1 Chronicles 21:24
in 1 Chronicles 21“No,” replied King David, “I insist on paying the full price, for I will not take for the LORD what belongs to you, nor will I offer burnt offerings that cost me nothing.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And king David said to Ornan, Nay; but I will verily buy it for the full price: for I will not take that which is thine for Jehovah, nor offer a burnt-offering without cost.
KJV
And king David said to Ornan, Nay; but I will verily buy it for the full price: for I will not take that which is thine for the Lord, nor offer burnt offerings without cost.
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This verse in 1 Chronicles 21
Commentary
3 notes on this verseBut God sees not as man sees. It is plain it was wrong in David to do it, and a great provocation to God, because he did it in the pride of his heart; and there is no sin that has in it more of contradiction and therefore more of offence to God than pride. The sin was David's; he alone must bear the blame of it.
This site's exposition
I insist on paying the full price
on 1 Chronicles 21:24-25
Chronicles records the price as “six hundred shekels of gold”, and 2 Samuel 24:24 records fifty shekels of silver. Some commentators hold that Samuel's sum bought the floor and the oxen, and the larger sum the whole site. Albert Barnes records a reading of six shekels for six hundred.
The record, by era
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
For the full price - That is, six hundred shekels full weight of pure gold.
The words behind it
19 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֨אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| הַמֶּ֤לֶךְ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| דָּוִיד֙ | david | David | H1732 → | 999 times |
| לְאָרְנָ֔ן | learenan | to Ornan | H771 → | 12 times |
| לֹ֕א | lo' | In- | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | deed | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| קָנֹ֥ה | kanoh | certainly <to acquire> | H7069 → | |
| אֶקְנֶ֖ה | ʾekneh | I will acquire [it] | H7069 → | |
| בְּכֶ֣סֶף | bekhesef | for money | H3701 → | 403 times |
| מָלֵ֑א | male' | full | H4392 → | 64 times |
| כִּ֠י | ki | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| לֹא־ | lo'- | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| אֶשָּׂ֤א | ʾesa' | I will take | H5375 → | 656 times |
| אֲשֶׁר־ | ʾasher- | [that] which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| לְךָ֙ | lekha | [belongs] to you | ||
| לַיהוָ֔ה | layahweh | for Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| וְהַעֲל֥וֹת | vehaalot | and to offer up | H5927 → | 890 times |
| עוֹלָ֖ה | olah | a burnt offering | H5930 → | 287 times |
| חִנָּֽם׃ | chinam | for nothing | H2600 → |
וַיֹּ֨אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
הַמֶּ֤לֶךְthe king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
דָּוִיד֙David
davidH1732 →999 times
לְאָרְנָ֔ןto Ornan
learenanH771 →12 times
לֹ֕אIn-
lo'H3808 →5168 times
כִּֽי־deed
ki-H3588 →4482 times
קָנֹ֥הcertainly <to acquire>
kanohH7069 →
אֶקְנֶ֖הI will acquire [it]
ʾeknehH7069 →
בְּכֶ֣סֶףfor money
bekhesefH3701 →403 times
מָלֵ֑אfull
male'H4392 →64 times
כִּ֠יfor
kiH3588 →4482 times
לֹא־not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
אֶשָּׂ֤אI will take
ʾesa'H5375 →656 times
אֲשֶׁר־[that] which
ʾasher-H834 →5497 times
לְךָ֙[belongs] to you
lekha
לַיהוָ֔הfor Yahweh
layahwehH3068 →6520 times
וְהַעֲל֥וֹתand to offer up
vehaalotH5927 →890 times
עוֹלָ֖הa burnt offering
olahH5930 →287 times
חִנָּֽם׃for nothing
chinamH2600 →
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Romans 12:17Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Carefully consider what is right in the eyes of everybody.
it leads to
- Proverbs 20:22
Do not say, “I will avenge this evil!” Wait on the LORD, and He will save you.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:15
Make sure that no one repays evil for evil. Always pursue what is good for one another and for all people.
- 1 Peter 3:9
Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.
- Matthew 5:39
But I tell you not to resist an evil person. If someone slaps you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also;
- 2 Corinthians 8:20–21
We hope to avoid any criticism of the way we administer this generous gift.
- Proverbs 20:22
Through
Genesis 14:23that I will not accept even a thread, or a strap of a sandal, or anything that belongs to you, lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram rich.’
it leads to
- 2 Kings 5:16
But Elisha replied, “As surely as the LORD lives, before whom I stand, I will not accept it.” And although Naaman urged him to accept it, he refused.
- 2 Corinthians 11:9–12
And when I was with you and in need, I was not a burden to anyone; for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied my needs. I have refrained from being a burden to…
- Esther 9:15–16
On the fourteenth day of the month of Adar, the Jews in Susa came together again and put to death three hundred men there, but they did not lay a hand on the plunder.
- 2 Kings 5:16
Where this verse is studied
About 1 Chronicles

Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Keil, The Books of the Chronicles and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.
