compared with census-taking in the Bible
January 6, 2010 (Wednesday)
This is the year of the census in the United States. When everyone has been counted, statistics will be recorded, categorized and put to use in many ways. As I think about our national census, my mind goes wandering through the Bible, examining each census recorded there.
The first census in the Bible was described in Numbers 1, and its main purpose was to determine how many potential soldiers Israel had, as they prepared to conquer Canaan. The final count of men over the age of twenty was more than 600,000. Moses conducted the census because God commanded him to do it.
The second census was quite different. David conducted it and God was very displeased and angry about it. David seems to have been prompted by a feeling of pride and ambitious curiosity. Because he did this to determine his own power and to trust in it, his action offended God. God punished David because of the census. (2 Samuel 24, 1 Chronicles 21).
The third census mentioned in the Bible was conducted by the Roman Emperor and required registration in the proper city of a person’s family heritage. Therefore Joseph and Mary were in Bethlehem, David’s city of origin, when Jesus was born because they were descendants of David. Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem fulfilled ancient prophecy, well-known by Israel.
(Matthew 2, Luke 2).
People were counted for various reasons at other times in the Bible, but to the best of my knowledge, these three are the ones that involved the entire population.
I recall memorizing in grade school the 1930 population of the United States: 122,775,046. The 2010 census will reveal a multi-cultural nation with a much larger population (estimated July 2008: 304,000,000 plus), presenting new challenges to the church to “sing the Lord’s song in a strange land” (Psalm 137:4).
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Chart of U.S. population 1900-1999
Chart 1790-2000