Introduction
In chapter 21, we find ourselves in the midst of the account of the census: David counted Israel, the matter was evil in the eyes of Hashem, and from here unfolds the account of the divine reckoning, the punishment, David's choice, the plague, and ultimately the revelation of the site of the Altar at the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. We will follow the verses in order, with the explanations of the Malbim, Radak, and Metzudos, and we will also learn from this several foundational lessons in mussar and the service of Hashem.
Gad, "David's Seer", and the Three Decrees
וַיְדַבֵּר יְהֹוָה אֶל־גָּד חֹזֵה דָוִיד לֵאמֹר׃ - And Hashem spoke to Gad, David's seer, saying:
What is the meaning of "David's seer"? Metzudas David explains: all of his prophecies were directed to David. He was, as it were, David's "in-house prophet", and all his prophecies were communicated for his sake.
לֵךְ וְדִבַּרְתָּ אֶל־דָּוִיד לֵאמֹר כֹּה אָמַר יְהֹוָה שָׁלוֹשׁ אֲנִי נֹטֶה עָלֶיךָ בְּחַר־לְךָ אַחַת מֵהֵנָּה וְאֶעֱשֶׂה־לָּךְ׃ - Go and speak to David, saying: Thus said Hashem: Three things I extend over you; choose one of them for yourself, and I will do it to you.
וַיָּבֹא גָד אֶל־דָּוִיד וַיֹּאמֶר לוֹ כֹּה־אָמַר יְהֹוָה קַבֶּל־לָךְ׃ - So Gad came to David and said to him: Thus said Hashem: Accept for yourself.
There is a difficulty here, and two ways to resolve it. "Three things I extend over you" - seemingly it should have said, "One of three I extend over you," for immediately he offers him three punishment options and tells him to choose one of them. Metzudas David resolves this: "three" means one of three, similar to "through two shall you become my son-in-law", where it does not mean both ways together, but rather one of the two; so too here, "three things I extend over you" means one of the three.
The Malbim takes a different approach, through which the severity of the sin is revealed: strictly according to justice, the severity of the sin demanded three punishments, and that is what was said to him - "Three things I extend over you," meaning you have incurred liability for all three: famine, sword, and pestilence. However, "choose one of them for yourself, and I will do it to you." And this is the depth of Gad's phrasing: "Thus said Hashem: Accept for yourself" - if you accept one of them willingly, one alone will suffice; but know that strictly according to justice, three are stretched out against you.
We Do Not Understand Punishments - Yet He Was Held Accountable to His Stature
We can never come and declare whether such a sin warrants such a punishment. When you understand what Moshe's sin was, you will also understand why it was decreed that he not enter the Land; and since we do not understand the sin, we do not understand the punishment either. So it is with the sin of Adam HaRishon, about which Rashbi said that even if we studied for a thousand years, we would not understand what the sin was. Consequently, we cannot understand the precise correspondence between the sin and the punishment. What we can understand here is that David was held accountable according to his spiritual stature, according to his exalted standing as the anointed of Hashem, and according to that high level he was held to account for such an act.
The Three Options
אִם־שָׁלוֹשׁ שָׁנִים רָעָב וְאִם־שְׁלֹשָׁה חֳדָשִׁים נִסְפֶּה מִפְּנֵי־צָרֶיךָ וְחֶרֶב אוֹיְבֶיךָ לְמַשֶּׂגֶת וְאִם־שְׁלֹשֶׁת יָמִים חֶרֶב יְהֹוָה וְדֶבֶר בָּאָרֶץ וּמַלְאַךְ יְהֹוָה מַשְׁחִית בְּכָל־גְּבוּל יִשְׂרָאֵל וְעַתָּה רְאֵה מָה־אָשִׁיב אֶת־שֹׁלְחִי דָּבָר׃ - Either three years of famine; or three months of being swept away before your adversaries while the sword of your enemies overtakes you; or three days of the sword of the Lord, with pestilence in the land and the angel of the Lord wreaking destruction throughout all the borders of Israel. Now consider what answer I shall return to Him Who sent me.
