y To wit, his immediate Stroke, which is chiefly in the Peſti- lence : for though the Sword and Famine be alſo God's Hand, yer. there is alſo the hand of Man, or other Creatures in them- The reaſon of this choice. was partly his Experience of, and confidence in God's great goodneſs : partly, becauſe rhe ogher Judgments, eſpecially the Sword, had been more diſhonourabie,nort only to David, but alſo to God, and to his People, and to the True Religiin : and partly, becauſe he having ſinned himſelf, thought ir juſt and reaſona-
le to chuſe ſuch a Plague to which he was as obnoxious as his Peo- ple ; whereas, he had berrcr fences for himieitagainit Sword and Famine than they had. z And therefore will not exceed meaſure in his Strokes, as Men will do-
'I5 © So the LORD ſenta Peitilence upon Iſrael, from the morning even to the time appointed «: and there died of the people from Dan even to Beertheba,
ſeventy thouſand men b.
a Either, 1. From Morning to Evening, which is here called che #ime_appeinted ; or, the time of the convent:on, or, pubiick meet.ng, as this Hebrew Word oft ſignihes, 7. e. till the time of the Evening- Prayer and Sacrifice, when the People uſed more jolemn!y ro meet together. See P/al. 141. 2. 4s 3. 11 Thus God mitigated his Sentence, and turned three days into one ; it being a thing not vn- uſual with God, to qualifie his threatnings, and to take cif the evil threatned ſometimes wholly, as in Nineveh's Caſe, and ſometimes in part. And this God might do here upon the ſpeedy and ſerious Repentance of David and of his People. Or rather, 2. Fom the 2norning, ( or rather, fom that marning ; for the Article ſeems to be Empharical, -and to denote, That very morning in which Gad came to David, ver. 11. and that the Plague did immediately enſue after Gad's offer, and David's choice ; ) even to the time appointed ; to wit, by God, 3. e. for Three Days, as God had fer the time, verſe 13. ObjeF. If it continued Three Days, how is it ſaid, That God re- pented him of the evil, and ſtopped the Angel in his courſe ? wer. 16 nſw, This he did in the beginning of the Third Day, whereas otherwiſe it ſhould have gone on to the end of the Day. Or, it may ſignifie no more but this; At the end of the Third Day God gave over ſmiting :*' For then is God ſaid ( after the manner of Men ) to repent, when he ceaſeth to proceed as before he had done. 4 So the number of his People, which was the marter of his pride and glorying was diminiſhed.
16 And when the angel c ſtretched out his band upon Jeruſalem 4 to deſtroy it, the LOR D repented him of the evile, and faid co the angel that deſtroyed the people, Ir is enough : ſtay now thine hand. And the
angel of the LORD was by the threſhing-place of
© #, Chron: * Arauvah f the Jebuſice. 21:18, 29,
e Which appeared in-rhe ſhape of a Man with a Sword in his
and, 1 Chron. 21, 16. to convince them more fully that this was nonatural nor common Plague, bur inflifted immediately by the hand of God. & Which he had begun to ſmite, and was proceeding to makea far greater flaughter. e i.e. He moderated»and in part recalled his Sentence of the Piagues continuance for three whole days, and this he did upon Dav:#'s Prayers and Sacrifices, as appears from Ve. 25. though theſe be mentioned afterward. f Called alſo 4ranjah in the Hebrew of v 18. and Ornan, 1 Chron, 21-21. 22- ſuch changes inthe pronunciation of the names being uſual in Scripture.
' 17 And David ſpake unto the LORD, when he ſaw the angel that ſmore the people, and ſaid, Lo, I have ſinned, and I have done: wickedly : but thele ſheep, what have they done ? Let thine hand, I pray thee, be
againſt me g, and againſt my fathers houſe 6,
I s 4 M UTE LL. *
people.
g Wherein David ſhews his Juſtice. and Piety, and Fatherly care of his People, and that he was a Type of Chriſt, þh Again{t my neareſt relations, who probably either put David upon, or en- couraged him in this aC&ion, becauſe they were no leſs vain-glorious than David ; and the honour which they thought would come to David thereby. would alſo redound to them ; or, at leaſt they did not uſe their utmoſt endeavours io diſſuade David from it, as they ſhould have done, and therefore were involved in David's Guilt. Howſoever it was but fit and reaſonable that his Family which did partake of his honour and happineſs, ſhould alſo partake in his {uffering, rather than thoſe who were leſs refated to him. Nor doth Dawid abſolutely defire that they may ſuffer, bur only ſpeaks comparatively, and by way of ſuppolition, and with reference to God's good Pleaſure,
18 4 And Gad came that day to David 5, and ſaid unto him, Go up &, rear an altar unto the LOR D in
the threſhing-floor of Araunah the Jebuſitte /.
i By command from God, wv. 19. 1 Chron. 21. 18, k To Mount Moriah. I Which place God appointed for this work, partly, in gracious condeſceniion to, and compliance with David's fear of going to Gibevn, which is expreſſed 1 Chron. 21. 29, 30. partly, be« cauſe this was the place where God by bis Angel appeared in a threatning poſture, where therefore ir was meet he thould be ap- peaſed : and partly, becauſe Gad would hereby ſignifie the tran- {lation of the Tabernacle from Gibeon kither, and the ere&tion of the Temple here. 2 Chron. 3. 1.
i9 And David, according to the ſaying of Gad, went up, as the LOR D commanded.
20 And Araunah looked, and ſaw the king, and his ſervants coming on toward him : and Araunah went out, and bowed himſceif before the king, on his face upon the ground.
21 And Araunah ſaid, Wherefore is my lord the king come to his ſervant ? And David ſaid, To buy the threſhing-floor of thee, to build an altar unto che LORD, that F
- Wherefore doth the King do me this honour, and give him- {elf the trouble of coming to me ?
22 And Araunah laid unto David, Let my lord che king take and offer up what /eexzerh good unto him : Behold, h:re be oxen » for burnt-ſacrihice, and threſh- > 3 Qi, and other inftruments of the oxen for wood.
» Which were employed by him in his prelent work, which was Threſhing, 1 Chron. 21; 20. See the notcs on Dent. 25. 4.
23 All thefe things did Araunah, « a king o give unto che king : and Araunah faid unto the king, The LORD thy God accept thee 9g.