Sermon Notes

21 14 So the Lord sent a pestilence on Israel, and seventy thousand persons fell in Israel. 15 And God sent an angel to Jerusalem to destroy it, but when he was about to destroy it, the Lord took note and relented concerning the calamity; he said to the destroying angel, “Enough! Stay your hand.” The angel of the Lord was standing by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. 16 David looked up and saw the angel of the Lord standing between earth and heaven and in his hand a drawn sword stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell on their faces. 17 And David said to God, “Was it not I who gave the command to count the people? It is I who have sinned and done very wickedly. But these sheep, what have they done? Let your hand, I pray, O Lord my God, be against me and against my father’s house, but do not let your people be plagued!” 18 Then the angel of the Lord commanded Gad to tell David that he should go up and erect an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. 19 So David went up following Gad’s instructions, which he had spoken in the name of the Lord. 20 Ornan turned and saw the king, and while his four sons who were with him hid themselves, Ornan continued to thresh wheat. 21 As David came to Ornan, Ornan looked and saw David; he went out from the threshing floor and prostrated himself before David with his face to the ground. 22 David said to Ornan, “Give me the site of the threshing floor that I may build on it an altar to the Lord—give it to me at its full price—so that the plague may be averted from the people.” 23 Then Ornan said to David, “Take it, and let my lord the king do what seems good to him; see, I present the oxen for burnt offerings and the threshing sledges for the wood and the wheat for a grain offering. I give it all.” 24 But King David said to Ornan, “No, but I will buy them for the full price. I will not take for the Lord what is yours nor offer burnt offerings that cost me nothing.” 25 So David paid Ornan six hundred shekels of gold by weight for the site. 26 David built there an altar to the Lord and presented burnt offerings and offerings of well-being. He called upon the Lord, and he answered him with fire from heaven on the altar of burnt offering. 27 Then the Lord commanded the angel, and he put his sword back into its sheath. 28 At that time, when David saw that the Lord had answered him at the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite, he made his sacrifices there. 29 For the tabernacle of the Lord that Moses had made in the wilderness and the altar of burnt offering were at that time in the high place at Gibeon,30 but David could not go before it to inquire of God, for he was afraid of the sword of the angel of the Lord. (New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition, NRSVue)

21 14-15 So God unleashed an epidemic in Israel—seventy thousand Israelites died. God then sent the angel to Jerusalem but when he saw the destruction about to begin, he compassionately changed his mind and ordered the death angel, “Enough’s enough! Pull back!” 15-16 The angel of God had just reached the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. David looked up and saw the angel hovering between earth and sky, sword drawn and about to strike Jerusalem. David and the elders bowed in prayer and covered themselves with rough burlap. 17 David prayed, “Please! I’m the one who sinned; I’m the one at fault. But these sheep, what did they do wrong? Punish me, not them, me and my family; don’t take it out on them.” 18-19 The angel of God ordered Gad to tell David to go and build an altar to God on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. David did what Gad told him in obedience to God’s command. 20-21 Meanwhile Araunah had quit threshing the wheat and was watching the angel; his four sons took cover and hid. David came up to Araunah. When Araunah saw David, he left the threshing floor and bowed deeply before David, honoring the king. 22 David said to Araunah, “Give me the site of the threshing floor so I can build an altar to God. Charge me the market price; we’re going to put an end to this disaster.” 23 “O Master, my king,” said Araunah, “just take it; do whatever you want with it! Look, here’s an ox for the burnt offering and threshing paddles for the fuel and wheat for the meal offering—it’s all yours!” 24-27 David replied to Araunah, “No. I’m buying it from you, and at the full market price. I’m not going to offer God sacrifices that are no sacrifice.” So David bought the place from Araunah for six hundred shekels of gold. He built an altar to God there and sacrificed Whole-Burnt-Offerings and Peace-Offerings. He called out to God and God answered by striking the altar of Whole-Burnt-Offering with lightning. Then God told the angel to put his sword back into its scabbard. 28-29 And that’s the story of what happened when David saw that God answered him on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite at the time he offered the sacrifice. 29 At this time the Tabernacle that Moses had constructed in the desert, and with it the Altar of Burnt Offering, were set up at the worship center at Gibeon. But David, terrified by the angel’s sword, wouldn’t go there to pray to God anymore. 30So David declared, “From now on, this is the site for the worship of God; this is the place for Israel’s Altar of Burnt Offering.” (The Message, MSG)

1 Chronicles 21 is one of those passages of scripture that often provides more questions than answers. An inquisitive, critical thinker might immediately read this text and ask the questions, Why would God allow Satan to incite David?” Why would a census be a bad thing?” “Why would God unleash an epidemic upon God’s people and then have a change of heart? Why is David always the last person to know what is right to do?...What happened to that whole, “man after God’s own heart thing? If you would ask any of these questions, you would not be alone.
However, if one considers the theological perspective of the Chronicler—God’s grace requires sacrificial worship—things become less opaque. The anonymous person or persons who wrote Chronicles (called the Chronicler) is clearly aware of Israelite temple customs, rituals and clergy. They may even be a temple insider and a member of the Jerusalem priesthood. Therefore, they understand the theological and ritualistic significance of offerings. David’s sacrificial offering is related to the tremendous forgiveness and grace that he has received from God. How can he render anything less for all that God has done for him? After reading this biblical text and reflecting upon the quarterly theme of “Costly Sacrifices,” contemporary Christians should ask themselves one final question—"Is worship really worship if it costs me nothing?”