In the Book of Shemuel it says, "Seven years of famine in your land," whereas here it says three years. The Radak explains: there had already been three years of famine earlier ("And there was a famine in the days of David for three years," year after year), and therefore Gad the prophet asks: Do you want another three years? And why does the total come to seven? Because in a year of famine people do not sow, and consequently, not sowing in the sixth year causes the seventh year to also be a year of famine - three that passed, three to come, and one resulting year: seven.
The Malbim explains differently: this event took place at the end of David's life, and Ezra - who wrote Divrei HaYamim - knows that David died three years later. Since the sin came about through David, the punishment would necessarily cease upon David's death; thus, even if seven years were spoken of, practically speaking no more than three could be carried out. Therefore it says here, "Either three years of famine."
Another difference between what is written here and what is written in Shemuel: there it says, "Fleeing before your adversaries while they pursue you," meaning pursuit alone, whereas here it says, "Swept away before your adversaries while the sword of your enemies overtakes you" - so that you should not think you will merely flee and escape with your life, but rather be "swept away," that they would die through the enemies' pursuit and the sword would overtake them.
Likewise regarding the pestilence: there it says, "Three days of pestilence," while here it says, "Three days of the sword of the Lord, with pestilence in the land and the angel of the Lord wreaking destruction" - teaching you that this would not be an ordinary plague, but the sword of the Lord and a destroying angel, something supernatural, as we will soon see when David sees the destroying angel.
A Hint Within the Mission
We have already noted in the Book of Shemuel that the Holy One, Blessed be He, sent through Gad the prophet a hint to David regarding which option he ought to choose. Therefore it says, "Now consider what word (davar) I shall return to Him Who sent me" - do not read it as davar (word), but rather as dever (pestilence). He hinted to him that the least severe of all these afflictions was the plague of pestilence, and therefore it was better for him to choose it.
"I am in great distress" - A Choice of Pure Anguish
וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִיד אֶל־גָּד צַר־לִי מְאֹד אֶפְּלָה־נָּא בְיַד־יְהֹוָה כִּי־רַבִּים רַחֲמָיו מְאֹד וּבְיַד־אָדָם אַל־אֶפֹּל׃ - And David said to Gad, "I am in great distress; let me fall, please, into the hand of the Lord, for His mercies are exceedingly great, but let me not fall into the hand of man."
"I am in great distress" - the commentators explain with a parable: A person was told that he was about to die, and they asked him in which plot he wished to be buried, next to his father or next to his mother. They gave him "options" so he wouldn't think everything was bad... Thank you very much! In other words, every option here is terrible. This is what David is saying: these choices place me in severe distress (meitzar); there is no option here that brings relief compared to another difficult option, but rather all of them are anguish. And he said: Woe to the ears that hear such a thing.
"Let me fall, please, into the hand of the Lord" - the commentators explain: through pestilence, which affects all equally, rich and poor alike, and because His mercies are great - perhaps He will have mercy, but our enemies will show us no mercy. Pestilence is preferable because it encompasses the rich and the poor together. By contrast, in a famine, as is well known, the poor suffer far more than the rich: the rich have money to purchase grain imported from other places, even at great expense, whereas the poor are the ones who truly suffer. David said: It is not just that the blow should fall upon the poor and not upon the rich; therefore, "let me fall, please, into the hand of the Lord," with Whom all are equal, for pestilence does not distinguish between rich and poor. Furthermore, enemies will not show mercy, whereas the Holy One, Blessed be He, is exceedingly merciful.
The Metzudat David adds regarding "but let me not fall into the hand of man" that famine, too, is a form of falling into the hand of man, for in a time of famine people become dependent on the gifts of flesh and blood. Thus, not only the enemy is falling into the hand of man, but famine as well.
The Plague and the Angel
וַיִּתֵּן יְהֹוָה דֶּבֶר בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל וַיִּפֹּל מִיִּשְׂרָאֵל שִׁבְעִים אֶלֶף אִישׁ׃ - So the Lord sent pestilence upon Israel, and seventy thousand men of Israel fell.
We can hardly grasp the magnitude of this number. In all of Israel's wars to date, roughly twenty-two to twenty-four thousand people have fallen, yet here we are talking about seventy thousand people in a single day - nearly triple that number.
