David's Choice of the Plague
A. F. Kirkpatrick, M. A. 2 Samuel 24:14 And David said to Gad, I am in a great strait: let us fall now into the hand of the LORD; for his mercies are great… War would place the nation at the mercy of its enemies; famine would make it dependent on corn merchants, who might greatly aggravate the miseries of scarcity; only in the pestilence — some form of plague sudden and mysterious in its attack, and baffling the medical knowledge of the time — would the punishment come directly from God, and depend immediately upon his will. (A. F. Kirkpatrick, M. A.) Parallel Verses KJV: And David said unto Gad, I am in a great strait: let us fall now into the hand of the LORD; for his mercies are great: and let me not fall into the hand of man. WEB: David said to Gad, "I am in distress. Let us fall now into the hand of Yahweh; for his mercies are great. Let me not fall into the hand of man."