I would love to Leo. My problem is that my spouse is following the WTS suggested Bible reading so as to finish reading the entire Bible in ??? long. I forget how long it takes the WTS to cycle through the entire Bible. It's at least a couple years.
I was thinking something along these lines (I know there's a lot of Bible text pasted her, but I highlighted the parts that count for this exercise):
1 Chronicles 21: 2 So David said to Jo´ab and the chiefs of the people: “Go, count Israel from Be´er-she´ba to Dan and bring it to me that I may know their number.” 3 But Jo´ab said: “May Jehovah add to his people a hundred times as many as they are. Do they not, O my lord the king, all of them belong to my lord as servants? Why does my lord seek this? Why should he become a cause of guilt to Israel?”
4 The king’s word, however, prevailed over Jo´ab, so that Jo´ab went out and walked through all Israel, after which he came to Jerusalem. 5 Jo´ab now gave the number of the registration of the people to David; and all Israel amounted to a million one hundred thousand men drawing sword, and Judah four hundred and seventy thousand men drawing sword. 6 And Le´vi and Benjamin he did not register in among them, because the king’s word had been detestable to Jo´ab.
7 Now this thing was bad in the eyes of the [true] God, and so he struck down Israel. 8 Consequently David said to the [true] God: “I have sinned very much in that I have done this thing. And now, please, cause your servant’s error to pass away; for I have acted very foolishly.” 9 And Jehovah proceeded to speak to Gad, David’s visionary, saying: 10 “Go, and you must speak to David, saying, ‘This is what Jehovah has said: “There are three things that I am directing against you. Choose for yourself one of them, that I may do it to you.”’” 11 Accordingly Gad went in to David and said to him: “This is what Jehovah has said, ‘Take your pick, 12 whether for three years there is to be a famine; or for three months there is to be a sweeping away from before your adversaries and for the sword of your enemies to overtake [you], or for three days there is to be the sword of Jehovah, even pestilence, in the land, with Jehovah’s angel bringing ruin in all the territory of Israel.’ And now see what I should reply to the One sending me.” 13 So David said to Gad: “It is very distressing to me. Please, let me fall into the hand of Jehovah, for very many are his mercies; but into the hand of man do not let me fall.”
14 Then Jehovah gave a pestilence in Israel, so that out of Israel seventy thousand persons fell. 15 Moreover, the [true] God sent an angel to Jerusalem to bring ruin to it; and as soon as he began bringing the ruin, Jehovah saw it and began to feel regret over the calamity; and so he said to the angel that was bringing the ruin: “It is enough! Now let your hand drop.” And Jehovah’s angel was standing close by the threshing floor of Or´nan the Jeb´u·site.
16 When David raised his eyes, he got to see Jehovah’s angel standing between the earth and the heavens with his drawn sword in his hand extended toward Jerusalem; and David and the older men, covered with sackcloth, at once fell down upon their faces. 17 And David proceeded to say to the [true] God: “Was it not I that said to make a numbering of the people, and is it not I that have sinned and have unquestionably done bad? As for these sheep, what have they done? O Jehovah my God, let your hand, please, come to be upon me and my father’s house; but not upon your people, for a scourge.”
------------------------
Alright, I see this as a good opportunity to say something about the fact that Jehovah will punish the sheep if they follow the lead of an erring ruler. Even if you're in Jehovah's organization you can't assume your leaders are always right and that Jehovah is backing all their decisions. You must be responsible for yourself before Jehovah. I'm not sure that the average Israelite could have somehow not been counted but the account does say that the tribes of Benjamin and Levi did not register, so perhaps an average Israelite head could have not registered as well.
