Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed for doing comparisons of different translations. Click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible. Please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.
Key: khaki:verbs, red:negative, green:YHWH.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the OET-RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).
BrLXXΚαὶ εἶπεν Ἰωάβ, Προσθείη Κύριος ἐπὶ τὸν λαὸν αὐτοῦ, ὡς αὐτοὶ ἑκατονταπλασίως, καὶ οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ τοῦ κυρίου μυυ τοῦ βασιλέως βλέποντες· πάντες τῷ κυρίῳ μου παῖδεσ· ἱνατί ζητεῖ κύριός μου τοῦτο; ἳνα μὴ γένηται εἰς ἁμαρτίαν τῷ Ἰσραήλ. (Kai eipen Yōab, Prostheiaʸ Kurios epi ton laon autou, hōs autoi hekatontaplasiōs, kai hoi ofthalmoi tou kuriou muu tou basileōs blepontes; pantes tōi kuriōi mou paides; hinati zaʸtei kurios mou touto; hina maʸ genaʸtai eis hamartian tōi Israaʸl. )
BrTrAnd Joab said, May the Lord add to his people, a hundred-fold as many as they are, and let the eyes of my lord the king see it: all are the servants of my lord. Why does my lord seek this thing? do it not, lest it become a sin to Israel.
ULTAnd Joab said, “May Yahweh add to his people like them 100 times. Are not, my lord the king, all of them servants to my lord? Why does my lord seek this? Why should it be guilt for Israel?”
USTBut Joab replied, “Your Majesty, I hope that Yahweh will make our army a hundred times larger than it is now. But we all serve you. So you should not commit this sin, your Highness, and make Israel suffer for it.”
BSB § But Joab replied, “May the LORD multiply His troops a hundred times over. My lord the king, are they not all servants of my lord? Why does my lord want to do this? Why should he bring guilt on Israel?”
WEBBEJoab said, “May the LORD make his people a hundred times as many as they are. But, my lord the king, aren’t they all my lord’s servants? Why does my lord require this thing? Why will he be a cause of guilt to Israel?”
NETJoab replied, “May the Lord make his army a hundred times larger! My master, O king, do not all of them serve my master? Why does my master want to do this? Why bring judgment on Israel?”
LSVAnd Joab says, “YHWH adds to His people as they are one hundred times; are they not, my lord, O king, all of them for servants to my lord? Why does my lord seek this? Why is he for a cause of guilt to Israel?”
FBVBut Joab replied, “May the Lord multiply his people a hundred times over. Your Majesty, aren't they all your subjects? Why do you want to do this? Why should you make Israel guilty?”
T4TBut Joab replied, “Your majesty, even if Yahweh allowed us to have 100 times as many soldiers as we have now, you would [RHQ] still rule all of them. So why do you want us to do this? You will surely [RHQ] cause all the people of Israel to be guilty of sinning.”
LEBBut Joab said, “May Yahweh add to the people a hundred times what they are! Are they not, O my lord the king, all of them the king’s servants? Why does my lord seek this? Why would he bring guilt to Israel?”
BBEAnd Joab said, May the Lord make his people a hundred times more in number than they are; but, my lord king, are they not all my lord's servants? why would my lord have this done? why will he become a cause of sin to Israel?
JPSAnd Joab said: 'The LORD make His people a hundred times so many more as they are; but, my lord the king, are they not all my lord's servants? why doth my lord require this thing? why will he be a cause of guilt unto Israel?'
ASVAnd Joab said, Jehovah make his people a hundred times as many as they are: but, my lord the king, are they not all my lord’s servants? why doth my lord require this thing? why will he be a cause of guilt unto Israel?
DRAAnd Joab answered: The Lord make his people a hundred times more than they are: but, my lord the king, are they not all thy servants: why doth my lord seek this thing, which may be imputed as a sin to Israel?
YLTAnd Joab saith, 'Jehovah doth add to His people as they are a hundred times; are they not, my lord, O king, all of them to my lord for servants? why doth my lord seek this? why is he for a cause of guilt to Israel?'
DrbyAnd Joab said, Jehovah add to his people, how many soever they be, a hundredfold: are they not all, my lord O king, my lord's servants? why does my lord require this thing? why should he become a trespass to Israel?
RVAnd Joab said, The LORD make his people an hundred times so many more as they be: but, my lord the king, are they not all my lord’s servants? why doth my lord require this thing? why will he be a cause of guilt unto Israel?
WbstrAnd Joab answered, the LORD make his people a hundred times more numerous than they are : but, my lord the king, are they not all my lord's servants? why then doth my lord require this thing? why will he be a cause of trespass to Israel?
KJB-1769And Joab answered, The LORD make his people an hundred times so many more as they be: but, my lord the king, are they not all my lord’s servants? why then doth my lord require this thing? why will he be a cause of trespass to Israel?
