16 David lifted his eyes and saw the angel of the LORD standing between heaven and earth with a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell facedown.
17 David said to God, "Was it not I who gave the command to count the people? I am the one who has sinned and acted wickedly. But these sheep, what have they done? LORD my God, let Your hand fall on me and my family, but do not let this plague remain on Your people."
18 Then the angel of the LORD ordered Gad to tell David to go up and build an altar to the LORD on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
19 So David went up in obedience to the word that Gad had spoken in the name of the LORD.
20 When Ornan turned and saw the angel, he and his four sons who were with him hid themselves, but Ornan continued threshing wheat.
21 As David came to Ornan, Ornan looked and saw David. He went out from the threshing floor and bowed down before David with his face to the ground.
22 David said to Ornan, "Let me have the site of your threshing floor so I can build an altar to the LORD on it. Sell it to me at the full price, so the plague on the people may be stopped."
23 Ornan replied to David, "Take it! Let my lord the king do whatever pleases him. Look, I will give the oxen for burnt offerings, the threshing sledges for wood, and the wheat for the grain offering—I give it all."