וַיִּשְׁלַח הָאֱלֹהִים מַלְאָךְ לִירוּשָׁלַיִם לְהַשְׁחִיתָהּ וּכְהַשְׁחִית רָאָה יְהֹוָה וַיִּנָּחֶם עַל־הָרָעָה וַיֹּאמֶר לַמַּלְאָךְ הַמַּשְׁחִית רַב עַתָּה הֶרֶף יָדֶךָ וּמַלְאַךְ יְהֹוָה עֹמֵד עִם־גֹּרֶן אָרְנָן הַיְבוּסִי׃ - And God sent an angel to Jerusalem to destroy it, and as he was destroying, the Lord saw and relented of the calamity, and said to the destroying angel, "It is enough; now stay your hand." And the angel of the Lord was standing by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
What did Hashem see that caused Him to relent of the calamity? Radak explains: He saw how many had died, and relented. Our Sages expound: He saw the ashes of Yitzchak - for that very place, the threshing floor of Ornan (also called Aravnah the Jebusite), was the site where Avraham Avinu bound his son Yitzchak, and when the destroying angel reached that spot, Hashem's mercy was aroused.
The Malbim explains: "And God sent an angel" - Hashem sent forth His hand, which is the angel. As we have explained several times, whenever Scripture speaks of Hashem performing an action, it does not mean that He acts directly in a physical sense, but rather through His angels who carry out His word; and when Hashem speaks, that word materializes in the form of an angel. Every action that the Holy One, blessed be He, performs in the world is executed through His emissaries and angels. Thus, the angel represents the hand of Hashem, acting as the destroyer during the pestilence. When he began to destroy, Hashem commanded him to stay his hand so that he would not destroy David, for the destroying angel does not distinguish between righteous and wicked; hence, "It is enough; now stay your hand." And "the angel of the Lord was standing by the threshing floor of Ornan" means at the site of the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
The Angel Standing Between Earth and Heaven
וַיִּשָּׂא דָוִיד אֶת־עֵינָיו וַיַּרְא אֶת־מַלְאַךְ יְהֹוָה עֹמֵד בֵּין הָאָרֶץ וּבֵין הַשָּׁמַיִם וְחַרְבּוֹ שְׁלוּפָה בְּיָדוֹ נְטוּיָה עַל־יְרוּשָׁלָיִם וַיִּפֹּל דָּוִיד וְהַזְּקֵנִים מְכֻסִּים בַּשַּׂקִּים עַל־פְּנֵיהֶם׃ - And David lifted his eyes and saw the angel of the Lord standing between earth and heaven, with his drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem. And David and the elders, covered in sackcloth, fell on their faces.
David sees the angel of Hashem standing between earth and heaven with his hand stretched out over Jerusalem, and from the place where the angel of Hashem halted, David realized that this was specifically the site of the Temple, the place where the Altar would stand, as we will see further on.
What does it mean that he was "standing between earth and heaven"? The Malbim explains: He had already withdrawn from the earth, since Hashem told him, "Stay your hand," and he no longer had permission to strike; yet he was not granted permission to ascend to heaven either, for Hashem had not told him to ascend. And since his sword had initially been drawn toward Mount Zion, when Hashem said to him, "Stay your hand," the sword returned to its default position - to where it was when he finished his task, facing Jerusalem, where it had begun. This is the meaning of "stretched out over Jerusalem": poised above, but not striking. On the one hand, Hashem did not permit him to continue striking, yet on the other hand, He did not permit him to ascend to heaven either; moreover, as we will see, he still had a mission. Therefore, he remained suspended in midair at the spot where he had stopped - a frozen tableau of an angel standing with his sword outstretched.
Metzudat David explains: In the Book of Yehoshua, it is written, "Behold, a man stood opposite him with his drawn sword in his hand," and Yehoshua asked, "Are you for us, or for our adversaries?" There, there was room for doubt, because Yehoshua was standing with his back to the enemies and his face toward Israel, and the angel came facing him; consequently, if the angel faced Yehoshua, he also faced his adversaries, leaving room to question whether he came to help him or to help his enemies. Here, however, when David sees the angel's sword stretched out over Jerusalem, it was unmistakably clear that he had come to strike Israel, and there was no expression of mercy.
