David and the Census

Bible Passage: 2 Samuel 24:1-25, 1 Chronicles 21

When we seek security apart from God, we invite judgment, but God’s mercy provides redemption.

Introduction

In the early 2000’s, there was a battle of 2 competing companies: Netflix and Blockbuster. At the time, Blockbuster had over 9,100 stores and dominated the market share. They had branding, revenue, and millions of loyal customers. Netflix approached Blockbuster and offered to sell to them for $50 million. Blockbuster was clearly confused by the offer. To them, there was no real competition. They outperformed Netflix by every possible metric.

But the numbers didn’t tell the whole truth. Blockbuster was a strong contender in a world that was passing them by. Netflix was preparing for the world that was coming next. By the end of 2010, Blockbuster’s confidence had turned to despair. They filed for bankruptcy and a year later sold for $320 million. That same year, Netflix’s market worth was over $9.3 billion.

Today, Netflix is worth roughly $320 billion. The company who trusted solely in the numbers sits in ruins. They could not see the future, and it ultimately destroyed them.

But, there is something comforting about numbers.

Numbers feel objective. Numbers feel concrete. Numbers feel safe.

A bank balance can tell you whether you feel secure. A revenue report can tell you whether you feel successful. A medical test result can tell you whether you feel healthy. A retirement account can tell you whether you feel prepared. A calendar can tell you whether you feel important. A following, a grade, a score, a paycheck, a budget, a title — all of these things can begin to tell us who we think we are.

And to be clear, numbers are not bad.

Wisdom often counts. Stewardship requires paying attention. Leaders should know the condition of what has been entrusted to them. Families need budgets. Churches need attendance records. Armies need organization. Planning is not unspiritual.

But numbers do not tell the whole story.

A number can tell you how many people are in the room, but it cannot tell you whether hearts are humble before God. A number can tell you how much money is in the bank, but it cannot tell you whether your hope is in the Lord. A number can tell you how many soldiers are available for battle, but it cannot tell you whether a king is depending on God.

That is what happens in 2 Samuel 24.

David counts Israel. On the surface, this looks like an administrative decision. But underneath the surface, it exposes something dangerous in David’s heart. David is not merely counting Israel. He is counting on Israel.

And this chapter is difficult. It raises questions about sin, judgment, Satan, sovereignty, and the problem of evil. Second Samuel says the Lord incited David. First Chronicles says Satan incited David. David says, “I have sinned greatly.” So who is responsible?

The Bible does not give us a simplistic answer. It gives us a deeper one.

Satan tempts.

David sins.

God reigns.

God is not absent. Satan is not sovereign. David is not innocent.

This passage teaches us that our sinful choices can have serious consequences, but it also teaches us that God’s mercy provides redemption through sacrifice.

English Standard Version Chapter 24

24 Again the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go, number Israel and Judah.” 2 So the king said to Joab, the commander of the army, who was with him, “Go through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, and number the people, that I may know the number of the people.” 3 But Joab said to the king, “May the LORD your God add to the people a hundred times as many as they are, while the eyes of my lord the king still see it, but why does my lord the king delight in this thing?” 4 But the king’s word prevailed against Joab and the commanders of the army. So Joab and the commanders of the army went out from the presence of the king to number the people of Israel. 5 They crossed the Jordan and began from Aroer, and from the city that is in the middle of the valley, toward Gad and on to Jazer. 6 Then they came to Gilead, and to Kadesh in the land of the Hittites; and they came to Dan, and from Dan they went around to Sidon, 7 and came to the fortress of Tyre and to all the cities of the Hivites and Canaanites; and they went out to the Negeb of Judah at Beersheba. 8 So when they had gone through all the land, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days. 9 And Joab gave the sum of the numbering of the people to the king: in Israel there were 800,000 valiant men who drew the sword, and the men of Judah were 500,000.

