2 Samuel 24:24
"No," replied the king, "I insist on paying a price, for I will not offer to the LORD my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing." So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.
But the king replied to Araunah
This phrase introduces King David's response to Araunah, a Jebusite who owned the threshing floor. The historical context here is significant, as it highlights David's role as a king who is not only a political leader but also a spiritual one. The interaction between David and Araunah underscores the importance of integrity and responsibility in leadership. David's insistence on paying for the land reflects his understanding of the value of sacrifice and the principle that true worship requires personal cost.

No, I insist on paying you for it
David's insistence on paying for the threshing floor is a powerful statement about the nature of sacrifice. The Hebrew root for "insist" conveys a sense of determination and resolve. This determination reflects David's commitment to honoring God with offerings that are meaningful and costly. In a broader theological context, this phrase emphasizes the principle that genuine worship involves giving something of value to God, rather than offering what is convenient or easy.

I will not offer to the LORD my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing
This declaration by David is central to understanding the heart of worship. The Hebrew word for "offer" implies a presentation or gift to God, and "burnt offerings" were a significant part of Israelite worship, symbolizing atonement and dedication. David's refusal to offer something that cost him nothing highlights the principle that true worship requires sacrifice. This principle is echoed throughout Scripture, where the sincerity of one's devotion is often measured by the willingness to give up something valuable for the sake of honoring God.

So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver
The act of purchasing the threshing floor and oxen for fifty shekels of silver is not just a transaction but a demonstration of David's commitment to God. The specific mention of "fifty shekels of silver" provides a historical and economic context, indicating the tangible cost of David's offering. This purchase signifies the establishment of a place of worship that would later become the site of Solomon's Temple. Theologically, this act foreshadows the ultimate sacrifice of Christ, who paid the highest price for humanity's redemption. David's willingness to pay for the threshing floor serves as an example of the costliness of true devotion and the importance of giving God our best.

Persons / Places / Events
1. David
The King of Israel, known for his heart after God, who insists on paying for the threshing floor to offer a sacrifice to God.

2. Araunah
A Jebusite who owned the threshing floor that David desired to purchase for building an altar to the Lord.

3. Threshing Floor
The location where David intended to build an altar to offer sacrifices to God, which later became the site of Solomon's Temple.

4. Burnt Offerings
Sacrifices made to God, symbolizing atonement and dedication, which David insists must cost him something.

5. Fifty Shekels of Silver
The price David paid for the threshing floor and oxen, signifying his commitment to offering a meaningful sacrifice.
Teaching Points
The Cost of True Worship
Worship that honors God often requires personal sacrifice and commitment. David's refusal to offer something that cost him nothing challenges us to consider what we are willing to give up for God.

Heart of Sacrifice
The heart behind the offering is crucial. David's insistence on paying for the threshing floor reflects a heart fully devoted to God, reminding us that God values our intentions and sincerity.

Ownership and Stewardship
David's purchase signifies taking ownership of his worship and stewardship of resources. We are called to be responsible stewards of what God has entrusted to us.

Legacy of Faith
The site of David's altar became the location of the Temple, showing how acts of faith and obedience can have lasting impacts. Our faithful actions today can influence future generations.

God's Provision and Grace
While David paid for the threshing floor, it was God's grace that provided the means. Recognizing God's provision in our lives encourages gratitude and reliance on Him.
Bible Study Questions
1. What does David's insistence on paying for the threshing floor teach us about the nature of true worship and sacrifice?

2. How can we apply the principle of offering God something that costs us in our daily lives?

3. In what ways does the account of David and Araunah's threshing floor connect with the concept of stewardship in the New Testament?

4. How does the location of the threshing floor as the future site of the Temple illustrate the long-term impact of our faithful actions?

5. Reflect on a time when you experienced God's provision in your life. How did it influence your faith and actions?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Genesis 22
Abraham's willingness to sacrifice Isaac demonstrates the principle of costly obedience and faith.

