2 Samuel 24:2-4

New Catholic Bible

² Therefore, the king said to Joab and to all the army commanders who were with him: “Go throughout all the tribes of Israel from Dan to Beer-sheba and take a census of the people so that I may know how many there are.”

³ Joab said to the king in response: “May the Lord, your God, increase the number of your people a hundredfold, and may the eyes of my lord the king live to see it. But why does my lord the king want to undertake this task?” ⁴ However, the king was determined to follow through on this enterprise, and he overruled Joab and the army commanders. Therefore, they departed from the presence of the king in order to take the census.