10 But David’s heart struck him after he had numbered the people. And David said to the LORD, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. But now, O LORD, please take away the iniquity of your servant, for I have done very foolishly.” 11 And when David arose in the morning, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Gad, David’s seer, saying, 12 “Go and say to David, ‘Thus says the LORD, Three things I offer you. Choose one of them, that I may do it to you.’ ” 13 So Gad came to David and told him, and said to him, “Shall three years of famine come to you in your land? Or will you flee three months before your foes while they pursue you? Or shall there be three days’ pestilence in your land? Now consider, and decide what answer I shall return to him who sent me.” 14 Then David said to Gad, “I am in great distress. Let us fall into the hand of the LORD, for his mercy is great; but let me not fall into the hand of man.”

15 So the LORD sent a pestilence on Israel from the morning until the appointed time. And there died of the people from Dan to Beersheba 70,000 men. 16 And when the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD relented from the calamity and said to the angel who was working destruction among the people, “It is enough; now stay your hand.” And the angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. 17 Then David spoke to the LORD when he saw the angel who was striking the people, and said, “Behold, I have sinned, and I have done wickedly. But these sheep, what have they done? Please let your hand be against me and against my father’s house.”

18 And Gad came that day to David and said to him, “Go up, raise an altar to the LORD on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.” 19 So David went up at Gad’s word, as the LORD commanded. 20 And when Araunah looked down, he saw the king and his servants coming on toward him. And Araunah went out and paid homage to the king with his face to the ground. 21 And Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?” David said, “To buy the threshing floor from you, in order to build an altar to the LORD, that the plague may be averted from the people.” 22 Then Araunah said to David, “Let my lord the king take and offer up what seems good to him. Here are the oxen for the burnt offering and the threshing sledges and the yokes of the oxen for the wood. 23 All this, O king, Araunah gives to the king.” And Araunah said to the king, “May the LORD your God accept you.” 24 But the king said to Araunah, “No, but I will buy it from you for a price. I will not offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God that cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. 25 And David built there an altar to the LORD and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. So the LORD responded to the plea for the land, and the plague was averted from Israel.

(PRAY)

1. David's Decision

2 Samuel 24:1–10 ESV

Again the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go, number Israel and Judah.” So the king said to Joab, the commander of the army, who was with him, “Go through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, and number the people, that I may know the number of the people.” But Joab said to the king, “May the Lord your God add to the people a hundred times as many as they are, while the eyes of my lord the king still see it, but why does my lord the king delight in this thing?” But the king’s word prevailed against Joab and the commanders of the army. So Joab and the commanders of the army went out from the presence of the king to number the people of Israel. They crossed the Jordan and began from Aroer, and from the city that is in the middle of the valley, toward Gad and on to Jazer. Then they came to Gilead, and to Kadesh in the land of the Hittites; and they came to Dan, and from Dan they went around to Sidon, and came to the fortress of Tyre and to all the cities of the Hivites and Canaanites; and they went out to the Negeb of Judah at Beersheba. So when they had gone through all the land, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days. And Joab gave the sum of the numbering of the people to the king: in Israel there were 800,000 valiant men who drew the sword, and the men of Judah were 500,000. But David’s heart struck him after he had numbered the people. And David said to the Lord, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. But now, O Lord, please take away the iniquity of your servant, for I have done very foolishly.”

Verse 1 begins with a statement that immediately raises questions:

“Again the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, ‘Go, number Israel and Judah.’”

We are told that God’s anger burned against Israel. We are not told exactly why. The text does not explain what Israel had done. There are places in Scripture where God gives us more than enough to understand what happened, and there are places where God gives us enough to trust Him without satisfying all of our curiosity.

This is one of those places.

The Lord’s anger is kindled against Israel, and David commands Joab to go throughout the land and count the people. Specifically, this is a military census. Verse 9 tells us that Joab counted the “valiant men who drew the sword.” David wants to know the fighting strength of the kingdom.

Now, taking a census was not automatically sinful in the Old Testament. God commanded censuses elsewhere. Numbers itself begins with a census. So the problem is not simply that David counted.

There are possibly two issues here.

First, Exodus 30 says that when Israel was counted, each man was to give a ransom to the Lord so that no plague would come upon the people. David appears to have disregarded that requirement. If that is the case, then the census was not merely administrative; it was disobedient.

Second, this census seems to reveal a deeper issue in David’s heart. David wants to measure his military strength. He wants to know how secure he is, how powerful he is, how prepared he is, and how much he can rely on what he can see.

