Fall Into His Hands

 DEVOTION

2^ND SAMUEL

FALL INTO HIS HANDS

2 Sam 24:1-14

24:1 Again the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, "Go and take a census of Israel and Judah." 2 So the king said to Joab and the army commanders with him, "Go throughout the tribes of Israel from Dan to Beersheba and enroll the fighting men, so that I may know how many there are." 3 But Joab replied to the king, "May the LORD your God multiply the troops a hundred times over, and may the eyes of my lord the king see it. But why does my lord the king want to do such a thing?" 4 The king's word, however, overruled Joab and the army commanders; so they left the presence of the king to enroll the fighting men of Israel. 5 After crossing the Jordan, they camped near Aroer, south of the town in the gorge, and then went through Gad and on to Jazer. 6 They went to Gilead and the region of Tahtim Hodshi, and on to Dan Jaan and around toward Sidon. 7 Then they went toward the fortress of Tyre and all the towns of the Hivites and Canaanites. Finally, they went on to Beersheba in the Negev of Judah. 8 After they had gone through the entire land, they came back to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days. 9 Joab reported the number of the fighting men to the king: In Israel there were eight hundred thousand able-bodied men who could handle a sword, and in Judah five hundred thousand. 10 David was conscience-stricken after he had counted the fighting men, and he said to the LORD, "I have sinned greatly in what I have done. Now, O LORD, I beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing." 11 Before David got up the next morning, the word of the LORD had come to Gad the prophet, David's seer: 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 upon you three years of famine in your land? Or three months of fleeing from your enemies while they pursue you? Or three days of plague 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 is great; but do not let me fall into the hands of men."

NIV

We should not include this amount in the narrative because we are stuck on a strange word in the first verse. We are told the LORD incited David against Israel. The Hebrew word carries a more direct meaning of moved, to prick, to seduce, entice, allure, and instigate. This was the hand of God at work within the spirit of David, so that he would do a certain action of taking a census of all the fighting men throughout the tribes of Israel. What is strange is that after it is all done, David was conscience-stricken. Once again, the Hebrew word means more like to smite, kill, to be wounded, beaten, and maybe that is how David felt, that his heart was wounded, smitten, because he realized he had sinned greatly and done a foolish thing. But he was enticed by the Lord to take the census, and then he felt guilty because he took that census. This was all in the hands of God, so that He could bring judgment on Israel through David. It is this last statement of David that brings us our lesson. It is far better to fall into the hands of the Lord than to fall into the hands of men. David would rather be subject to whatever the Lord decides to be subject to than have men take any revenge against him. We can fight against men and win the battle, destroying them. It is not that we would kill them, but we could fight against them with words, discrediting them, destroying their person, using gossip as a great tactic for that purpose. But even though we might try to fight against the Lord, trying to do things our way instead of his way, ultimately, we are going to lose the fight. At some point, we must come to the conclusion that we have done a foolish thing, and we have sinned against the Lord. Any time we are trying to act in accordance with our will, our wants, our desires, or passions, we are acting foolishly, because it is not His way. Yet, David’s foolish way was because of the hand of God working within him. It could be as we do things in accordance with the way of God, or God’s will, it might seem foolish to us, or not what we would think is the best plan, but then our ways are not His ways, and His ways are not our ways. It is always best to give ourselves into the hands of our Lord and simply follow instructions. He had a purpose for Israel and moved within David to accomplish His plan. Let us always have an open heart so the Lord and move within us at any time to accomplish His plan for us as well as for His people. To put it in a single term, fall into His hands.