"And the Elders, Covered in Sackcloth, upon Their Faces"
This can be explained in two ways. First, sackcloth is an expression of mourning and distress; just as mourners wear sackcloth, so too the elders expressed their grief, just as we see that on a fast day people would wear sackcloth. Second, they were terrified by the sight of the angel. For it is said of King David that a chill seized him and "they covered him with clothes, but he could not get warm" - and why was that? As a result of seeing the angel. If so, when the elders saw the face of the angel, they were terrified. Likewise, regarding Daniel it is written that when he saw the angel, "his countenance changed and his thoughts" were thrown into turmoil. From this, the Ibn Ezra proved, as mentioned previously, that an angel is greater than a human being - for an angel is not terrified at the sight of a human, whereas a human is terrified at the sight of an angel. Some suggest there is room to make distinctions here, and there is no need to delve into the question of who is greater than whom right now, but in any case, seeing the face of an angel causes immense terror. Normally, sackcloth covers the body, but here it had to cover the face - because they were terrified at the sight of the angel and covered their faces so as not to gaze upon him and not be harmed by that sight. And if this caused David such a chill, it is well understood what it did to the elders.
"And These Sheep, What Have They Done?"
וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִיד אֶל־הָאֱלֹהִים הֲלֹא אֲנִי אָמַרְתִּי לִמְנוֹת בָּעָם וַאֲנִי־הוּא אֲשֶׁר־חָטָאתִי וְהָרֵעַ הֲרֵעוֹתִי וְאֵלֶּה הַצֹּאן מֶה עָשׂוּ יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהַי תְּהִי נָא יָדְךָ בִּי וּבְבֵית אָבִי וּבְעַמְּךָ לֹא לְמַגֵּפָה׃ - And David said to God, "Was it not I who ordered the numbering of the people? It is I who sinned and acted so wickedly! But these sheep, what have they done? Hashem my God, let Your hand, please, be against me and against my father's house, but let not Your people suffer the plague."
David argues: Master of the Universe, the sin was mine, and they were like sheep led to the slaughter - they had no choice in this matter. If so, "these sheep, what have they done?" And if retribution is warranted, let retribution be exacted from me and from my father's house, but why punish them - "let not Your people suffer the plague."
"I Have Smitten, and I Will Heal"
וּמַלְאַךְ יְהֹוָה אָמַר אֶל־גָּד לֵאמֹר לְדָוִיד כִּי יַעֲלֶה דָוִיד לְהָקִים מִזְבֵּחַ לַיהֹוָה בְּגֹרֶן אָרְנָן הַיְבֻסִי׃ - And the angel of Hashem told Gad to say to David, that David should go up to erect an altar to Hashem on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
The angel of Hashem reveals himself in prophecy to Gad and instructs him to tell David to go up and erect an altar on the threshing floor of Ornan. The Malbim explains: this prophecy was conveyed through the destroying angel himself. This is why we saw earlier that the destroyer was halted in the middle of his mission and was not taken up to heaven, but remained standing between earth and heaven - because he still had a mission, for the Holy One, blessed be He, still wished to transmit messages through him. And the message is that a sacrifice must now be offered upon an altar on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. Thus, this exemplifies "I have smitten, and I will heal": the very same angel through whom Hashem smote is the one through whom the healing will also come - through the offering of the sacrifice on the threshing floor of Ornan.
Ornan and His Sons Hide
וַיַּעַל דָּוִיד בִּדְבַר־גָּד אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר בְּשֵׁם יְהֹוָה׃ - So David went up according to the word of Gad, which he had spoken in the name of Hashem.
וַיָּשָׁב אָרְנָן וַיַּרְא אֶת־הַמַּלְאָךְ וְאַרְבַּעַת בָּנָיו עִמּוֹ מִתְחַבְּאִים וְאָרְנָן דָּשׁ חִטִּים׃ - And Ornan turned back and saw the angel, and his four sons with him were hiding; and Ornan was threshing wheat.
Gad commands David according to the word of Hashem - through the angel, as mentioned - to go and erect an altar, and David goes up according to Gad's word, seeking to reach the place where the angel stopped, namely the threshing floor of Aravnah, who is called Ornan here. Radak has already noted that one should not be overly exacting about names, for a single person can be called by several names or variations of a name, depending on how people are accustomed to addressing him: sometimes Yaakov, sometimes Yanky, sometimes Jackie, sometimes Jack - and it is all one person.