KJB-1611And Ioab answered, The LORD make his people an hundred times so many moe as they bee: but, my lord the king, are they not al my lords seruants? why then doeth my lord require this thing? why will hee bee a cause of trespasse to Israel? (And Yoab answered, The LORD make his people an hundred times so many more as they be: but, my lord the king, are they not all my lords servants? why then doeth my lord require this thing? why will he be a cause of trespass to Israel?)
BshpsAnd Ioab aunswered: The Lorde make his people an hundred times so many mo as they be: But my lorde, O king, are they not all my lordes seruauntes? why then doth my lord require this thing? why will my lorde be a cause of trespasse to Israel? (And Yoab answered: The Lord make his people an hundred times so many more as they be: But my lord, O king, are they not all my lords servants? why then doth my lord require this thing? why will my lord be a cause of trespass to Israel?)
GnvaAnd Ioab answered, The Lord increase his people an hundreth times so many as they be, O my lord the King: are they not all my lords seruats? wherefore doeth my lord require this thing? why should he be a cause of trespasse to Israel? (And Yoab answered, The Lord increase his people an hundreth times so many as they be, O my lord the King: are they not all my lords seruats? wherefore doeth my lord require this thing? why should he be a cause of trespass to Israel? )
CvdlIoab sayde: The LORDE make his people an hundreth tymes mo then they are now. But my lorde O kynge, are they not all my lordes seruauntes? Why doth my lorde then axe therafter? Wherfore shal there a trespace come vpon Israel? (Yoab said: The LORD make his people an hundreth times more then they are now. But my lord O king, are they not all my lords servants? Why doth my lord then axe therafter? Wherefore shall there a trespass come upon Israel?)
WycAnd Joab answeride, The Lord encresse his puple an hundrid fold more than thei ben; my lord the kyng, whether alle ben not thi seruauntis? Whi sekith my lord this thing, that schal be arettid in to synne to Israel? (And Yoab answered, The Lord encresse his people an hundred fold more than they ben; my lord the king, whether all been not thy/your servants? Whi seeketh/seeks my lord this thing, that shall be arettid in to sin to Israel?)
LuthJoab sprach: Der HErr tue zu seinem Volk, wie sie jetzt sind, hundertmal soviel; aber, mein Herr König, sind sie nicht alle meines Herrn Knechte? Warum fraget denn mein Herr danach? Warum soll eine Schuld auf Israel kommen? (Yoab spoke: The LORD do to his people, like they/she/them jetzt are, hundertmal soviel; but, my Lord king, are they/she/them not all my Lord servant(s)? Warum fraget because my Lord danach? Warum should one Schuld on Israel kommen?)
ClVgResponditque Joab: Augeat Dominus populum suum centuplum quam sunt: nonne, domine mi rex, omnes servi tui sunt? quare hoc quærit dominus meus, quod in peccatum reputetur Israëli? (Responditque Yoab: Augeat Master the_people his_own centuplum how are: nonne, domine my rex, everyone servi yours sunt? quare this quærit dominus mine, that in peccatum reputetur Israeli? )
(Occurrence 0) But my master the king, do they not all serve my master? Why does my master want this? Why bring guilt on Israel?
(Some words not found in UHB: and=he/it_said Yōʼāⱱ/(Joab) add YHWH on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in people,his as_~_as,they hundred times ?,not my=master the=king all,they to,lord_of,my as,servants to/for=what want this(f) my=master to/for=what will_belong for,guilt on,Israel )
Joab uses these three rhetorical questions to tell David that the census was a bad idea. It appears that David was trusting the size of his army instead of trusting Yahweh, and thus making Israel guilty of sin. These rhetorical questions can be translated as statements. Alternate translation: “But my master the king, they all serve you already. My master should not request this. You will only bring guilt on the people of Israel by trusting your military power.”
(Occurrence 0) Why does my master want this?
(Some words not found in UHB: and=he/it_said Yōʼāⱱ/(Joab) add YHWH on/upon/above/on_account_of//he/it_went_in people,his as_~_as,they hundred times ?,not my=master the=king all,they to,lord_of,my as,servants to/for=what want this(f) my=master to/for=what will_belong for,guilt on,Israel )
The word “this” refers to David’s plan to count all the men of Israel.
