Charles Ellicott Commentary 2 Samuel 24

Kindled against Israel. — This was not because of the numbering of the people, but because of that which ultimately led to that act. We are not told why the anger of the Lord was kindled, but no doubt because He saw in both king and people that rising spirit of earthly pride and reliance on earthly strength which led to the sin.

He moved. — The pronoun here stands for “the Lord,” yet in 1 Chronicles 21:1, the temptation is attributed to Satan, and Satan is clearly understood as the devil, and not simply as “an adversary.” This is a striking instance of attributing directly to God whatever occurs under His permission.

And yet it is more than that. God has established immutable spiritual as well as material laws, or rather those laws themselves are but the expression of His unchanging will. Whatever occurs under the operation of those laws is said to be His doing.

Now David’s numbering the people was the natural consequence of the condition of worldliness and pride into which he had allowed himself to fall. God then moved him, because He had from the first so ordered the laws of the spirit that such a sinful act should be the natural outcome of such a sinful state. Of other interpretations: that which makes the verb impersonal—“one moved”—is hardly tenable grammatically; and that which makes the nominative a sort of compound word—“the wrath of the Lord” (as in some of the ancient versions)—leads to substantially the same explanation as that given above.

The word “number” in this verse is a different one from that used in the rest of the chapter, and means simply to count, while the other conveys the idea of a military muster.

Why doth my lord? —Even in the eyes of the unscrupulous Joab, David’s act was abominable. Joab never gives evidence of being influenced by religious motives, but his natural shrewdness sufficed to show him that David’s act was at variance with the fundamental principle of the national existence. Chronicles adds to Joab’s words, “Why will he be a cause of trespass to Israel?” The strong objection of Joab shows that there was something obviously wrong in the action of David.

And against the captains. —Joab’s objections were sustained by his subordinate officers, and David carried through his sinful act by sheer force of self-will.

Pitched in Aroer. —The census began on the east of Jordan, at the extreme south, then passed northwards through the eastern tribes, and crossing the Jordan, passed southwards through the western tribes. Aroer is the city described in Deuteronomy 2:36; Joshua 13:16 as on the river Arnon, at the extreme southern border of the trans-Jordanian territory.

Of Gad. —This follows the Masoretic reading. It is better to put a period after the word river, and for “of Gad” to read “towards Gad.” Perhaps the words “and they came” (towards Gad) may have been lost from the text.

Jazer. —A boundary city of Gad (Joshua 13:25). From there they went to Gilead.

Land of Tahtim-hodshi.— This unknown and strange name, for which the ancient versions offer no explanation, is generally considered a corruption. The most probable conjecture is that for “Tahtim” we should read “Hittites” (a change of only a single letter), and that “Hodshi” is the remnant of an expression designating the month of their arrival there.

Dan-jaan. —This is the only place in which the name “Dan” occurs with this addition. It seems certain that the same Dan must be meant as in 2 Samuel 24:2; 2 Samuel 24:15; and so the reading of the Septuagint (Alex.) and Vulgate may be correct: “Dan-jaar=Dan in the forest.”

Zidon. —This mother city of the Phoenicians was in the tribe of Asher nominally, but was never actually possessed by the Israelites. The same also is true of Tyre. Either the census-takers merely came to the confines of these cities, or, being on friendly terms, actually entered them to enumerate the Israelites living in them.

Of the Hivites, and of the Canaanites. —The remnants of the original inhabitants appear to have still occupied distinct towns by themselves. The "Hivites" were chiefly in the northern part of the land, though Gibeon and its towns had belonged to them. "The Canaanites" is a general name for the remnants of all the other peoples.