Ornan too sees the angel, he and his four sons with him, and he too is terrified - so he goes and hides. Why did he need to hide? Metzudos explains this in light of the verse, "Go, my people, enter your chambers and shut your doors behind you; hide for a brief moment until the wrath passes." When the destroying angel is roaming, one must hide so as not to be harmed, just as it says, "And none of you shall go out of the entrance of his house until morning." This is also why lockdowns were instituted during Covid - one must hide; and when there are no lockdowns, casualties can reach eight thousand dead, may Hashem have mercy.
Why does the text emphasize what Ornan was doing at that time - "and Ornan was threshing wheat"? Because later we read "and the wheat for the meal offering," and one might wonder where wheat suddenly appeared from; therefore, Scripture prefaces that precisely at that time he was threshing wheat, and from that wheat they offered the meal offering.
וַיָּבֹא דָוִיד עַד־אָרְנָן וַיַּבֵּט אָרְנָן וַיַּרְא אֶת־דָּוִיד וַיֵּצֵא מִן־הַגֹּרֶן וַיִּשְׁתַּחוּ לְדָוִיד אַפַּיִם אָרְצָה׃ - David came to Ornan, and Ornan looked and saw David; he went out of the threshing floor and bowed down to David with his face to the ground.
David arrives, and Ornan - apparently peering out from his hiding place and seeing David - steps out of the threshing floor and bows down before him with his face to the ground.
"Give It to Me for Full Price"
וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִיד אֶל־אָרְנָן תְּנָה־לִּי מְקוֹם הַגֹּרֶן וְאֶבְנֶה־בּוֹ מִזְבֵּחַ לַיהֹוָה בְּכֶסֶף מָלֵא תְּנֵהוּ לִי וְתֵעָצַר הַמַּגֵּפָה מֵעַל הָעָם׃ - And David said to Ornan, "Grant me the site of the threshing floor, that I may build upon it an altar to Hashem; grant it to me for the full price, so that the plague may be halted from upon the people."
There is something symbolic about reading this specifically around Parashat Chayei Sarah - "let him give it to me for full price." As noted before, all the places that were purchased for full money to guarantee there would be no disputes are precisely the places that are disputed. And the foremost of all disputes is Jerusalem, the Temple Mount. King David says "for full price" - I do not want to offer burnt offerings for free, I will pay for it. Long before Muhammad began his delusions, years before his father even had a smile spread across his face, we had already bought the threshing floor and paid for it with a complete acquisition - yet even so, it does not prevent their claims. The same is true of Shechem, bought for a hundred kesitah, yet they argue it is theirs; and so too the Cave of Machpelah, bought for four hundred shekels of silver, yet they claim it is theirs and establish a mosque there. Thus it turns out that neither money nor explicit documentation helps - whoever does not want to be convinced will not be convinced.
And it has been noted before that these matters are primarily meant to convince us. If you are convinced, there is a chance you will also succeed in convincing others; but when we approach things with all sorts of doubts, claiming that "what is written is not necessarily binding," and that "we took" and "we stole," constantly engaging in self-flagellation - do not be surprised that the nations capitalize on it. But if you come with genuine confidence that what is yours and rightfully belongs to you is indeed yours, in the end the non-Jew will fall in line as well.
"For full price" - for the complete value of silver, its full weight, without clipped or deficient coins; all so that through this the plague would be halted.
Ornan Seeks to Give It for Free
וַיֹּאמֶר אָרְנָן אֶל־דָּוִיד קַח־לָךְ וְיַעַשׂ אֲדֹנִי הַמֶּלֶךְ הַטּוֹב בְּעֵינָיו רְאֵה נָתַתִּי הַבָּקָר לָעֹלוֹת וְהַמּוֹרִגִּים לָעֵצִים וְהַחִטִּים לַמִּנְחָה הַכֹּל נָתָתִּי׃ - And Ornan said to David, "Take it for yourself, and let my lord the king do what is good in his eyes; see, I give the oxen for burnt offerings, the threshing sledges for wood, and the wheat for the meal offering - I give it all."