1 and 2 Chronicles is a theological retelling of the Israel’s history as previously presented in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament books of 1,2 Samuel and 1,2 Kings. While the story is essentially the same—with the same characters, the same geographical locations, and the same political, social and religious events—it is presented by a different voice, from a different perspective, and different time period. The events spoken of in Samuel and Kings would have occurred in the 10th – 6th century BCE, and would have been finalized in writing likely during the 6th century BCE. Chronicles is written in the 4th century BCE during the Persian period (539-332 BCE). The Chronicler’s task is to craft a narrative that convinced the returned exiles to remain faithful to the God of their ancestors, while “instilling a sense of mission, national pride, and divine purpose in a people who had been displaced from their homeland and robbed of their cultural memories.”
The historical context of exile, diaspora and restoration looms largely over the returning exiles as they navigate their cultural identity, religious heritage and socio-political place within Judah/Yehud. Ultimately, they seek to discern God’s purpose for their lives within the new world order that greets them as they return to Judah/Yehud. The Chronicler handles the narrative history of Israel quite differently than the writer that wrote Samuel and Kings. “Instead of asking why the disaster happened to them like his theological counterpart the Deuteronomistic Historian year’s before, the Chronicler retells the story of Israel’s past in order to answer the questions, “Are We Still the God’s People?” and “What do God’s promises to David and Solomon mean to us, today?”
At the core of the Chronicler’s theology stands the conviction that “right” worship will alter circumstances for Israel’s good. Therefore, it stand to reason that right worship would occur in the “right” place or a temple. 1 Chronicles chapters 17-29 are all related to the establishment of the Jerusalem Temple. Chapter 21 narrates the initial selection of the site which will eventually house the temple, and chapter 22 outlines the person who will eventually build the temple: Solomon, King David’s son and the heir to the Davidic Monarchy. God’s plan to build a “house” for David, ultimately leads to David’s son building a house for God.
This week’s scripture lesson explores David’s sacrifice to the LORD after his presumptive census brings disaster upon the Israelite people. Ultimately, the relationship between human weakness and sacrificial worship is formally established within the Davidic Monarchy as sacrifice becomes the primary component of centralized Israelite worship on the site that will eventually become the Jerusalem Temple.