The Temple of the Lord in Jerusalem, where all Israelite males were commanded to offer sacrifices to the Lord (Exodus 23:14-19; Deuteronomy 16:16-17), underwent several stages of reconstruction and development over hundreds of years. The first Temple was built by King Solomon to replace the aging Tabernacle, and it was constructed on a threshing floor on high ground on the north side of the city (2 Samuel 24; 1 Chronicles 21). Hundreds of years later King Hezekiah expanded the platform surrounding the Temple. When Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians in 586 B.C., the Temple was completely destroyed (2 Kings 25:1-21; 2 Chronicles 36:17-21; Jeremiah 39:1-10; 52:1-30). It was rebuilt in 515 B.C. after a group of Jews returned to Judea from exile in Babylon (Ezra 1:5-6:15; Nehemiah 7:5-65). Herod the Great completely rebuilt and expanded the Temple once again around 20 B.C., making it one of the largest temples in the Roman world. Jesus’ first believers often met together in Solomon’s Colonnade, a columned porch that encircled the Temple Mount, perhaps carrying on a tradition started by Jesus himself (John 10:23; Acts 3:11; 5:12). But Herod’s Temple did not last long: After many Jews revolted against Rome, the Romans eventually recaptured Jerusalem and destroyed the Temple in A.D. 70.
After David had secured his reign over all Israel and greatly expanded his rule over neighboring nations, he commissioned Joab, the commander of his army, to “count the people of Israel and Judah.” Though Scripture does not explicitly state the reason for this order, the report that Joab provided to David nearly ten months later at the conclusion of the census makes his intentions clear: David was seeking a tally of all troops he had at his disposal throughout his kingdom. Joab initially resisted David’s order, and after the census was completed David was stricken with guilt over his actions, and ultimately the Lord punished Israel for David’s census. Yet nowhere in Scripture is the counting of troops clearly condemned. In fact, during the Israelites’ wanderings in the wilderness the Lord commanded two different censuses to be taken of Israel’s troops (Numbers 1; 26), and many of the accounts of Israel’s battles throughout the Old Testament include a careful tally of the troops involved, so it must have been normal practice to take a census such as David commissioned. Most scholars explain this discrepancy by inferring that Joab and others must have discerned that David was wrongly looking to military might instead of the Lord’s promise to fight for his people (Deuteronomy 20:1-4) or that he was disobeying the law by including those under twenty years of age (see Exodus 30:11-16; 1 Chronicles 27:23-24). While this may be true, it does not fully explain what this author has found to be a curious peculiarity about David’s census: The census takers do not appear to have traveled hardly anywhere within the core settlement areas of Israel or Judah. Instead, the census takers followed a route almost entirely along the perimeter of Israel’s core area of initial settlement, as shown on this map. They started out at Aroer and “the town in the middle of the gorge,” probably referring to modern Mudaynet as-Saliya in the Arnon Gorge (see also Deuteronomy 2:36; Joshua 13:9, 16), which were located at the far corner of Israel’s allotted land. Then they headed north to Jazer and Gilead, likely following the King’s Highway, which ran along the outer edge of Israel’s lands. Then they came to Tahtim-hodshi, which this author suspects is referring to the “lowlands of Kedesh.” The Israelite city of Kedesh was situated among the hills of upper Galilee, but just to the east of it lay a valley occupied primarily by the people of Maacah, who fought against and were defeated by David earlier in his reign. Then the census takers traveled to Dan, which is often cited along with Beersheba as marking the distant boundary of Israel (Judges 20:1; 1 Samuel 3:20; 2 Samuel 3:10; 17:11; 1 Chronicles 21:2), and on to Sidon and Tyre. The Bible never indicates that Sidon and Tyre were subdued by David, but he appears to have wielded considerable influence over Tyre (2 Samuel 5:11; 1 Chronicles 14:1; see also 1 Kings 5:2-11) and perhaps over Sidon as well. After this the census takers went to all the cities of the Hivites and Canaanites, likely indicating that they traveled through the coastal lands along the Mediterranean Sea. Lastly, they completed their route at the city of Beersheba in the Negev. This route along the perimeter of Israel’s core settlement areas suggests that, while David’s census takers were no doubt collecting troop information from the tribes of Israel (see 1 Chronicles 21:5-6), their primary focus appears to have been on David’s newly acquired lands, which would have been largely comprised of non-Israelites. This theory may also be supported by 2 Chronicles 2:17, which notes that “Solomon counted all the resident aliens who were in the land of Israel, after the census of them that David his father had taken.” Thus, this author suspects that Joab may have been urging David not to rely on troops from these non-Israelites to protect Israel and instead called upon the Lord to increase the number of “the people” (perhaps meaning the Israelite people) a hundredfold. At the same time, however, the biblical account of the census takers’ route never uses any of the names for the subdued nations (e.g., Moab, Ammon, Aram, Maacah, Philistia, etc.), though it does use vague references to “Canaanites” and “Hivites.” This may reflect a tension that existed at the time between David’s efforts to integrate these new lands into one great empire (thus explaining the aversion to identifying people by their former national affiliation) and the convictions of those like Joab, who may have been opposed to such integration.