The problem is not that David counted people. The problem is that David was counting on people.

David is looking to visible strength for the security that should have come from God.

Even Joab knows this is dangerous. He says, in effect, “Why are you doing this?”

In verse 3, Joab says:

“May the LORD your God add to the people a hundred times as many as they are, while the eyes of my lord the king still see it, but why does my lord the king delight in this thing?”

That question matters.

“Why does my lord the king delight in this thing?”

David has begun to delight in the number. He wants the emotional comfort of knowing how strong he is. He wants security through measurement. He wants peace through control.

And that is where this passage begins to press on us.

Because we may not count fighting men, but we do count.

We count money. We count attendance. We count grades. We count followers. We count accomplishments. We count approval. We count opportunities. We count how many people are on our side. We count how much we have in reserve. We count how much we have built. We count how much we can control.

Again, counting is not the problem.

The problem is when the number becomes our refuge.

Here is a question worth asking:

What number has the power to make you feel safe or afraid?

That number may reveal what you are tempted to trust.

If your bank account goes up, are you at peace? If it goes down, are you undone?

If attendance is strong, are you confident? If it is weak, are you crushed?

If people approve of you, are you steady? If they criticize you, are you shaken?

If the doctor’s report looks good, do you feel like life is secure? If it looks bad, does God suddenly seem far away?

Numbers can be useful servants, but they make terrible saviors.

David’s dangerous decision warns us that sin can look responsible on the surface while being rebellious underneath. It can look like planning, wisdom, and leadership, while deep down it is unbelief, pride, and self-reliance.

Then, after almost ten months, the census is finished. Joab brings David the numbers.

And verse 10 says:

“But David’s heart struck him after he had numbered the people.”

That phrase is important.

David got the number he wanted, but it did not give him the peace he hoped for.

That is how idols work. They promise security, but when you get them, they accuse you. They promise peace, but they leave you exposed. David has the report in his hand, but his conscience is struck.

So he says:

“I have sinned greatly in what I have done. But now, O LORD, please take away the iniquity of your servant, for I have done very foolishly.”

David’s decision was dangerous, but his repentance was immediate.

2. Satan's Scheme and God’s Sovereignty

2 Samuel 24:1; 1 Chronicles 21:1

2 Samuel 24:1 ESV

Again the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go, number Israel and Judah.”

1 Chronicles 21:1 ESV

Then Satan stood against Israel and incited David to number Israel.

Before we move to the judgment, we need to stop and deal with the theological tension in the text.

Second Samuel 24:1 says:

“The anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he incited David against them.”

But 1 Chronicles 21:1 says:

“Then Satan stood against Israel and incited David to number Israel.”

So which is it?

Did God incite David, or did Satan incite David?

The Bible’s answer is not either/or. It is both/and, but not in the same way.

Second Samuel emphasizes God’s ultimate sovereignty. First Chronicles emphasizes Satan’s active temptation. David’s confession emphasizes human responsibility.

So we need to say this carefully:

Satan tempts. David sins. God reigns.

Satan is real. He stands against God’s people. His intentions are malicious. He wants destruction. He wants pride. He wants self-reliance. He wants David to sin and Israel to suffer.

David is responsible. He is not a passive victim. He is not a puppet. He is not innocent. David says, “I have sinned greatly.” He does not say, “Satan made me do it.” He does not say, “God made me do it.” He owns his sin.

And God is sovereign. Not in a weak sense. Not in a distant sense. Not in a way that says God is merely watching events unfold. God reigns over the whole event.

But God is not morally guilty of evil.

That distinction matters.

The doctrine of providence teaches that God preserves and governs all things toward His holy purposes. John Piper describes providence as God’s purposeful sovereignty, and he emphasizes that Scripture reveals God’s sovereignty over good and evil in a way meant to humble pride, strengthen faith, and give courage amid affliction.  

God is not merely powerful. He is purposeful. He is not merely in control. He is wisely and holily governing history toward His ends.

But that does not mean God sins. It does not mean God is unjust. It does not mean God is evil.

The Bible repeatedly gives us this kind of mystery.

In Genesis, Joseph’s brothers sell him into slavery. Their action is evil. They are responsible. Yet Joseph later says, “You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good.”

