1 Chronicles 21:8
And David said unto God, I have sinned greatly, because I have done this thing: but now, I beseech thee, do away the iniquity of thy servant; for I have done very foolishly. And David said unto God, I have sinned greatly, because I have done this thing: but now, I beseech thee, do away the iniquity of thy servant; for I have done very foolishly.
The verse is David's recognition that numbering Israel was a great sin against God and a very foolish act, in which he humbly confessed his guilt and pleaded for God to take away the iniquity of His servant. The census was driven by pride and ambition, expressing misplaced confidence in military strength rather than trust in God. The numbering itself was selfishness, an attempt to make Israel a numbered, local and national possession and to shut out the rest of God's family. His confession followed his conviction of sin and came before the census was complete. Yet his repentance also came after the Lord's word of judgment had already gone forth.
The verse belongs to the account of David offering burnt offerings and peace offerings to stay the destroying angel's sword, and the sacrifice turned aside the sword. God answered David by fire from heaven at the site later chosen for the temple. The sacrifice offered at Ornan's threshing floor was a symbol of the Saviour's sacrifice and mediation for guilty people.
That same selfish sin is repeated in every age when people try to make a monopoly of eternal life and confine heaven's gifts to one sect, rank, or class. Against that exclusive spirit, eternal life is as unconfined as air and water, with no nationality, tribe, or clan with God, and is free to all the world who receive Christ as a personal Saviour.