At that time when David saw that the LORD had answered him in the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite, then he sacrificed there.

1 CHRONICLES 21:28KJV
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1 Chronicles 21:28 (KJV)

What does 1 Chronicles 21:28 mean?

1 Chronicles 21:28 describes how David, after seeing that the LORD had answered him at the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite, chose to offer sacrifices there. This moment marks David’s recognition that God’s presence and favor were shown at that specific place.

The verse comes after a dramatic event where David built an altar on Ornan’s threshing floor to stop a plague affecting Israel. David is the main figure, responding to God’s answer to his prayer. The setting is Jerusalem, and this verse highlights the importance of this location, which later becomes the site of the temple.

The Hebrew behind 1 Chronicles 21:28

  • "Threshingfloor" (גֹּרֶן, goren): This word refers to a flat, open area used for separating grain from chaff. Its mention here is significant because it is not a traditional altar site, showing God’s willingness to meet David outside established places of worship.
  • "Answered" (עָנָה, ‘anah): This word means to respond or reply, often in the context of prayer. The verse emphasizes that God’s response was clear and direct at this location, confirming His acceptance of David’s sacrifice.
  • "Sacrificed" (זָבַח, zavach): This verb means to offer a sacrifice, usually an animal, as an act of worship. David’s action here is a response to God’s intervention and signals the importance of this site for future worship.

Why 1 Chronicles 21:28 matters

  • This verse explains why the threshing floor of Ornan became a central place of worship, setting the stage for Solomon to build the temple there.
  • It clarifies that God’s presence is not limited to traditional or established sacred spaces, but can be revealed wherever He chooses to respond to faith and repentance.
  • The verse ties together the themes of divine mercy, answered prayer, and the establishment of a new, significant worship site in Israel’s history.

Where else these words appear

“Ornan” Hebrew H771 · used in 10 verses

  • 1 Chronicles 21:15 And God sent an angel unto Jerusalem to destroy it: and as he was destroying, the LORD beheld, and he repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed, It is enough, stay now thine hand. And the angel of the LORD stood by the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite.
  • 1 Chronicles 21:21 And as David came to Ornan, Ornan looked and saw David, and went out of the threshingfloor, and bowed himself to David with his face to the ground.
  • 1 Chronicles 21:24 And king David said to Ornan, Nay; but I will verily buy it for the full price: for I will not take that which is thine for the LORD, nor offer burnt offerings without cost.

“threshingfloor” Hebrew H1637 · used in 36 verses

  • Genesis 50:10 And they came to the threshingfloor of Atad, which is beyond Jordan, and there they mourned with a great and very sore lamentation: and he made a mourning for his father seven days.
  • Ruth 3:14 And she lay at his feet until the morning: and she rose up before one could know another. And he said, Let it not be known that a woman came into the floor.
  • 1 Chronicles 21:21 And as David came to Ornan, Ornan looked and saw David, and went out of the threshingfloor, and bowed himself to David with his face to the ground.

“Jebusite” Hebrew H2983 · used in 39 verses

  • Genesis 10:16 And the Jebusite, and the Amorite, and the Girgasite,
  • Joshua 9:1 And it came to pass, when all the kings which were on this side Jordan, in the hills, and in the valleys, and in all the coasts of the great sea over against Lebanon, the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, heard thereof;
  • 2 Samuel 24:16 And when the angel stretched out his hand upon Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed the people, It is enough: stay now thine hand. And the angel of the LORD was by the threshingplace of Araunah the Jebusite.

“sacrificed” Hebrew H2076 · used in 127 verses

  • Genesis 31:54 Then Jacob offered sacrifice upon the mount, and called his brethren to eat bread: and they did eat bread, and tarried all night in the mount.
  • 1 Samuel 1:21 And the man Elkanah, and all his house, went up to offer unto the LORD the yearly sacrifice, and his vow.
  • 2 Chronicles 15:11 And they offered unto the LORD the same time, of the spoil which they had brought, seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep.