Halakhah do Samuela II 24:10

Particularly perplexing is the fact that King David apparently ignored the prohibition against counting the populace despite the protestations of Joab (II Samuel 24:1-4 and Chronicles 21:1-3) who demanded, "Why does my lord require this thing? Why will he be a cause to trespass to Israel?" (I Chronicles 21:3). Joab was indeed correct in opposing the undertaking of a census as indicated by Scripture: "And God was displeased with this thing; therefore He smote Israel" (I Chronicles 21:7); "So the Lord sent a pestilence upon Israel from the morning even to the time appointed; and there died of the people from Dan to Beersheba 70,000 men" (II Samuel 24:15). David himself conceded his guilt saying, "I have sinned greatly in what I have done … for I have done very foolishly" (II Samuel 24:10; and, with minor variation, I Chronicles 21:8).¹⁴Cf., however, Abarbanel, Exodus 30:12, who maintains that the misfortune which was visited upon the populace following David’s census was a punishment for their treasonous conduct in supporting Sheba ben Bichri. Abarbanel’s interpretation appears to be at variance with both Berakhot 62b and Yoma 22b as well as contrary to the plain meaning of these scriptural verses. See R. Ben-Zion Uziel, Mishpetei Uzi’el, Inyamin Kellaliyim, no. 2. Biblical commentators have advanced a variety of theses explaining the nature of David's error. A number of halakhic ramifications flow from those diverse explanations.