Trouble, Mercy and Atonement

Text 1 Chronicles 21 Time 03 03 21 Place Childs Hill Baptist Church (Zoom)

We come this evening to 1 Chronicles Chapter 20. It is a difficult chapter in some ways and raises some questions for us, perhaps. However, it is full of relevant teaching for us if we are willing to look to God for his help. It contains the story of how David decided to number the people in a census, an act disapproved of by Joab and condemned by God. It leads indirectly, however, first to punishment but then to the beginnings of what would be the Temple in Jerusalem.

There us an argument for saying that at the centre of the chapter is verse 14 So the LORD sent a plague on Israel, and seventy thousand men of Israel fell dead. So here is a terrible event right at the heart of what we find here. That makes us feel a little uncomfortable perhaps but it is the case that this terrible event is surrounded by acts of mercy. Both in verses 13 and 15 the idea of mercy is prominent. In verse 13 we read that David said to Gad, "I am in deep distress. Let me fall into the hands of the LORD, for his mercy is very great; but do not let me fall into human hands." Then in verse 15 it is And God sent an angel to destroy Jerusalem. But as the angel was doing so, the LORD saw it and relented concerning the disaster and said to the angel who was destroying the people, "Enough! Withdraw your hand." The Angel of the LORD was then standing at the threshing-floor of Araunah the Jebusite. The other verses can also be matched in this way. For example verses 2-4 Joab’s objection and David’s insistence and verses 23-25 Araunah’s objection and David’s insistence; verses 5, 6 Journey and tally, verses 20-22 Journey and purpose. If we see verses 29, 30 as a footnote the climax of the chapter is verses 26-28 and the idea of atonement. David built an altar to the LORD there and sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. He called on the LORD, and the LORD answered him with fire from heaven on the altar of burnt offering. Then the LORD spoke to the angel, and he put his sword back into its sheath. At that time, when David saw that the LORD had answered him on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite, he offered sacrifices there.

The footnote (29, 30) explains that The tabernacle of the LORD, which Moses had made in the wilderness, and the altar of burnt offering were at that time on the high place at Gibeon unlike the ark. But David could not go before it to inquire of God, because he was afraid of the sword of the angel of the LORD.

So here in 1 Chronicles 21 we have three common and often repeated ideas that we find throughout Scripture – fall, mercy and atonement. Whatever difficulties we may have with things in this passage, we must not miss these fundamental matters.

We can roughly divide the story up into three parts by asking three double questions

1. Who incited David to make trouble and take a census of Israel and what was wrong with it?

Two questions then

1. Who incited David to take a census of Israel? In the parallel passage in 2 Samuel 24 we read that the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, Go and take a census of Israel and Judah. Here, however, it says that Satan incited David to do it. Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel.

So here it is, one of those many contradictions that we are told the Bible contains. But is it a contradiction? Not really. Rather, it is an insight into what happened. It is clear that God permitted Satan to act as he did and David to act as he did in turn. The writer of 2 Samuel is simply acknowledging in a very bald way that it is God who was behind all this, as he is behind everything. When we accept the sovereignty of God we accept that he is in absolute control of all things, nothing omitted. It is not always possible to trace directly why things happen but we know that always at the back of every event is the sovereign and all-powerful God. We also know that Satan will miss no opportunity, if he is allowed, to try to harm God's people.

2. What was wrong with numbering the people? The other question is what exactly is wrong with numbering the people. It is clear that the act was wrong (even Joab can see that, verses 2-4 So David said to Joab and the commanders of the troops, "Go and count the Israelites from Beersheba to Dan. Then report back to me so that I may know how many there are." But Joab replied, "May the LORD multiply his troops a hundred times over. My lord the king, are they not all my lord's subjects? Why does my lord want to do this? Why should he bring guilt on Israel?" The king's word, however, overruled Joab; so Joab left and went throughout Israel and then came back to Jerusalem.) but it is not immediately apparent in what way it was wrong. A number of suggestions have been made. We can mention some four theories.

1 David omitted to collect the atonement money mentioned in Exodus 30. It seems likely that this was a one off event revived later on, however.

2 David acted with wrong motives. He was being proud and self-sufficient in acting as he did.

3 David was planning further invasions – something either lacking in wisdom or contrary to God’s will.

4 David was failing to trust in the Lord. It can be argued from 1 Chronicles 27 that he was planning to carry out a census among those below the age of 20 thus enabling him to ascertain the future strength of his army. This shows a lack of faith as the future is in God’s hands not man’s.

There is no way of knowing whether any of these theories is right. The fact is that it does not say why this act was wrong. All we know is that it was wrong. There is a mystery here again, one we must humbly accept.

The rest of what is said in verses 1-4 is pretty straightforward. The king speaks to Joab about numbering the people. Joab objects but is over-ruled. He goes throughout Israel and then returns to Jerusalem. There is more detail in 2 Samuel.

