Few passages unsettle readers more than David’s census and the resulting plague recorded in 1 Chronicles 21 and 2 Samuel 24. The account forces us to grapple with difficult truths: human sin, divine punishment, God’s sovereignty, Satan’s involvement, and the mystery of suffering. At first glance, the situation seems unfair—even harsh. Why would God punish a census? Why allow Satan to tempt David? Why strike seventy thousand men with a fatal plague?
But Scripture never avoids complexity, and this passage invites us to look deeply into themes of sin, justice, mercy, and God’s rule over both blessing and calamity.
Who Caused It?
The two accounts seem to portray different forces behind the census:
- 1 Chronicles 21:1 — “Then Satan stood against Israel and incited David to number Israel.”
- 2 Samuel 24:1 — “Again the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go, number Israel and Judah.”
Is this a contradiction? Not at all. Both are true—on two different levels. Satan maliciously tempted David, while God judicially permitted the temptation, fully knowing David’s inclinations beforehand. One actor’s intentions were malicious, while the other actor’s intentions were good (in a judicial sense). This echoes Genesis 50:20, where Joseph describes his brother’s actions as intended for evil (by them), but simultaneously intended for good (by God). James is clear: “God cannot be tempted with evil and he himself tempts no one” (Jas 1:13). Yet God can withdraw protection and allow Satan, whose nature is already to lie and destroy, to act. Satan is a ravenous dog on a leash, but it’s God’s leash.
Though the account we are studying does not narrate the specific interaction between God and Satan, we get a glimpse of how this may have unfolded in 1 Kings 22:20–23. There, God addresses spiritual beings and permits a lying spirit—already inclined toward deception—to mislead Ahab through false prophecy, ultimately leading him into disaster. God did not lie, nor did He create the spirit’s deceitful nature—He simply loosened the leash. Likewise, God did not create the evil desires in Satan or David, but He allowed Satan to tempt an already-doubting David in order to bring judgment on an already-sinful nation.
Why Was the Census Wrong?
David’s census wasn’t administrative—it was a confidence test. He was measuring strength apart from God. After years of victory, perhaps the king wanted to verify that Israel had enough human power to remain safe. The fact that the census involved counting the men who “drew the sword” (v5) strengthens this hypothesis. This was an insult to the covenant God had made with David earlier (1 Chr. 17; cf. 2 Sam. 7), where God promised:
- Rest from enemies
- A secure kingdom
- A lasting dynasty
Counting fighting men was David’s way of checking whether God’s promise was still reliable. It was unbelief dressed as strategy. Even Joab knew that taking such a census would bring much guilt upon Israel (1 Chr 21:3). God made clear promises to David, and didn’t need David’s military strength to make those promises good. In Judges 7, God exponentially reduced Gideon’s army from 32,000 to 300, so Israel would know the battle belonged to the Lord—not military strength. God may have been showing David the same lesson: “You trusted numbers? I can remove seventy thousand, and My promise still stands.” But the big question remains: Why kill them? Why not just dwindle their number like He did in Gideon’s story?
Why Such Severe Judgment?
The text in 2 Samuel 24:1 says God’s anger was already kindled—again—against Israel, not merely David. Israel had recently supported Absalom and then Sheba in rebellion. Their hearts were not fully aligned with the covenant. God was not acting randomly or emotionally. His use of the census (and its consequences) was judicial—just, measured, and purposeful.
Additionally, David’s action violated Exodus 30:11–16, which required a half-shekel atonement payment for every person counted “that there be no plague among them when you number them”. David neglected this command, deepening the offense.
Although God didn’t always immediately penalize lawbreakers, in this case He did, similar to the other “megaphone” level judgments in scripture that elicited the corporate fear of God, like the death of Uzzah for handling the Ark of the covenant contrary to Levitical commands, or the death of Ananias and Saphira for lying to the Holy Spirit. This type of judgment is relatively rare. Or is it?
An Outdated Form Of Judgment?
When we read about this plague, we may think: “The Old Testament is so harsh! 70,000 men dead?!” However, more recent plagues have carried no less death. COVID-19 alone caused millions of deaths—and it’s only one pandemic among many in the last century: SARS, HIV, Ebola, the Asian Flu, the Spanish Flu, and others. The only difference between modern plagues and the one in 1 Chronicles 21 is that David’s story gives us the behind-the-scenes context. There are times in Scripture when God briefly opens that curtain between physical reality and metaphysical reality—such as when Elisha prayed for his fearful servant to see the real battle behind their impending battle with the Syrians, and, “The Lord opened the young man’s eyes, and he saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire” (2 Kings 6:17). If God were to lift the veil during modern pandemics, we might witness similar divine judgments, decrees, and spiritual warfare—each perfectly synchronized with what appear to be “natural” causes. Though we may not see those hidden realities— they still exist. Nothing escapes God’s rule, permission, or purpose. Nothing is random—not illness, not death, not suffering.
How Should We Respond to Calamity?
To think God sending (or permitting) a plague is “unfair” and “outdated” is to forget the seriousness of human sin. We live in a fallen world—a world where mankind once declared independence from its Creator. When Adam fell, death entered, not as a random occurrence, but as the rightful wage of sin:
“The wages of sin is death.” — Romans 6:23
So how should we respond to modern plagues? Not with entitlement. Not with the assumption that we are innocent victims. James gives a proper response:
“Is anyone among you sick? … Confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed.”— James 5:14–16
Illness is a reminder of the gap between God’s holiness and our mortal state caused by Adam’s fall. Though we may not know the cause of a specific plague – whether Adam’s sin, our personal sin, societal sin, or simply an opportunity for spiritual growth – we know that it ultimately traces to sin somehow. Like David, our first response should be humility, confession, and repentance—not accusation toward God.
David understood this. When offered three forms of judgment, he cried:
“Let me fall into the hands of the Lord, for His mercy is very great; but do not let me fall into the hands of man.” — 1 Chronicles 21:13
Even under judgment, David trusted God’s mercy more than human justice.
The Gospel Hidden in the Plague
The story ends in mercy.
David purchases the threshing floor of Ornan and offers sacrifices—and God relents when He sees the offering. That site would become the location of Solomon’s temple…and centuries later, the place where countless atonement sacrifices pointed forward to the final, perfect sacrifice — Jesus Christ.
The plague stops not because David did better—but because atonement was made.
Final Hope
This passage is not ultimately about God’s harshness—but His holiness, justice, and astonishing mercy. It reminds us:
- God governs Satan.
- God governs calamity.
- God judges sin.
- God extends mercy through atonement.
And through Christ, God has promised a future where plagues, pain, and death will be abolished.
The Middle Ground 