For the last few years I have been really questioning old teaching regarding David’s numbering of Israel. It just seemed that it had to be more than just his pride in in numbering his army. On Tuesday, 1/7/03 it all became clear. While doing the daily bible reading and after reading a footnote in E.W. Bullinger’s book “Number in Scripture” regarding the ransom money for the census I went to Exodus 30:11-16 and saw that the Lord had given a statute to Moses that when a census was taken each person had to pay ½ shekel (those numbered who were 21 and older).

The poor and rich would all give the same amount. Failure to do this would result in a plague among the people. It was also referred to as redemption money. I then realized that in I Chron. 21 and II Sam. 24 that when David was given the three choices for punishment after numbering the people, of famine, enemy pursuit, or plague, he left the judgement up to the Lord. The Lord of course chose His own previously prescribed judgment, plague. Then I realized why in Matthew 20:28 it says “…and He gave His life a ransom for many”. In Isa. 53:12 it says that “He was numbered with the transgressors”. When Jesus said in Matthew 5 that He came to fulfill the law, He literally fulfilled the need for ransom money.

I saw in a vision the Father looking down from heaven to and fro throughout the earth seeing the enormous number of people that He needed to create an army who would be a 'Kingdom Army'. All He saw was a people who were lost and who could never pay enough for their own redemption and would never be able to escape the sin that plagued them. In order for Him to count this people as a part of His kingdom He had to have the ultimate ransom, enough that it would never have to be paid again because it would keep on giving throughout eternity. Over and over and over, it would be new every day, every morning and it would never run out. Jesus was, is, and will forever be our ransom and He is still giving the ransom for every new believer who enters in over and over and over.

Blessings,

Sandee Wichkoski