20 And it came to pass at the time of the return of the year, at the time when kings go forth, that Joab led forth the power of the army, and laid waste the land of the children of Ammon, and came and besieged Rabbah. But David abode at Jerusalem. And Joab smote Rabbah, and overthrew it.

² And David took the crown of their king from off his head, and found it to weigh a talent of gold, and there were precious stones in it; and it was [set] upon David's head: and he brought forth the spoil of the city in great abundance.

³ And he brought out the people that were in it, and cut them with the saw, and with harrows of iron, and with saws. And so David did to all the cities of the children of Ammon. And David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.

⁴ And it came to pass after this, that there arose war at Gezer with the Philistines; then Sibbechai the Hushathite smote Sippai, one of the children of Rapha; and they were subdued.

⁵ And there was again a battle with the Philistines; and Elhanan the son of Jair smote Lahmi the brother of Goliath the Gittite; now the shaft of his spear was like a weaver's beam.

⁶ And there was again a battle, at Gath; and there was a man [there] of great stature, whose fingers [and toes] were four and twenty, six [on each hand], and six [on each foot]; and he also was born to Rapha.

⁷ And he defied Israel; but Jonathan the son of Shimea David's brother smote him.

⁸ These were born to Rapha in Gath; and they fell by the hand of David, and by the hand of his servants.

21 And Satan stood up against Israel, and moved David to number Israel.

² And David said to Joab and to the princes 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.

³ And Joab said, Jehovah add to his people, how many soever they be, a hundredfold: are they not all, my lord O king, my lord's servants? why does my lord require this thing? why should he become a trespass to Israel?

⁴ But the king's word prevailed against Joab; and Joab departed, and went through all Israel, and came [again] to Jerusalem.

⁵ And Joab gave the sum of the number of the people to David. And all they of Israel were eleven hundred thousand men that drew sword; and of Judah, four hundred and seventy thousand men that drew sword.

⁶ But Levi and Benjamin he did not count among them; for the king's word was abominable to Joab.

⁷ And God was displeased on account of this thing, and he smote Israel.

⁸ And David said to God, I have sinned greatly, in that I have done this thing; and now, I beseech thee, put away the iniquity of thy servant; for I have done very foolishly.

⁹ And Jehovah spoke to Gad, David's seer, saying,

¹⁰ Go and speak to David saying, Thus saith Jehovah: I offer thee three [things]; choose one of them, that I may do it unto thee.

¹¹ And Gad came to David, and said to him, Thus saith Jehovah:

¹² Choose thee, either three years of famine, or three months to be destroyed before thine adversaries while that the sword of thine enemies overtaketh thee, or three days the sword of Jehovah and the pestilence in the land, and the angel of Jehovah destroying through all the borders of Israel. And now consider what word I shall bring again to him that sent me.

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

¹⁴ And Jehovah sent a pestilence upon Israel; and there fell of Israel seventy thousand men.

¹⁵ And God sent an angel to Jerusalem to destroy it; and as he was destroying, Jehovah beheld, and he repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed, It is enough; withdraw now thine hand. And the angel of Jehovah stood by the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite.

¹⁶ And David lifted up his eyes, and saw the angel of Jehovah stand between the earth and the heavens, and his sword drawn in his hand, stretched out over Jerusalem. And David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell on their faces.

¹⁷ And David said to God, Is it not I that commanded the people to be numbered? It is I that have sinned and done evil; but these sheep, what have they done? Let thy hand, I pray thee, Jehovah my God, be on me and on my father's house; but not on thy people, that they should be smitten.

¹⁸ And the angel of Jehovah commanded Gad to say to David, that David should go up and rear an altar to Jehovah in the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite.

¹⁹ And David went up at the saying of Gad, which he had spoken in the name of Jehovah.

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

²¹ And David came to Ornan, and Ornan looked and saw David, and went out of the threshing-floor, and bowed himself to David with [his] face to the ground.