Ornan says to David: Take it for yourself, I want no payment. The oxen shall be for burnt offerings, the threshing sledges for wood, and the wheat for the meal offering. "Morigim" (threshing sledges) - Metzudat Tzion explains that this is a wooden board with sharp stones embedded in its underside, as in the verse, "a new, sharp threshing sledge having teeth, you shall thresh the mountains and crush them": they used it to thresh grain, as the stones beneath it roll over the grain, crushing it and separating the chaff from the wheat - and this is the meaning of "a sharp threshing sledge," which has serrations or teeth underneath. Ornan offers these wooden boards for firewood, since wood was needed to burn upon the altar, and the wheat for the meal offering. "I give it all" - as an outright gift, and I do not want payment.
"And Offer a Burnt Offering for Free" - One Does Not Skimp on a Mitzvah
וַיֹּאמֶר הַמֶּלֶךְ דָּוִיד לְאָרְנָן לֹא כִּי־קָנֹה אֶקְנֶה בְּכֶסֶף מָלֵא כִּי לֹא־אֶשָּׂא אֲשֶׁר־לְךָ לַיהֹוָה וְהַעֲלוֹת עוֹלָה חִנָּם׃ - And King David said to Ornan, 'No, but I will surely buy it for full price, for I will not take what is yours for Hashem, nor offer up an elevation-offering that costs nothing.'
That is to say: I will not take what belongs to you in order to give it to Hashem and offer an elevation-offering for free. I am not willing to bring an offering to Hashem from something given to me as a gift.
The holy Zohar writes that when a person comes to perform a mitzvah, even if it is offered to him free of charge, he should insist on paying. And if not the full amount, at least he should pay something. Why? Because whenever a mitzvah comes free of cost, the external spiritual forces (the chitzonim) seize upon it, and an accusation is raised in Heaven: This person is unwilling to invest for the Master of the World; he is unwilling to spend money from his own pocket. It is like a man who tells his bride about the ring he bought her: "What can I say, there was a clearance sale, five for ten, so I figured I had to get you something." In other words: You are not worth any more than that to me - what a terrible disgrace! Or imagine him saying: "Someone gave this to me as a gift, and I thought, what do I need this for? I will give it to you." That is what is meant by "offering up an elevation-offering that costs nothing," and free offerings are a great disgrace. Therefore, every mitzvah performed should be fulfilled at full price.
When the holy Ari went to buy the Arbaah Minim, he would take out his coin purse, hand it to the merchant, and say: "I will take what I want, and you take as much as you want." One would hardly recommend acting this way today if one wishes to keep his wallet, but evidently in his day the Ari knew he had someone trustworthy to rely upon; nevertheless, we see what the attitude ought to be: do not look to skimp. Someone once asked to guess how much his etrog had cost. Looking at it, it was a beautiful etrog: "Three hundred?" "Less." "Two hundred? One hundred?" until it came down to thirty shekels. How? He said: "I went five minutes before the market closed, and they were clearing everything out for thirty shekels." The response to him was: "Would you buy a ring for your bride that way, from a clearance sale? One goes to purchase in advance; and had nothing nice remained, would you have simply bought whatever was left for lack of choice?" For the sake of a mitzvah, one goes to buy special, beautiful items, and one goes early.
This is not to say that a person must spend one or two thousand shekels, but one should certainly purchase it for a respectable sum and not skimp on mitzvos. The Ritva writes that all of a person's livelihood and expenses are decreed on Rosh Hashanah, except for the expenses of Shabbat, Yom Tov, and Torah study; and the Ritva explains that this does not refer only to Torah study, but to all mitzvah expenses - all mitzvah expenses are excluded from the fixed budget allotted on Rosh Hashanah that determines what one will earn that year. Therefore, buy and do not skimp. Indeed, King David teaches us: "I will surely buy it for full price," for I will not offer up to Hashem my God elevation-offerings that cost nothing.
Fifty Silver Shekels or Six Hundred Gold Shekels
וַיִּתֵּן דָּוִיד לְאָרְנָן בַּמָּקוֹם שִׁקְלֵי זָהָב מִשְׁקָל שֵׁשׁ מֵאוֹת׃ - And David gave to Ornan for the place six hundred shekels of gold by weight.