Not “you meant it for evil, and God tried to fix it.” Not “you meant it for evil, and God was surprised.” But “you meant evil, and God meant good.”

One action. Two intentions. Human evil. Divine purpose.

The same is true at the cross. Wicked men crucified Jesus. Satan opposed the Son of God. Human sin was fully responsible. Yet Acts 2:23 says Jesus was delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God.

The cross was the worst evil ever committed, and it became the means of the greatest mercy ever given.

So when we come to 2 Samuel 24, we must not shrink the mystery.

If we only say, “Satan did it,” we miss God’s sovereignty. If we only say, “David did it,” we miss the reality of spiritual warfare. If we only say, “God did it,” we may speak in a way that makes God morally blameworthy.

The biblical picture is more careful and more worshipful.

Satan tempts. David sins. God reigns.

God can prevent sin. At times He does. God can permit sin. At times He allows people to follow their sinful desires. God can direct sin. He can govern even evil choices so that His purposes are accomplished. God can limit sin. Evil never goes one inch beyond the boundary God sets.

And all of that appears in this chapter.

David sins. Satan tempts. God judges. But when the angel reaches Jerusalem, God says, “It is enough.” Evil, judgment, and destruction all have a limit under the hand of God.

This helps us with the problem of evil.

The Bible does not answer the problem of evil by making God smaller. It does not say evil happens because God is absent, surprised, weak, or helpless.

But neither does the Bible make God morally guilty for evil.

Scripture gives us a God who is sovereign enough to govern even evil, holy enough never to be evil, wise enough to direct evil toward His purposes, and merciful enough to redeem sinners through sacrifice.

That is not easy. But it is biblical.

And this mystery does not lead David into blame-shifting. It leads him into confession.

David does not use divine sovereignty as an excuse. He does not use Satan’s temptation as an excuse. He says:

“I have sinned greatly.”

That is important for us.

God’s sovereignty never cancels human responsibility.

You may be tempted. You may be attacked. You may be under pressure. You may have reasons for why you did what you did. But repentance begins when we stop explaining long enough to confess honestly.

“I have sinned greatly.”

That is where grace begins to meet us.

3. God’s Judgment

2 Samuel 24:11–17 ESV

And when David arose in the morning, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Gad, David’s seer, saying, “Go and say to David, ‘Thus says the Lord, Three things I offer you. Choose one of them, that I may do it to you.’ ” So Gad came to David and told him, and said to him, “Shall three years of famine come to you in your land? Or will you flee three months before your foes while they pursue you? Or shall there be three days’ pestilence in your land? Now consider, and decide what answer I shall return to him who sent me.” Then David said to Gad, “I am in great distress. Let us fall into the hand of the Lord, for his mercy is great; but let me not fall into the hand of man.” So the Lord sent a pestilence on Israel from the morning until the appointed time. And there died of the people from Dan to Beersheba 70,000 men. And when the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the Lord relented from the calamity and said to the angel who was working destruction among the people, “It is enough; now stay your hand.” And the angel of the Lord was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. Then David spoke to the Lord when he saw the angel who was striking the people, and said, “Behold, I have sinned, and I have done wickedly. But these sheep, what have they done? Please let your hand be against me and against my father’s house.”

Back when churches had Wednesday night prayer meeting and choir practice without childcare, the pastor’s 2 sons were playing in the gravel parking lot. After a while, running around playing got boring, so they began to pickup rocks and throw them for fun. Eventually, one of the boys threw a rock that crashed through one of the church’s windows. At the end of prayer meeting, the pastor came outside and saw the damage that had been done. At first, neither boy would admit to the deed. Eventually, one of his sons admitted that he threw the rock and accidentally broke the window. The pastor immediately forgave his son for breaking the window. The son was sorry he had done it. But, nether the father’s forgiveness nor the boy’s sorrow could fix the window. There was still a price to be paid and work to be done to fix the window.

Here, David confesses, but the consequences do not disappear.

Repentance brings us back into fellowship with God, but it does not always remove the consequences of sin.

Verse 11 says:

“And when David arose in the morning, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Gad, David’s seer.”

God gives David three options: three years of famine, three months of fleeing before enemies, or three days of plague.