²² And David said to Ornan, Grant me the place of the threshing-floor, that I may build an altar in it to Jehovah: grant it to me for the full money, that the plague may be stayed from the people.

²³ And Ornan said to David, Take it to thee, and let my lord the king do that which is good in his sight: see, I give the oxen for the burnt-offering, and the threshing-sledges for wood, and the wheat for the oblation; I give it all.

²⁴ And king David said to Ornan, No; but I will in any case buy [them] for the full money; for I will not take that which is thine for Jehovah, to offer up a burnt-offering without cost.

²⁵ And David gave to Ornan for the place in shekels of gold the weight of six hundred [shekels].

²⁶ And David built there an altar to Jehovah, and offered up burnt-offerings and peace-offerings, and called upon Jehovah; and he answered him from the heavens by fire upon the altar of burnt-offering.

²⁷ And Jehovah spoke to the angel; and he put up his sword again into its sheath.

²⁸ At that time when David saw that Jehovah had answered him in the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite, then he sacrificed there.

²⁹ And the tabernacle of Jehovah, which 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 because of the sword of the angel of Jehovah.

22 And David said, This is the house of Jehovah Elohim, and this is the altar of burnt-offering for Israel.

² And David commanded to collect the strangers that were in the land of Israel; and he set masons to hew wrought stones to build the house of God.

³ And David prepared iron in abundance for the nails for the doors of the gates, and for the joists, and brass in abundance without weight;

⁴ and cedar-trees innumerable; for the Zidonians and they of Tyre brought cedar-wood in abundance to David.

⁵ For David said, Solomon my son is young and tender, and the house that is to be built for Jehovah must be exceeding great in fame and in beauty in all lands: I will therefore make preparation for it. And David prepared abundantly before his death.

⁶ And he called for Solomon his son, and charged him to build a house for Jehovah the God of Israel.

⁷ And David said to Solomon, As for me, my son, I was minded to build a house unto the name of Jehovah my God.

⁸ But the word of Jehovah came to me saying, Thou hast shed blood abundantly, and hast made great wars: thou shalt not build a house unto my name, for thou hast shed much blood upon the earth in my sight.

⁹ Behold, a son shall be born to thee, who shall be a man of rest; and I will give him rest from all his enemies round about; for his name shall be Solomon, and in his days I will give peace and quietness unto Israel.

¹⁰ He shall build a house unto my name; and he shall be my son, and I will be his father; and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel for ever.

¹¹ Now, my son, Jehovah be with thee, that thou mayest prosper, and build the house of Jehovah thy God, as he has said of thee.

¹² Only, Jehovah give thee wisdom and understanding, and place thee over Israel, and to keep the law of Jehovah thy God.

¹³ Then shalt thou prosper, if thou takest heed to perform the statutes and ordinances which Jehovah commanded Moses for Israel: be strong and courageous; fear not, neither be dismayed.

¹⁴ And behold, in my affliction I have prepared for the house of Jehovah a hundred thousand talents of gold, and a thousand thousand talents of silver; and of brass and iron without weight, for it is in abundance; and timber and stone have I prepared; and thou shalt add to it.

¹⁵ And there are workmen with thee in abundance, hewers and workers of stone and timber, and all manner of skilful men for every kind of work.

¹⁶ Of the gold, the silver, and the brass, and the iron, there is no number. Arise and be doing and Jehovah be with thee.

¹⁷ And David commanded all the princes of Israel to help Solomon his son, [saying,]

¹⁸ Is not Jehovah your God with you? and has he [not] given you rest on every side? for he has given the inhabitants of the land into my hand; and the land is subdued before Jehovah, and before his people.

¹⁹ Now set your heart and your soul to seek Jehovah your God; and arise and build the sanctuary of Jehovah Elohim, to bring the ark of the covenant of Jehovah, and the vessels of the sanctuary of God into the house that is to be built unto the name of Jehovah.