Passage

1 Chronicles 21.1

Book: 1 Chronicles · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV (ASV)

"1. And Satan stood up against Israel, and moved David to number Israel."

"2. And David said to Joab and to the princes of the people, Go, number Israel from Beer-sheba even to Dan; and bring me word, that I may know the sum of them. 3. And Joab said, Jehovah make his people a hundred times as many as they are: but, my lord the king, are they not all my lord's servants? why doth my lord require this thing? why will he be a cause of guilt unto Israel?" (1 Chronicles 21:1-3, ASV)

WEB (WEB)

"1. Satan stood up against Israel, and moved David to take a census of Israel."

"2. David said to Joab and to the princes of the people, “Go, count Israel from Beersheba even to Dan; and bring me word, that I may know how many there are.” 3. Joab said, “May Yahweh make his people a hundred times as many as they are. But, my lord the king, aren’t they all my lord’s servants? Why does my lord require this thing? Why will he be a cause of guilt to Israel?”" (1 Chronicles 21:1-3, WEB)

KJV (KJV)

"1. And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel."

"2. And David said to Joab and to the rulers of the people, Go, number Israel from Beersheba even to Dan; and bring the number of them to me, that I may know it. 3. And Joab answered, The LORD make his people an hundred times so many more as they be: but, my lord the king, are they not all my lord's servants? why then doth my lord require this thing? why will he be a cause of trespass to Israel?" (1 Chronicles 21:1-3, KJV)

YLT (YLT)

"1. And there standeth up an adversary against Israel, and persuadeth David to number Israel,"

"2. And David saith unto Joab, and unto the heads of the people, 'Go, number Israel from Beer-Sheba even unto Dan, and bring unto me, and I know their number.' 3. And Joab saith, 'Jehovah doth add to His people as they are a hundred times; are they not, my lord, O king, all of them to my lord for servants? why doth my lord seek this? why is he for a cause of guilt to Israel?'" (1 Chronicles 21:1-3, YLT)

Setting

Speaker: narrator (traditionally Ezra)
Audience: post-exilic Jewish community
Location: post-exilic Judah
Time period: events c. 1000-970 BC (David); composed c. 450-400 BC

Theological reading

Key words

H7854 - satan, satan (Strong's H7854). Also appears in: Numbers 22.22-35, 1 Kings 11.14-16, Job 1.6-8.

Quoted in

Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.