None of them is easy. Sin has brought David into deep distress.

And David says in verse 14:

“I am in great distress. Let us fall into the hand of the LORD, for his mercy is great; but let me not fall into the hand of man.”

That is one of the most important statements in the whole chapter.

David knows judgment is coming. He knows God is holy. He knows God is not casual about sin. But he also knows something else.

God is merciful.

David would rather fall into the hands of God than into the hands of men because only God’s hands are perfectly just and perfectly merciful.

Tim Keller says,

Only God’s hands are merciful hands.

That is right.

God’s hands may discipline, but they are merciful. God’s hands may wound, but they heal. God’s hands may expose sin, but they do not crush the repentant. God’s hands may bring judgment, but they also provide atonement.

So the Lord sends a plague on Israel.

Seventy thousand men die.

That is heavy. We should not rush past it. This passage will not let us treat sin lightly.

Sin is never small. Sin is never private. Sin is never harmless. Sin is never contained as neatly as we think.

David’s sin affects the people under his care. That is especially sobering for anyone in leadership. A father’s sin affects his family. A pastor’s sin affects a church. A leader’s pride can bring pain to people who trusted him. A decision made in self-reliance can wound those who had no part in making it.

Sin spreads. Sin damages. Sin brings death.

But then verse 16 says:

“And when the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD relented from the calamity and said to the angel who was working destruction among the people, ‘It is enough; now stay your hand.’”

There it is.

God limits the judgment.

“It is enough.”

The angel’s hand is stayed. The destruction stops at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.

God’s anger has been revealed. God’s power has been revealed. Now God’s mercy is revealed.

David sees the angel striking the people, and he cries out in verse 17:

“Behold, I have sinned, and I have done wickedly. But these sheep, what have they done? Please let your hand be against me and against my father’s house.”

This is a beautiful and painful moment.

Earlier, David counted the sheep for his own security. Now, David pleads for the sheep at his own expense.

Earlier, David acted like a king who wanted power. Now, David acts like a shepherd willing to suffer for his people.

This is repentance.

Repentance is not merely feeling bad. Repentance is not merely wanting consequences to stop. Repentance is a change in posture before God and others.

That is exactly what we see in David. David has many sins in his life, but when God exposes him, he does not stay in denial. He confesses. He grieves. He intercedes. He takes responsibility.

Spiritual maturity does not mean you repent less and less. It means you repent more honestly and more quickly.

Spiritual maturity means becoming more aware of sin, but less defensive about it. You are quicker to confess because your identity is not built on pretending to be righteous. Your identity is built on the mercy of God.

That means when someone points out sin in your life, you do not have to collapse. You do not have to attack. You do not have to hide. You can say, “Of course there is sin in me. I need grace.”

That is the safest place to be.

The safest place for a sinner is not hiding from God. The safest place for a sinner is in the merciful hands of God.

4. David's Repentance

2 Samuel 24:18–25 ESV

And Gad came that day to David and said to him, “Go up, raise an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.” So David went up at Gad’s word, as the Lord commanded. And when Araunah looked down, he saw the king and his servants coming on toward him. And Araunah went out and paid homage to the king with his face to the ground. And Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?” David said, “To buy the threshing floor from you, in order to build an altar to the Lord, that the plague may be averted from the people.” Then Araunah said to David, “Let my lord the king take and offer up what seems good to him. Here are the oxen for the burnt offering and the threshing sledges and the yokes of the oxen for the wood. All this, O king, Araunah gives to the king.” And Araunah said to the king, “May the Lord your God accept you.” But the king said to Araunah, “No, but I will buy it from you for a price. I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God that cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. And David built there an altar to the Lord and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. So the Lord responded to the plea for the land, and the plague was averted from Israel.

Verse 24:

“No, but I will buy it from you for a price. I will not offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God that cost me nothing.”

That is one of the great statements of worship in the Old Testament.

David knows that repentance is not cheap. Worship is not casual. Atonement is costly.

He will not offer to God what costs him nothing.

Now, David is not purchasing forgiveness. He is not earning mercy. He is not buying his way out of judgment.

