First Book of Chronicles - Ferrar Fenton Bible Translation page 963
The Psalms, Solomon and Sacred Writers
17 their faces, and David said, to GOD; 18 20 21 22 ‘Was it not I alone who com-
manded to conscript for the Forces? I am the one who has sinned, and
have committed the wrong ;——but, these sheep,—what have they done ? EvEn—L1v1NG Gov! let Your hand, l beg, be upon me ;~—and donot afiiict Your people ! So the Messenger of the EVER-
LIVING commanded Gad, to order David, to go up and raise an Altar to the Evenmxvmo at the Granary of Aman the jebusite. David conse- quently went there at the command of Gad, which he uttered in the name of the LORD. Aman also turned and saw the King,—and he and his four sons who were with him, hid them- selves ;—~··for Arnan was thrashing wheat. But David advanced to Arnan, when Aman peeped and saw David, so came out from the Granary, and bowed to David, inclining his face towards the earth. W’ill
you sell me the site of the Granary? for I wish to build an Altar to the EvER—Liv1No. You shall sell it to me for full money value, so that the affliction may be removed from the Take
it for yourself. And let my Lord the King do what is fair in his opinion. Look! I also give the Bullocks for Burnt-offerings, and the wood of the 'I`hrashing—machine, and the wheat as a Bread-gift.—I will give the King David, however, answered to
No !——-But I will purchase it for full money value, for I will not offer your property to the EVER- L1v1N<;, and thus sacrifice a costless So David paid Aman for the place
six hundred gold shekels as the price. 1 NorE.-··Ch. 21, v. 25. About é1,081 ster-
ling in bullion, at {4 per ounce, ut its pur- chasing value would be enormously greater, if we consider that a slave in the prime of youth, 20 to 30 years of age, was then only worth {3 ros. sterling at bullion weight, that is 30 shekels of silver. In our day aslave oi the same sort would have been on an American Slave Mart worth {200. I note this to show that Davld’s Sacrifice was no (roxy nc.) Qniiih Quilhs an liter. Then David built an Altar there,
and offered a burnt-offering and a thank·0Hering, and called on the EvER—L1v1NG Who answered by fire from the skies to the Altar of the Burnt-offering. Then the LORD com- manded the Messenger and he re- turned his sword to its sheath. David saw at that time, that the
EvnR·1.1v1N<; had answered him, at the Granary of Arnan the jebusite, when he sacrificed there. For the Tabernacle of the Even-Liviuc which Moses made in the Wilder- ness, and the Altar for Bnrnt—offering were at that period at the Mound of Ghibaon. David, however, could not go before
it to enquire of Gon for he was startled at the presence of the sword of the 26 28
Messenger of the LORD. Conse- 22 quently David exclaimed : I`his shall be a House for the
Even-Liviivcl And this shall be an Altar of Burnt—ollering for Israel! Therefore David commanded to con- script the aborigines who were in Israel and made them stone—cutters to cut squared stones to build a Temple to GOD. David also prepared a quantity of iron for the nails of the doors of the Gates and the joinings; and bronze without weight; Beside cedar timber beyond count, for the Zidonians and Tzurians brought cedar wood in large quantity to Solomon my son is young and weak, and the Temple thatis to be built to the EVER-LIVING must begreat, high, and renowned, and the wonder of the lands. I will prepare now for him.’ Therefore David prepared before his death. He also conversed with his slight affair, as the obsolete language of A.V. and R.V. leaves the impression, as it also does in many other places. I may add to remove a diiiiculty often raised, that in 2 Samuel, Fifty Six hundred I suggest that the writer of ‘ Chronicles/’ to show to the men of his day the cost of David’s offering, calculated out the purchasing value of 50 shekels in David’s time d its eivalent in the eriod h anqlnpe wrote, about the hird Century before Christ. We ought to recollect the depreciation in the value of bullion caused by the imgortations of Solomon, and others, into sout ern Asia of the vast amount of Gold from Africa, between the days of David andthe writer of Chronicles.--F. F. 962
