Prophetic Principles, Properties, & Performances-
G3D Decides Who Should be Counted
As major political elections come to a precarious standstill, debates rage on concerning whether only votes cast within the constitutional timeline should be counted, or if we must allow all ballots, even if they lack necessary legitimizing details. Scripture gives us G3D’s guidance as to how He resolved this issue during King David’s reign.
Though most Believers are familiar with the census that led to Christ’s Birth in Bethlehem, the Bible actually records three major sets of role counts. The first sets were taken during the Israelite’s time in the Wilderness.
Though the Israelites had rough estimates of their total numbers (600k-Exodus 12:37 & Numbers 11:21), G3D gave specific instructions regarding the census of Israel, ordering that every single military age male give a ransom for himself to the Lord, so that there would be no plague amongst them, when they were numbered. Each was required to give a half shekel of silver (twenty gerahs) according to the shekel of the sanctuary and the atonement money was to be used for the service of the Tent of Meeting, and was to be a memorial to the sons of Israel to atone for their lives (ref. Exodus 30: 11-16).
When the silver was collected from the congregation, it numbered one hundred talents, and a thousand seven hundred seventy five shekels. When counted at a half shekel per each male twenty years and older, there was a total of six hundred and three thousand, five hundred and fifty men (603,550). This census was taken during the first year that the Israelites were in the Wilderness as the atonement offerings had already been collected and used to make the silver bases for the Tabernacle, which was erected on the first day of the first month of the second year (ref. Exodus 40:2).
A second round of census was taken a month after the construction of the Tabernacle, on the first day of the second month. But unlike the previous tally, the Levites were not counted as they were to be dedicated to the maintenance and operation of the Tabernacle. Amazingly, the total number was 603,550, the exact amount of the previously recorded census.
The total number of firstborn of Israel, one month and older, which were originally planned to be dedicated to Temple service, were also counted, totaling 22,273. The total amount of Levites were also taken, with a grand total of 22,000. G3D ordered that the additional 273 be redeemed with the collection of five shekels each for a total 1,365 shekels (ref. Numbers 3).
After the plague that struck Israel for yoking themselves to the Baal of Peor, a final census was taken before the tribes crossed into the Promised Land. The men of Israel had slightly decreased to 601,730, while the Levites had increased to 23,000 (ref. Numbers 26:51, 62).
Several hundred years later after Kind David had re-unified the Nation of Israel and won major battles against the Philistines and other neighboring warrior nations (1 Chronicles 20), David and the nation of Israel became proud of their military accomplishments, which they incorrectly believed came about by the efforts of their own might. King David eventually came to the conclusion that he should take a census of all the men of military age, to be able to boast of the might of his troop numbers.
General Joab, David’s nephew and a ferocious war hawk, questioned David’s reasoning, asking “May the Lord multiply his troops a hundred times over. My lord the king, are they not all my lord’s subjects? Why does my lord the king want to do such a thing? Why should he bring guilt on Israel?”
The king was insistent, and Joab went to take the census.
But Joab did not include the Tribes of Levi and Benjamin in the numbering, because the king’s command was repulsive to him.
The members of the Tribe of Levi were not to be men of the sword, but wholly dedicated to the ministry and worship of G3D. These men obviously should not be expected to fight on the king’s behalf.
Though the Tribe of Benjamin was notoriously small due to the events of the Benjamite/Israeli Civil War, they were fierce warriors who were legendary for their ability to strike within a hair’s breadth with their left handed slings. But many Benjamite men were still loyal to the house of Saul who was their warrior champion, and had recently fought against the reigning king during the civil war between Saul’s youngest son Ish-bosheth, & the victorious King David. This struggle was not just a few recent skirmishes, but had been a decades’ long military engagement since King Saul’s reign. To expect that the Tribes of Benjamin would agree to risk their lives for the vanity of a king’s expansionist desires, was repugnant to the General, despite his infamy for his blood thirsty vengeance and appetite for political assassinations.
Ironically, despite not counting them, the Tribe of Benjamin would remain loyal to the Tribe of Judah, Jerusalem, and G3D after the splitting of the United Kingdom of Israel.
The entire census took nine months and twenty days to complete (2 Samuel 24:8), and General Joab reported the total number of fighting men to the king. Fittingly, there are two different measures recorded in Scripture. 1 Chronicles 21:5 describes one million, one hundred thousand men, including four hundred and seventy thousand in Judah alone, but this number also includes the standing army of twelve divisions each consisting of 24,000 men (1 Chronicles 27). 2 Samuel 24:9 documented eight hundred thousand men, with five hundred thousand coming from Judah, including the thirty thousand who helped bring back the Ark of the Covenant.
David became conscience-stricken, realizing that he had done a very foolish thing.
The Word of the Lord went to Gad the Prophet, David’s Seer, informing him that G3D had declared a nationwide punishment for David’s hubris. The nation would experience a three year famine, three months of attacks from raiders who would force them from their cities, or a massive three day plague.
Hoping that G3D would be merciful, King David chose a three day plague.
After watching how the infection ravaged the population, David pleaded with G3D to punish himself and his family instead. Prophet Gad instructed David to build an altar to finally end the plague, which he did, but not before seventy thousand men of Israel had fallen.
When G3D took the censuses in the Wilderness, He originally used them as tools to fairly divide responsibility for funding and maintaining the Tabernacle, then to transfer responsibility for ministering to Him from the firstborns to the Levites, and finally to divide land equitably amongst the tribes. Each measurement was done out of love and concern for His People and a remembrance that G3D saved them. When David conducted his counting of men, it was done out of arrogance to see how many men he had who could fight, kill, and die on behalf of his political ambitions.
Likewise, both chroniclers of these numbers cannot agree how many total people should be counted, with each including an additional different set of warriors, which had already fought and were previous counted elsewhere. Even General Joab, who was tasked with collecting the numbers, correctly decided that the Levites should not be considered since they were dedicated to G3D, but presumptuously assumed that the Benjamites who had been at war with Kind David for decades shouldn’t even be counted since he thought there was no way they’d pledge their allegiance to a previous enemy. The true number was off because of men’s political goals and prejudices, and was further distorted after the death of 70,000 men during the three day plague.
As additional votes are discovered to pump up the numbers for the Political Establishment’s decided candidates, we must remember the ultimate consequences of these actions. These manipulations will be ultimately be challenged and sent to the Supreme Court, & we must pray that the newly restructured bench, be moved to fulfill the Will of G3D, the Ultimate Judge. Likewise, our concerns should be wholly focused on whether we are counted by G3D as His Select Remnant for what is about to take place soon.
Prepared by, Kent Simpson, Apostolic Prophet & Eric Sepulveda, PMT Administrator
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