David Builds an Altar^(A)

¹⁸ On that day Gad went to David and said to him, “Go up and build an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah^(B) the Jebusite.” ¹⁹ So David went up, as the Lord had commanded through Gad. ²⁰ When Araunah looked and saw the king and his officials coming toward him, he went out and bowed down before the king with his face to the ground.

²¹ Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?”

“To buy your threshing floor,” David answered, “so I can build an altar to the Lord, that the plague on the people may be stopped.”^(C)

²² Araunah said to David, “Let my lord the king take whatever he wishes and offer it up. Here are oxen^(D) for the burnt offering, and here are threshing sledges and ox yokes for the wood. ²³ Your Majesty, Araunah^[a] gives^(E) all this to the king.” Araunah also said to him, “May the Lord your God accept you.”

²⁴ But the king replied to Araunah, “No, I insist on paying you for it. I will not sacrifice to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing.”^(F)

So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen and paid fifty shekels^[b](G) of silver for them. ²⁵ David built an altar^(H) to the Lord there and sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. Then the Lord answered his prayer^(I) in behalf of the land, and the plague on Israel was stopped.

Faith in the Incarnate Son of God

5 Everyone who believes^(A) that Jesus is the Christ^(B) is born of God,^(C) and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well.^{(D) 2} This is how we know^(E) that we love the children of God:^(F) by loving God and carrying out his commands. ³ In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands.^(G) And his commands are not burdensome,^{(H) 4} for everyone born of God^(I) overcomes^(J) the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. ⁵ Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.^(K)

⁶ This is the one who came by water and blood^(L)—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.^{(M) 7} For there are three^(N) that testify: ⁸ the^[a] Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement. ⁹ We accept human testimony,^(O) but God’s testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God,^(P) which he has given about his Son. ¹⁰ Whoever believes in the Son of God accepts this testimony.^(Q) Whoever does not believe God has made him out to be a liar,^(R) because they have not believed the testimony God has given about his Son. ¹¹ And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life,^(S) and this life is in his Son.^{(T) 12} Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.^(U)

Concluding Affirmations

¹³ I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God^(V) so that you may know that you have eternal life.^{(W) 14} This is the confidence^(X) we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.^(Y)