This passage is often misinterpreted as a blanket rule against accepting free gifts or donations for ministry, such as land or resources for church building, ignoring its specific context of atoning sacrifice where the offering must personally cost the sinner to signify true repentance; others wrongly view David's stance as prideful stubbornness or rejection of generosity, rather than principled integrity in worship, or extend it legalistically to modern tithing practices without regard for grace and the New Testament emphasis on cheerful giving.
I Chronicles 21:24
King James Version (1769)
24 And king David said to Ornan, Nay; but I will verily buy it for the full price: for I will not take that which is thine for the Lord, nor offer burnt offerings without cost.
King David refuses Ornan's offer to give the threshing floor for free, insisting on paying full price because he will not present to the Lord an offering that costs him nothing or belongs to another, embodying the core truth that authentic worship and sacrifice to God require personal investment, sincerity, and cost from the worshiper, reflecting a heart fully committed to honoring God's holiness rather than seeking cheap devotion.