⁵ But the prophet Gad^(A) said to David, “Do not stay in the stronghold. Go into the land of Judah.” So David left and went to the forest of Hereth.^(B)

¹¹ Before David got up the next morning, the word of the Lord had come to Gad^(A) the prophet, David’s seer:^{(B) 12} “Go and tell David, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am giving you three options. Choose one of them for me to carry out against you.’”

¹³ So Gad went to David and said to him, “Shall there come on you three^[a] years of famine^(C) in your land? Or three months of fleeing from your enemies while they pursue you? Or three days of plague^(D) in your land? Now then, think it over and decide how I should answer the one who sent me.”

¹⁴ David said to Gad, “I am in deep distress. Let us fall into the hands of the Lord, for his mercy^(E) is great; but do not let me fall into human hands.”

¹⁵ So the Lord sent a plague on Israel from that morning until the end of the time designated, and seventy thousand of the people from Dan to Beersheba died.^{(F) 16} When the angel stretched out his hand to destroy Jerusalem, the Lord relented^(G) concerning the disaster and said to the angel who was afflicting the people, “Enough! Withdraw your hand.” The angel of the Lord^(H) was then at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.

¹⁷ When David saw the angel who was striking down the people, he said to the Lord, “I have sinned; I, the shepherd,^[b] have done wrong. These are but sheep.^(I) What have they done?^(J) Let your hand fall on me and my family.”^(K)

David Builds an Altar^(L)

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^(M) the Jebusite.” ¹⁹ So David went up, as the Lord had commanded through Gad.

⁹ The Lord said to Gad,^(A) David’s seer,^{(B) 10} “Go and tell David, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am giving you three options. Choose one of them for me to carry out against you.’”

¹¹ So Gad went to David and said to him, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Take your choice: ¹² three years of famine,^(C) three months of being swept away^[a] before your enemies, with their swords overtaking you, or three days of the sword^(D) of the Lord^(E)—days of plague in the land, with the angel of the Lord ravaging every part of Israel.’ Now then, decide how I should answer the one who sent me.”

¹³ David said to Gad, “I am in deep distress. Let me fall into the hands of the Lord, for his mercy^(F) is very great; but do not let me fall into human hands.”

¹⁴ So the Lord sent a plague on Israel, and seventy thousand men of Israel fell dead.^{(G) 15} And God sent an angel^(H) to destroy Jerusalem.^(I) But as the angel was doing so, the Lord saw it and relented^(J) concerning the disaster and said to the angel who was destroying^(K) the people, “Enough! Withdraw your hand.” The angel of the Lord was then standing at the threshing floor of Araunah^[b] the Jebusite.

¹⁶ David looked up and saw the angel of the Lord standing between heaven and earth, with a drawn sword in his hand extended over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell facedown.^(L)

¹⁷ David said to God, “Was it not I who ordered the fighting men to be counted? I, the shepherd,^[c] have sinned and done wrong. These are but sheep.^(M) What have they done? Lord my God, let your hand fall on me and my family,^(N) but do not let this plague remain on your people.”

David Builds an Altar

¹⁸ Then the angel of the Lord ordered Gad to tell David to go up and build an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor^(O) of Araunah the Jebusite. ¹⁹ So David went up in obedience to the word that Gad had spoken in the name of the Lord.

²⁵ He stationed the Levites in the temple of the Lord with cymbals, harps and lyres in the way prescribed by David^(A) and Gad^(B) the king’s seer and Nathan the prophet; this was commanded by the Lord through his prophets.