begged for God to deal with him directly instead of with the people. God finally relented of His plague as He had promised. David made a burnt offering for his sin according to Old Testament law.  God told David how and where to make the offering to Him through the prophet Gad. David went to the threshing floor of Araunah (Ornan in I Chronicles 21) to acquire it to make the offering.
  Araunah said "take it, it is yours to use." But David said "No I will surely buy it from you for a price, for I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God which cost me nothing." David knew the cost and knew that if he had freely taken for his offering God would not have honored his sacrifice. Buying a sacrifice was acceptable under the old law so buying the sacrifice as well as the field and other things needed would not be unlawful.
God honored His promise to David and answered by sending fire from heaven onto the altar as I Chron. 21 says.
    God may have been displeased with David and caused much sorrow in Israel but He forgave David for his sin as he made his sacrifice. David finally got around to counting the cost after he caused the trouble for the people. He knew his sacrifice must cost him something or it was meaningless.
    We have been told to count the cost in our own discipleship.
Luke 14:26-35.
Just as king David needed to have priorities and count the cost in regard to these priorities we need to have priorities. Setting the right priorities in this situation would have kept David from the terrible cost in lives in his kingdom. In the same way setting the wrong priorities for ourselves may cost us dearly. In Luke Jesus gives us the priorities. Vs 26. In comparison to Jesus Christ we must hate everyone and everything else. That doesn't mean we do hate everyone else but just in comparison to the love we are to have for Jesus. We must love God and keep His commands to know that we love the people of God, I John 5:2. Next we must determine what is involved in the cost. Both verses 26 & 27 indicate a sacrifice is needed of our own lives. Jesus wants us as disciples wholly devoted to Him and His word. Discipleship is like building a tower; each layer of brick is built with a cost of some kind. Vs 28-30. We either give up something or we are acquiring something, as we are being discipled in the Lord.
We give up the old ways and the old habits as we complete our tower of discipleship or gospel tower if you will. Again, we acquire knowledge of how to please and obey the Lord. Just as building and finishing the tower involves sweat, hardships and cost; for us to finish the spiritual tower involves hardships and a cost of some kind. When the tower is finally finished we will see our rewards.
      But what if we don't complete the tower? We might save some of the cost and hardship but we will be defeated. Those who quit either in the physical or the spiritual things will open themselves up for ridicule and dishonor. I would not want to stand in God's presence having quit the gospel tower.
    Vs 31-32, Great army generals did not give up quickly. They counted the cost and won the battle. Athletes compete for a wreath it says in I Cor. 9:25 but we an imperishable one. The rewards of completing our gospel tower far outweigh the costs.
  Vs 33  We are to give up our old ways and our old life to become disciples of the Lord. This is part of the cost of discipleship of the Lord. Why is it so hard for some to forsake their old sins and rebel