1 Chronicles 21
This parallel account provides additional details about the event, emphasizing the importance of David's decision.

Romans 12:1
Paul urges believers to offer themselves as living sacrifices, highlighting the theme of sacrificial living.

Mark 12:41-44
The widow's offering illustrates the value of sacrificial giving, regardless of the amount.
A Costly Gift Freely BestowedW. G. Blaikie.2 Samuel 24:24
A Religion that Costs NothingA. H. Powell, M. A.2 Samuel 24:24
A Test of SincerityW. Cadman, M. A2 Samuel 24:24
Bibles Gratis RefusedAnecdotes of the Old Testament.2 Samuel 24:24
Cheap Religion RepudiatedG. Wood 2 Samuel 24:24
Genuine Service for GodU. R. Thomas.2 Samuel 24:24
Give God the Best2 Samuel 24:24
Personal SacrificeB. Dale 2 Samuel 24:24
Service Costs SacrificeH. O. Mackey.2 Samuel 24:24
The Principle of GivingE. Mellor, D. D.2 Samuel 24:24
The True Principle of Divine ServiceR. Thomas.2 Samuel 24:24
The Unselfish OfferingA. J. Morris.2 Samuel 24:24
David Numbering the PeopleH. Melvill, B. D.2 Samuel 24:1-25
David Numbering the PeopleF. M. Sadler, M. A.2 Samuel 24:1-25
David's Numbering of the PeopleHomiletic Magazine2 Samuel 24:1-25
In What Respect the Census was SinfulA. F. Kirkpatrick, M. A.2 Samuel 24:1-25
Numbering the PeopleC. S. Robinson, D. D.2 Samuel 24:1-25
The Church's Resources2 Samuel 24:1-25
Divine Justice in National RetributionsG. Brooke.2 Samuel 24:15-25
God's Judgment on PrideHenry, Matthew2 Samuel 24:15-25
The PestilenceDean Stanley.2 Samuel 24:15-25
The Plague StayedMonday Club Sermons2 Samuel 24:15-25
The Plague StayedS. D. Niccolls, D. D.2 Samuel 24:15-25
People
Araunah, Canaanites, Dan, David, Gad, Gadites, Hittites, Hivite, Hivites, Joab, Zidon
Places
Aroer, Beersheba, Dan, Gilead, Jazer, Jerusalem, Jordan River, Kadesh, Negeb, Sidon, Tyre
Topics
Araunah, Arau'nah, Ascend, Bought, Burned, Burnt, Burnt-offerings, Buy, Buyeth, Case, Cause, Certainly, Cost, David, Fifty, Floor, Got, Grain-floor, However, Insist, Nay, Nothing, Nought, Offer, Offerings, Oxen, Paid, Paying, Price, Sacrifice, Shekels, Silver, Surely, Threshing, Threshingfloor, Threshing-floor, Verily
Dictionary of Bible Themes
2 Samuel 24:24

     4363   silver
     5242   buying and selling
     5477   property, land
     5913   negotiation
     8752   false worship

2 Samuel 24:10-25

     7435   sacrifice, in OT

2 Samuel 24:11-25

     4843   plague

2 Samuel 24:16-25

     4524   threshing-floor

2 Samuel 24:22-24

     5865   gestures

Library
The Exile --Continued.
We have one psalm which the title connects with the beginning of David's stay at Adullam,--the thirty-fourth. The supposition that it dates from that period throws great force into many parts of it, and gives a unity to what is else apparently fragmentary and disconnected. Unlike those already considered, which were pure soliloquies, this is full of exhortation and counsel, as would naturally be the case if it were written when friends and followers began to gather to his standard. It reads like
Alexander Maclaren—The Life of David

The Universal Chorus
And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto Him that stteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever. M en have generally agreed to dignify their presumptuous and arrogant ^* disquisitions on the works and ways of God, with the name of wisdom ; though the principles upon which they proceed, and the conclusions which they draw from
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 2