14-15 So God unleashed an epidemic in Israel—seventy thousand Israelites died. God then sent the angel to Jerusalem but when he saw the destruction about to begin, he compassionately changed his mind and ordered the death angel, “Enough’s enough! Pull back!” 15-16 The angel of God had just reached the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. David looked up and saw the angel hovering between earth and sky, sword drawn and about to strike Jerusalem. David and the elders bowed in prayer and covered themselves with rough burlap. 17 David prayed, “Please! I’m the one who sinned; I’m the one at fault. But these sheep, what did they do wrong? Punish me, not them, me and my family; don’t take it out on them.”
The opening verses of the lesson clearly refer to what has occurred in verses 1-13 that are not a part of the lesson text. God brings pestilence upon Israel as a result of David’s pride in ordering that a census be taken in all Israel. David wanted to take pride in the strength of his army, causing God to become displeased with him. Several questions and observations can be made about these verses:
1. Why is the census problematic? According to the Chronicler, the census indicates that David is relying on his military might instead of trust in the God that has delivered him and the Israelite people thus far in their faith journey. This also indicates that David has lost some of the faith he exhibited as a youth who courageously fought Goliath. This reminds contemporary Christians that we must always put our trust in God, believing that God will supply all of our needs.
2. What does this incident show about God’s character? In verse 9 of chapter 21, the LORD send Gad the seer to offer David three choices for punishment of his sin. Either famine, foreign invasion, or pestilence will be the natural or human instruments of punishment. David refuses to make a choice and leaves it up to the Lord, who sends a 3-day pestilence upon Israel. Essentially, David is chooses to rely on God’s mercy to determine punishment instead of a punishment that is carried out by a human army. In the NRSV, verse 15 says God took note, but relented concerning the calamity, indicating God heard David and the elders prayers before they even uttered them. This lets us know that God deals with us in terms of love and mercy instead of justice and retribution. God always operates out of love.
3. How does David’s response to calamity provide a model for penitence? When David sees the angel standing by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite, he takes responsibility for ordering the census, he and the elders immediately pray, and they all assume the posture of lament—donning sackcloth and prostrating themselves before the LORD. . In the original Hebrew, the verb tense is Piel (indicating intensified action) and the grammatical form is a participle (indicating ongoing action). David understands his sin has brought about these circumstances and the only One who can do something about this situation is God. Also, in fervently speaking on behalf of the people, David takes responsibility for his sin and its repercussions.
18-19 The angel of God ordered Gad to tell David to go and build an altar to God on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. David did what Gad told him in obedience to God’s command. 20-21 Meanwhile Araunah had quit threshing the wheat and was watching the angel; his four sons took cover and hid. David came up to Araunah. When Araunah saw David, he left the threshing floor and bowed deeply before David, honoring the king. 22 David said to Araunah, “Give me the site of the threshing floor so I can build an altar to God. Charge me the market price; we’re going to put an end to this disaster.” 23 “O Master, my king,” said Araunah, “just take it; do whatever you want with it! Look, here’s an ox for the burnt offering and threshing paddles for the fuel and wheat for the meal offering—it’s all yours!”
Jerusalem was originally called Jebus (see Judges 19:10). When David captured the city from the Jebusites, he made it his capital (2 Samuel 5:6-9) and named it Jerusalem. Five times in this text, the threshing floor, or the act of threshing is mentioned, indicating this site is has significance. The threshing floor was the place where the grain was separated from the harvested wheat. However, there is more at work with this threshing floor than simply a geographical location or agricultural mill. In the ancient Near east, threshing floors had ritualistic significance. They were not only the places where wheat was threshed, they are the site of significant religious and theological importance as places of winnowing—where the crushed wheat was thrown into the air which was called winnowing. Winnowing separates the wheat from the chaff. The wheat falls back to the ground of the stone floor, where it can be harvested and ground into flour for bread. And, the chaff—which is of no value—blows away in the wind. The LORD directed David to build an altar on the threshing floor to instruct him about the value and maturation that comes from the winnowing process.
David follows the LORD’s instruction—this signifies his penitence and obedience—and approaches Araunah. When Araunah sees and recognizes David, in honor and respect he bowed before David. David then begins a negotiation to purchase Araunah’s property. Araunah generously offered the property to David as a gift. Moreover, he was willing to give David any oxen he would need for burnt offerings to God. The burnt offering was done to make atonement for a person’s sin. The intent was to be a total surrender to God, as well as substitutionary atonement for the one making the sacrifice. According to Leviticus 1:2-4, the sacrifice was to be a male animal without any blemishes or spots and the one who offers it had to put his hand on the head of the animal to show it was taking the place of the one offering it. Araunah also offers to provide David with all the things necessary for the offering, including wood and wheat. Whatever David needs, Araunah would make it available.
24-27 David replied to Araunah, “No. I’m buying it from you, and at the full market price. I’m not going to offer God sacrifices that are no sacrifice.” So David bought the place from Araunah for six hundred shekels of gold. He built an altar to God there and sacrificed Whole-Burnt-Offerings and Peace-Offerings. He called out to God and God answered by striking the altar of Whole-Burnt-Offering with lightning. Then God told the angel to put his sword back into its scabbard. 28-29 And that’s the story of what happened when David saw that God answered him on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite at the time he offered the sacrifice. 29 At this time the Tabernacle that Moses had constructed in the desert, and with it the Altar of Burnt Offering, were set up at the worship center at Gibeon. But David, terrified by the angel’s sword, wouldn’t go there to pray to God anymore. 30So David declared, “From now on, this is the site for the worship of God; this is the place for Israel’s Altar of Burnt Offering.”
Because David is king, he could have seized Araunah’s land without compensating him. However, David will not take anything for God’s use without it costing him something. Since David is sacrificing on Israel's behalf, he must bear the cost. The animal to be used for burnt offerings had to be “a male without blemish” (Leviticus 1:2-3); meaning an animal of the best quality. So, giving David the sacrifice for nothing would be an expensive loss for Araunah, but it would have cost David nothing. David knows he cannot honor the Lord if he offers a sacrifice that costs him nothing. David bought “the place” for “six hundred shekels of gold” an amount that Rashi, a Jewish interpreter who lived during the middle ages, says has religious significance as a multiple of twelve. David did as God commanded and built the altar to the Lord. According to the Chronicler’s theology, this signifies God’s mercy and underlies the cessation of sacrifice in Gibeon. From this point forward, official sacrifice in the Davidic monarchy will occur in Jerusalem. The most important thing the Chronicler wants readers to glean from this retelling is that 1 Chronicles 21 showcases God’s amazing grace, mercy, and love to David and God’s covenant people, the Israelites.

i. Judy Fentress Williams, Holy Imagination: A Literary and Theological Introduction to the Whole Bible, (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2021) p. 122.
ii. Renita Weems, “1-2 Chronicles” in Brian Blount, et al, True to Our Native Land: An African American New Testament Commentary, (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2007), p. 287.
iii. Ibid.