2. What did Joab do, thinking the command repulsive and what did God do, thinking it evil?

1. What did Joab do? Joab was so convinced that what David was doing was wrong that he decided to frustrate David's plan and purpose. In verses 5 and 6 we read that Joab reported the number of the fighting men to David: In all Israel there were one million one hundred thousand men who could handle a sword, including four hundred and seventy thousand in Judah. But Joab did not include Levi and Benjamin in the numbering, because the king's command was repulsive to him. We often see this where people plan evil and try to carry it out but they are frustrated for various reasons. We should be thankful to God for his providence in this area.

2. What did God do? We then read, much more importantly, in verse 7 that This command was also evil in the sight of God; so he punished Israel and no sooner had the deed been done than (we read in verse 8) Then David said to God, "I have sinned greatly by doing this. Now, I beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing." God hears his prayer and Gad the Seer is sent to him. Verses 9,10 The LORD said 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.'"

David is given a choice from three by Gad (11, 12)

So Gad went to David and said to him, "This is what the LORD says: 'Take your choice:

three years of famine,

three months of being swept away before your enemies, with their swords overtaking you,

or three days of the sword of the LORD - days of plague in the land, with the angel of the LORD ravaging every part of Israel.' Gad saysNow then, decide how I should answer the one who sent me."

I think we are best to understand verse 13 as David rejecting the middle option of three months fleeing from one’s enemies and leaving to God the choice from three years of famine or three days of plague. Verses 13, 14 David said to Gad, "I am in deep distress. Let me fall into the hands of the LORD, for his mercy is very great; but do not let me fall into human hands."

The upshot was that (15) the LORD sent a plague on Israel from that morning until the end of the time designated, (ie the third day or maybe sooner) and 70,000 of the people died. So the LORD sent a plague on Israel, and seventy thousand men of Israel fell dead.

In verse 15 mercy comes in powerfully as mentioned - And God sent an angel to destroy Jerusalem. But as the angel was doing so, the LORD saw it and relented concerning the disaster and said to the angel who was destroying the people, "Enough! Withdraw your hand.

We are told that The angel of the LORD was then at the threshing-floor of Araunah the Jebusite. Verses 16, 17 probably contain a flashback to what had happened. David (had) looked up and saw the angel of the LORD standing between heaven and earth, with a drawn sword in his hand extended over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell facedown. David said to God, "Was it not I who ordered the fighting men to be counted? I, the shepherd, have sinned and done wrong. These are but sheep. What have they done? LORD my God, let your hand fall on me and my family, but do not let this plague remain on your people."

We are then told that (18, 19) Then the angel of the LORD ordered Gad to tell David to go up and build an altar to the LORD on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. So David went up in obedience to the word that Gad had spoken in the name of the LORD. This we will come to in a moment.

The thing to hold onto here is David’s realisation that God is a God of mercy. This is typical of him. One writer speaks about having your best theology in your darkest moments. That’s how David was. We ought to be the same. Sadly, we tend to think of God’s wrath as being the norm and his mercy the exception Instead, we ought to see, as David saw, that mercy is in fact the norm with God. That is why David is willing to cast himself upon a God who has shown such frightening wrath.

Dale Ralph Davis tells the strange story of a toddler falling into the gorilla enclosure in an Illinois zoo and being rescued by a female gorilla (seven year old Binti). As he says, we are grateful but would not want to trust another child to Binti. Don’t we sometimes think of God like that too? Do we have a distorted gorilla view of God’s mercies?

3. What was the surprising sequel to this story and what does it teach us about atonement?

The last thing to focus on is the sequel to the story and a reminder of something that lies at the very heart of the Christian faith – atonement through sacrifice. Without a proper understanding of these verses at the end we will miss something important. What happens in verse 15 is that God’s hand is stayed. There still needs to be an act of atonement before the wrath is entirely removed. The end of the plague is most intimately tied into the sacrifice that follows.

It is described for us in verses 20-23. While Araunah was threshing wheat, he turned and saw the angel; his four sons who were with him hid themselves. Then David approached, and when Araunah looked and saw him, he left the threshing floor and bowed down before David with his face to the ground. David said to him, "Let me have the site of your threshing floor so I can build an altar to the LORD, that the plague on the people may be stopped. Sell it to me at the full price." When we read how the Gentile Araunah said to David, "Take it! Let my lord the king do whatever pleases him. Look, I will give the oxen for the burnt offerings, the threshing sledges for the wood, and the wheat for the grain offering. I will give all this." that may be a traditional way of bargaining rather than a genuine offer. Certainly David replies (24) to Araunah "No, I insist on paying the full price. I will not take for the LORD what is yours, or sacrifice a burnt offering that costs me nothing." So David paid Araunah six hundred shekels of golf for the site.

And so we end the chapter more or less with an atoning sacrifice Verses 26-28 David built an altar to the LORD there and sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. He called on the LORD, and the LORD answered him with fire from heaven on the altar of burnt offering. Then the LORD spoke to the angel, and he put his sword back into its sheath. At that time, when David saw that the LORD had answered him on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite, he offered sacrifices there. God provides an altar and so atonement can be made and his mercy is revealed in the midst of wrath. Isn’t this a clear pointer to the cross and to what Christ has done? Isn’t this the heart of the faith?