Letter xix (A. D. 1127) to Suger, Abbot of S. Denis
To Suger, Abbot of S. Denis He praises Suger, who had unexpectedly renounced the pride and luxury of the world to give himself to the modest habits of the religious life. He blames severely the clerk who devotes himself rather to the service of princes than that of God. 1. A piece of good news has reached our district; it cannot fail to do great good to whomsoever it shall have come. For who that fear God, hearing what great things He has done for your soul, do not rejoice and wonder at the great
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux—Some Letters of Saint Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux

Meditations for one that is Like to Die.
If thy sickness be like to increase unto death, then meditate on three things:--First, How graciously God dealeth with thee. Secondly, From what evils death will free thee. Thirdly, What good death will bring unto thee. The first sort of Meditations are, to consider God's favourable dealing with thee. 1. Meditate that God uses this chastisement of thy body but as a medicine to cure thy soul, by drawing thee, who art sick in sin, to come by repentance unto Christ, thy physician, to have thy soul healed
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety

Consolations against Impatience in Sickness.
If in thy sickness by extremity of pain thou be driven to impatience, meditate-- 1. That thy sins have deserved the pains of hell; therefore thou mayest with greater patience endure these fatherly corrections. 2. That these are the scourges of thy heavenly Father, and the rod is in his hand. If thou didst suffer with reverence, being a child, the corrections of thy earthly parents, how much rather shouldst thou now subject thyself, being the child of God, to the chastisement of thy heavenly Father,
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety

The Order of Thought which Surrounded the Development of Jesus.
As the cooled earth no longer permits us to understand the phenomena of primitive creation, because the fire which penetrated it is extinct, so deliberate explanations have always appeared somewhat insufficient when applying our timid methods of induction to the revolutions of the creative epochs which have decided the fate of humanity. Jesus lived at one of those times when the game of public life is freely played, and when the stake of human activity is increased a hundredfold. Every great part,
Ernest Renan—The Life of Jesus

Of Love to God
I proceed to the second general branch of the text. The persons interested in this privilege. They are lovers of God. "All things work together for good, to them that love God." Despisers and haters of God have no lot or part in this privilege. It is children's bread, it belongs only to them that love God. Because love is the very heart and spirit of religion, I shall the more fully treat upon this; and for the further discussion of it, let us notice these five things concerning love to God. 1. The
Thomas Watson—A Divine Cordial

The Hardening in the Sacred Scripture.
"He hath hardened their heart."-- John xii. 40. The Scripture teaches positively that the hardening and "darkening of their foolish heart" is a divine, intentional act. This is plainly evident from God's charge to Moses concerning the king of Egypt: "Thou shalt speak all that I command thee; and I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and multiply My signs and wonders in the land of Egypt. But Pharaoh shall not harken unto you, and I will lay My hand upon Egypt, and the Egyptians shall know that I am the
Abraham Kuyper—The Work of the Holy Spirit

The Prophet Amos.
GENERAL PRELIMINARY REMARKS. It will not be necessary to extend our preliminary remarks on the prophet Amos, since on the main point--viz., the circumstances under which he appeared as a prophet--the introduction to the prophecies of Hosea may be regarded as having been written for those of Amos also. For, according to the inscription, they belong to the same period at which Hosea's prophetic ministry began, viz., the latter part of the reign of Jeroboam II., and after Uzziah had ascended the
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament

Samuel
Alike from the literary and the historical point of view, the book[1] of Samuel stands midway between the book of Judges and the book of Kings. As we have already seen, the Deuteronomic book of Judges in all probability ran into Samuel and ended in ch. xii.; while the story of David, begun in Samuel, embraces the first two chapters of the first book of Kings. The book of Samuel is not very happily named, as much of it is devoted to Saul and the greater part to David; yet it is not altogether inappropriate,
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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