In the Book of Shmuel, it is written that he gave "fifty shekels of silver" (kesef), whereas here it states "six hundred shekels of gold by weight." Had the reverse been written - fifty gold shekels there and six hundred silver shekels here - one could have explained that fifty gold shekels are equal in value to six hundred silver shekels; but here the text reads the opposite. Chazal explain that there is no contradiction, that the gold mentioned here and the kesef mentioned there are one and the same; apparently their intention is that the term "fifty shekels of kesef" does not refer to the type of metal (silver rather than gold), but rather to "kesef" in the sense of money or payment, as the word is used today. And regarding the question of fifty there versus six hundred here, Chazal explain: he collected fifty from each tribe, which across the twelve tribes of Israel totals six hundred.
Chazal further explain, as cited by Radak: In one verse it says, "in one of your tribes," and in another verse, "from all your tribes" - that is, does the Beit HaMikdash belong to one tribe, or to all the tribes? Chazal resolve this: the Temple itself would stand in the territory of "one of your tribes" (as brought there, in the portions of Yehudah and Binyamin), but the money was to come "from all your tribes" - everyone contributed to the payment.
And Rebbi says in the name of Abba Yose ben Dostai: the cattle, the wood, and the site of the altar were purchased for fifty, while the entire site of the Temple was purchased for six hundred - and both accounts are true. What he paid fifty for in Shmuel was for the cattle, the wood, and the place of the altar; and what he paid six hundred for was for the entire Temple site, the field, and everything else, so there is no contradiction between the verses. Radak adds that the wording of the verses supports Rebbi's view: in Shmuel it states, "the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver" - the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty; whereas here it says, "And David gave to Ornan for the place (ba-makom) shekels of gold," where "ba-makom" does not mean only for that specific spot, but for the entire site, the whole field where the Temple would be built, for which he gave six hundred gold shekels.
It emerges, therefore, that the angel sent him there to erect an altar, and fifty shekels were sufficient to buy the threshing floor, the wood, and the cattle. King David, however, said: I will not buy merely this spot, but I will already purchase the entire compound, so that the whole area can serve for the Temple, the courtyards (azarot), and the entire mount. Consequently, he paid more for this - six hundred shekels - and this is the meaning of "And David gave to Ornan for the place," for the entire site.
Fire from Heaven and the Sword Returned to Its Sheath
וַיִּבֶן שָׁם דָּוִיד מִזְבֵּחַ לַיהֹוָה וַיַּעַל עֹלוֹת וּשְׁלָמִים וַיִּקְרָא אֶל־יְהֹוָה וַיַּעֲנֵהוּ בָאֵשׁ מִן־הַשָּׁמַיִם עַל מִזְבַּח הָעֹלָה׃ - And David built an altar there to Hashem, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings, and he called upon Hashem; and He answered him with fire from heaven upon the altar of burnt offering.
"And He answered him with fire" - the Metzudat David explains: the response was that He brought down fire upon his offering, and through this David knew that his action was now accepted favorably.
וַיֹּאמֶר יְהֹוָה לַמַּלְאָךְ וַיָּשֶׁב חַרְבּוֹ אֶל־נְדָנָהּ׃ - And Hashem commanded the angel, and he returned his sword to its sheath.
The Metzudot explain that, as it were, a clause is elliptical here: Hashem commanded the angel to return his sword, and he returned his sword to its sheath. A similar example is: "And Hashem spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out" - where it should have written: "And Hashem told the fish to vomit Jonah out, and it vomited Jonah out"; rather, the verse speaks concisely. "Nedanah" - the scabbard or sheath of the sword.
And why was the sword returned to its sheath specifically now? For we saw earlier that the sword was drawn over Jerusalem, which was a state of "standby" - neither resolving the problem nor removing the divine wrath. The Holy One, blessed be He, had told the destroying angel, "Enough," yet the sword was still poised over Jerusalem. Only through the act of purchasing the threshing floor and offering the sacrifice was the sword returned to its sheath, meaning the threat was completely eliminated.
