Gospel Reflections #1166: Not to Human Mercy

2 Samuel 24:12 "‘Go and tell David: “Thus says the Lord: ‘I am about to present you with three options. Choose one of them, and I will carry it out.’”’

This passage describes the moment when, in response to King David’s sin of conducting an improper ‘census’ against God’s will, God sent the prophet Gad to present three possible judgements and allowed David himself to choose one of them.

Out of unbelief (pride) – a desire to rely on his own military strength and national power – David overruled the objections of his minister Joab and forced the census to go ahead.

However, once the census was complete, David felt remorse and repented deeply of his disobedience, saying, ‘I have committed a great sin.’

This verse records the pronouncement of the ‘consequences of sin’ that God delivered through the prophet Gad immediately after David’s confession.

The three specific calamities presented by God through Gad are as follows:

① A famine lasting seven years (or three years)

② Three months of being pursued and forced to flee from enemies

③ A plague (epidemic) lasting three days

Although David’s confession of sin set his relationship with God on the path to restoration, this did not mean that the consequences of his actions were simply wiped away.

This demonstrates God’s strict justice, whereby David, as king, had to bear the tangible consequences of his sin.

God deliberately allowed David to choose his own punishment in order to test his faith.

Thereafter, David replied, ‘I am in great distress; let me fall into the hands of the Lord, for His mercy is great; but let me not fall into human hands.’

Whilst famine and defeat at the hands of enemies expose one to the merciless rule and exploitation of human beings, a plague lies entirely within God’s sovereignty.

David chose to entrust everything not to human mercy, but to God’s deep mercy.

Consequently, a plague fell upon Israel for three days, leading to the tragic loss of 70,000 lives.

However, when David declared, ‘It is I who have sinned,’ and offered a sacrifice at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite, taking the blame upon himself on behalf of the people, God relented from the disaster and saved Jerusalem.

This ‘moment of decision’ served as a ‘whip of God’s love’, designed to make David cease boasting in his own strength and return to a state of ‘relying 100 per cent on God’s mercy’.

Even when we, like David, realise our sin, there are times when we still run away from it or put it off.

When that happens, we end up dragging not only ourselves but also those around us into the situation, and only then do we finally acknowledge what we have done.

Although God takes the place of our sins, we ourselves must reap the consequences of those sins. Therefore, when God grants us the insight to deal with the matter whilst the consequences are still small, we should not run away but face God and speak honestly with Him.

God does not wish to punish us, but to purify us.

We are allowed to remain within God’s love forever.

AUTHOR'S BIO: This Gospel Reflections page is written by Masae San, who resides in Hiroshima, Japan. Masae is a dedicated student of the Bible with a deep passion for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She shares her daily reflections on Gospel perspectives to reach out to others and spread the message of God's true love through a Christ-centered approach. We are sharing her insights here so that you, too, can experience the joy that comes from knowing and understanding the true Gospel and the love of God through Jesus Christ.