1 Chronicles 21:7-12: a reflection

7God was displeased with this thing; therefore he struck Israel. 8David said to God, “I have sinned greatly, in that I have done this thing. But now put away, I beg you, the iniquity of your servant, for I have done very foolishly.” 9The LORD spoke to Gad, David’s seer, saying, 10“Go and speak to David, saying, ‘The LORD says, “I offer you three things. Choose one of them, that I may do it to you.”’” 11So Gad came to David and said to him, “The LORD says, ‘Take your choice: 12either three years of famine; or three months to be consumed before your foes, while the sword of your enemies overtakes you; or else three days of the sword of the LORD, even pestilence in the land, and the LORD’s angel destroying throughout all the borders of Israel. Now therefore consider what answer I shall return to him who sent me.’”

David has sinned by ordering a census, an act rooted in pride and self-reliance, and it displeases God. When the consequences begin to fall, David's response is immediate and honest: I have sinned greatly in doing this; take away the guilt of your servant, for I have done very foolishly. There is no excuse-making, no shifting of blame. David owns his sin plainly before God, confessing both its greatness and its foolishness. Honest confession is his first instinct once he sees his wrong.

God then offers David a sobering choice among three forms of discipline. It is a hard passage, and the options are grave. But David's response, recorded in the following verses, is telling: he chooses to fall into the hands of the Lord rather than into the hands of men, because, he says, the Lord's mercies are very great. Even facing the consequences of his sin, David's deepest instinct is to trust God's mercy. He would rather be dealt with by God, whom he knows to be merciful, than by anyone else.

Two things to carry from David here. First, his honest confession: when he saw his sin, he named it plainly, without excuse, as great and foolish. When you sin, that same honesty is the way back, owning it fully before God rather than minimizing it. Second, his confidence in God's mercy: even facing discipline, David chose to fall into the hands of the Lord, trusting his great mercies. When you must face the consequences of your own failures, do the same. Confess honestly, and throw yourself on the mercy of the God whose mercies are very great.

Lord, when David saw his sin, he confessed it honestly as great and foolish, and he chose to fall into your hands rather than into human hands, trusting your great mercy. Give me that same honesty when I sin, to own it plainly without excuse. And give me David's confidence, that even when I must face the consequences of my failures, I would throw myself on your mercy, which is very great. Amen.