“So the Lord sent a plague on Israel from that morning until the appointed time, and from Dan to Beer-sheba seventy thousand men died.” (CSB – Read the chapter)
So, let me get this straight: David did a census of his nation that God didn’t like, and He killed 70,000 people for it? What in the world are we supposed to do with this?
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“The Lord’s anger burned against Israel again, and he stirred up David against them to say: ‘Go, count the people of Israel and Judah.'” (ESV – Read the chapter)
This is a really uncomfortable chapter. It raises a couple of really hard questions. I’ll treat them as they come starting with this one: Why would the Lord cause David to do something for which He then punished him? How is that just or fair or right or good or whatever other adjective you want to throw in there?
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“David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die. Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned the Lord, the child who is born to you shall die.”” (ESV – Read the chapter)
These are two of the hardest verses I’ve yet encountered in this slow walk through the history books of the Hebrew Bible. In the first part of this note I began sharing about what has given me such trouble. I started out fairly easy. Here I will get into the real problem for me (and possibly you too). As I said before, here goes… Read the rest…
The Nexus 