Again the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go and take a census of Israel and Judah.” – 2 Samuel 24:1

Today’s Scripture Reading (July 19, 2016): 2 Samuel 24

William Shakespeare wrote in “All’s Well That Ends Well” that we should “Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none.” The words have been called an excellent roadmap that can provide order and purpose to our lives. In loving all, we open our hearts to the world and we become an integral part of the healing process that needs to take place in our world. The Beatles were actually right, “All you need is love.” Only those willing to risk love can actually stop the process of hate – and hate in many places in our world must be stopped so that we can all move into the future. In trusting a few, we protect ourselves from those who might want to take advantage of us. Not everyone can be trusted. Trust takes time to develop. And the reality is that those who can truly be trusted will only reveal themselves over time. They will be the ones who are there for you no matter the circumstances. They will be slow to hate, and measured in their public responses. But trusting everyone is dangerous, and it is also unnecessary. By doing wrong to none we generate positive responses. It is the morally right way to live your life. And doing no wrong violates none of our worldly laws. Following these three principles moves us positively into the future.

We are not sure what it was that caused God’s anger, but an educated guess might be that God’s anger was sparked by the twin rebellions of Absalom and Sheba. From God’s point of view, the rebellions reflected a lack of trust in God and his plan for Israel. The target was David, the man that God had placed on the throne. And so God incites David to take a census of Israel and Judah. (Just as a note, this is a strange comment that probably reflects partial evidence that the actual writing of Samuel was after the reign of Solomon, when the kingdoms were divided, but before the Northern Kingdom of Israel was taken into exile by Assyria.)  Part of the question is why was the census a sin? After all, a census had been taken in Israel before.

The answer might be that this census was not taken because God had instructed it to be taken. And therefore, like the rebellions against David, it reflected a trust in the numerical strength of the army and a lack of trust in God. But the security of Israel never depended on numbers; it has always depended on the action of God. This census violated this principle. David seemed to be depending on numbers.

And, therefore, maybe Shakespeare’s instructions needs to be amended. Maybe it should read “Love all, do wrong to none, and trust only God.” After all, maybe in the end, he is the only one that we really need to trust.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: 1 Chronicles 28