1
Once again the anger of the Lord burned against Israel, and he caused David to harm them by taking a census. “Go and count the people of Israel and Judah,” the Lord told him.
2
So the king said to Joab and the commanders 1 of the army, “Take a census of all the tribes of Israel - from Dan in the north to Beersheba in the south - so I may know how many people there are.”
3
But Joab replied to the king, “May the Lord your God let you live to see a hundred times as many people as there are now! But why, my lord the king, do you want to do this?”
4
But the king insisted that they take the census, so Joab and the commanders of the army went out to count the people of Israel.
5
First they crossed the Jordan and camped at Aroer, south of the town in the valley, in the direction of Gad. Then they went on to Jazer,
6
then to Gilead in the land of Tahtim-hodshi 2 and to Dan-jaan and around to Sidon.
7
Then they came to the fortress of Tyre, and all the towns of the Hivites and Canaanites. Finally, they went south to Judah 3 as far as Beersheba.
8
Having gone through the entire land for nine months and twenty days, they returned to Jerusalem.
9
Joab reported the number of people to the king. There were 800,000 capable warriors in Israel who could handle a sword, and 500,000 in Judah.