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David Erects an Altar

18 (A)Then the angel of Yahweh said to Gad to say to David, that David should go up and erect an altar to Yahweh on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. 19 So David went up at the word of Gad, which he spoke in the name of Yahweh. 20 Now Ornan turned back and saw the angel, and his four sons who were with him hid themselves. And Ornan was threshing wheat. 21 Then David came to Ornan, and Ornan looked and saw David, and went out from the threshing floor and bowed his [a]face to the ground [b]before David. 22 Then David said to Ornan, “Give me the [c]site of this threshing floor, that I may build on it an altar to Yahweh; for the full price you shall give it to me, that the plague may be checked from being upon the people.” 23 And Ornan said to David, “Take it for yourself; and let my lord the king do what is good in his sight. See, I will give the oxen for the burnt offerings and the threshing sledges for the wood and the wheat for the grain offering; I will give everything.” 24 However, King David said to Ornan, “No, but I will surely buy it for the full price; for I will not lift up what is yours to Yahweh, or offer a burnt offering [d]which costs me nothing.” 25 So (B)David gave Ornan [e]600 shekels of gold by weight for the [f]site. 26 Then David built there an altar to Yahweh and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. And he called to Yahweh and (C)He answered him with fire from heaven on the altar of burnt offering. 27 Then Yahweh spoke to the angel, and he returned his sword to its sheath.

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Chronicles 21:21 Lit nose
  2. 1 Chronicles 21:21 Lit to
  3. 1 Chronicles 21:22 Lit place
  4. 1 Chronicles 21:24 Lit gratuitously
  5. 1 Chronicles 21:25 Approx. 15 lb. or 6.6 kg, a shekel was approx. 0.4 oz. or 11 gm
  6. 1 Chronicles 21:25 Lit place

David’s Altar(A)

18 The angel of the Lord told Gad to tell David that David was to go up and build an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor that belonged to Ornan the Jebusite. 19 So David went up, obeying Gad’s directive that he had spoken in the name of the Lord. 20 Ornan turned around and saw the angel. While his four sons with him ran away to hide, Ornan continued to thresh wheat. 21 As David approached Ornan, Ornan looked around and observed David, left the threshing floor, and fell to the ground before David with his face on the ground.

22 David told Ornan, “Give me the threshing floor as a site to build an altar to the Lord on it. Give it to me at its full price, so the plague may be averted from the people.”

23 But Ornan replied to David, “Take it! Let your majesty the king do whatever seems like a good idea to him. Look here! I’m giving the oxen for burnt offerings, the threshing machinery for the wood, and the wheat for a grain offering. I’m giving all of it.”

24 But King David told Ornan, “No. I will buy them for the full price[a] because I will not offer to the Lord what is yours or offer burnt offerings that cost me nothing.”

25 So David paid Ornan 600 shekels weight worth in gold for the site, 26 built an altar to the Lord there, and presented burnt offerings and peace offerings. He called out to the Lord, and he answered him from heaven with fire on the altar of burnt offerings. 27 After this, the Lord spoke to the angel, who then sheathed his sword.

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Chronicles 21:24 Lit. silver