Passage Analysis Essay: David Takes a Historical/Cultural Census The biblical passage found in 2 Samuel 24 tells the story of King David taking a census of Israel and Judah, and as a result of this , receives punishment from God. The two books of Samuel previously formed one book but were divided in the Hebrew Bible in the 15th century. The two books, together with the First and Second Kings, make up a four-part history of the kings of Israel. Since the books of 1 and 2 Samuel cover a large span of time in Israel's history, no one man could have lived the entire story and written the books alone. For this reason, many scholars believe that there are multiple authors of the books as well as multiple external sources used to create this completion (NBD “Samuel, the book of” 1056). The main focus of this story is the census that David took from Israel and Judah. A census in the ancient Near East, during the reign of David, was very different from the censuses that are taken today. Today, a census is a count of all citizens, male and female, that includes details such as age, gender, and race. During David's reign, censuses were primarily taken for specific purposes, such as the distribution of rations, tax revenue, or military levies (ABD “Census”). As for the census taken by David in 2 Samuel 24, it is a count of the number of men of military age from the border of Dan, which is located in northern Israel, just below Mount Hermon and Beersheba, which is a city located in the southern Judean desert (ABD “Dan” and “Beer-sheba” 641, 12). The story of David being punished by God for taking a census takes place in the nation of Israel during the four hundred year dynasty of King David. During h......middle of paper......passage but at the base of everything is David's humanity. Although David was anointed and a “man after God's own heart,” he made many mistakes. This passage shows that David was not always perfectly in tune with God's voice. David did something that God clearly did not want him to do and did not realize the consequences until the sin had already been committed. However, even though David had sinned and his sin was punished, he felt repentance in his heart when he realized what he had done and was willing to make things right at all costs. Theologically, the lesson to be drawn from this is that it was not David's actions that made him great, but his heart to please God, and even more, God's merciful heart towards him. If it were not for God's intervention, David would have been nothing more than another man.