"And he sacrificed there" - The Revelation of the Chosen Place
בָּעֵת הַהִיא בִּרְאוֹת דָּוִיד כִּי־עָנָהוּ יְהֹוָה בְּגֹרֶן אָרְנָן הַיְבוּסִי וַיִּזְבַּח שָׁם׃ - At that time, when David saw that Hashem had answered him at the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite, he sacrificed there.
The Malbim notes: this passage was not written in the Book of Samuel, but out of honor to David who established an altar, it was written here. And what does this verse come to add? After all, we already read earlier, "And David built an altar there and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings." Rather, the intention here is that from then on, he sacrificed there: verse 26 refers to what took place then, while verse 28 - "and he sacrificed there" - refers to from that point onward.
The Malbim explains that this serves as an introduction to what we will see in the next chapter, that this site is the House of Hashem - "And David said: This is the House of Hashem God, and this is the altar of burnt offering for Israel." And how did he know this? From seeing that Hashem had answered him and fire descended from heaven specifically in this place; from the plague halting once he sacrificed there; and from the fact that this took place by the word of Hashem, for the Holy One, blessed be He, had commanded him to sacrifice there. Even though at that time the altar of burnt offering was in Gibeon, Hashem did not send him to offer sacrifices in Gibeon, but rather instructed him to sacrifice in that very spot, and David was unable to go to Gibeon. From all of this he knew that this was the site designated for the Chosen House (Beit HaBechirah), and therefore "David said: This is the House of Hashem God."
The Mishkan in Gibeon and What a "Bamah" Is
וּמִשְׁכַּן יְהֹוָה אֲשֶׁר־עָשָׂה מֹשֶׁה בַמִּדְבָּר וּמִזְבַּח הָעוֹלָה בָּעֵת הַהִיא בַּבָּמָה בְּגִבְעוֹן׃ - For the Mishkan of Hashem, which Moses made in the wilderness, and the altar of burnt offering, were at that time at the high place in Gibeon.
The Mishkan that Moshe Rabbeinu made in the wilderness, that very Tabernacle that accompanied Israel, was later erected in Gibeon, and that is where the bamah was. And what is a bamah? The Radak explains: the entire structure housing the Mishkan and the altar was called a bamah, named after the platform - the altar - that was inside it. Likewise elsewhere: "before he goes up to the bamah to eat" - does one really ascend the altar to eat? Rather, the entire building was called a bamah because the altar was inside it; in structures that contained an altar, the building itself was called "the bamah."
"For He Was Terrified of the Sword of the Angel of Hashem"
וְלֹא־יָכֹל דָּוִיד לָלֶכֶת לְפָנָיו לִדְרֹשׁ אֱלֹהִים כִּי נִבְעַת מִפְּנֵי חֶרֶב מַלְאַךְ יְהֹוָה׃ - And David could not go before it to inquire of God, for he was terrified of the sword of the angel of Hashem.
When that incident occurred and Hashem commanded him to offer sacrifices, David could not go to inquire of God before the Altar that was then in Giv'on, for he was terrified of the sword of the angel of Hashem. Therefore, he went and built another altar, as we have seen, on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite - for on account of the dread, his strength failed him to travel to Giv'on. This aligns with what Chazal say, that a chill seized him as a result of seeing the angel, and through this, "they covered him with clothes, but he could not become warm."
In Summary:
In this chapter, we saw how the sin of counting the people strictly demanded three punishments, yet through Hashem's kindness one was sufficient - "choose for yourself" - accepted willingly. David chooses the pestilence, which strikes all equally and where "His mercies are great," and he prays that the retribution fall upon him and his father's house, and not upon the flock. The destroying angel is halted between earth and heaven, and through that very angel the remedy also arrives: the instruction to erect an altar on the threshing floor of Ornan. David refuses to accept anything for free - "I will surely buy it for the full price" - and purchases not only the place of the Altar but the entire compound for six hundred gold shekels, teaching us that one should never skimp on the expenses of a mitzvah. Fire descended from heaven, the sword was returned to its sheath, and through all these signs it was revealed to David that this was the site of the Beis HaBechirah, of which he says in the next chapter: "This is the House of Hashem God, and this is the altar for burnt offerings for Israel."