Sunday, 11 October 2026
That Which Costs Me Nothing
3 min read
The Primary Text
“And the king said unto Araunah, Nay; but I will surely buy it of thee at a price: neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the LORD my God of that which doth cost me nothing. So David bought the threshingfloor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.”— (KJV)Read 2 Samuel 24 in full →
The Lexicon
חִנָּם (chinnam) — Adverb
From the Hebrew חִנָּם (chinnam), from chen (favour): without cost, gratis; and by extension, without cause or for nothing. Semantic force: The word covers both a thing obtained free and a thing done for no reason. Its sense of emptiness runs in both directions — costing nothing, and therefore meaning nothing. Theological depth: David refuses to give God what has cost him nothing. He is not buying favour; he is refusing to let an offering be a gesture, which is the distinction the whole sacrificial system rests on.