Fri.’s Devo - Numbering the People

Read: 2 Samuel 23:24-24:25; Acts 3:1-26; Psalm 123:1-4; Proverbs 16:21-23 David had 37 mighty men who are listed and Uriah the Hittite was the 37th. *** Israel went into sin and the Lord was not pleased. He put it in David’s heart to number the people so he could bring judgment to the nation for their sins. 
 *** David instructed Joab to go and number all who were able to fight in his army. Joab tried to talk him out of it, but David was the king and his command stood. Joab and his army began counting in Gad on the other side of the Jordan, then crossed the Jordan into Dan and the other tribes. It took him nine months and 20 days. Joab found 800,000 valiant men in Israel and 500,000 in Judah. *** When Joab was done, David repented that he had numbered the people. The law says in Exodus 30:12, “When thou take the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the LORD, when thou number them; that there be no plague among them, when thou number them.” To number the people was to bring them to account for their sins and since David didn’t collect the ransom money, they couldn’t pay the ransom for their sins, meaning they would die in their sin. *** Sure enough, the prophet Gad came for a visit and gave him the choice of three judgments. Israel could have three years of famine, three months of their enemies winning battles against them, or three days of plagues. He chose the three days of plagues because he would rather fall under God’s hand and pray for his mercy. *** The plague killed 70,000 men from Dan to Beersheba. When the death angel came to Jerusalem and was about to destroy it, the Lord stopped it. The angel was beside the threshing floor of Araunah. David could see the angel who was killing the people and asked him to have mercy on the innocent people. *** God sent Gad to tell David to raise up an altar at the place the angel stopped the plague. David insisted on paying the full price of 50 shekels of silver for the threshing floor from Araunah. There he built an altar to the Lord and offered burnt offering and peace offering and the Lord heard his prayer and stopped the plague. *** In Acts, there was a man who had been lame all his life who regularly begged at the gate of the temple. When Peter and John met him, Peter told him he had no money, but he would give him what he had, which was the power of God to heal him. He told him to rise and walk in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Peter and John helped him stand and he walked into the temple leaping and praising the Lord. The people recognized him as the beggar they had seen all their lives and were amazed. *** Peter took the opportunity to witness to the crowd. He told them that he and John had nothing to do with this man’s healing. God, the father of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob glorified Jesus who they had delivered over to Pilate and denied as their own. They chose to let a murderer live and killed the Author of life. But, God raised him up and they witnessed his resurrection. By his name, this man was made whole and now they are witnesses of his power. *** Peter continued that they had killed Jesus out of their ignorance just like the prophets had said. Jesus suffered for their sins. All they have to do is repent to have their sins blotted out. Jesus will come to them and refresh their spirits. They were living in the days all the prophets had spoken about. They and their offspring will bless the earth if they turn from their wickedness and turn to Jesus. *** We are also living in the days the prophets spoke about. God is pouring out his Spirit once again on his people and visiting us with victory. He is bringing justice and victory against his enemies. We can be ignorant and miss it like many did when Jesus came the first time, or we can have eyes to see and rejoice and participate with God. *** Lord, thank you for what you did when you sent your son to die for our sins, and thank you for what you are doing right now on the earth. We see your light becoming brighter and darkness being exposed. The truth is setting us free. May we finish the work that you have sent us here to do.