Farewell, King Arawna : The Threshing Floor of the Ark (2 Sam. 24)

Abstract

The “threshing floor of Arawna” (or Araunah, Orna, Ornan) appears in the story about the altar built by King David to stop the plague (2 Sam. 24: 16b–25) caused by his census (2 Sam. 24:1–16a). It forms part of the so-called appendix to the book of Samuel (2 Sam. 21–24). There are many original interpretations of 2 Sam. 24, and the related 1 Chron. 21 and 4QSAMa. Studies treat the textual and literary aspects in detail and attempt to interpret the possible implications for the history of early Jerusalem, the Jebusites, the origins of the Jerusalem Temple, the figure of King David, and more. In this article, an alternative interpretation of the story about the “threshing floor of Arawna” is offered, which avoids plagiarism – at the price of losing the hero.