1 Chronicles 21:25 kjv
So David gave to Ornan for the place six hundred shekels of gold by weight.
1 Chronicles 21:25 nkjv
So David gave Ornan six hundred shekels of gold by weight for the place.
1 Chronicles 21:25 niv
So David paid Araunah six hundred shekels of gold for the site.
1 Chronicles 21:25 esv
So David paid Ornan 600 shekels of gold by weight for the site.
1 Chronicles 21:25 nlt
So David gave Araunah 600 pieces of gold in payment for the threshing floor.
1 Chronicles 21 25 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Chron 21:1-8 | Satan stood up against Israel... David counted the people of Israel... | Context of David's sin, leading to the plague and purchase. |
| 2 Sam 24:1-9 | Again the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel... David’s heart struck him... | Parallel account of David's census and subsequent plague. |
| 2 Sam 24:18-24 | Gad came that day to David... “Go up and erect an altar to the LORD on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.”... | The instruction to build an altar at this specific site. |
| 2 Sam 24:24 | But the king said to Araunah, “No, but I will buy it from you for a price. I will not offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God that cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. | Parallel account with a different price (50 shekels silver) and reasoning. |
| 1 Chron 21:26 | And David built there an altar... and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. And he called to the LORD, and he answered him with fire from heaven... | Immediate outcome of the purchase – God's acceptance and stopping the plague. |
| 1 Chron 22:1 | Then David said, “Here is to be the house of the LORD God and here the altar of burnt offering for Israel.” | Confirmation that this site became the Temple mount. |
| 2 Chron 3:1 | Then Solomon began to build the house of the LORD in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the LORD had appeared to David his father, at the place that David had made ready, on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. | Explicit statement identifying the purchased site as the Temple location. |
| Gen 22:2 | He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.” | Mount Moriah's significance as the place of Abraham's sacrifice. |
| Lev 1:2-3 | “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘When any one of you brings an offering of livestock to the LORD... he shall bring a male without blemish...” | Principles of offering and sacrifice: cost and perfection. |
| Mal 1:8 | When you offer blind animals in sacrifice, is that not evil? And when you offer lame or sick, is that not evil? Present that to your governor; will he accept you or show you favor?” | Condemnation of cheap, costly-nothing offerings to God. |
| Exod 25:8-9 | “And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst. Exactly as I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle...” | God's requirement for a specific dwelling place and the cost involved in building it. |
| Deut 16:16-17 | “Three times a year all your males shall appear before the LORD your God at the place that he will choose... No one shall appear before the LORD empty-handed. Every man shall give as he is able...” | The principle of not coming to God empty-handed, emphasizing giving what one can. |
| 1 Cor 6:20 | For you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. | Believers are bought at a price (Christ's sacrifice), resonating with the idea of costly redemption. |
| Phil 2:6-8 | who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself... became obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. | The ultimate "costly purchase" for redemption by Christ's self-emptying sacrifice. |
| Heb 9:22 | Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. | The necessity of atonement and costly sacrifice for forgiveness. |
| Matt 13:44-46 | “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.” | The principle of selling all for something of great value, echoing David's willingness to pay a high price. |
| Rom 12:1 | I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. | New Testament call for costly, personal sacrifice (body as living offering). |
| 1 Chron 29:3-5 | Moreover, in my devotion to the house of my God I have a private treasure of gold and silver, which I give to the house of my God, over and above all that I have provided... | David's continued generosity and significant financial contribution to the Temple project. |
| Acts 7:47 | But it was Solomon who built a house for him. | Solomon fulfilling David's vision of building the Temple on the purchased site. |
| Psalm 118:22 | The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; | Relates to the building of the Temple and God's sovereign choice of location and foundation. |
1 Chronicles 21 verses
1 Chronicles 21 25 Meaning
This verse details David's purchase of Ornan's threshing floor, the exact cost being six hundred shekels of gold by weight. This site, located on Mount Moriah, was essential for building an altar to make atonement for the plague afflicting Israel due to David's census sin. Ultimately, it became the chosen site for the construction of the Lord's Temple.
1 Chronicles 21 25 Context
1 Chronicles chapter 21 opens with Satan inciting David to count Israel, a sin indicating a lack of trust in God and a reliance on military strength. God punishes Israel with a plague, leading David to confess his sin and seek mercy. The prophet Gad instructs David to build an altar to the Lord on Ornan's (Araunah's in 2 Samuel) threshing floor. Ornan, seeing the angel of the Lord and sensing the gravity of the situation, offers the threshing floor, oxen, and wood as a free gift to the king. However, David insists on purchasing it, stating he "will not offer to the Lord what cost me nothing." This verse, 1 Chron 21:25, describes David fulfilling this intention by paying a substantial sum for the property, a payment which ultimately secured the precise location for the future Temple of God. The cost and emphasis on gold underscore the immense value David placed on the atonement and the reverence for God's holy dwelling place.
1 Chronicles 21 25 Word analysis
- So David paid: The Hebrew for "paid" is נָתַן (nathan), meaning "to give, put, set, allow, bestow, yield." Here, it signifies a decisive act of transference and ownership through payment. David's agency is highlighted.
- Ornan: The Jebusite owner of the threshing floor. His willingness to offer it freely contrasts sharply with David's insistence on payment, emphasizing David's theological understanding of true sacrifice.
- six hundred shekels of gold: This specifies a very significant sum. A "shekel" (שֶׁקֶל, shekel) was a unit of weight and currency. "Gold" (זָהָב, zahav) indicates the preciousness and high value of the commodity used for payment. The number "six hundred" (שֵׁשׁ מֵאוֹת, shesh me'ot) denotes a vast sum, especially when compared to 2 Samuel 24:24 which states "fifty shekels of silver" for the threshing floor and oxen. The Chronicler emphasizes gold and a much larger amount, possibly indicating David purchased the entire hill of Moriah needed for the vast Temple complex, while 2 Samuel refers specifically to just the threshing floor and oxen needed for the immediate altar and sacrifice. This larger payment aligns with the Chronicler's overarching focus on the Temple's grandeur and its establishment.
- by weight: The Hebrew בְּמִשְׁקָל (b'mishqal) means "according to weight." This signifies that the transaction was exact and measured precisely, indicating a complete and honest purchase, rather than a mere estimate or casual transfer. It underscores the fairness and thoroughness of David's action.
- for the site: The Hebrew for "site" is הַמָּקוֹם (hammaqom), referring to the specific "place." This is crucial as this "place" was not just any threshing floor but the very spot chosen by God for the altar of atonement (1 Chron 21:18) and, subsequently, the future permanent dwelling place of God's presence, the Temple (2 Chron 3:1). Its purchase marks the transition of a common agricultural space into consecrated holy ground.
Words-group analysis
- David paid...for the site: This phrase highlights David's personal, deliberate action in securing the ground. It shows his commitment to obedience and atonement, and his foresight in preparing for God's dwelling place. The action is central to healing and the future of worship in Israel.
- six hundred shekels of gold by weight: This specifies the substantial, precise, and valuable nature of the transaction. It's not a symbolic gesture but a material transfer of immense value. The Chronicler's choice of gold and the larger sum signifies the true worth David ascribed to appeasing God and establishing His worship. It reinforces the biblical principle that a true sacrifice or devotion costs the giver significantly.
1 Chronicles 21 25 Bonus section
- The purchase price is exceptionally high, making it one of the largest recorded land transactions in the Old Testament, further emphasizing its sacred importance and David's seriousness.
- The transition of Ornan's threshing floor—a place of work, separation of grain from chaff, and often associated with divine judgment or encounter—into the sacred space of the Temple, echoes symbolic purification and setting apart.
- David's willingness to pay the full price for something freely offered becomes a paradigm for worship and service, suggesting that our most meaningful offerings to God are those that genuinely cost us, reflecting love, devotion, and recognition of His worthiness.
- The site's identification as Mount Moriah later solidifies its identity as the very spot of Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac, adding deep theological layers of obedience, divine provision, and ultimate redemption foreshadowed on that mountain.
1 Chronicles 21 25 Commentary
1 Chronicles 21:25 reveals David's profound understanding of worship and atonement: genuine devotion to God must come at a personal cost. When Ornan offered the threshing floor freely, David firmly refused, articulating the principle, "I will not offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God that cost me nothing" (2 Sam 24:24). This verse details the fulfillment of that principle, showcasing David's resolve. The substantial payment of six hundred shekels of gold, precisely weighed, emphasizes the magnitude of David's commitment. This purchase secures not only the site for the immediate altar of atonement, which halted the plague, but more significantly, designates the permanent location for the Lord's future Temple in Jerusalem. This demonstrates God's sovereign choice of Mount Moriah, first glimpsed with Abraham and Isaac (Gen 22:2), and now explicitly secured by David's costly sacrifice. The differing amounts between 1 Chronicles and 2 Samuel are commonly reconciled by understanding 1 Chronicles 21:25 as the purchase of the entire Temple complex area (Mount Moriah), which was much larger than just the threshing floor and oxen mentioned in 2 Samuel 24:24. Thus, David laid a sacrificial foundation not only for reconciliation but also for the very heart of Israel's future worship.