thou take as myche siluer as it is worth, and that the veniaunce ceesse fro the puple.

²³Forsothe Ornam seide to Dauid, Take thou, and my lord the kyng do what euer thing plesith hym; but also Y yyue oxis in to brent sacrifice, and instrumentis of tree, wherbi cornes ben throischun, in to trees, and wheete in to sacrifice; Y yyue alle thingis wilfully.

²⁴And `Dauid the kyng seide to hym, It schal not be don so, but Y schal yyue siluer as myche as it is worth; for Y owe not take awei fro thee, and offre so to the Lord brent sacrifices freli youun.

²⁵Therfor Dauid yaf to Ornam for the place sixe hundrid siclis of gold of most iust weiyte.

²⁶And he bildide there an auter to the Lord, and he offride brent sacrifice and pesible sacrifices, and he inwardli clepide God; and God herde hym in fier fro heuene on the auter of brent sacrifice.

²⁷And the Lord comaundide to the aungel, and he turnede his swerd in to the schethe.

²⁸Therfor anoon Dauid siy, that the Lord hadde herd hym in the corn floor of Ornam Jebusey, and he offride there slayn sacrifices.

²⁹Forsothe the tabernacle of the Lord, that Moyses hadde maad in the deseert, and the auter of brent sacrifices, was in that tempest in the hiy place of Gabaon;

³⁰and Dauid myyte not go to the auter, to biseche God there, for he was aferd bi ful greet drede, seynge the swerd of the `aungel of the Lord.

I Chronicles 21

¹And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.

²And David said to Joab and to the rulers of the people, Go, number Israel from Beer–sheba even to Dan; and bring the number of them to me, that I may know it.

³And Joab answered, The Lord make his people an hundred times so many more as they be: but, my lord the king, are they not all my lord’s servants? why then doth my lord require this thing? why will he be a cause of trespass to Israel?

⁴Nevertheless the king’s word prevailed against Joab. Wherefore Joab departed, and went throughout all Israel, and came to Jerusalem.

⁵And Joab gave the sum of the number of the people unto David. And all they of Israel were a thousand thousand and an hundred thousand men that drew sword: and Judah was four hundred threescore and ten thousand men that drew sword.

⁶But Levi and Benjamin counted he not among them: for the king’s word was abominable to Joab.

⁷And God was displeased with this thing; therefore he smote Israel.

⁸And David said unto God, I have sinned greatly, because I have done this thing: but now, I beseech thee, do away the iniquity of thy servant; for I have done very foolishly.

⁹And the Lord spake unto Gad, David’s seer, saying,

¹⁰Go and tell David, saying, Thus saith the Lord, I offer thee three things: choose thee one of them, that I may do it unto thee.

¹¹So Gad came to David, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Choose thee

¹²Either three years’ famine; or three months to be destroyed before thy foes, while that the sword of thine enemies overtaketh thee; or else three days the sword of the Lord, even the pestilence, in the land, and the angel of the Lord destroying throughout all the coasts of Israel. Now therefore advise thyself what word I shall bring again to him that sent me.

¹³And David said unto Gad, I am in a great strait: let me fall now into the hand of the Lord; for very great are his mercies: but let me not fall into the hand of man.

¹⁴So the Lord sent pestilence upon Israel: and there fell of Israel seventy thousand men.

¹⁵And God sent an angel unto Jerusalem to destroy it: and as he was destroying, the Lord beheld, and he repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed, It is enough, stay now thine hand. And the angel of the Lord stood by the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite.

¹⁶And David lifted up his eyes, and saw the angel of the Lord stand between the earth and the heaven, having a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders of Israel, who were clothed in sackcloth, fell upon their faces.

¹⁷And David said unto God, Is it not I that commanded the people to be numbered? even I it is that have sinned and done evil indeed; but as for these sheep, what have they done? let thine hand, I pray thee, O Lord my God, be on me, and on my father’s house; but not on thy people, that they should be plagued.

¹⁸Then the angel of the Lord commanded Gad to say to David, that David should go up, and set up an altar unto the Lord in the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite.

¹⁹And David went up at the saying of Gad, which he spake in the name of the Lord.

²⁰And Ornan turned back, and saw the angel; and his four sons with him hid themselves. Now Ornan was threshing wheat.

²¹And as David came to Ornan, Ornan looked and saw David, and went out of the threshingfloor, and bowed himself to David with his face to the ground.

²²Then David said to Ornan, Grant me the place of this threshingfloor, that I may build an altar therein unto the Lord: thou shalt grant it me for the full price: that the plague may be stayed from the people.

²³And Ornan said unto David, Take it to thee, and let my lord the king do that which is good in his eyes: lo, I give thee the oxen also for burnt offerings, and the threshing instruments for wood, and the wheat for the meat offering; I give it all.

²⁴And king David said to Ornan, Nay; but I will verily buy it for the full price: for I will not take that which is thine for the Lord, nor offer burnt offerings without cost.

²⁵So David gave to Ornan for the place six hundred shekels of gold by weight.

²⁶And David built there an altar unto the Lord, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings, and called upon the Lord; and he answered him from heaven by fire upon the altar of burnt offering.

²⁷And the Lord commanded the angel; and he put up his sword again into the sheath thereof.

²⁸At that time when David saw that the Lord had answered him in the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite, then he sacrificed there.

²⁹For the tabernacle of the Lord, which Moses made in the wilderness, and the altar of the burnt offering, were at that season in the high place at Gibeon.

³⁰But David could not go before it to enquire of God: for he was afraid because of the sword of the angel of the Lord.