But he understands that real repentance does not look for the cheapest possible way to get relief. Real repentance comes before God with humility, surrender, and sacrifice.

There is a kind of false repentance that wants the pain to stop but does not want the heart to change.

False repentance says, “How little can I give and still get relief?” True repentance says, “I belong wholly to the Lord.”

False repentance wants forgiveness without surrender. True repentance knows mercy is free, but it is never cheap.

So David buys the threshing floor. He builds the altar. He offers burnt offerings and peace offerings.

And verse 25 says:

“So the LORD responded to the plea for the land, and the plague was averted from Israel.”

Judgment stops where sacrifice is offered.

That is the theological center of the ending.

The plague does not stop because David has good intentions. The plague does not stop because David feels bad. The plague does not stop because David promises to do better. The plague stops through sacrifice.

And that sacrifice points beyond itself.

David offers a sacrifice, but David is not the final answer. The blood of bulls and oxen cannot finally remove sin. The altar at Araunah’s threshing floor points forward to the temple, and the temple points forward to Christ.

David pleads for the sheep. Jesus lays down His life for the sheep.

David says, “Let your hand be against me.” Jesus actually takes the hand of judgment in the place of His people.

David offers sacrifices outside Jerusalem. Jesus becomes the sacrifice outside Jerusalem.

David’s sacrifice stops a plague in Israel. Jesus’ sacrifice answers the plague of sin for all who trust in Him.

This is where the whole passage leads us.

At the cross, all the tensions of 2 Samuel 24 are brought into sharper focus.

Satan is active. Human beings are responsible. God is sovereign. Sin is judged. Mercy is given. A sacrifice is offered. The guilty are spared because another bears the judgment.

God takes up the sword against His own son so that evil will be defeated and we can be saved.

That is the gospel.

At Araunah’s threshing floor, the sword is stopped.

At Calvary, the sword falls.

But it falls on Christ.

The Son of David is struck so the sheep may go free.

God does not ignore sin. He judges it fully. But in mercy, He judges it in the person of His Son.

On the cross, justice and mercy meet.

The judgment we deserved fell on Jesus so that the mercy we could never earn would come to us.

Conclusion

Numbers do not tell the whole story.

David’s census revealed the strength of Israel’s army, but it also exposed the weakness of David’s heart.

He had numbers, but he lacked trust. He had power, but he lacked humility. He had information, but he lacked obedience. He had a report in his hand, but guilt in his conscience.

And God judged sin.

But judgment is not the final word in this passage.

Mercy is.

God exposes sin. God judges sin. God limits judgment. God provides sacrifice. God turns a place of death into a place of worship. God points us to Christ.

So what do we do with this?

First: Beware of trusting what you can count more than the God you can count on.

Numbers can be useful, but they cannot save you. Do not ask a bank balance, a crowd, a title, a plan, a report, or a human relationship to give you the security that only God can give.

Second: Take sin seriously.

Sin is not harmless. It is not private. It is not small. It does not stay contained. David’s sin brought devastation. We should not treat lightly what God judges severely.

Third: Repent quickly.

Do not hide. Do not blame. Do not explain forever. Do not use Satan’s temptation, your circumstances, or even the mystery of God’s sovereignty as an excuse.

Say what David said:

“I have sinned greatly.”

Fourth: Fall into the hands of the Lord.

His hands are holy, but they are merciful. His discipline may be painful, but He is not cruel. His judgment is real, but His mercy is great.

And finally: Look to Christ.

David’s altar stopped a temporary plague. Jesus’ cross answers the eternal plague of sin.

David offered a sacrifice. Jesus became the sacrifice.

David interceded for the sheep. Jesus died for the sheep.

David bought a threshing floor. Jesus purchased a people with His blood.

So when you see your sin, do not run from God. Run to Christ.

When you feel exposed, do not hide behind your numbers, your accomplishments, your excuses, or your explanations. Come to the cross.

Because there, the judgment of God and the mercy of God meet.

There, the Son of David stands in the place of sinners.

There, the Shepherd is struck so the sheep may go free.

When we seek security apart from God, we invite judgment, but God’s mercy provides redemption.

(Pray)

8:00 Encourager Room & Closing SCRIPTURE

9:30 Encourager Room & Offering