The day after David confesses his sin, a prophet comes to him. "Before David got up the next morning, the word of the Lord had come to Gad, David's seer: 'Go and tell David, 'This is what the Lord says: I am giving you three options. Choose one of them for Me to carry out against you.'" (2 Samuel 24:11-12) We know very little about Gad except for his message to David in our current chapter and in the parallel account found in 1 Chronicles 21. In addition the Bible says in 1 Chronicles 29:29 that the prophet Gad, along with the prophet Samuel and the prophet Nathan, recorded many of the details we find in the Bible regarding the reign of King David. It may be that Gad is the person who penned the words we are studying today in 2 Samuel 24 since he is featured in this chapter.
"So Gad went to David and said to him, 'Shall there come on you three years of famine in your land? Or three months of fleeing from your enemies while they pursue you? Or three days of plague in the land? Now then, think it over and decide how I should answer the One who sent me.'" (2 Samuel 24:13) David admitted his sin in our last study session. Was he not fully repentant when he admitted his sin? The text didn't appear to indicate that. It said he was "conscience-stricken", meaning his admission of guilt came from his heart. He didn't speak empty words when he confessed his sin. He also asked the Lord to take away his guilt (forgive him, not hold him accountable in the judgment) and stated, "I have done a very foolish thing." I think David's sorrow over his sin and his repentance over his sin were genuine. Why then do we find him facing disciplinary action for it?
I think perhaps in this case the disciplinary action is necessary to correct a wrong attitude of his heart. Whatever it was that led him to number the fighting men in the first place, it still lurked in his heart, whether that thing was pride over the size of his army, or whether he intended to use the army to perform things that weren't God's will such as "nation building" by conquering peoples the Lord did not tell the Israelites to conquer, or such as enrolling large numbers of the men in forced-labor projects or using the census to levy an unreasonable amount of taxes on the people. I think that even after David confessed his sin he was still in danger of being influenced by whatever motivated him to order the census to be taken. The discipline will make such an impression on him that it will change something in his heart.
A second question now arises. If David is the one who sinned, why must other people be affected by the Lord's corrective action against him? A famine, being attacked by enemy armies, or a plague will affect more people than just David. Again this is a situation where the author does not provide a clear answer. But some scholars suggest that it's because disciplinary action needs to be carried out against many of the people because a large number of them betrayed David and gave their loyalty to Absalom when he tried to usurp the throne. Then, when Absalom was killed and his supporters gave up on the fight, you'll recall that a man named Sheba stirred up rebellion against David by claiming he showed favoritism to the tribe of Judah over all the other tribes of Israel. David's loyal supporters then had to fight against Sheba and his men to quell the threat against the throne.
Since the Lord is always righteous, we can come to no other conclusion than that the action He takes is necessary to correct something wrong in David's heart and something wrong in the hearts of a number of the people. Each of the choices presented to David will reduce the population somewhat---the numbers of which David was formerly so proud. He chooses plague. "David said to Gad, 'I am in deep distress. Let us fall into the hands of the Lord, for His mercy is great; but do not let me fall into human hands.'" (2 Samuel 24:14)
The other two choices put David and the nation at the mercy of human beings. A famine would cause them to become reliant on others. They would be forced to buy food from outside their borders, making them dependent upon other nations. This could put them under obligation to other nations (owing them favors, causing them to make alliances with heathen nations and being drawn into idolatry, making them subjects of a foreign government) or it could bankrupt their economy because the surrounding nations would be in a position to charge exorbitant prices for food. But wealthy men like David wouldn't be as affected by a famine as the average citizens, so this choice doesn't feel to David as if it puts him in as much risk as it puts everyone else.
Being attacked by enemy armies would cause Israel's soldiers to go to war. But this won't affect David's personal safety because he is no longer allowed by his men to go into battle. You'll recall he became so exhausted during his last battle that a Philistine soldier was about to deliver a killing blow upon him. If it had not been for David's nephew Abishai being a split second quicker with his sword than the Philistine was, Israel's king would have been slain on the field. If David chooses war then other men will be fighting in it, not him. He doesn't feel this choice presents as much of a risk to him as it does to everyone else.
But plague is capable of affecting anyone. It can strike the house of the lowest peasant and it can strike the house of the wealthiest king. This is the only choice of the three that puts David at risk of losing his life. We are living in an era of plague ourselves and we know it doesn't care about a person's social or political or financial status. David chooses plague because he and his household aren't guaranteed an exemption from it. But had he chosen war or famine, his wealth and his position would have protected him and his household from death.
David is putting himself and the people of the nation in the hands of God when he chooses plague. The reason he doesn't want to "fall into human hands" is because humans aren't as merciful as God. Sometimes humans don't show any mercy at all. If the nation becomes subject to a foreign king due to severe famine, the Israelites might end up in as bad of a situation as they were under the king of Egypt in Moses' day. If the nation is invaded by enemy armies and the enemies win, those kings might wipe the Israelites off the map. But the Lord won't make an end of Israel. He will have compassion on the people. David places himself and the people in the Lord's hands because the Lord is the only one who can be trusted to preserve the nation.
Tomorrow we will find David's choice coming to pass.
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