And Joab gave up the sum of the number of the people unto the king: and there were in Israel eight hundred thousand valiant men that drew the sword; and the men of Judah were five hundred thousand men.
Joab reported the total count of the people to the king: there were 800,000 fighting men in Israel who could use a sword, and 500,000 men in Judah.
This verse records the results of David's military census, showing he had over a million fighting men in his kingdom.
📚 Historical Context
During King David's reign over Israel, he ordered a census to count the fighting men, which was a common practice in ancient times to assess military strength but was seen as an act of pride and mistrust in God. This event occurred toward the end of David's rule, as a consequence of God allowing Satan to incite him, leading to divine displeasure and eventual punishment. Joab, as David's military commander, carried out the census reluctantly and reported the totals, including 800,000 valiant men from Israel and 500,000 from Judah.
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